IDENTIFY THE KEYBOARD thread

[rich1051414]

Thanks. Meh @ space invaders. Not worth dealing with the RJ14

Space Invaders can be quite nice, but of course that's preference as ususal.

Well, I guess I should of said "Meh, linear space invaders". I have typed on one before, and they reminded me of cherry mx blacks, which I don't particularly like. I like some tactility.
So yeah, totally preference.

[thebluefox]

Hi! Which Cherry G80 is this? I am interested to know what switch is inside:

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[Keybug]

Very likely blacks or blues if it's not a G81 with MY switches. Only way to tell for sure is by looking at the letters in the model number.

[thebluefox]

I have never seen a G81 with contour arround the led lights... and the Win key together.

[Keybug]

Wow, I wasn't aware that design change was an absolute given. I guess the reverse is also true (i.e. no G80s without contoured LEDs)?

Still, I very much doubt one could tell the switch colour from visual clues only...

[thebluefox]

It was just an ascertainment, if I had known, I would have not asked.

[davkol]

This has just been posted on Reddit.

Ameritech branding, Cherry MX Brown, Devlin keycaps and stabilizer apparently, 105key UK ISO layout with custom function/navigation keys and Win95-logo Win keys.

Has it been documented anywhere?

[Daniel Beardsmore]

It appears to be a rare [wiki]Monterey K108[/wiki] variant (that's a K208 LED label) — no record yet of those having Cherry switches, but Monterey did switch to Cherry MX at some stage, as that is what they were using when I contacted them a few years back. Maybe Devlin subcontracted out the case to Monterey.

[Findecanor]

Hi! Which Cherry G80 is this? I am interested to know what switch is inside:

If the F and J keys have bars, it is more likely a G81-3000 keyboard with MY switches. G80 keyboards tend to have more deeply dished keycaps instead. There have been G80 keyboards with bars though, but then usually OEM.
I don't know if there exist G83-3000 with Windows keys - it would be a rubber dome in that case, with keycaps not compatible with Cherry MX.

[hansichen]

That sounds wrong. G80-1xxx boards came with doubleshot caps until the early 2000s but G80-3000 come quite often with bars. As the thin pbt caps are pretty modern this board won't have vintage blacks, so chances are that it has white my with maybe mx incompatible modifiers, mx blacks or mx blues, so nothing that's worth to spend a lot onto it. A G83 could be possible but I think that the thin pbt ones have the modern rounded case

[Keybug]

Great find in the mail today!

This has blue ALPS and monstrously thick dysesub (I think) caps - sadly rather yellowed. Could only get it to work in XT mode with a Soarer's, though, will have to investigate why it won't work in AT mode with a DIN adapter via PS/2. Very smoooooth blue ALPS action, all keys work!

Has anyone seen the likes of it (PCB from Gold Computers)? Googling didn't reveal anything...

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[Daniel Beardsmore]

Doesn't ring a bell. Nice of it to tell you that it has ' "ALPS" ' key switch "assmbled" though.

If it's yellowed, it's ABS, and that suggests pad printing or silkscreen printing, and the legends appear to be raised and gloss as expected. Hard to tell though.

Does anything inside have a date code (PCB, ICs etc)?

[thebluefox]

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Any idea about this one?

[hansichen]

1.5u escape and this space bar, this looks like a rubberdome which was made for Apple PCs.

[Findecanor]

It is not for Apple if it has Windows keys.
I have seen many BTC keyboards in that exact layout - except for the key in the top right and the wavy space bar.
Esc being 1.25u is usually a tell for BTC.

[hansichen]

Hehe, you're right. The top right key is so common for Apple boards and Apple clone boards that I missed the winkeys

[mike52787]

ttt.jpg

Any idea about this one?

dat curved spacebar... Ill say dome with slider or just straight rubberdome. I would pass.

[Polecat]

It is not for Apple if it has Windows keys.
I have seen many BTC keyboards in that exact layout - except for the key in the top right and the wavy space bar.
Esc being 1.25u is usually a tell for BTC.

Some Focus boards, dome and slider or Alps-type (FK-8000 for example) also had the 1.25 escape key. And Focus dome and slider often had a curved spacebar and the extra keys in the nav area. But I haven't seen a Focus with the extra key in the upper right, whatever it does. Gratuitous curves on the key caps and/or case usually (but not quite always) rule out mechanical switches.

[davkol]

There's also the Alps-mount APC spring over membrane with a similar spacebar.

[Polecat]

No curved spacebar, but this one may be related (edit: at least as to what that upper right key does):

http://www.ebay.com/itm/TURBO-TRAK-Turb ... ht_296wt_0

[Daniel Beardsmore]

Interesting. "KB-9001RE+" is rather Silitek-like, but HQK (FCC grantee) is Key Mouse. I already have a reason to believe that Silitek was an OEM for Key Mouse.

[ohaimark]

Does anyone recognize this switch?

[Daniel Beardsmore]

[wiki]Mitsumi simplified[/wiki]

[ohaimark]

Thanks!

[Keybug]

Anyone recognize the vintage board (2nd from bottom, of course)? I'm thinking definitely ALPS, likely SKCM blue as the accompanying monitor is dated 1988. Datacomp? very old Focus? The case also looks like one of the old Chiconies but I think none of them came in XT layout. Found a good many photos of similar-looking boards but none had the labelling strip. Thanks.

IMG_1508332245201_43064.jpg (107.7 KiB) Viewed 6569 times

[Myoth]

Anyone recognize the vintage board (2nd from bottom, of course)? I'm thinking definitely ALPS, likely SKCM blue as the accompanying monitor is dated 1988. Datacomp? very old Focus? The case also looks like one of the old Chiconies but I think none of them came in XT layout. Found a good many photos of similar-looking boards but none had the labelling strip. Thanks.

IMG_1508332245201_43064.jpg

I think it's a Packard Bell ?

[seebart]

Anyone recognize the vintage board (2nd from bottom, of course)?

Focus FK-727 or clone:

wiki/SKB-5150C

keyboards-f2/identify-this-keyboard-thr ... 5-540.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYwjGe2IBKs

[Keybug]

Thanks a lot, guys. Happy to finally get an FK-7... I think those double-stepped bottom row modifier caps are pretty typical of ALPS boards from that period (they same ones were on that Gold Computers board from my last post here) and rule out other switch mounts, hence this is no SKB-5150C, for example.

Looks like we really need a wiki page for this Focus model. Maybe once this one gets here...

[seebart]

Thanks a lot, guys. Happy to finally get an FK-7... I think those double-stepped bottom row modifier caps are pretty typical of ALPS boards from that period (they same ones were on that Gold Computers board from my last post here) and rule out other switch mounts, hence this is no SKB-5150C, for example.

Really? That's impressive knowledge that I don't think you really have to be honest but possibly I'm wrong. Stepped keycaps don't really confirm anything.

Looks like we really need a wiki page for this Focus model. Maybe once this one gets here...

If you have that Focus FK-727 you are more than welcome to create a wiki page for it (whatever switches it may have) with many great pictues I'll be looking foreward to that.

[Keybug]

I stand corrected. The Chicony KB-5160 has similar caps and several versions come with MX mount caps...