Mechanical keypads, keyboards & controllers for games

[IanM]

After using a decent mechanical keyboard, it's quite frustrating to use cheap keyboards and controllers, so none of the gaming oriented keyboards and keypads (Logitech G13, Belkin n52te, Wolfking Warrior et al) are satisfactory. Sure there are a handful of mechanical gaming keyboards, and compact mechanical keyboards that will do the job, but the standard keyboard layout isn't the best possible layout for gamers e.g. do we really want W offset from ASD? and even a tenkeyless keyboard is overkill most of the time - how many games need 88 keys?

Is there a mechanical gamer's keypad in existence? If not, what would do you think be the best compromise?

[sixty]

After using a decent mechanical keyboard, it's quite frustrating to use cheap keyboards and controllers, so none of the gaming oriented keyboards and keypads (Logitech G13, Belkin n52te, Wolfking Warrior et al) are satisfactory. Sure there are a handful of mechanical gaming keyboards, and compact mechanical keyboards that will do the job, but the standard keyboard layout isn't the best possible layout for gamers e.g. do we really want W offset from ASD? and even a tenkeyless keyboard is overkill most of the time - how many games need 88 keys?

Is there a mechanical gamer's keypad in existence? If not, what would do you think be the best compromise?

Ripster and a lot of Koreans have modded the Nostromo pads to use Cherry switches. This mod is apparently quite easy to do, even though it looks very messy. Check it out:

http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?t=7425

[Moneyless]

Plenty of games use more than 88 keys, like various simulators or Garry's Mod and the like.

Apart from ripster's modded Nostromo N52 with Cherry MX switches over at GH, I can't say I've seen any mechanical keyswitch "gamer pads."

Edit: Looks like I wasn't quite quick enough to post a link to ripster's Nostromo.

[IanM]

The n52 mod looks interesting although the pad isn't my ideal layout. Will definitely read the blog and see if it gives me any ideas. I wondered about building something from scratch, but it's unlikely I would see it through.

As for games using lots of keys, I agree that there are plenty of exceptions - I can't see WoW types giving up their full size keyboards with dozens of programmable macros. Interesting that you mention simulators - the flight sim and racing fans are blessed with a range of exceptional (and expensive) specialised peripherals, yet other gamers are still fobbed off with 'rubbish.' For a long time I've felt many manufacturers are totally out of touch with the games industry and players, too often patronising us with silly lights and gimmicks that appear to be aimed at children, despite the average gamer now being an adult.

[sixty]

You can always use a POS type of numpad for gazillions of possible macros. Until recently I had one of these gigantic things:

http://keyboardporn.com/mx-switch/tipro ... -keyboard/

More than enough possible macros for anyone! Also external numpads work well for some extra keys. I made a guide on how to use them in combination with your existing numpad without messing up keys:

http://deskthority.net/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=11

[joeqj]

Yeah, my gaming keyboard just doesn't live up to my standard anymore.

Although I love all the macros on it

[gorb]

I've never played a game where I needed more keys than were on a standard keyboard...and what's wrong with an offset wasd? I guess I can't hate on somebody wanting a straight wasd since I've never tried it, but I do just fine with your average keyboard.

[IanM]

WASD works, we get by OK but: clean design from scratch, you're making a tool to play games - would you offset the equivalent of the W key? It makes no sense to do it, as all it does for gamers is force the middle finger into a less comfortable position. If electronic keyboards were invented today, without any previous history of mechanical typewriters, would the rows be offset at all?

Using standard keyboard keys is probably a nonsense anyway for a purpose built game controller.

[gorb]

Well I would imagine straight keys would be really shitty to type on, the staggered rows work perfectly.

I can see your point about a purpose built game controller but if that game controller is a keyboard would you really want to have to swap em around just to play games? That seems counter-intuitive.

[nanu]

Speaking of offsets, the lazy bastard in me wants ESDF to catch on.
Why shift the hand over from "home row?" Unless I am mistaken, WASD users don't actually use their pinky there do they?

[IanM]

Well I would imagine straight keys would be really shitty to type on, the staggered rows work perfectly.

I can see your point about a purpose built game controller but if that game controller is a keyboard would you really want to have to swap em around just to play games? That seems counter-intuitive.

I don't know about the straight keys layout being shitty to type on, there are a few keyboards that do it, but perhaps neither a straight layout or the traditional offset is optimal for typing? We are so used to the traditional layout it's hard to imagine typing on anything else, but I'll bet people have thought about this and discussed it in depth many times previously, so maybe one of more knowledgeable keyboard enthusiasts will have some thoughts on that.

Maybe swapping devices around would be a little more hassle, but I would really like something more compact than a keyboard for playing games, and more optimised to the job. I don't think it would be too inconvenient to have mouse + keyboard + controller, especially compared with the dedicated racing wheels or flight controllers that require a lot of set up.

Speaking of offsets, the lazy bastard in me wants ESDF to catch on.
Why shift the hand over from "home row?" Unless I am mistaken, WASD users don't actually use their pinky there do they?

You can just reconfigure ESDF anytime in 99% of games?

I do use my pinky for in game movement modifiers: caps, shift, ctrl, |\ (the extra key next to z in ISO layout)

[ripster]

Quite easy to do? Is it true Koreans learn to use a CNC Milling Machine in middle school?

[ben]

A separate mechanical ten key could do the trick if an extra column or two were added to the sides.

How about we start a 10key wiki?

[IanM]

I looked at split keyboards and some of the industrial keypads in the past. There are some interesting ideas, but in the end I concluded that the form factors still aren't close enough to ideal, particularly given the prices.

X-Keys programmable pads, the mid size one actually has a ready made WoW pattern. The price is huge, and I felt the layout is not ideal for the majority of games. X-Keys products & alternative URL These are also somewhat bulky.

Indukey have some 30 key pads, but they are also bulky (and expensive) Indukey product search for "030".

Frogpad is interesting, but perhaps not enough keys under the thumb and pinky. Not sure about the switches on these either: Frogpad homepage