Desktop Keyboard with Laptop-Style keys?

[Tokar]

Are there any desktop keyboards out there that have the desktop keyboard layout (on left is all the letter keys...middle is the arrow keys and del/ins/pgup/pgdn/home/end...right is the num pad) and have laptop key-caps?

Ive seen a few around:

Theres the EluminX series of keyboards which has the laptop keycaps and has that REALLY cool illumination but i can't justify paying $65 and up for one of them.
Then theres the ones that are the competition to the EluminX keyboards...they are absolutely brandless (search google for WG-2160-WB) but have all the same features as the EluminX. I think the only difference is that the thing EluminX keyboards have is some kind of auto sensing Luminating bio-material, where as these competing keyboards are ones where you have a switch to control the light below the keys. Besides the fact that they are half the price of the EluminX and offer multimedia keys.

Then i saw the Logitech logitech keyboards.
Thers the $200-$250 bluetooth keyboard/mouse combo product. Cant recall name. But $250 is out of the price range.
But I DID see one from Logitech for $30-$40 (depending on where you buy) called the Logitech UltraX (can't recall the rest of the name...if google doesnt return a result linking to logitech's site, just goto logitech's site and so a search there...guaranteed search result there ). Problem is that it comes with an optical mouse i dont really need. But its cheap for the two things...considering a decent keybaord with media keys is $20-$30 and an optical mouse is $10 or so.


Does anyone else know of any other keyboards?
How are the keyboards that i mentioned...assuming someone has one of them?

 

[WobbleWobble]

Coolermaster has an aluminum one and Zippo has quite a few that illuminates but are quite pricey. Gyration has their wireless k/b mouse combo, but that's very pricey as well.

 

[Tokar]

Originally posted by: WobbleWobble
Coolermaster has an aluminum one and Zippo has quite a few that illuminates but are quite pricey. Gyration has their wireless k/b mouse combo, but that's very pricey as well.

Yeah i saw a review at PC Mag of the Gyration one. It has that PDA style layout.


Forgot to mention that all the illuminating keyboards i mentioned all have pseudo desktop layout.
They have the numpad, but the end/ins/pgup/pgdn/home/end up/down/left/right keys are all smooshed at the side of the letter keys like some Notepads used to do it (and am sure still do).

The logitech ones have pure desktop layout.

 

[RalfHutter]

I've been using the Logitech UltraX for a while now. It's the best keyboard I've ever used. I even bought a couple of spares for the future. I got mine for $35 from Newegg. They don't come with a mouse, they're just sold in a plain brown box as they're actually OEM keyboards and not actually for sale in retail channels.

There's another real good one that's almost identical to the UltraX except that it's USB instead of PS/2. It's called the PSK5000. I owned (and loved) this prior to getting my UltraX. The PSK5000's are mechanically identical to the UltraX's except that they are USB instead of PS/2. I like PS/2 better than USB so I switched to the UltraX.

Before that I tried the Viewsonic 201 which is another slim keyboard with laptop style keys. It's USB but the think I couldn't get used to is that al the "page up, page down, home, end, delete" etc keys are crammed over against the regular keys, just like a laptop keyboard. I like the "standard" key layout better, that's why I moverd from the 201 to the PSK5000. Both the PSK5000 and the UltraX have standard key loayouts including the fullsize "backspace" key in the correct place.

The Viewsonic 201 is made by Zippy, and there's also a version of it with an aluminum case sold under the Coolermaster name.

 

[Tokar]

yeah i REALLY like the Electron Luminescent keyboards that zippy makes...as well as comparable no-name ones that are the same price...

better priced that the EluminX ones...

problem is like you statedwith those keyboards, though...del/home/pgup/pgdn keys are in a bad spot...i like them in the normal desktop layout and would prefer such.

Ill look into that PSK5000. Looks good form pictures ive seen...

 

[Tokar]

Originally posted by: RalfHutter
I've been using the Logitech UltraX for a while now. It's the best keyboard I've ever used. I even bought a couple of spares for the future. I got mine for $35 from Newegg. They don't come with a mouse, they're just sold in a plain brown box as they're actually OEM keyboards and not actually for sale in retail channels.

There's another real good one that's almost identical to the UltraX except that it's USB instead of PS/2. It's called the PSK5000. I owned (and loved) this prior to getting my UltraX. The PSK5000's are mechanically identical to the UltraX's except that they are USB instead of PS/2. I like PS/2 better than USB so I switched to the UltraX.

Before that I tried the Viewsonic 201 which is another slim keyboard with laptop style keys. It's USB but the think I couldn't get used to is that al the "page up, page down, home, end, delete" etc keys are crammed over against the regular keys, just like a laptop keyboard. I like the "standard" key layout better, that's why I moverd from the 201 to the PSK5000. Both the PSK5000 and the UltraX have standard key loayouts including the fullsize "backspace" key in the correct place.

