Apple MacBook Pro Scissor Switches vs. iPad Smart Folio Keyboard

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matt3o
-[°_°]-

13 Nov 2018, 19:19

well next year Cherry will release more low profile switches... so possibly some crazy gaming company could release a mechanical switch keyboard laptop (I know there are some already out there... but let's pretend they don't exist)

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Muirium
µ

13 Nov 2018, 19:25

Honestly, I’d like to see PC makers steer hard away from slavishly copying Apple and go exploring spaces modern Apple would never dare. Real keyboards. Real expansion. Real desktop class notebooks. I wouldn’t buy one—I’m not the audience—but they should exist! If Topre ever got around to it, maybe I’d be sorely tempted!

Speaking of mech portables. Everyone was at it, back in the day…

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The PowerBook ruined everything! Although I do love the look of the original.

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stratokaster

13 Nov 2018, 21:38

Muirium wrote: Honestly, I’d like to see PC makers steer hard away from slavishly copying Apple and go exploring spaces modern Apple would never dare. Real keyboards. Real expansion. Real desktop class notebooks.
I'm pretty sure you would like this one :lol:

Findecanor

13 Nov 2018, 23:03

Muirium wrote: Honestly, I’d like to see PC makers steer hard away from slavishly copying Apple and go exploring spaces modern Apple would never dare.
Credit Blame where credit blame is due: Apple had based a lot of the last ten+ years' design on design elements from Sony VAIO.
Sony was earlier with chiclet keys and wedge-shaped "ultrabooks".
Muirium wrote: Real keyboards. Real expansion. Real desktop class notebooks. I wouldn’t buy one—I’m not the audience—but they should exist!
I once hoped for Windows tablets to become real machines, with a proper amount of ports, but that never happened.
Instead we got two USB ports max, where one is for "charging"... sigh
If it had, I could have hooked up any mechanical keyboards I want.

Personally, I don't mind good low-profile scissor/domes. Classic ThinkPad keyboards were not perfect, but good enough for me to do a lot of work on them back in the day.

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madrobby

14 Nov 2018, 04:13

Findecanor wrote: Personally, I don't mind good low-profile scissor/domes. Classic ThinkPad keyboards were not perfect, but good enough for me to do a lot of work on them back in the day.
They had a strong innovation game, like the butterfly keyboard in the ThinkPad 701... but that’s now almost 25 years ago. :/

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Muirium
µ

14 Nov 2018, 09:37

I have actually played with laptops with MX (or compatible) keyboards, which I checked by pulling keys off right there in Fry’s. They’re not for me, that’s for sure. Numpads? Fuck off! But I like that they’re trying. Typing on glass is not for everyone either!

the_marsbar

14 Nov 2018, 10:16

When I discovered the world of mechanical keyboards (the HHKB) my view on what would be the optimal setup for me changed quite dramatically.

Before I bought my first HHKB, I had used as my main keyboards the ones in the MacBook Pros (from when they started having Intel processors, ~2007, to the retina MBP without touch bar, ~2015), and a wireless Apple BT keyboard (the small one) for my desktop machine. Actually I had been happy with this setup. I'm sure that If I hadn't seen the interview with George Hotz about comma.ai, I would still be happy to use the keyboards in those machines.

However, now that I strongly prefer using the HHKB, I mostly just place it on top of the MacBook Pro that I currently use, and in that scenario, I actually wish it looked more like a MS Surface. A type of laptop/tablet that I could not understand before, but which makes sense now. I would never have said this before; now I actually hope the iPad will turn into a proper computer at some point.

It's funny how things change :)
Last edited by the_marsbar on 14 Nov 2018, 10:34, edited 1 time in total.

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ShivaYash

14 Nov 2018, 10:30

I have the new MacBook Air and the keyboard is good, once you get use to it.
The sound has a nice thock and whilst the travel is terrible, the feeling is altogether not bad at all.
For me, having tried the v1 and v2 of the butterfly kb, this v3 is better.
The quality control is very good at Apple, generally speaking.
BUT time will tell how it ages, and if the dust issue has been resolved.

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matt3o
-[°_°]-

14 Nov 2018, 11:06

the_marsbar wrote: When I discovered the world of mechanical keyboards (the HHKB)
but but... topre are not mechanical... :D

the_marsbar

14 Nov 2018, 11:11

matt3o wrote:
the_marsbar wrote: When I discovered the world of mechanical keyboards (the HHKB)
but but... topre are not mechanical... :D
All keyboards (except the ones on a touch screen) are mechanical... However, I will agree that I should probably have used different wording.
the_marsbar wrote: When I discovered the world of mechanical keyboards (the HHKB) Topre...
Better :) ?

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Muirium
µ

14 Nov 2018, 11:24

I prefer “decent” or even just “good” keyboards over using “mechanical” as the umbrella term. Quite besides the eternal and just as spurious need for the Cherry boys to dispute everyone else’s rights to the word, it’s just not a good one anyway. Suggests something else to me. I’m not into steampunk retro typewriter frivolous junk. I’m here for the feel. I’m here for the quality.

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matt3o
-[°_°]-

14 Nov 2018, 11:48

the_marsbar wrote: Better :) ?
I was just messing with you.

By definition topre switch is the king of rubber domes :D I don't think it matters, as long as you like it.

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abrahamstechnology

14 Nov 2018, 23:25

Apple should just buy out Topre and increase the price to $600 per board.

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stratokaster

14 Nov 2018, 23:43

abrahamstechnology wrote: Apple should just buy out Topre and increase the price to $600 per board.
Don't give them ideas!

Although to be honest, Apple is most definitely not interested in producing such a niche, low-volume product.

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abrahamstechnology

15 Nov 2018, 00:01

Hypersphere wrote:
matt3o wrote: every new macbook release I'm expecting them to remove the whole keyboard and replace it with a gigantic touch bar.
<snip> ...
The attachment PerplexedPicard2s.png is no longer available
https://www.google.com/search?q=captain ... moCQV4FwCM:
They still had mechanical keyboards in the TNG era:
m0116tng.png
m0116tng.png (1.75 MiB) Viewed 2510 times

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stratokaster

15 Nov 2018, 00:16

Apple then and Apple now are two very different companies.

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abrahamstechnology

15 Nov 2018, 01:43

stratokaster wrote: Apple then and Apple now are two very different companies.
Yes. When Woz left it all went downhill.

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