Gaming / everyday use keyboard?

Hey guys, I am in the market for a brand new keyboard to go along with my brand new Dell monitor and upcoming desktop build. For now I will connect to the XPS laptop.

I was looking at Apple keyboard but I find that it will not be suitable for gaming. It looks beautiful but don't know if it would be comfortable for hours of gaming. What do you think? What would you recommend?

 

What this?
Apple USB Keyboard
That's "beautiful"?

And what exactly are you looking for when you say a gaming keyboard? You want extra buttons for hotkeys? Have a look at some of the Logitech gaming keyboards.

 

Nothing extra just the feel should be comfortable.

This is the keyboard from Apple: http://www.apple.com/keyboard/

 

hahaha thihault, that things looks ancient

that one is nice but im not sure if its comfortable for long hrs of gaming maybe not with a wristpad if you already don't have one?

i really enough the feel and look of the logitech wave, i have it :]

 

49 bucks for that keyboard isn't bad at all.

I would have expected to be at least 80 bucks or more.

 

i have a zboard its nice

 

Meh, if you're a casual gamer then any keyboard will do, but if you came a lot, I suggest another keyboard like the Sidewinder x6 or logitech g15.

 

I've been shopping for a keyboard myself. The Apple keyboard seems expensive. $50 for a wired keyboard? If I was going to spend that much for a keyboard, it better be either wireless or have like 50 extra buttons.

If you are into the laptop like, short key travel keyboards, I recommend the Logitech Ultra X.

For normal keytravel, I recommend Microsoft BX-1.

The Microsoft BX1 is the keyboard I have now. It is a beast of a keyboard, with lots of extra features that you normally would find on a much much more expensive keyboard. Both keyboards are about $25 with shipping.

 

I second the Logitech G15. It's easily the best keyboard I've ever used. Fantastic for gaming with the macro keys, backlighting, and LCD screen, but it's amazingly comfortable and quiet for regular typing as well. Well worth the price tag, which is well under $100 if you know where to buy.

 

You wont be getting much frags with an Apple keyboard. Get a proper gaming keyboard from Logitech or Razer w/ customizable macro buttons which can ease game key functions.

If you want a overall good keyboard, look at the Das Keyboards

 

i dont really know why people put a focus on keyboards. sure, there are some nice features on some, like macro buttons or media buttons but there is no real performance increase

all i can suggest is to get a keyboard with lit keys, very nice at night. and also i suggest a wrist rest.

 

The ability to hold more than two or three keys simultaneously sure is neat. Before I got my G15, none of my previous keyboards could handle shift, W, and A at the same time. In games, this meant I could not sprint while moving forward and left, which was a major pain. That alone makes the G15 worth the price for me, and that's not even bringing the G-keys, backlight, and LCD into the equation.

 

I'd go with the Logitech G15 for suree.

 

Screw back lit keys. If you have to look down at your keyboard to play your games, then you are screwed.

 

Not that they're a necessary feature for gaming, but it's nice to have anyway, seeing as you're going to be paying upwards of $60 for a good gaming keyboard anyway.

Besides, when you're just chatting and forum posting late at night while you're roommate is asleep 8 feet away, it's a nice thing to have.

 

Gaming keyboards have a significant advantage over a regular keyboard. You just need to know how to make the most out of it. Same goes for mouses.

Backlight keyboards are crap, they just look cool. You shouldnt be playing/typing in a dark room to begin with.

The Razer tarantula keyboard i use has excellent tactile feedback, lots of macro keys and also swappable keys. It also has anti-ghosting capability which lets you press more than 3 buttons simultaneously (regular USB keyboard wont input after 3 key presses,)

My complaints for the keyboard is the placement of the software, macro keys and they moronic accessories they offer for it (battlelight/eye??)

 

I agree. The biggest difference in a normal keyboard to a gaming keyboard is how fast the keystrokes are sent to the computer, as well as how many can be pressed and registered at at time. Sure the macro keys and extra buttons and backlit keyboards and lcd screens etc are all nice, but the real difference is the speed at which the key strokes are delivered to the computer, and the number of keys that can be simultaneously pressed.

Im looking for a new one for this reason. Having your character stop dead in his tracks in a game of cod5 when your holding down the strafe button is not ideal just because you were hitting a few other keys at the same time.

 

oddest thing is, I don't think i've ever owned a keyboard that doesn't register more three keys held down. Even my old 486's keyboard does ok with six keys held down. I know for sure cause there use to be an old Street Fighter game my brother and I would play on it, each player taking a side of the keyboard to play.

 

Saitek Gamers or Saitek Eclipse series are the best I have ever used, Key response and tactile feedback is superb.

They last forever, and they look good to boot.

I feel the Logitec keyboards are sold based on popularity a lot, its so big that somebody recomends it easy and then somebody gets it, and they like it, so it gets recomended to another, and so the chain continues.

By no means are the higher up logitechs bad keyboards, but I have been hands on with them and cant say that I think they are of the same quality of the Saiteks when it comes to the one thing that counts the most, the typing part.

The gamers has the bonus of being backlight and a detachable program pad that you can use for anything (I used to put macros on it for WoW) but have not used it in years.

The Eclipses are just known for being so pretty.


Keys - I have the gamers and know it can do atleast 7 keys at once as I used to play O2 jam, a music game that at times requires you to push 7 keys at the same time for notes, and again the key press response was just the greatest for really fast key tapping like that.

Edit: here check this out this is the game I was talking about, Its about the best keyboard test out there

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_Q8or-fNOA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk17YwE01dY

There are songs much harder than this.

 

This is Apple we're talking about after all. Of the $50 dollars you're paying for that keyboard, 25% of its cost is for the marketing/branding of that product. Who would have thought that a half-eaten apple logo could cost so much?

In any event, I consider myself to be a pretty serious gamer. I've owned both cheapo keyboards and quality keyboards like the G-series from Logitech, and quite frankly, my gaming hasn't drastically improved when using the G15. I mean, I'm using a two year old Microsoft Digital Media Pro keyboard (see link) that I bought for less than $20 bucks and kicking as much butt with it as I did with the G15.

 

look at the Reclusa or the Microsft sidewinder keyboard(dont remember what it was called.)