Apple Aluminum Wired Keyboard MB110LL/A by Apple Computer
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Digital camera reviews of Apple Aluminum Wired Keyboard MB110LL/A
Digital camera Review: Apple extended keyboard is great
Summary: 5 Stars
The only thing that could make this keyboard better is if it were wireless and had a touchpad built in.Digital camera Review: Apple finally gets it right. (or at least good enough)
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm a real hard-ass when it comes to keyboards. I think most keyboards available now are pretty terrible; spongy, vague key feel, too much force required, crappy feedback. That makes them hard to type on quickly, and tiring to use.
My favorite keyboard of all time is the original Apple Extended keyboard from 1989 or so, model M0115. It was this huge tank of a keyboard, weighed about 5 lbs., big, bulky, but had a fantastic key feel. It was easy to type fast on it. The pressure required was light, but definite, you *knew* when you'd hit the key by feel. But unfortunately they stopped making it, and they were ADB keyboards so an ADB to USB adapter is necessary to use them with a modern computer. Every keyboard they've made since then were worse, sometimes a *lot* worse.
Until now. This is a completely different keyboard, the keystroke is very short, the body thin, the dimensions smaller in all respects, while still being a full sized keyboard. I was skeptical that a keyboard with such a low profile design could possibly have a decent keyfeel, but it does. Pressure required is light, but there's a crisp, tactile "pop" or "bump" as the key falls into its "pressed" position. There's no doubt that I've pressed the key. Because of the lighter weight, I had to adjust my typing some (I was pressing too hard), but now that I have I really like this keyboard.
It has a few imperfections though:
- What used to be an "insert" key (just above "delete", to the left of "home") is now a "fn" key. This is annoying because if you run X-windows, "shift-insert" for "paste" doesn't work anymore, and the "fn" can't be remapped with xmodmap. Most people remap F13 to "insert" for this, which is ok, but not ideal. Obviously this doesn't matter at all if you're using a Mac.
- It seems to behave poorly with KVM switches. At least it behaves poorly with my cheap KVM switch. Sometimes the Mac won't recognize the keyboard, sometimes it will. The PC will usually recognize it, but not always. I never have that problem with other keyboards. It could be a
- The USB ports on the keyboard don't seem to be able to support very much power, which makes them only useful for a mouse. I haven't done much testing on that.
- No "power" key, but that's more of a problem with Apple hardware I believe, I think (but I'm not sure) the "power on from the keyboard" went away with ADB keyoards. If not, and it's still technically possible, Apple really should put it back and include a power key on the next generation of this keyboard.
Digital camera Review: Apple keyboard
Summary: 5 Stars
Love IT! Key action and profile are much better than the original equipment keyboard that came with the computer. Looks more techie too.Digital camera Review: Apple keyboard
Summary: 2 Stars
This keyboard looks stylish and sleek to behold. The main problem arises once you start typing words. Many letters get skipped and some of the keys need some extra pressure to register while typing. This looks great but poor performance.Digital camera Review: Apple keyboard
Summary: 4 Stars
This product is very thin and is a great size for any small desk space. It is very lite weight and is durable.