Where can i get HHKB Pro 2, is it worth it ?

[Ski11z]

Looking to buy a new keyboard, was going to go for the Das pro, but now i might just go for the HHKB pro2, where is the best place to find one and is it really worth it, i kinda find it hard to justify paying almost 300 dollars for a keyboard that's not even vintage, I'm sure production cost for it was no more than 1/4 the going price.

not because the hype more because of the layout and compactness, and i would even buy a bootleg version from China

[ozar]

You'll find that most of those that own them here at GeekHack.org do believe very strongly that they are well worth the money.

You can find new ones (and sometimes used ones) for sale on eBay.  Just do a search for Happy Hacking Keyboard and you should get a few hits.  You can also find them at Geekstuff4u.com, smartimports.net, and a few other places.

I'm strongly considering buying another one in the near future.

[bigpook]

dozar is pretty much correct. I have a black one now, but want to get a white one with characters before the year is out. Yes, they are worth it.
No, don't buy a "knock-off", even if one of these existed it would most likely be poorly made and a pale shadow of the original.

[bigpook]

Bigpook, if you buy another you have to try this:

http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?t=4051&highlight=hhkb+dip

- Ripster

Neat, for some reason I am thinking Oreo cookies. I need a glass of milk.

[ozar]

I've been having a hard time deciding whether to get another white one, or go for the black one so that I'll have one of each.  The white ones look better to me, but it does seem kind of weird to have two whites ones on hand, and not have a black one.

[bigpook]

I've been having a hard time deciding whether to get another white one, or go for the black one so that I'll have one of each.  The white ones look better to me, but it does seem kind of weird to have two whites ones on hand, and not have a black one.

For the sake of symmetry you will need two black ones.
At one time I preferred black over white. Now I am coming back around. For whatever reason the white HHKB with characters is visually appealing to me. I really don't know why.

[ozar]

No, don't buy a "knock-off", even if one of these existed it would most likely be poorly made and a pale shadow of the original.

I'll second what bigpook said there and also recommend that you don't try saving a bunch of money by going with the HHKB Lite, because it won't even come close to the Pro 2.

[ozar]

For the sake of symmetry you will need two black ones.

It's hard to believe that you can get $1100 to $1200 wrapped up so quickly in just four rather tiny computer keyboards!  :loco:

[IBI]

not because the hype more because of the layout and compactness

If you're just after the layout and aren't bothered about how it feels then there's the lite version, but that may still be fairly expensive depending on where you are (As you mention dollars I guess it's either Australia, Canada or the US).

There are plenty of other compact keyboards about, some a lot cheaper and you can always remap keys. Which part of the layout appeals to you?

[bigpook]

For me its the function key combo for the arrow keys and page up / page down.
escape and ctrl are where they need to be and the backspace key above enter is pretty nice too.

[anitract]

Some random notes...

I have only had mine for 3 days and am already contemplating a second to take to and from work (would never leave it there).  I really enjoy the feel of the keys and the sound is very soothing.  The size is perfect - I love being able to be centered with my keyboard and have my mouse so close as a result.

The key layout is also nice and I am already growing to love it over the standard layout.  Right now ctrl is throwing me the most...I keep wanting to go to the old location and end up hitting nothing but plastic.  The new backspace location is also slowing me down for now, but I think the new location will be better in the long run.

The only thing I miss is a number pad for excel...but I will be purchasing a stand-alone so no worries.

I purchased mine from geekstuff4you and had great, speedy service.  I think the keyboard is worth its weight in plastic and rubber...does my wife agree...not necessarily...although she absolutely loves the feel of the keys, which is a small victory in itself.

Anyway, good luck resisting this one...took me a couple of weeks to justify the cost before the purchase, but I am really glad I did.

[ozar]

lol... I couldn't resist buying another one either, so just purchased a new black one from stlensbar on eBay.

[rdjack21]

For the sake of symmetry you will need two black ones.
At one time I preferred black over white. Now I am coming back around. For whatever reason the white HHKB with characters is visually appealing to me. I really don't know why.

I'm thinking along the lines of what iMav did. One black and one white then swap the keys. Also some days I like the black (87U) and some days I like white (86U). So when I get around to getting one it will be one each plus a set of blank keys for each.

One thing I really wish I could get is a set of blank black keys for the 86U as I think that would look really cool. I actually will have to hunt around and see if I can find some.

[iMav]

HHKB Pro's....are...awesome....


(end of discussion)  

[Ski11z]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIfnRy0y50o
The comments are hilarious, can't believe it sounds that good.

[Ski11z]

If you're just after the layout and aren't bothered about how it feels then there's the lite version, but that may still be fairly expensive depending on where you are (As you mention dollars I guess it's either Australia, Canada or the US).

