12-04-2006, 03:42 AM
Yesterday I got something I've been wanting for awhile, and I got it from a local thrift store. It's an IBM Model M keyboard with a PS/2 connector. The ticket price was $5.99, but they had a 50% off everything in the store sale going on so I paid a measly 3 bucks for it:)
Why a Model M keyboard, you might ask? Surely newer keyboards MUST be better. Why did I want 20 year old technology? Well, these things are tanks. A standard keyboard these days weighs maybe 2 pounds. A Model M is close to 5 pounds. It also lacks a Windows key. I absolutely LOATHE the Windows key. It's the first thing I disable when I reinstall Windows. Finally, Model M keyboards use a patented "buckling spring" key design. It's a mechanical switch below each key, instead of today's standard bubble dome technology. Model Ms are LOUD. It sounds like a machine gun going off when I'm typing on this thing, but each keystroke is met with very satisfactory positive feedback.
There are a few different revisions of the Model M, and I got the exact one I've been looking for forever. It's a model # 1391401, which was the first one to use the standard PS/2 keyboard connector. Earlier versions would have required a AT <> PS/2 adapter, which I really didn't want to have to use.
Hey lookie here! After Googling around for a bit, this is the EXACT keyboard I just bought, only mine was manufactured in 29 JAN 94 instead of 10 NOV 93. Everything else is exactly identical, right down to the label on the back, the style of IBM logo, and the positioning of the drainage holes. Mine has the longer 10' cord though. Holy smokes I just looked at the price. Mine didn't come with the original packaging, but it sure as hell looks brand new.
Why a Model M keyboard, you might ask? Surely newer keyboards MUST be better. Why did I want 20 year old technology? Well, these things are tanks. A standard keyboard these days weighs maybe 2 pounds. A Model M is close to 5 pounds. It also lacks a Windows key. I absolutely LOATHE the Windows key. It's the first thing I disable when I reinstall Windows. Finally, Model M keyboards use a patented "buckling spring" key design. It's a mechanical switch below each key, instead of today's standard bubble dome technology. Model Ms are LOUD. It sounds like a machine gun going off when I'm typing on this thing, but each keystroke is met with very satisfactory positive feedback.
There are a few different revisions of the Model M, and I got the exact one I've been looking for forever. It's a model # 1391401, which was the first one to use the standard PS/2 keyboard connector. Earlier versions would have required a AT <> PS/2 adapter, which I really didn't want to have to use.
Hey lookie here! After Googling around for a bit, this is the EXACT keyboard I just bought, only mine was manufactured in 29 JAN 94 instead of 10 NOV 93. Everything else is exactly identical, right down to the label on the back, the style of IBM logo, and the positioning of the drainage holes. Mine has the longer 10' cord though. Holy smokes I just looked at the price. Mine didn't come with the original packaging, but it sure as hell looks brand new.