new member looking for advice

[silk186]

I have been using Microsoft ergonomic keyboards for a number of years and I'm on my second 4000 series. The cord is coming apart and I'm in need of a new board. I'm in the UK with high prices so I'm looking to buy a board from China. I do game but I'm also working on my PhD thesis so writing is important. I know that brown and red switches are the most highly recommended. I'm looking for my first mechanical keyboard in a TKL flavor.

What are peoples feelings on Cherry vs Kailh. I can get Kailh boards starting at 250RMB and Cherry starting at 450RMB.
I would like a detachable cable and backlighting if it can get turned off. Is the Ducky Shine 2 the obvious choice or should I look at some others? Some of these other boards sell in the thousands per month from the top sellers. LBOTS sell over 10k per month in China.

I will be buying from taobao and have found a few possiblilities, Candidate boards (£30-50/ 300-500 RMB):

Ducky Shine 2
CM Storm
The Razer BlackWidow TE
Rapoo KX
LBOTS
KEYCOOL
Noppoo Lolita spyder 87

[zts]

From your list, I'd skip Rapoo KX if you plan to type lots (as in typing your doctoral dissertation). The rest of the list is OK ... the most solid choice among them is Ducky. I'm sure some of those KBs can be bought via Amazon UK, which is probably much safer than Taobao. Personally, I'd stick with the genuine Cherry MX, but many don't mind clones. Good luck!

[silk186]

They are much cheaper buying from Taobao and having lived in China for 5 years I've never had an issue with my orders. a Ducky Shina will cost around £50 with brown switches and blue backlight, will it be noticlably better than the other boards that cost £25-35?

[zts]

They are much cheaper buying from Taobao and having lived in China for 5 years I've never had an issue with my orders. a Ducky Shina will cost around £50 with brown switches and blue backlight, will it be noticlably better than the other boards that cost £25-35?

that would be an easy answer if you'd know if you mind "clones" , but anyways:
- if you want genuine Cherry MX, then Ducky and CM are your choices. If the keyboard needs to be backlit, between the two, Ducky is more reliable (I had CM LEDs DOA and/or die after a few weeks ... maybe a bad batch of CMs)
- the rest of the list usually comes with the clone switches, usually Kailh or re-branded Kailh (Noppoo, Razer). Keycool many times comes with PBT keycaps, so it increases the value of your KB. The rest are using, basically, cheap throw-away keycaps. In the non-lit white versions Keycool always puts PBTs, Noppoo almost always ... dark colors are a bit trickier, usually ABS, backlit.

I guess you need to go to a store and try a few keyboards to make a good decision on what you like.

Re. Taobao ... I was just referring to some reports from Jan/Feb of this year:

when the SAIC first released a report showing nearly two-thirds of the products sold on Alibaba’s popular Taobao C2C marketplace were fakes. -- http://www.forbes.com/sites/dougyoung/2 ... dal-grows/

or this one:

Equally surprising was the fact that Taobao, the C2C trading platform operated by Alibaba, had one of the lowest rates of authentic goods among companies selected in the audit, at just 37.25 percent. -- http://www.youngchinabiz.com/en/interne ... -commerce/

My guess is that's probably resolved by now.

[Muirium]

Definitely look around if you can in China. You can learn more from a minute with a board in person than you ever can online.

Britain's a pretty lousy place for buying stuff (I'm there too) especially when it comes to the customs tax we pay, starting on painfully low valued imports (anything marked over £15 will get whacked with £10 of tax and fees). So getting stuff on holiday is a good move. Many of my best boards came that way, including this little HHKB here from Japan. A real premium board!

The trouble with backlit keyboards is their caps suck. High quality ones just won't let the light shine through in an appealing way. Here's a bunch I wrote about that when I had a Ducky Shine 3:

http://deskthority.net/review-f45/ducky ... t7130.html

[silk186]

A large percentage of stuff sold on Taobao is absolutely fake, however, the buyers know it is fake. Fake LV bags and iWatches that cost £20 are obviously fake and buyers know this. It is much harder to make fake computer components that are not obviously fake to buyers. This is why you need to read the item description CAREFULLY as well as reviews. Also, if the price is too good to be true take a close look at the product. I've never had an issue with electronics. Tons of fake/knock off clothes though.

That is interesting to know about the quality of the caps and back-lighting. I will go to China in August or September but I want to know more before I go.If I can find a shop with the different boards I will give them a try but it might not be that easy to do.

[zts]

When you go to China in Aug., try to find Varmilo keyboards -- absolutely the best Chinese-made Leopolds. The tenkeyless is of great quality and if you go even smaller, you may be able to find Varmilo's version of Leopold FC660M ... and it's freaking wireless Keycaps are super thick PBTs with the same plate cushioning Leopold is using, so it really has a luxurious typing feel. Highest quality in Cherry MX line. Maybe they have something with backlight ... not sure because most of the time I look for KBs without backlight.

[Muirium]

Aye, I can well understand what you're saying, Silk. China has an interesting attitude towards foreign intellectual property, for sure! Hopefully there's a good store there you can visit, but I don't know any myself.

Zts knows his stuff about good boards. If he likes the Varmilo, definitely consider it. And if it's wireless… yikes!

[silk186]

The Varmilo boards look good but they are over my budget. As a student paying tuition in the UK as a non-EU I really don't want to go over £50.

I will see if I can find a good store but I'm going to a smaller city so I'm not sure how my luck will be as this is a pretty specialised thing to look for.

[zts]

the backlight is adding some $10-20 on cheaper but decent boards. But Noppoo Lolita Spyder 87 RGB Rainbow light would be right in your budget. You may also want to check pricing on Rapoo V500s (this is a backlit version of V500 that is fully programmable KB; yellow Kailh).

[silk186]

the Rapoo V500s for £32
Noppoo Lolita Spyder 87 from £25 without or £35 with rainbow backlighting
or the ducky shine 2 for £50 with browns and blue LED

Has anyone on here had experience with the Noppoo Lolita Spyder 87, LBOTS or KEYCOOL?
LBOTS or KEYCOOL are top sellers domestically.