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Comment by pdimitar | Hacker News Reader

Seconded. I bought pretty expensive Razer keyboard and mouse ~18 months ago. The keyboard started acting up after I spilled water on it 5-6 times. (And yes, I expect a $200 keyboard to be waterproof!)

Even without the water spills, the quality of the keycaps and the feel when typing gradually worsened after the first 11-12 months of usage. I am not opposed to paying $200 for a keyboard but I expect more durability for my money.

Ended up replacing it for ~$70 Chinese mechanical backlit waterproof keyboard that has been, and still is, the best keyboard I've ever used.

The Deathadder Chroma mouse is nice though. I used cheaper mice that I liked more both in visuals and performance but the mouse is passable. I don't think it should be that expensive for its quality but it serves me just fine for 15 months now and hasn't degraded in any way.

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In regards to the deathadder, it may be fixed with recent iterations, but the plastic piece that hits the actual button wears over time causing clicks to happen twice. The fix is to unscrew the mouse and get a (somewhat funny actually) razor blade and flatten out the tab. They should have used stronger plastic or a different design. I've never had a Logitech or Microsoft mouse do that. I'm just assuming they built that into their design so you'll buy another in a year.

And for the keyboard I have no idea what failed on them. Owned three over the years, all just stopped working at one point in their life.

I have zero issues paying for top quality. I believe it's fair for you as an OEM to charge more if you're better than the competition.

My issues start when the supposed top quality is surpassed by easy-to-find Chinese products on Amazon costing 40% of Razer's price. And when I say "surpassed", I mean it in literally every way. The keyboard I now use has better switches, is extremely realiable, her anti-ghosting capabilities are predictable and never failed, it survived spills of water, sugary drinks and hot drinks without ever missing a keystroke, and is still going strong after almost a year without any signs of wear and tear. Hell it didn't even get a scratch when I dropped a knife and fork on it!

I appreciate the DIY advice, thank you. I feel all of us have to become DIY experts over time because when OEMs see fit to push planned obsolence even in products like a keyboard and a mouse, we have to respond in kind -- repair your stuff and refuse the give money when the OEM tells you to.

Expecting a device not otherwise noted to be waterproof to be waterproof is odd, regardless of the price. My TV isn't waterproof and cost way more than $200. Might I suggest not putting drinks so near your keyboard? I've never spilt anything on mine.

Your analogy doesn't really work. TVs in similar price ranges have very similar features and pros/cons.

There are many good keyboards and mice out there -- waterproof & mechanical & backlit / waterproof & with precise sensors & backlit -- which cost less than Razer's and are more durable and with better quality overall.

It's very natural to compare products of different brands and quality and build expectations on what features one can expect for the $N price.

Yes, and expecting all expensive keyboards to be waterproof is as unusual as expecting other expensive devices to be waterproof. Your replacement keyboard is specifically marked as waterproof, so it seems you've found a way to get waterproof keyboards.

May I ask what the $70 Chinese keyboard is?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0196K1BZW/

If you search for "waterproof backlit mechanical keyboard", you will get a bunch of these (probably 20-30). Haven't looked in the US Amazon.

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