IDENTIFY THE KEYBOARD thread

[Scottex]

Bought this for 20€ shipped. Thought it was a rebranded Zenith but couldn't find an exact match. Label says ACR - American Research Corporation. Thanks!

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FK-555

[Daniel Beardsmore]

Probably right -- the Pro/Podworld version is a little different (the images are now loading again).

[Keybug]

Thanks for chiming in. The distinction is hard due to the lighting / shadows on the pencil shelf, but NumLock LED in the centre seems a clear sign:

Thank Christ for FK-555! Then I might be in for a treat. Been hunting blue Alps for a long time now. Failing that, are Omrons any good? If I don't like them, do Omron boards sell for a decent price?

[Chyros]

Thanks for chiming in. The distinction is hard due to the lighting / shadows on the pencil shelf, but NumLock LED in the centre seems a clear sign:

Thank Christ for FK-555! Then I might be in for a treat. Been hunting blue Alps for a long time now. Failing that, are Omrons any good? If I don't like them, do Omron boards sell for a decent price?

Omrons are like a more extreme version of Alps. More tactile and even MORE loud. They are extremely unreliable though.

If you manage to get cyan Omrons at least you can boast of having some of the rarest switches out there :p .

[Keybug]

It'll be just my luck to get Omrons then. Recently I paid $$ for an old Coicony, feeling sure it had to be blue Alps but got lemon Mitsumi miniatures instead, which I couldn' even press without a lot of effort. Got an old Zenith numpad last week though and am amazed by the linear white Mitsumis it has - very smooth. I guess they have to be really clean inside, like Alps.

Well, here is anothoer I have my eyes on - what is it, pray? Could those be black Alps?

$_1-1.JPG (34.95 KiB) Viewed 5607 times

[Chyros]

Linear Mitsumis in a Zenith numpad? Oo

[Keybug]

Pictures and the link are down, but someone describes it here: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=13333.0.

Mine doesn't have any labelling and I haven't opened it up yet, put it does have the extremely short cord and it was originally offered as an auxiliary to an old Zenith laptop. Maybe Zenith just OEMed these to go with some of their laptop models. Guess I'll just have to take a look inside...

Chyros, been meaning to ask if you wanted to do a review of an almost NIB Fujitsu Peerless board with really smooth operation - perhaps to revise your former verdict? I could send it to you (in the UK?) for free if you get it back to me afterwards.

[Chyros]

Pictures and the link are down, but someone describes it here: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=13333.0.

Mine doesn't have any labelling and I haven't opened it up yet, put it does have the extremely short cord and it was originally offered as an auxiliary to an old Zenith laptop. Maybe Zenith just OEMed these to go with some of their laptop models. Guess I'll just have to take a look inside...

Chyros, been meaning to ask if you wanted to do a review of an almost NIB Fujitsu Peerless board with really smooth operation - perhaps to revise your former verdict? I could send it to you (in the UK?) for free if you get it back to me afterwards.

Well I'm doing reduxes for all my earlier videos including the FKB4700, so it might be good to have a better one to compare it to . I don't live in the UK anymore, though, I live in the Netherlands now .

[Keybug]

No prob. Will be shipping from Germany. PM?

[Daniel Beardsmore]

I'm still frustrated that I can't recall the condition of the larger keys before I cleaned mine, i.e. do the larger keys bind because they're rubbish, or because I washed away all the lubricant? It's not the best-feeling keyboard in the world (a bit mushy) but it's not terrible either. I can't type on mine at all any more as the space bar is stuck — something went wrong reassembling the lousy stiffener (a bit of bent wire wrapped around something instead of a proper spring).

[pixelheresy]

Not entirely sure what this is, but very cheaply priced here in Sweden (locally too).

IBM KB-8926, perhaps? That is what I am guessing from pouring through images on Google. I heard they are decent for a rubber dome.

Confirmations?

[Keybug]

Got the Fokus FK-555 today. Blue Alps! )

[Chyros]

Got the Fokus FK-555 today. Blue Alps! )

Noice! How are you liking them?

