Quiet affordable keyboard?

[TorqueDirty]

Boring question guys - sorry!

Can anyone recommend a decent full sized and most importantly quiet desktop keyboard? I don't want to spend silly money, it does not have to be wireless but it does need to be reasonably quit.

My existing lenovo one sounds like hippos tap dancing when I type!

Thanks in advance.

[walamai]

Keyboards can range from about a tenner though to several hundred pounds, so I'm going to take 'affordable' to mean somewhere in the mid to lower end of that

I read a few reviews looking for a similar thing. I was after full sized (with number pad), quiet and with nice key feel/travel. I wasn't fussed about being wireless.

Have ended up with a Microsoft Surface Keyboard https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/p/surface-keyboard...



It's quiet, nice to type on, and wireless is actually nice to have. They're £90 everywhere (as usual, John Lewis is a good option for tech stuff since it will come with a 2 year warranty)

Edited by walamai on Tuesday 23 June 10:31

Edited by walamai on Tuesday 23 June 10:32

[TorqueDirty]

walamai said:

Keyboards can range from about a tenner though to several hundred pounds, so I'm going to take 'affordable' to mean somewhere in the mid to lower end of that

I read a few reviews looking for a similar thing. I was after full sized (with number pad), quiet and with nice key feel/travel. I wasn't fussed about being wireless.

Have ended up with a Microsoft Surface Keyboard https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/p/surface-keyboard...



It's quiet, nice to type on, and wireless is actually nice to have. They're £90 everywhere (as usual, John Lewis is a good option for tech stuff since it will come with a 2 year warranty)

Edited by walamai on Tuesday 23 June 10:31

Edited by walamai on Tuesday 23 June 10:32

That looks nice - thanks, but I'm probably looking more at the £50 price point ideally. I could be tempted though unless there are other more affordable options that would fit the bill.

[devnull]

I have loads of keyboards (dont ask...) which range from quiet to ASBO clackety loud.

Have to say, one of these are actually a nice balance between tactile and quiet: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Keyboard-Multimedia-Compa...

and theyre piss cheap too. Also, if you don't like it, you can shunt it back to amazon.

Also: you can actually search on youtube for any keyboards you fancy - you can almost guarantee that someone will have made a vid on how it sounds.

Edited by devnull on Tuesday 23 June 12:07

[grumbledoak]

Logitech K120 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Logitech-Business-Keyboar... £8.98

Still the best keyboard I've used. And I've spent hundreds. Why they won't just make a wireless version of that is beyond me.

[Mr Pointy]

grumbledoak said:

Logitech K120 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Logitech-Business-Keyboar... £8.98

Still the best keyboard I've used. And I've spent hundreds. Why they won't just make a wireless version of that is beyond me.

Have you tried the K270?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Logitech-Wireless-Keyboar...

[grumbledoak]

Mr Pointy said:

Have you tried the K270?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Logitech-Wireless-Keyboar...

Very cheap and plasticky feel, unresponsive on occasion, and the ! key didn't work unless you hit it. Which, being the patient type, I did.
Also a Sonkir, which was better except the function keys are "Media keys" unless you press an awkward-to-reach "Fn" key.
Now on a Filco Convertible MX-Brown, which is much better feel and ISO layout.

Recommend the K120.

[Horace Van Khute]

grumbledoak said:

Very cheap and plasticky feel, unresponsive on occasion, and the ! key didn't work unless you hit it. Which, being the patient type, I did.
Also a Sonkir, which was better except the function keys are "Media keys" unless you press an awkward-to-reach "Fn" key.
Now on a Filco Convertible MX-Brown, which is much better feel and ISO layout.

Recommend the K120.

I use K270 fairly regularly and from how you described your experience it sounds to me that the K270 you used was very much broken.

[stemll]

Horace Van Khute said:

grumbledoak said:

Very cheap and plasticky feel, unresponsive on occasion, and the ! key didn't work unless you hit it. Which, being the patient type, I did.
Also a Sonkir, which was better except the function keys are "Media keys" unless you press an awkward-to-reach "Fn" key.
Now on a Filco Convertible MX-Brown, which is much better feel and ISO layout.

Recommend the K120.

I use K270 fairly regularly and from how you described your experience it sounds to me that the K270 you used was very much broken.

I have a K270 and it's hateful. It's only redeeming feature is that it's wireless. Everything is cramped especially the function keys, have lost count of the number times I've hit F12 while going for backspace (maybe I should get stuff wrong less often )

[dhutch]

I have a Cherry buckling spring keyboard for daily use, which is bloody lovely to type on but loud enough I have to mute my mic to use it much in a conference call, although in th office is use works Kensington ste.

