Noppoo tease a very familiar capacitive switch design

[Muirium]

Um… Elite Keyboards is US based. In fact, they're California based, which is a bit of a pain for sales tax.

Europe is the place with shitty Topre coverage. We have the Keyboard Company whose prices are startlingly insane ($300 for a base Realforce including our higher tax) and the selection is greatly inferior. You can't even buy an HHKB in Europe. That's why I imported, as everyone does. Mostly from EK no less!

[zslane]

Yes, and I was planning to buy their keycap holders when they became available. I dismissed them before because they don't sell Filco, and virtually no full ANSI-sized boards of any kind. They do carry Topre, but only one model is in stock from what I can tell. That's only one model away from not carrying the brand at all. Things may be "worse" in UK/EU, but it can't be by much.

[Hypersphere]

You mean the Just Systems HiPro of my dreams?

Spoiler:

It's awkward to buy, but far from impossible. (Japanese proxy service) Tenso could probably handle it. I used them with great success for my HHKB Type-S, bought from Amazon Japan for a great deal less than Elite Keyboards price, all included.

Of course, you'd have to learn to love JIS. Those extra mods! That itty-bitty PBT spacebar! Mercy.

There is another tasty HiPro out there that's the hardest of the bunch to source. It's a Korea-only exclusive for Leopold, the HiPro 104UK:

Spoiler:

Not the easiest, let alone the cheapest, thing to get hold of, that one! But I think it is ANSI, which is a plus. Albeit with multilingual Korean + English legends.

The RF 104UK HiPro can be requested from "widebasket", a S. Korean vendor on eBay. The most recent price I have seen is 340 USD + 35 USD shipping. Not cheap, but apparently available. It is a beautiful board. I wish it were available in a TKL or 60% form factor.

[Muirium]

It's way too much money for me to even consider it.

That's largely because of Leopold, by the way. Keyboards are crazy costly in Korea! The JustSystems HiPro (which I like the look of even more than the cream Leopold HiPro) costs a lot less, simply because it's sold in Japan instead of Korea.

My HHKB Type-S benefited from that domestic Japanese pricing, too. Japan is *the* place to pick up Topres at sensible prices.

[cookie]

Even there they are pricy but worth the money if you like them (which you will becasue of quality, hype )

[Muirium]

I've seen a few Realforces in Japan for true bargain price. 002 sometimes spots them on Yahoo Auctions or the like and shares a link. Even new in box or straight from a retailer. If I was a keyboard nerd based over there, I'd have a Topre stash the size of my IBM mountain!

Amazon Japan's regular prices are pretty damn good besides.

[002]

There's actually a NISSHO KB106DE on yahoo auctions right now for 23 EUR
http://page10.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/a ... m138062022

[Muirium]

See what I mean! So, uh, how do we aquire that for Deskthority? We need spherical Topres for a tour. /I wouldn't mind looking after it!

[002]

Sadly I don't think it will go for 3000 yen but it would definitely be cool to have one tour! I'll keep an eye on it.

[Muirium]

Thanks! That would be an intriguing board to try, indeed.

[_PixelNinja]

Reading the last pages is a danger for my wallet... Ugh.

[Muirium]

Danger of damping rings or danger of HiPro?

[_PixelNinja]

Danger of going further down the Topre rabbit hole...

[Muirium]

But it's such a nice rabbit hole, and not nearly as neverending as the Cherry one…

[zslane]

Hmm. What's this?

A plain brown box containing...?

trf104uk_1.jpg (89.16 KiB) Viewed 7849 times

A box of bubble wrap.

A block of bubble wrap?

trf104uk_2.jpg (90.26 KiB) Viewed 7849 times

No, its a keyboard. A Topre RealForce no less.

Ah, a keyboard. Topre RealForce in da house!

trf104uk_3.jpg (102.77 KiB) Viewed 7849 times

Now this looks promising.

The label reveals the treasure within.

trf104uk_4.jpg (64.93 KiB) Viewed 7849 times

Yep, just like it says on the label.

Topre RealForce 104UK "Hi-Pro" NIB

trf104uk_5.jpg (72.88 KiB) Viewed 7849 times

Topre RealForce 104UK "Hi-Pro" NOOB

trf104uk_6.jpg (78.15 KiB) Viewed 7849 times

Another viewing angle.

trf104uk_7.jpg (90.68 KiB) Viewed 7849 times

This angle I call the Mμ Shot...

trf104uk_8.jpg (79.76 KiB) Viewed 7849 times

Apologies for the low-grade iPad photos, and for the minor thread-jack.