[Keybug]

Hard to tell as the keyboard is still hidden in the garage to be smuggled into the house at an opportune moment (wife doesn't appreciate owning more and more keyboards at all!). But, man, I've been yearning for a blue Alps board for at least half a year now without success. Last week I almost spent 130€ on an Acer KB102 with Acer 8088 PC, now blessedly I spent only 10€ on the Focus! Good times!!

[Scottex]

Great man, don't forget to post pics

[stratokaster]

Not entirely sure what this is, but very cheaply priced here in Sweden (locally too).

IBM KB-8926, perhaps? That is what I am guessing from pouring through images on Google. I heard they are decent for a rubber dome.

Confirmations?

Yes, very decent indeed. I used to have an earlier model (without the Windows keys) and I thought it was more pleasant to type on than Cherry MX Black.

[subcat]

The feet on this remind me of something ALPS, but I can't put my finger on what...
http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/9DIAAOSwz ... -l1600.jpg
http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/reUAAOSwS ... -l1600.jpg
http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/HNkAAOSwy ... -l1600.jpg

[Daniel Beardsmore]

It's SK-8831B-1U, a variant of SK-8801B-1U: http://www.utensilia.tk/silitek_sk-8801b-1a/

Silitek's patented dome with slider design.

[emdude]

I'm wondering if this is a rebrand of some Chicony or Monterey keyboard. A SIIG EasyTouch, I'm not familiar with it. The layout looks familiar, but I can't place my finger on where I've seen it before.

[pixelheresy]

Don't know, but sounds plausible, but at the same token, the EasyTouch moniker makes me think it's rubber dome or dome with slider. If it's dirt cheap, it may be worth the venture, but from what I see, and especially since Chicony and others a very generic from the outside, I'd try to get info.

If eBay or a classified, I at least ask if they have a picture of the back, so you can get a part number.

[emdude]

The seller will not provide info. Still, I found this: other-external-f66/great-interesting-fi ... ml#p207604

It does indeed appear to be a dome w/ slider board, with Alps-mount keycaps.

[Chyros]

If those switches are on that board, it's Monterey dome with slider.

[pixelheresy]

Its always worth checking, but if they are not forthcoming, nothing much you can do.

To tell you the truth, I *literally* just won an auction for a similarly generic looking keyboard that I id-ed as dome w/ slider, likely with Alps mount. ISO Eng layout with blue Thai sublegends. I did have a shitty picture of the back to go on, but even then, it's not always easy.

I think this is actually cool BAE layout with the \ | key below and a full sized backspace. What is left of the spacebar?

I personally haven't seen this precise layout. Looks the same as the linked ones.

Honestly, if it is sparse on info, it is probably cheap, I'm guessing. You can always roll the dice if the shipping doesn't break the deal. You could wind up with a board we haven't really seen and you have a decent looking (from here) keycap set.

[Daniel Beardsmore]

The keycaps may clean up well, and they're probably Tai-Hao double-shot, Alps mount.

These are possibly Monterey, and the SIIG badge works in favour of that as SIIG were a Monterey customer. (There are keyboards with switches that resemble Monterey dome with slider but not proven to be made by Monterey.)

[Keybug]

Does anyone know what this is? Thanks.

that.jpg (118.61 KiB) Viewed 5263 times

[Scarpia]

Looks Alps-y. Those fatty arrow keys are common on certain Datacomps with blue Alps SKCM; no idea if this is a Datacomp, but I'm sure others here will know.

[Daniel Beardsmore]

I recognised it immediately and I have no idea where I've seen it, or what it was :P

[Voyager]

Hi guys. I'm new on the forum and I need your help identifying this keyboard. The weird thing about it is that the layout is both Spanish and English. I'd never seen anything like it. The label has been removed so there's nothing to see on the back. It's semi-mechanical and it feels great to type in it.
Photos: http://imgur.com/a/sav51
Thanks!

[Daniel Beardsmore]

wiki/Acer_6310_series

[Voyager]

wiki/Acer_6310_series

Thank you!