Gold Computer GD-722
Posted: 15 Sep 2018, 20:27
It's finally time I showcase and document this keyboard. A little backstory before doing so : I received this keyboard as part of a trade, I knew it had Blue Alps and good keycaps, but I wasn't sure what to expect of the rest. The pictures of this keyboard I was show made it look like it hadn't the best quality we've seen, far from it, the solder points looked suspicious. So yeah, I thought it was going to be a Chicony type of keyboard which would flex and would bend all over the place. Little did I know I was wrong, and here's why :
The first thing I noticed about this keyboard was the stepped bottom row, I love stepped caps and I wish to see them EVERYWHERE. Please, keycap set makers, include as much stepped keycaps as you can, bottom row, shift, ISO enter, caps lock, whatever, just put them. Anyway, when I grabbed the keyboard and was reassembling it (it was shipped with the keycaps taken off of it, which should become a standard :!)
One of the first things I noticed was how much the mods and the numpad had legends reminiscent of Cherry's. I like this because I just simply love OG Cherry.
It has got quite the regular old keyboard look.
The back doesn't mention any Model not any company, just ...
This is one of the things I like the most about this keyboard, I love that detail ! It doesn't change anything about the keyboard, it's just a very subtle quirk.
Keyboard's foot, one of the two (obviously).
XT/AT switch
The keyboard's profile.
Close up 1
Close up 2
Close up 3
This is something that isn't that common so I wanted to point it out, the lock bank are usually NCS, but on this keyboard, it is CNS.
Cute puppies, ain't they ?
You can notice the difference in colour of the sliders Blue Alps are known for.
Those Blue Alps have got Grey switchplates, I took a picture before anyone asked.
Onto one VERY interesting aspect of this keyboard.
This is the good stuff, I don't think I've ever seen such thick keycaps for a "modern" type of switch, the Devlin keycaps might be the closest, but OG Cherry and Alps Electric keycaps are straight out blown out of the water by these bad boys. Too bad these aren't as available. Here is a quickly taken picture comparing it to DCS and Alps Electric keycaps.
You can clearly see how thick they truely are, they are boulders, how are they not activating the switches by themselves ???
This is quite the profile, it looks quite High-Profile to be honest, and it is kind of rounded, not cylindrical though.
This is the only information about the manufacture and the model I've found. It doesn't say much as Gold Computer might be the most generic company name ever I have to note though that this keyboard has NKRO which shoots it at the top of the quality spectrum.
Brass screw insert :O
I truly wonder what this is, I would have said it was for a speaker if there was holes for the sound to go out, but there isn't, so what could this be for ?
14th week of 1985.
Gold Star-made components.
This is also something I wonder about, if the controller is the previously shown Nec D8039LC, what is this ? I'm not too knowledgeable on components and on electronics in general, so I might have the wrong idea of a keyboard needing only a single controller, bear with me
And finally, something that everyone should deserve once in their life time, a typing test :
The first thing I noticed about this keyboard was the stepped bottom row, I love stepped caps and I wish to see them EVERYWHERE. Please, keycap set makers, include as much stepped keycaps as you can, bottom row, shift, ISO enter, caps lock, whatever, just put them. Anyway, when I grabbed the keyboard and was reassembling it (it was shipped with the keycaps taken off of it, which should become a standard :!)
One of the first things I noticed was how much the mods and the numpad had legends reminiscent of Cherry's. I like this because I just simply love OG Cherry.
It has got quite the regular old keyboard look.
The back doesn't mention any Model not any company, just ...
This is one of the things I like the most about this keyboard, I love that detail ! It doesn't change anything about the keyboard, it's just a very subtle quirk.
Keyboard's foot, one of the two (obviously).
XT/AT switch
The keyboard's profile.
Close up 1
Close up 2
Close up 3
This is something that isn't that common so I wanted to point it out, the lock bank are usually NCS, but on this keyboard, it is CNS.
Cute puppies, ain't they ?
You can notice the difference in colour of the sliders Blue Alps are known for.
Those Blue Alps have got Grey switchplates, I took a picture before anyone asked.
Onto one VERY interesting aspect of this keyboard.
This is the good stuff, I don't think I've ever seen such thick keycaps for a "modern" type of switch, the Devlin keycaps might be the closest, but OG Cherry and Alps Electric keycaps are straight out blown out of the water by these bad boys. Too bad these aren't as available. Here is a quickly taken picture comparing it to DCS and Alps Electric keycaps.
You can clearly see how thick they truely are, they are boulders, how are they not activating the switches by themselves ???
This is quite the profile, it looks quite High-Profile to be honest, and it is kind of rounded, not cylindrical though.
This is the only information about the manufacture and the model I've found. It doesn't say much as Gold Computer might be the most generic company name ever I have to note though that this keyboard has NKRO which shoots it at the top of the quality spectrum.
Brass screw insert :O
I truly wonder what this is, I would have said it was for a speaker if there was holes for the sound to go out, but there isn't, so what could this be for ?
14th week of 1985.
Gold Star-made components.
This is also something I wonder about, if the controller is the previously shown Nec D8039LC, what is this ? I'm not too knowledgeable on components and on electronics in general, so I might have the wrong idea of a keyboard needing only a single controller, bear with me
And finally, something that everyone should deserve once in their life time, a typing test :