I find it amusing that they provide a keypuller in the box. What keycaps do they imagine I'm going to replace these with?

[Muirium]

Wut? It doesn't even come with a Control and Caps Lock key swap? Next you'll be saying they didn't include a dayglo WASD.

That colour combo is quite luxurious. I know the exact shade of the box, and my white 87U is so pale in comparison.

Anyway, time to ruin you on MX for life!

[_PixelNinja]

I find it amusing that they provide a keypuller in the box. What keycaps do they imagine I'm going to replace these with?

Just feel lucky they did not decide to throw in one of those PFU style keyscratchers.

[Muirium]

Actually "the Topre tongs" are pretty good if you use them right. I was skeptical at first, used to my wire pullers, but the slide-in-from-the-side technique is better for large caps. Especially if you have two sets of tongs! I got them with my Realforce and the spare HHKB cap set I bundled with my Tenso order.

Now, about that ABS spacebar…

[zslane]

Would you throw the color scheme off by installing a pure white spacebar just to have PBT?

[_PixelNinja]

Actually "the Topre tongs" are pretty good if you use them right. I was skeptical at first, used to my wire pullers, but the slide-in-from-the-side technique is better for large caps. Especially if you have two sets of tongs! I got them with my Realforce and the spare HHKB cap set I bundled with my Tenso order.

Now, about that ABS spacebar…

I'd take wire keypuller any day over those abominations. On some keyboards there is no way of using them without causing mayhem because of the space between the caps and the case of the keyboard.

[Khers]

Ohh, what do we have here...

Very nice indeed zslane! Your first taste of Topre? What do you think of it?

I'd go for the most complementing if you decide to go for a PBT spacebar. I guess that means red. But should ideally be accompanied by a red Esc or similar, like the one on the JUST Systems board.

[zslane]

Ohh, what do we have here...

Very nice indeed zslane! Your first taste of Topre? What do you think of it?

Can't really say yet. I haven't spent any meaningful time with it. What little I did experience was...interesting. Compared to the soft linear feel of MX reds that I've become so accustomed to lately, the Topres feel odd. And this is not exactly a Type-S, so naturally they make a little noise on the up-stroke. Only time will tell what I really think of it.

I'd go for the most complementing if you decide to go for a PBT spacebar. I guess that means red. But should ideally be accompanied by a red Esc or similar, like the one on the JUST Systems board.

Interesting idea. I will have to give that some thought. But where does one get just a red 108UW Escape key? Trade perhaps?

[Khers]

Yeah, I know where you're coming from. Topre was hardly an instant hit for me either, but after using it for a couple of days I had a hard time going back to Cherry. They felt scratchy in comparison to the smoothness of Topre.

If you think it's too loud, there is always Hyper's silencing rings

[Muirium]

I've said it before and I'll say it again:

Topre is a subtle switch. A point that comes up again and again. Beware the meh! But once you've gotten into their flow, like after a long evening session of busy typing, they're magnificent. The opposite of so many chintzy clicky switches (MX blue I'm looking at you) that make you smile the first time you meet them, but get tiresome when you're really getting things done.

I don't think Matteo's PBT spacebars are even the right shape for HiPro. Anyone tried them on one?

Now, I wonder how much this beauty cost…

[cookie]

how about a HiPro Europ tour?

[seebart]

how about a HiPro Europ tour?

I'd love that but zslane is not in the EU and we don't have a HiPro to go on tour!

[shreebles]

I find it amusing that they provide a keypuller in the box. What keycaps do they imagine I'm going to replace these with?

Well, they expect you, being a keyboard enthusiast, to love and care for your keyboard for years to come, and take it apart periodically, to wash the keycaps and dust under the switches every once in a while.

[Hypersphere]

@zslane: Beautiful board. I like the colors and the Korean legends give it an exotic flair. Where did you purchase this? Widebasket on eBay perchance? I'm eager to get your impressions of the particular combination of the switches and high-profile spherical keycaps.

BTW, I think that the HiPro keycaps cannot be used on a standard Topre board because of the differences in switch housings. Is this true?

[Muirium]

No.

[Hypersphere]

@Mu: Are you saying it is not true? That is, you can indeed put HiPro caps on a standard Topre board?

HiPro.jpg (101.9 KiB) Viewed 8037 times

I would have thought that the longer stem of the HiPro cap would wobble in the shorter housing of a standard Topre switch.

Oh, but wait -- although the housing is shorter in the standard switch, it appears that the bit the accepts the cap stem is the same length in both switches. Hmm....