The Viewsonic 201 is made by Zippy, and there's also a version of it with an aluminum case sold under the Coolermaster name.

How do these keyboards feel compared to laptop keyboards? As in are the keys exactly alike?

 

[TerryMathews]

Logitech sells a USB keyboard for the PS2 now that works fine with PCs. It's a minature laptop-style keyboard. Retails for $20. Your local EB will have it in-stock.

 

[Tokar]

i think ive seen pictures of that one online...its not normal desktop layout...



has anyone had any experience with the illuminating keyboards or the Logitech Ultra X?

 

[RalfHutter]

Originally posted by: Tokar
has anyone had any experience with the Logitech Ultra X?

I've had extensive experience with the UltraX as I stated about. I love it.

The key feel/stroke is just like a laptop keyboard. The stroke is fairly light and short and has a positive "stop" at the bottom, just like the keyboard on a decent laptop. The PSK5000 keyboard is identical in feel to the UltraX.



BTW - There's at least one thread about the UltraX and other laptop-style keyboards here at AT. Search back over the past 6 months and you should find it (them).

There's also a thread about it over at SilentPCReview.

 

[Tokar]

Originally posted by: RalfHutter

Originally posted by: Tokar
has anyone had any experience with the Logitech Ultra X?

I've had extensive experience with the UltraX as I stated about. I love it.

The key feel/stroke is just like a laptop keyboard. The stroke is fairly light and short and has a positive "stop" at the bottom, just like the keyboard on a decent laptop. The PSK5000 keyboard is identical in feel to the UltraX.



BTW - There's at least one thread about the UltraX and other laptop-style keyboards here at AT. Search back over the past 6 months and you should find it (them).

There's also a thread about it over at SilentPCReview.

missed the first paragraph of your post...sorry...

ok ill take a look at the review and do a search on the forums...thanks .

 

[erikistired]

look for one by benq called the desksaver or butterfly. i found it locally under the name butterfly, it's very cool. nice compact with laptop style keys. quality keyboard.

 

[MikePanic]

id luv to find a desktop keyboard thats similar to a laptop but ergo shaped... i can't give em up... i just luv the ergo keyboards much better then traditional ones

 

[beatle]

I have a Logitech Ultra X also and I love it. Its touch is identical to a laptop's. I use it for games as well as general typing and it excels at both. I should follow Ralf's lead and buy some for spares.

Here is my thread on the Ultra X.

 

[Tokar]

buy.com just lowered the price on the retail version down to $35.39...the retail comes with a matching colored 400dpi optical mouse...i think its just a standard 2 button w/ scroll wheel from the pictures ive seen.
Its free shipping...outside of buy.com it says 2-3 days...inside buy.com it say 7-9. Mixed reviews at resellerratings of buy.com support both times... .

If you just want the keyboard, OEM, goto www.excaliburpc.com. They have it for $27 for just the keyboard in a "brown box." I think shipping is $5.

Buy.com is in cali...so there was no tax for me here in NY.
Not sure where excaliburpc.com is...im thinking cali as well.

 

[JCheng]

I just took delivery of my first UltraX yesterday. After researching quiet keyboards here and in the SPCR forums, I was hoping it would be quiet enough to let my wife sleep at night while I'm coding (we live in a studio, with a lofted bed).


First impressions were that the fit and finish on the keyboard was great, and that it was really surprisingly thin/flat. It is a really slick looking piece of hardware, so much so that it looks a little ridiculous next to my 19" Sony CRT.


At first I was disappointed with both the feel and the loudness of the keyboard. The tactile response of the keys themselves are great, but I hadn't realized that I press the left Control key by rolling my left hand to the left and letting the edge of my hand depress the button. This technique doesn't work as well on the UltraX because of the short travel and the profile of the keytops, and I'm a nonstop keyboard shortcut user so it got irritating very quickly. And to me the keystrokes didn't sound like they'd be quiet enough; definitely quieter than my current keyboard (Microsoft Internet Pro or something) but not much quieter than the mouse button clicks of my Microsoft trackball.


But when I tried it out last night, my wife was *ecstatic* about the quietness of the keyboard. She says it hardly bothers her at all, while the previous keyboard drove her crazy. For that, I can easily get used to pressing Ctrl a different way, and I have a feeling I'll eventually be able to type faster and more comfortably on the UltraX due to the shorter travel.


Thanks, Ralf, for a great suggestion!

 

[kadajawi]

I've only ordered a UltraX, need to fetch it on tuesday. But as far as I heard, its pretty close to the Logitech DiNovo (the bluetooth combo with the MX900 (MX700 with bluetooth)), which is an awesome keyboard. The keys should be pretty much identical (will see that when I have my UltraX), and with a blue led mod it looks very stylish.