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My review and comparison of the IBM Model M

Shroomster

Prologue to the review
So as you might know already, I bought 2 IBM Model Ms from a local forum and promised to do a review. So here I go. The review is going to go over my findings about the IBM Model M keyboard,

comparing the two models I received + comparisons to my previous keyboard, which is the Quickfire Pro by CM Storm and has MX Red switches.

 

Receiving/Unboxing

I received the box on a Friday and I was surprised about the weight of it. The box had two keyboards in it and it weighed 6.2 kg or 13.2 pounds.

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First impressions after the holiday (mostly build quality)

The following Tuesday I finally got the chance to try the feel of the keyboards, and I was completely blown by the quality and workmanship that went in to these keyboards. These things are built like tanks, and are sure as hell not going to break in even heavy usage or heavy rage in some cases. Also these are pretty much the size of a tank as well. The plastic is of superior quality and has not coloured nearly at all from the original finish, that has been on there since the late 80s. The body plastic has this textured feel to it that feels very good.

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The keycaps have the texturing on the top and glossy sides, but the texturing has a finer grain than the body of the keyboard. Also the keycap letters have not faded at all to my surprise. The quality is all around fantastic on both keyboards and I could not be more satisfied about this subject. The one gripe I have about this keyboard is the cable. It is too damn thick to be a coiled cable. I am really afraid it will pull my PS/2 port straight out.

 

Cleaning of the keyboards

The first thing I noticed after looking at the build quality was, that the keyboards were very dirty, and as the adapter was not arriving anytime soon, I decided to clean the things very well before they would step into action. I started by testing that the keyboard plastic would stand the alcohol and as it did I proceeded to wiping the body of the keyboard with isopropyl alcohol. After that I removed all the keycaps, and placed them in a cleaning solution meant for cleaning rubber and plastic prosthetics, and it worked like a charm. While the keycaps were having a bath I went to town on the midplate of the keyboards with cotton swabs dipped in alcohol as there was huge amounts of dust and hair under there. After I let the keys to dry, I stuck them back on and I had two clean IBM Model Ms instead. The cleaning process overall was very simple, but very time consuming. The fact I had two keyboards did not help with the time used. It was around 5 hours all together (excluding 12 hours for the keys sitting in the cleaning liquid and 48 hours to dry)

 

The feel of the switches (Finally) and comparisons

After a long wait I finally received the adapter I was waiting for. And what would I say about them. They are the best switches I have ever used! I used to favour MX Greens, but seems like the new boy (or old. Matters how you think) in town has taken their position as my favourite switches. I think the springs have just the right amount of force needed to press them, they are very hard to accidentally press and the action is very smooth for such old switches. The tactile feel is very different to the MX tactile (Green, blue) switches. The MX tactile switches have a distinct bump in the key as you press it down and the Buckling spring switches just smoothly get heavier until the spring buckles and the key bottoms out. This felt very strange in the beginning, but after a few hours of typing, started to feel much superior. Before these keyboards (godsends) I was using a CM Storm Quickfire Pro with MX reds (Linear, 45g to activate). They are horrible for anything else than gaming in my opinion. I accidentally pressed a lot of keys, while typing, and the feel was horrible in my experience. With these switches, I do far less mistakes while typing, and my typing feels much faster, natural and more rythmic.

The two units I received were very much alike and there is really no need to compare the two models, as the only thing differing is the position of the IBM logo and age. The switches feel the same, and they use the same plastic and texturing in all major parts as far as I noticed. I found the Model M more comfortable than my Quickfire, because the Quickfire has a sharp lip and is higher on the bottom part of the keyboard than the Model M.

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Plus I feel the position and angle of the Model M is more natural for me. I found the higher angle setting more comfortable as my fingers have to move and stretch less to reach keys. Some people have said the higher setting is very uncomfortable, but I always angle my keyboards as much as possible anyway (I am weird, I know).

 

General thoughts of the Model M (Epilogue)

I think the IBM Model M is one of the greatest keyboards I have ever tested as a whole. The switches are the best I have tried, but the colour of the plastic (grey) leaves room for wishes. All aspects in mind the Model M is a great keyboard, and I can suggest buying or at least testing one from the bottom of my heart. The feel is unique and different in a good way. Thanks for reading if you made it this far. This concludes my review of the IBM Model M.

REMEMBER TO QUOTE SO I GET A NOTIFCATION! Add me on Steam: http://steamcommunity.com/id/Shroomster/ Review(s) more to come

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Pictures don't work for me, anybody else?

RIP in pepperonis m8s

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Pictures don't work for me, anybody else?

same here

CPU: i7 - 2600kGPU: GTX 1070Mobo: intel somethingRAM: Corsair XMS3 @1600Mhz (8GB)SSD: Crucial MX100 256GB. HDD: WD Green 1TB . Case: Cooler Master HAF XB EVO Monitors: LG 25UM65-P and Benq 2200HD Keyboard: Corsair vengeance K70 FPS Red switch. Mouse: Logitech G502 Proteus Core. Headset: Steelseries Siberia V2

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Do the pics work now?

Yes

RIP in pepperonis m8s

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