[dhutch]

grumbledoak said:

Logitech K120 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Logitech-Business-Keyboar... £8.98

I've used one of these i think, very good for the price as you say.

[TorqueDirty]

Went for this in the end.

We shall see if it is any good.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07D34L57F/ref...

I'll report back!

[bigpriest]

grumbledoak said:

Logitech K120 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Logitech-Business-Keyboar... £8.98

Still the best keyboard I've used. And I've spent hundreds. Why they won't just make a wireless version of that is beyond me.

There's this one as well with mouse - Logitech keyboards all look the same but act/sound very differently!

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/logitech-mk270-wir...

[Derek Smith]

I've got an old Microsoft Multimedia keyboard, type 0.168. It is more than 10 years old. The feel is superb for a touch typist.

I've had no problems with it. An excellent piece of kit.

[SunsetZed]

I've got one of these and I'm a big fan, it's not amazingly quiet but it's not mechanical keyboard noisy and it's very comfortable and I can't imagine using a traditional style keyboard again.

https://www.microsoft.com/accessories/en-gb/produc...

[Horace Van Khute]

stemll said:

Horace Van Khute said:

grumbledoak said:

Very cheap and plasticky feel, unresponsive on occasion, and the ! key didn't work unless you hit it. Which, being the patient type, I did.
Also a Sonkir, which was better except the function keys are "Media keys" unless you press an awkward-to-reach "Fn" key.
Now on a Filco Convertible MX-Brown, which is much better feel and ISO layout.

Recommend the K120.

I use K270 fairly regularly and from how you described your experience it sounds to me that the K270 you used was very much broken.

I have a K270 and it's hateful. It's only redeeming feature is that it's wireless. Everything is cramped especially the function keys, have lost count of the number times I've hit F12 while going for backspace (maybe I should get stuff wrong less often )

It just shows how different people have different opinions on the same subject! Or the crap QC of whichever_SE_Asian_location_they_make_them_at factory.

[jimmyjimjim]

TorqueDirty said:

Went for this in the end.

We shall see if it is any good.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07D34L57F/ref...

I'll report back!

If you don't like it, look for something with Cherry MX brown switches (or clones, a search for MX brown will work). Reds might also work for you, but browns are the non-clicky 'quiet' tactile individual key switches.

[stemll]

Horace Van Khute said:

stemll said:

Horace Van Khute said:

grumbledoak said:

Very cheap and plasticky feel, unresponsive on occasion, and the ! key didn't work unless you hit it. Which, being the patient type, I did.
Also a Sonkir, which was better except the function keys are "Media keys" unless you press an awkward-to-reach "Fn" key.
Now on a Filco Convertible MX-Brown, which is much better feel and ISO layout.

Recommend the K120.

I use K270 fairly regularly and from how you described your experience it sounds to me that the K270 you used was very much broken.

I have a K270 and it's hateful. It's only redeeming feature is that it's wireless. Everything is cramped especially the function keys, have lost count of the number times I've hit F12 while going for backspace (maybe I should get stuff wrong less often )

It just shows how different people have different opinions on the same subject! Or the crap QC of whichever_SE_Asian_location_they_make_them_at factory.

My complaint is the cramped layout more than anything. Function keys far too close to the main keyboard (for my fat fingers anyway). Other than that, it's a cheap keyboard and it feels like one.

Ordered an MX Keys this morning and coming sometime next week. Hoping it's good given the price but at least it will play nice with the MX3 Master mouse using Logitech Flow between work PC and home Mac. Hovered around the Filco Convertible but decided to go all Logitech to see how nicely Flow works. If it doesn't it's from Amazon so can go back and be replaced with a Filco.

[P4ulB]

stemll said:

Ordered an MX Keys this morning and coming sometime next week. Hoping it's good given the price but at least it will play nice with the MX3 Master mouse using Logitech Flow between work PC and home Mac. Hovered around the Filco Convertible but decided to go all Logitech to see how nicely Flow works. If it doesn't it's from Amazon so can go back and be replaced with a Filco.

You'll love the MX Keys - I've got one and it's the nicest keyboard I've ever used.

[TorqueDirty]

jimmyjimjim said:

TorqueDirty said:

Went for this in the end.

We shall see if it is any good.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07D34L57F/ref...

I'll report back!

If you don't like it, look for something with Cherry MX brown switches (or clones, a search for MX brown will work). Reds might also work for you, but browns are the non-clicky 'quiet' tactile individual key switches.

Actually it is fine. Not amazing but much better than my old one.

Looked up your recommendation and saw what is possibly the lamest video on Youtube (fat dude just pressing different buttons forever) - but the buttons look ace. Good to know for the next time!