Senior Fullstack JavaScript Developer with a passion for creating testable, maintainable, scalable codebases.
Specialising in Vue.JS, React, Node.JS, TypeScript, and Vanilla JavaScript.
Location
London, UK
Work
Senior Fullstack JavaScript Developer @ Studio Rotate
Great post, I use a 2014 Macbook Pro keyboard at work and I actually really like it. I have a Corsair mechanical keyboard at home and I honestly can't get on with it, I make a lot more mistakes with that keyboard than I do with my Macbook.
I'm tempted to purchase a new keyboard soon but I don't know what I would get, I love the customisability of some of the mechanical keyboard like Pokers etc. but if the feel is anything like my Corsair then it's not going to work well for me.
Also the newer Macbook keyboards feel really odd to me and I don't think I would be able to use that comfortably.
Interesting. For me it is the other way around. I love my Corsair Strafe on my dekstop but I cannot get used to the flat keys with lots of spacing around on the Macbook.
On the other hand I am really fast on the Microsoft Surface Pro keyboard where there is almost no space between the keys.
Undoubtedly you've discovered that the keyboard you like is based on the size of your hands. The width of the palm, and length of fingers makes some keyboards better feeling than others. As mentioned in the article, your personal preference is everything.
One thing to note: Once you find "the perfect" keyboard, try and figure out WHY it's perfect. Is it key spacing, is it key sizes, is it the vertical travel, and is it the noises (lack of noise) it makes that makes it perfect. If you can pin down those things, then it's much easier to purchase a notebook/keyboard over the internet without trying it.
I love the customisability of some of the mechanical keyboard like Pokers etc.
Hmm, most (good) mechanical keyboards allow easy layout changes by moving keys around. I never had a Pok3r though.
The Unicomps have two-piece keys, you can remove/exchange all keycaps without removing the keys themselves, maybe that's an option for you? ;-) (Yes, I really like mine.)
Senior Fullstack JavaScript Developer with a passion for creating testable, maintainable, scalable codebases.
Specialising in Vue.JS, React, Node.JS, TypeScript, and Vanilla JavaScript.
Location
London, UK
Work
Senior Fullstack JavaScript Developer @ Studio Rotate
It's not so much the layout that I like the customisability of as the case, keycaps, colours, cables etc.
A lot of the stuff you see on reddit.com/r/mechanicalkeyboards looks great and really appeals to me but after my experience not really finding my Corsair mechanical keyboard usable I'm hesitant to invest the money in one.
The poker allows for some customization, but you cannot get full control unless you change the firmware, which has risks.
For example, right alt and space makes the fn, pn, right control and right shift behave like arrow keys, and this behavior cannot be changed. However, this combination is for the character _ in bepo, which you type pretty often while coding, so that causes frequent problems.
Sounds like you maybe like lower travel, low profile mechanical keyboards (like me) hexgears X1 Kickstarter, Unfortunately it ended today, but “cooler master” and others are releasing very similar models at the end of the year
Senior Fullstack JavaScript Developer with a passion for creating testable, maintainable, scalable codebases.
Specialising in Vue.JS, React, Node.JS, TypeScript, and Vanilla JavaScript.
Location
London, UK
Work
Senior Fullstack JavaScript Developer @ Studio Rotate
Great post, I use a 2014 Macbook Pro keyboard at work and I actually really like it. I have a Corsair mechanical keyboard at home and I honestly can't get on with it, I make a lot more mistakes with that keyboard than I do with my Macbook.
I'm tempted to purchase a new keyboard soon but I don't know what I would get, I love the customisability of some of the mechanical keyboard like Pokers etc. but if the feel is anything like my Corsair then it's not going to work well for me.
Also the newer Macbook keyboards feel really odd to me and I don't think I would be able to use that comfortably.
Interesting. For me it is the other way around. I love my Corsair Strafe on my dekstop but I cannot get used to the flat keys with lots of spacing around on the Macbook.
On the other hand I am really fast on the Microsoft Surface Pro keyboard where there is almost no space between the keys.
Undoubtedly you've discovered that the keyboard you like is based on the size of your hands. The width of the palm, and length of fingers makes some keyboards better feeling than others. As mentioned in the article, your personal preference is everything.
One thing to note: Once you find "the perfect" keyboard, try and figure out WHY it's perfect. Is it key spacing, is it key sizes, is it the vertical travel, and is it the noises (lack of noise) it makes that makes it perfect. If you can pin down those things, then it's much easier to purchase a notebook/keyboard over the internet without trying it.
Hmm, most (good) mechanical keyboards allow easy layout changes by moving keys around. I never had a Pok3r though.
The Unicomps have two-piece keys, you can remove/exchange all keycaps without removing the keys themselves, maybe that's an option for you? ;-) (Yes, I really like mine.)
It's not so much the layout that I like the customisability of as the case, keycaps, colours, cables etc.
A lot of the stuff you see on reddit.com/r/mechanicalkeyboards looks great and really appeals to me but after my experience not really finding my Corsair mechanical keyboard usable I'm hesitant to invest the money in one.
Indeed. Cable choices are quite rare, sadly. :-( It must be too expensive to make them removable...
I'm rather clumsy when handling anything that's hardware, so I'm out from most of the stuff on reddit. :))
The poker allows for some customization, but you cannot get full control unless you change the firmware, which has risks.
For example, right alt and space makes the fn, pn, right control and right shift behave like arrow keys, and this behavior cannot be changed. However, this combination is for the character _ in bepo, which you type pretty often while coding, so that causes frequent problems.
Sounds like you maybe like lower travel, low profile mechanical keyboards (like me) hexgears X1 Kickstarter, Unfortunately it ended today, but “cooler master” and others are releasing very similar models at the end of the year
That looks awesome, I'll definitely investigate low profile mechanical keyboards! Thanks.