Cherry G80-1813
 | |
| Branding |
Dolch Cherry |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Cherry |
| Layouts | Cherry G80-1800 |
| Keyswitches |
Cherry MX Blue (earlier models) Cherry ML (later, low profile models) |
| Interface | PS/2 |
| Years of production | 1990s |
This keyboard is a variant of the Cherry G80-1800 family. Most keyboards found have been an integrated part in Dolch PAC computers, but a Cherry G80-1813HFU keyboard has also been found in a regular Cherry G80-1800 case.
The switches are PCB-mounted Cherry MX Blue, with a Cherry MX Green switch for the space bar.
The keycaps are made of double-shot moulded ABS in Dolch's colour-scheme of medium and dark grey, and have white legends. The key profile and font is the same as Cherry's other double-shot keycaps. Because of the popularity of these keycaps, the keyboards themselves now fetch a higher price on the second-hand market than the rest of the Dolch PAC units that most of them came with.
Contents
Cherry G80-1813
White case, like a regular Cherry G80-1800 keyboard. The keyboards has (so far, out of a Dolch case) only been spotted as winkeyless US-ANSI (Cherry G80-1813HFU).[1]
Dolch
Dolch Computer Systems made a series of "luggable" PCs with special-purpose hardware and software for sniffing wired communication networks for testing purposes. The keyboards cases were made to mate to the side of the computer, covering its LCD screen.
Dolch used Cherry as an OEM for the keyboards for several variations of the Dolch 486, and the PAC series: Dolch PAC 60, PAC 61, PAC 62, PAC 63, PAC 64 and for some Dolch PAC 65. The mechanical keyboards were labeled G80-1813HFX on the circuit board, and are in effect winkeyless G80-1813 keyboards with a different case and cable.
Related keyboards
Dolch 65 is the last in the series to have been found with Cherry MX switches. Other Dolch 65 had instead low-profile keyboards like their successors. Some late Dolch keyboards have Cherry ML switches in Dolch's colour scheme and a touchpad. Others have been reported to be black with a pointing stick.[2][3]
There is also an older variant of Dolch computers where the keyboard has Cherry MX switches but where nothing else was made by Cherry. That keyboard's keys are thinner with pad-printed legends in the same colour scheme, except that some legends are red.
Variations
Some Dolch PAC 65 keyboards (Cherry MX or scissor-switch) also have a trackpoint above the numeric key pad. Trackpoints are cyan, like the cyan field in the Dolch logo.
Layouts that have been spotted so far are: US-ANSI, UK (ISO), German (ISO), Italian (ISO) and Spanish(ISO). Although some computers are from the Windows 95 era, none has Windows keys.
Case
The Dolch keyboard's case is sturdier than Cherry's and is practically flat but has retractable feet if inclination is desired. The controller is located above the function keys instead of under the main PCB. Unlike other G80-18xxs, the keyboard's LEDs are on a separate circuit board connected with wires to the LEDs original position on the controller board.
Cable
All keyboards speak the PS/2 protocol. The PAC-60 has a detachable PS/2 cable. The PAC-61 and upwards have a instead a cable with a (telephone-style) modular connector; it is not directly detachable from the keyboard, but ends in a modular connector inside the keyboard's case.
Keyboards without trackpoints have a 4P4C connector. The pins are GND, +5V, kb data, kb clock (in order on the keyboard's side). Dolch PAC-65 keyboards with trackpoints have a larger modular connector and cable.
Key cap replicas
Several Dolch-lookalike key sets have been made by keyboard enthusiasts, including a Moogle kit for the use of Dolch keys with more common layouts. The colour of the alphanumeric keys matches Signature Plastics colour code 'GE', and the colour of the modifier keys matches colour code 'GX'.
The most notable are the keycaps group order from Signature Plastics by 7bit, such as the "Round 3", and Round 3 - style key caps in Round 4. However, 7bit's rounds have centred legends and in Signature Plastics' font, not Cherry's. The profile of the bottom row keys is different, but otherwise practically the same.
Gallery
Dolch PAC-486 w/ CardioDynamics Branding
G80-1813HFU from PAC-486
Closeup of Keycaps
G80-1813HFU PCB from PAC-486
See also
References
- ↑ Deskthority — G80-1813 HFU Posted 2012-07-20. Retrieved 2024-04-17.
- ↑ Geekhack — DOLCH PAC-6x sniffers and Cherry blues? Posted 2010-03-03. Retrieved 2024-04-17.
- ↑ clien.net — 나의 키보드 돌치 (G80-1813 / dolch pac 65 (Korean) Posted 2021-07-04. Retrieved 2024-04-17.
