I just got a mechanical keyboard!

My friend just gave me a 2011 Unicomp Ultra Classic Black Buckling Spring USB keyboard!

A Unicomp Ultra Classic Black Buckling Spring USB keyboard

Some people ask what the big deal is about mechanical keyboards and why I’m so excited. Perhaps it’s just a geek thing, but here is an excerpt from Unicomp’s keyboard page:

Your fingers will feel the difference with a buckling spring keyboard. Your typing accuracy will improve. The buckling spring key switch is design to record your keystroke at the precise instant that you feel the tactile change.

Standard rubberdome keyboards record the keystroke well after the tactile change is felt by your fingers. If you miss characters as you type and you know you pressed the key, that’s why. If you’ve tried to enter a shifted character but it came out lower case, that’s why. In fact most rubberdome keyboards require you to press the key all the way to the bottom. To compensate, many rubberdome users end up pounding the keys as they type. Ouch!

With the instantaneous nature of the buckling spring, your fingers can stop before the key hits bottom. Yes, the force required to press a buckling spring is a little higher than a rubberdome, but the low force over-travel period designed into the buckling spring allows your fingers to comfortably decelerate before hitting the key bottom. Ahhh!

Part of it is also just the thrill of having a mechanical keyboard and hearing that “click” every time you press a key.

Oh, am I ever going to have lots of fun with this thing!

• buckling spring
• keyboard
• mechanical keyboard
• Model M
• Unicomp