There are plenty of other compact keyboards about, some a lot cheaper and you can always remap keys. Which part of the layout appeals to you?

I really like the board alot after seeing a few videos, and it sound damn good too, i might just jump on this cause you guys seem to be all over it like crackcaine.

[bigpook]

Maybe its me but these videos sound like the microphone is jacked up. These HHKB's sound like they make a racket. In reality, at least for me, they don't.
Is it me? Or maybe these guys are just pounding on them.

Still a great keyboard though.

[Ski11z]

Where can i see some high res photos of it, i want to see right down into the cracks and crevices.

[ozar]

Regarding the sound of it, I have to agree with what anitract said above:

I really enjoy the feel of the keys and the sound is very soothing.  The size is perfect - I love being able to be centered with my keyboard and have my mouse so close as a result.

Ski11z, if you get one, the first thing that you will miss from the standard keyboard is the arrow keys.  It takes a couple of days to get used to using the Fn key and finding the arrow keys in a new place, but it happens pretty quickly.  Once you are there, all the full-size keyboards begin to stink a little.  :smile:

Check the Reviews section of this forum for some good photos of the HHKB Pro 2.

[ozar]

Maybe its me but these videos sound like the microphone is jacked up. These HHKB's sound like they make a racket. In reality, at least for me, they don't.
Is it me? Or maybe these guys are just pounding on them.

I went back and listened to more of the videos and some of them do sound like the mics might be jacked up a bit.  To me, hearing sounds from a video on the web are never quite the same as hearing them in person.

[bigpook]

I went back and listened to more of the videos and some of them do sound like the mics might be jacked up a bit.  To me, hearing sounds from a video on the web are never quite the same as hearing them in person.

yeah, its something that needs to be pointed out though. for someone that doesn't actually know; might end up being disappointed with how "quiet" it actually turns out to be.

[Ski11z]

Regarding the sound of it, I have to agree with what anitract said above:




Ski11z, if you get one, the first thing that you will miss from the standard keyboard is the arrow keys.  It takes a couple of days to get used to using the Fn key and finding the arrow keys in a new place, but it happens pretty quickly.  Once you are there, all the full-size keyboards begin to stink a little.  :smile:

Check the Reviews section of this forum for some good photos of the HHKB Pro 2.

Don't think i will, cause even right now i have a full corded keyboard with the arrow keys on the right and i don't use them, cant tell if i ever did actually, same with the number pad, even for gaming i use W,A,S,D keys.

Cant wait going to order it right now.

[rdjack21]

yeah, its something that needs to be pointed out though. for someone that doesn't actually know; might end up being disappointed with how "quiet" it actually turns out to be.

Yes I really agree with you here. When I got my Realforce I was expecting it to be allot louder than it was due to what I could hear on some videos and sound clips. It is really a "quite" board as long as you don't bottom out the keys. And even when you do the sound made is allot quiter than you would think.

[o2dazone]

If you don't mind me asking, where did you order it from?

[Ski11z]

If you don't mind me asking, where did you order it from?

Have'nt ordered yet i was going to checkout at Geek Stuff, but the shipping is 48 dollars, so i backed out, i am going to get it from ebay instead for 278 free ship.
If there are any more insight let me hear it before this train goes, anyone recommend the Happy Hacking Hard Case.

[ozar]

One thing for sure... if it should turn out that you don't like it, you shouldn't have any trouble selling it here, or on eBay.

[Blade Runner]

Hey all,

I've been lurking the boards for a couple of days now. I'm a new owner of a HHKB Pro 2.

Ski11z, it is a fantastic keyboard and I would highly recommend it. I had been debating whether to get one for a while, I'm glad I finally did.

[ozar]

Welcome to the forums, Blade Runner!

Glad to hear you are enjoying the new HHKB.  It seems like a lot of money for such a small package, but it's definitely worth it for those that get to know the board.

Have fun with it!  :smile:

[rdjack21]

If you don't mind me asking, where did you order it from?

Can I assume you mean where I ordered my Realforce from. I got it from crescent-shop which I would not recommend unless there is no other option. At the time I ordered mine there were no other options now you can get them other places that are much cheaper. When you order though a shopping service you have to pay a service fee which will really drive the price up. Personally if I was going to be buying another one I would get it from stlensbar over on ebay ( http://shop.ebay.com/merchant/stlensbar_W0QQ_nkwZQQ_armrsZ1QQ_fromZQQ_mdoZ ).

Wow he has the black HHKB Pro 2 listed now for $278 with free shipping to the US thats a good price. Man that is tempting but I better hold off for now. But I'm defiantly going to ask him about getting some blank keys for the 87U/86U.

[ozar]

Personally if I was going to be buying another one I would get it from stlensbar over on ebay ( http://shop.ebay.com/merchant/stlensbar_W0QQ_nkwZQQ_armrsZ1QQ_fromZQQ_mdoZ ).

