Cherry’s new switches may help bring mechanical keyboards to more laptops
techcrunch.com
techcrunch.com
At my desk, I use a USB version of the same laptop keyboard and mouse that's on my laptop: https://download.lenovo.com/km/media/images/PD026745/tp_comp...
Of course, some people enjoy mechanical keyboards simply because they just like... jamming the keys down as hard as possible and hearing loud noises, I support? And we all do that sometimes, I guess. But... that is definitely not the point of those mechanical keys.
I learnt to type on real mechanical typewriters, where some considerable force was needed. It's taken some time to relearn gentler typing.
I’m always baffled when I see pepole absolutely hammer their keyboards. My hands hurt just thinking about it. Or just using bad keyboards at all. Our careers and hobbies rely on our hands so much that its a no brainer to optimise for their wellbeing, even if the keyboard is a tad expensive.
But I’m obviously a fanboy now, and I’m sure not everybody loves them as much as I do...
I typically have my own Jones is at home and a keyboard in the office (maybe I’ll buy my own second kinesis some day as not all employers provide me with one) and use the laptop keyboard when I’m not at my desk (at home or in the office).
FWIW, first result after searching for “keyboard spacer”
These have been around for seven or eight years.
There are new Kailh low profile switches and keycaps, and I'm guessing they'll be better than what I've been using (most recently, Gateron Clears). But it's definitely a case of trying to emulate a chiclet keyboard with a mech one, which isn't what I thought my goal would be when I started out with mechs.
However, the frustrating part is that some keys occasionally fail to register. Left shift being one of them; some of my ampersands turn into sevens (and, it just dropped the n in "into") -- particularly frustrating when I mean to background a command.
The "God we all miss them", "real" keyboard on my W520 does not exhibit this.
This T430 does have the backlit keyboard; I understand it's from the parts supplier (I forget which, offhand) that tends to have more "wobble" in their keys. That may be part of it.
People focus SO much on the internals of these machines. For fuck's sake, start by putting good keyboards and displays in them. I don't care how fast it runs, if it's a pain to use and its ergonomics slow me down.
I don't mind "cheaper", "thinner", "cooler" (style), whatever laptop designs. I DO mind the trend towards that being the only thing I can buy.
I don't have a T25, yet, but I may. And I hope there's a T26 or whatever they call it, and so on.
(And then, I'll dream about an open BIOS and a machine that is really mine, in terms of its computational functionality.)
https://www.amazon.com/Goldtouch-GTP-0044-Mobile-Keyboard-US...
It's even worse when a coworker/housemate/other person has one. I swear that sound is not impeded by walls.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherry_(keyboards)
Look at the column "Clicky".
However, it is possible to make the sounds less severe by touching them lighter. And on the Razer device these are Cherry MX Black with silencer. There's Cherry MX Brown if you need a more silent switches. If it was my choice, I'd use Cherry MX Blue (or, well, Green, as it resembles the old IBM keyboard the best)...
Personally, the sound of keyboards doesn't bother me (though I wonder the effect on TEMPEST). I just get annoyed by sounds from mobile phones in general. Especially if it keeps occurring all the time while the user is using the phone. Pointless IMO. "Look at me, I'm popular." I find it rude when people cause noise in public (such as a restroom, or a train/bus), be it they're on the phone or having a phone which generates noise. The exception I got to that is children. I have compassion for children, tho its the parents who should solve the problem that isn't always practical.
I support you guys’ decision to getting screened for the spectrum. In the meanwhile, do check out the Wikipedia page for Misophonia.
I have a form of it, where I can’t eat around people because the “chewing sound” they make is absolutely rage inducing. Similarly, one of my friends has a form of it where the sound of someone cracking their knuckles enrages her just as similarly, and she will start bawling, not crying, bawling for a good while. Neighter of us have a reason (or memory thereof) to associate these sounds as triggers.
So, while I’m not a medical anything, I do suggest checking out that page, at least to quench your curiosity. For some added context, I do suffer from other auditory ailments, as well as ADHD. A link between misophonia and different mental sicknesses is suspected, however there is almost no research on this subject, leave alone one that’s looking for links. YMMV.
EDIT: typos; on mobile
I don't think that this will bring a (clicky,) tactile MX switch to thin and light ultrabooks which are (imho) more suitable for coding.
As an ergodox user, I'd also be really interested in a mobile low-profile Atreus, but I need more keys, at least like an Atreus64.
Personally, I shift the letter keys out to the sides by 1, so the pinky's only have 1 column to deal with, and there 2 extra rows in the middle. This also has the effect of rotating the wrists outwards even more - comfy!
As it turns out, I don't even need the full 62 keys (and have even pulled 8 keycaps off!). Depending on your preferred layout, you might also get away with <60 keys.
But a low-profile variant would be nice :)
But maybe an atreus64 would be better (if it existed) because I would like some more thumb keys like my ergodox.
https://deskthority.net/wiki/Cherry_ML
I have one G84 and it's nice and "silent". But it's a pain to find compatible keycaps:
I cant wait to see how that turns out.
I like the short travel and low force of most laptop keyboards but I really hate the flimsy spongeyness of them... they aren't proper switches like cherries so they have a tendency to be wobbly, inconsistent and spongey. Over time this gets worse.
I'd really like it if I could keep the low travel and low force but have it smooth consistent and non-spongey.
Honestly, typing experience wasn't too different to a real mechanical keyboard.
If somebody has done this before, I would love to try such a keyboard.
(This is just my personal experience. 30 years ago I was diagnosed with carpal tunnel, and I change my keyboard every 6 months. Never had it since!)
>The best thing to do to deal with carpal tunnel is to change your keyboard out every few months.
N=1. Expensive solution. More likely alternative explanations.
Sometimes the simplest solution is the best one.
Yeah. Which is exactly why if the benefit is being aware of your hand posture you're better off just sticking a note on your keyboard than buying a new one every few months.
That was my whole point!
Besides, keyboards are cheap... cheaper than therapy and drugs and all the other hassle. This really is the simplest, cheapest solution. And no, I don't buy the 'woo woo hand wavy' aspect you imply - I believe that having different geometry to deal with, keeps my hands from becoming accustomed to the repetition of previous keyboards, and thus it exercises my hands in a different way - and it is the difference that matters, above all else, to keeping RSI away ..
Except a sticky note.
Was the approach of changing your keyboard periodically recommended by a medical professional? Or by something you read?