Das Keyboard vs IBM Model M
I just saw this article on techreport.com via reddit, reviewing a Das Keyboard and comparing it to an IBM Model M. I use a Das Keyboard every day, and I have loved it since I got it two years ago. Last weekend, I was taking a bunch of old electronics junk to the local recycle depot, and as I was unloading my van, I noticed perched on top of a pile of old junk, a pristine Model M keyboard. It was as if my attention was drawn to it by a stray sunbeam, illuminating just the keyboard.
Of course, I grabbed it and brought it to work, and tested it out. I couldn’t believe that I found a genuine Model M in excellent condition that was very clean and actually works! It was made with the 1984 design, but built in 1993, so it has a ps/2 connector instead of the old style big keyboard plug. What a find!
If you don’t know what is so special about an IBM Model M keyboard, you are not a typing snob or computer geek. If you do know what it is, writhe in envy.
You are one lucky guy to have found a pristine Model M for free. I have seen some sites saying that the Das is like the Model M, but I don’t think this is correct.I am not saying that the Das is bad and the Model M is good. They are completely different keyboads using completely different technologies. I have a preference for the blue Cherry MX switches of Das, but I certainly do like the “meaty” buckling spring of the Model M from time to time.