Wow he has the black HHKB Pro 2 listed now for $278 with free shipping to the US thats a good price. Man that is tempting but I better hold off for now. But I'm defiantly going to ask him about getting some blank keys for the 87U/86U.

Yeah, that's the one I ordered from stlensbar earlier today.  I've not seen him around the forums for a week or more, though.  Hope he's able to ship it soon.

[rdjack21]

Yeah, that's the one I ordered from stlensbar earlier today.  I've not seen him around the forums for a week or more, though.  Hope he's able to ship it soon.

Yea I know what you mean. I was going nuts waiting for my 87U to ship. I ended up waiting over a week before it shipped ( I pre ordered it so I had to wait for them to become available ). Once you lay down the kind of money these boards cost you want it NOW not 2 weeks from NOW.

[nerp]

I might have to order one. I'm so in love with my unicomps, though, I'm not sure I really should. I probably will get one next year or something when I get my tasty tax refund. I bought a car this year so the tax credit should be enjoyable.

[ozar]

Yes, you should try one if you ever get the chance.

It's pretty hard to justify to someone that's never tried the HHKB Pro 2 just how it can possibly be worth the price for such a tiny little keyboard.  I suppose that it's possible that the manufacturers don't really even put that much money into their construction, but I don't know for certain either way.  What I do know is that I've tried a lot of different keyboards, and I've not felt any that feel any better, and none have had a key layout that's as good as the HHKB Pro 2.  They are heavier and more rugged than they appear in photos, as well.

Note that it takes a couple of days to realize the advantages and get a feel for it, so a simple trial of a few minutes might not be long enough to sell a person on the HHKB Pro 2.

[rdjack21]

Note that it takes a couple of days to realize the advantages and get a feel for it, so a simple trial of a few minutes might not be long enough to sell a person on the HHKB Pro 2.

That's pretty much the case with all quality keyboards. If all you have ever typed on is a cheap keyboard and you are used to spending $10 bucks for them any quality keyboard is hard to justify. But once you use one for a few days then go back to that cheap board your fingers will let you know immediately why good keyboards cost considerably more than that cheap board.

Where it really gets hard though is when you get a keyboard with good switches (Cherry, BS, Alps ect..) justifying moving up to the topre based boards is really hard. I mean lets face it topre based boards are expensive ( about 3x ) and that is hard to justify if you are farily happy with what you have.

What really pushed me over the edge is that most of those that do take the chance and get one love them. True there are some that don't like them for what ever reason. But they are by far the minority. Also start taking a look at peoples signature. What you will note is that those that have them generally have more than one. And if they do only have one they want another one. After making those observations I decided to take the plunge and got the 87U and if you take a look at my signature you will note that I have already acquired another one (86U).  Not only do I not regret paying 350+ for the 87U I'm more than willing to pay it again to get another one (Luckily for me I won't have to pay quite that much for the next one though).

Any ways I'm a very happy owner of two topre based boards and can't help but express how much I love them. Besides as has been said before if you are one of the minority and don't like them you can sale it here with out much problem. If it is a HHKB pro I may be the buyer Or for that matter any of the topre based board.

[nerp]

So maybe I'll get a Realforce. Ugh. I swear, this site is a scam. You all just work for these keyboard companies and slowly seduce us unsuspecting noobs who stumbled here looking for nostalgic Model M stories. I'll get you!!

[MANISH7]

slowly seduce us unsuspecting noobs who stumbled here looking for nostalgic Model M stories. I'll get you!!

rofl that is exactly what happened to me.

[MANISH7]

question for hhkb owners: is back space fn + delete? i'm not sure if i'd prefer that versus having just one button. also, it seems like they have only one fn key where 2 seems more convenient (although i've never used this kb so i can't be sure. maybe just one fn is fine).

[Busty]

question for hhkb owners: is back space fn + delete?

Yes, but you can use a dip switch to make it BS and use the key above [`] and fn as delet.
Another switch turns the left windows/mac key into a second fn.

I got mine for a week now and the layout is great.

[ozar]

Have'nt ordered yet i was going to checkout at Geek Stuff, but the shipping is 48 dollars, so i backed out, i am going to get it from ebay instead for 278 free ship.
If there are any more insight let me hear it before this train goes, anyone recommend the Happy Hacking Hard Case.

Ski11z, I've ordered a couple of boards from that particular seller on eBay without any problems, so you should be fine.  The orders arrived quickly, too.  My last one only took 4 days to go from Japan to the USA.  

I've never ordered the HHKB Hard Case, so don't know much about them or their quality.  I think some others here might have ordered one in the past, though.

Do let us know how you like your new keyboard once it arrives.