Unicomp financial issues

[wheel83]

the model m looks great with a beige set up. no doubt about it. its design is timeless. however its color is not. this isnt the 80 and 90s anymore.  everyones computer set-up these days is black.  and people obviously like black keyboards.

i am not one to talk though, as i prefer the old model m's and likes that it sticks out like a sore thumb.

[wellington1869]

The Model M DOES look dated because it is. The bastard sword is a timeless design because it can never be anything but what it is. A computer keyboard is not that way. And Unicomp's logo is like adding a green and blonde pompadour mullet to the top of the Model M. I think Unicomp doesn't need to be saved — they need to be stopped!

lol, blasphemy!  If there were other manufacturers of the bs switch then I'd say yes, put the sick horse down! But surely there must be a way to modernize the bs switch by wrapping it in a modern board...?

[Hak Foo]

The Model M DOES look dated because it is. The bastard sword is a timeless design because it can never be anything but what it is. A computer keyboard is not that way. And Unicomp's logo is like adding a green and blonde pompadour mullet to the top of the Model M. I think Unicomp doesn't need to be saved — they need to be stopped!

Sheesh... you put the keyboard=sword mental picture into my head.  The Model M is not a bastard sword-- it's one of those ridiculous swords, 120% the height and 200% the weight of a man, which only exists in the minds of manga artists and bad cosplay outfits.

And continuing the metaphor, I wonder if trying to sell the current Unicomp product line to the gamer market is like every weak manga plot where a 75kg hero is expected to swing said 200kg sword.  Maybe it doesn't work without manga physics.

Call me a snob, but I'd expect the most untapped market to be writers and programmers-- professional tools for professional work.  Give the sword to a swordsman.  This is a market which can be pursued with even fewer changes to the product mix, as the "corporate standard keyboard" can get away with being functional and not pretty.  Fund some questionable research.  If you can say "Lasts 10 times as long in heavy-duty usage, covers its cost back and then some", or "reduces strain caused by beating the keys down to get feedback", those are selling points.

Of course, I could well be very wrong here.  After all, the enthusiast-gamer market has kept nVidia and ATI in business for quite a while now.  However, if they're appealing to a non-business market, the sword dangling over Unicomp's head is that whatever patents they hold are probably running out pretty soon.  Any problems they have with gauging the much-more-fickle mainstream market is "buffered" by the lack of many directly competitive products.

I've thought about ordering a Customizer 104 since I came here, but honestly, if someone else sold a keyboard with the feel I've grown accustomed to from a 1391401 with some of the following:

* Gloss black and/or black-on-black stock finish.
* Media keys
* A few USB ports on the back so I can daisy-chain a mouse and tablet

I'd buy that instead almost certainly.  The cutesy story aside (I don't care that you're an American company or a small business, from the perspective of wanting a good keyboard) the only edge Unicomp has in my mind is that they're a known quantity-- I don't have to try to figure out "how will these type of keys feel" or risk tossing $50 into the ether only to get the wrong sort of switches.  When other buckling-spring choices appear, that's gone.

[xsphat]

the model m looks great with a beige set up. no doubt about it. its design is timeless. however its color is not. this isnt the 80 and 90s anymore.  everyones computer set-up these days is black.  and people obviously like black keyboards.

i am not one to talk though, as i prefer the old model m's and likes that it sticks out like a sore thumb.

Not everyone's computer is black these days. Computers, especially netbooks and gaming PCs, are offered in enough colors that seeing a red or green one isn't a big deal, and then there's Apple's computers ...

And the color isn't the issue here. The Model M's design looks old, and I do like the look of it, but I don't think public wants something that big, so for mass consumption Unicomp would have to make significant changes to the current case designs they have.

[xsphat]

The Model M is not a bastard sword-- it's one of those ridiculous swords, 120% the height and 200% the weight of a man, which only exists in the minds of manga artists and bad cosplay outfits.

You're awesome. I love it, I actually did laugh out loud.

[bhtooefr]

The thing is, there are other buckling spring choices, and they SUCK ASS. See those crappy Sheng Ya or whatever they're called keyboards.

And, any patents that Unicomp has except for POSSIBLY their implementation of a pointing stick are expired by now.

[Hak Foo]

The thing is, there are other buckling spring choices, and they SUCK ASS. See those crappy Sheng Ya or whatever they're called keyboards.

I didn't know there were other choices.  But I suppose "a keyboard that feels like a M" and "a buckling-spring keyboard" may usually intersect but not always.

From what I can tell from a brief scan, I don't think the Ya Sheng product was built or marketed as anything but "another generic cheap keyboard" though.

I suppose one asset Unicomp does have is a bit of "corporate identity pride".  They are the buckling-spring keyboard firm, pretty much, and if they blow that, there's nothing else for them to rest on, while if, for example Lite-On makes a lousy keyboard, they can just sell CD drives instead.  They can't afford to scrimp on the qualities that are their selling point.

[ozar]

Further confirmation regarding Unicomp and their financial status...

I just got off the phone with Jim Owens after ordering another Unicomp keyboard and he says they've been quite busy recently.  He seemed rather upbeat about everything as well, so I don't think they are dying off, at least not yet.

He said the new board might reach me as soon as Thursday or Friday, so we'll see how that goes.

[Chloe]

From what I can tell from a brief scan, I don't think the Ya Sheng product was built or marketed as anything but "another generic cheap keyboard" though.

They were cheap, but sold as "mechanical touch".

My main issue with the Ya Sheng/Can Tech is the inconsistency in feeling across the board. Keys are light and have overtravel, but some are more sensitive than others and don't always click, others feel mushy. So you are sort of forced to bottom out to compensate, which defeats the point of mechanical switches, at least to me anyway.