Those who paid attention to Apple’s latest round of announcements also saw that they released a new keyboard. I am using it to type this post … let me say that I was/am a big fan of the keyboard design of the MacBook, so when I saw the design of this new number I was excited. With that in mind I plunked down the $49.00 for the new wired version and it showed up today. I have to say I like it quite a bit. After I got my bluetooth Apple Keyboard I thought I would never go back to a wired version, but this is nice. They do have a wireless version, but it is much more like a laptop keyboard — without dedicated number keys … it just doesn’t do it for me. This is not a review, you can find those everywhere online … but let me summarize, I like it and you may not.
This thing fits me well. It takes a slight amount of getting used to, but I am really liking the feel. I beginning to notice what a difference it makes to have input and output devices that work for you does. Typing faster means greater productivity when you live in a blogging/searching/writing world … it is like finding the right mouse, it just helps. I switched to a 24″ display at work several months ago and I can’t tell you how many cycles that has saved me over a 20″. Sounds crazy, but having the right gear makes a huge difference. I can imagine most people see that for someone like Tiger Woods — having the right clubs makes a huge difference for him. Sure he would kick ass with my irons, but a stroke difference means being Tiger and not someone else. Trust me, I am not comparing us to Tiger, but all I am saying is that having the right tools for the trade helps!
Does this mean I will field requests from people tomorrow asking for 30″ displays and faster machines — probably. Does it mean we’ll do it — probably not. But, it does mean I am all for people making their home setups work just they want them. And that does it for a blog post about keyboard … jeez.
I’d really like to try one of those. I just wish there were better options for ergonomic keyboards for the Mac. I’ve got an old Microsoft Natural Elite at home and an Adesso Intellimedia at the office, but neither have the excellent keyfeel (is that a word?) of the MacBook keyboard. I just don’t think I could go back to parallel wrists at my desk after six years typing on an ergo.
One of the best acquisitions I’ve made at work has been my 30″ cinema display. My productivity went way up. While virtual desktops are useful, I find having code, reference docs, and terminals all on the same display is much more useful. In fact, I now have a hard time getting work done on laptops, since the screen is so small. Prices for 30″ displays keep dropping (Apple’s are down to $1600; Dell’s are around $1300).
I’m also partial to my icekey (http://www.macally.com/EN/Product/ArticleShow.asp?ArticleID=147). It’s a laptop-style desktop keyboard. I’ve had one for about three years, and it works wonderfully. However, I did order one of the new Apple keyboards to try out. This is the first Apple keyboard in almost ten years that I’ve actually wanted to try out (ever since Jobs came back, I’ve found Apple’s keyboards to be unusable).
I too have the icekey which I like very much. It is indeed like the old Apple notebook keyboards, with scissor keys, etc. I am still not sure if I like the MacBook keys, even after a year of use. I certainly love the look of the new keyboard, so it is tempting… Cole, where did you pick yours up? Did you order it online?
As for the monitors, for less than the 30″ I got two 23″ displays (this was before the 30″ came down in price). For someone who works with text in multiple windows, this is a far better solution for me. But it all depends upon how and what one is working on.