Comment by jrockway | Hacker News Reader

Comment by jrockway | Hacker News Reader

Japan does not always pick Japanese stuff over non-Japanese stuff. Perl seems more popular than Ruby, everyone uses Windows, OS X, or Linux, and so on.

I think the appeal of the iPhone is that it is marketed like a luxury good rather than a commodity, like the Japanese-made cell phones are. The Apple Store in Tokyo is in the super-ritzy Ginza district, after all. (Although the same is true in the US; the Apple Stores are always in the high-end retail districts, and the iPhone is a luxury where its competitors are faceless commodities that you "pay" ninety nine cents for every two years.)

Another thing I see going for Apple is that, it seems, people in Japan are actually willing to pay for consumer electronics. In the US, we go for whatever's cheapest (go to Best Buy sometime, not a high-end item in sight), but the Japanese seem to be more discerning. At least in my experience.

(I am typing this on a Y30,000 keyboard that was imported from Japan. The most expensive keyboard I can find on Amazon is $100, and only because it has a shit-ton of stupid bells and whistles, like LEDs and a text display. This keyboard is a regular 103-key keyboard without a numberpad. No lights, no display, no wireless. Just a good keyboard. Only in Japan...)

His article is a little weird. The Japanese have been into Americana products like Levis, work boots, boat shoes, surfboards and Harley Davidsons since the 70s. You can't get american made jeans or shoes in the US, but you can (for $800) in Tokyo.

Regarding electronics from the USA (China?), there simply have not been any worth buying until the iPhone and iPad.

I think that last bit was kind of the whole point.

I've never been to Japan so I can't comment on $800 US-made jeans. However, there are many high end japanese brands, and a lot of the ones that aren't use Japanese denim.

Oh, I think I can beat $100. Try $1,600: http://www.thinkgeek.com/computing/9836/

Of course, that's because it has a shit-ton of stupid LEDs. (don't it make you want one, though?)

This thread has proved useful, I may have to nab one of the keyboards mentioned... good keyboards are worth a lot IMO, given how much they'd get used.

> I am typing this on a Y30,000 keyboard

Wow! Which brand and model?

Topre Realforce 87U. (I also have two HHKBs, which are similar to the Realforce. I have not decided which I like better yet; same keyswitches, but different in many other ways.)

http://www.cvtinc.com/products/keyboards/prime.htm Alps, metal base, not $300. I've been using one for 9 years now.

I also have a "Siig MiniKey" or something acquired new in box from a cheap/used electronics reseller, with Alps switches.. for $5.

Actually my friend bought it on a whim. They had a huge crate of them there, all new in their boxes, recovered from a sell-off from some corporate warehouse or something. I got it from him later, when I saw it, and I could instantly tell it had Alps switches in it. He said it was only $5 so we ran back to the place immediately -- but someone had already scooped up the entire crate of them. The place selling them had no clue they were worth a bunch of money. Otherwise, I would have bought all of them myself. I guess someone else had the same idea as me.

Interesting. But to be honest, I don't really like the feel of Alps or Cherry keyswitches. I know they are well made, but not as well made as Topre. It's hard to explain, so I'll just say -- take apart a Happy Hacking Keyboard some day, and you will love Topre forever. I knew I sort of liked Topre keyboards until I did that, but afterwards, it was easy to buy another HHKB (for work) and a Realforce. They are just so well-made, that you can't not like them.

I'll have to check it out. I don't think I've used a keyboard with Topre switches since they are even more exotic than Alps, and I had assumed they wouldn't be much better.

Yeah, they are "rubber dome", which scares people away. (They have a rubber dome, but they also have a spring. And they are capacitive; you don't press the key all the way down to type the key.) They are like Cherry browns done right, tactile, quiet, and no requirement to "bottom out". Topre really goes over the top with the part of the key that presses the dome; hard ABS plastic, with anti-rotation tabs, and a shape that makes even off-center hits go straight down. (You can push the key from the side, instead of from above, and the key doesn't jam; it just slides down normally. It's really brilliant.)

Oh, and this is true of both the Realforce and the HHKB Professional; same switches, different layout.

I am intrigued by what you say, but I wonder how easy the Topre is to keep clean.

Of all the things in an ordinary office or home (including toilet seats and such) phone handsets and computer keyboards tend to have the most germs. One anti-germ measure I use is to replace my keyboard every year or so, but replacing the Topre every year is more than I want to spend. Replacing just the keycaps would control germs just as well as replacing the board, but where would I buy keycaps for a Topre?

Ha! I have the exact same, also imported from Japan. It's a lovely keyboard. :)

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