On The Road Again Dad

I woke up last week and decided I must have a retro “typewriter-style” keyboard for my computer.  I just had to have one. Requirements were simple:

• Retro typewriter design with round keys.
• Retro typewriter “action/feel” and clicking sound when pressing the keys.
• Full size keyboard with numbers pad.
• Wireless with keyboard combo (if possible).

Bottom line, the new keyboard had to have the look, feel, and sound of an old-school typewriter.  I thought the search would be easy. But as I quickly discovered there are many many  options available and at wildly different price points between $20 to $200+.

In my opinion the best one by far was the $200 Azio Luxury Vintage Keyboard on Indiegogo.  I love EVERYTHING about this keyboard and how it looks, functions, and sounds. It is full size, wireless, and beautiful. But the $200 price tag was way too much for my budget. Again, I love this keyboard, but just too much $$ at this time. Hopefully the price will come down when the “newness” of this keyboard wears off in the coming months.

Another interesting option was the Rymek Retro Bluetooth Mechanical Keyboard which is also available on Indiegogo. While this one is also TOTALLY cool and operates like an old school typewriter look, it is also more than I was hoping to spend. Additionally it is not a full sized keyboard design which was one of my initial requirements.

The next interesting option I found is from a company called Lofree. This one I was able to see in person as a good friend already owned one.  The Lofree Retro Mechanical Keyboard is incredibly stylish, already available, and there are multiple color options.  It’s design is inspired by a classical typewriter with a modern feel.  I was able to test it out and see how it performed in person and it displayed great key action, sound, and design. As much as I like the Lofree spending $149 was again just too steep for my comfort level for a non full size keyboard.

I just kept searching. There had to be an affordable, wireless, round key, typewriter-like, full size, retro feel, loud clicking, keyboard out there. Of course Amazon was the solution.

As it turned out Amazon had a bunch of keyboards with the old school typewriter look and feel. None of them were high end like the ones above (but they do sell those also) with metal keys and fancy wood finishes, but there were a ton of great options. After checking out all of the specs I decided to try one out that only cost $25. $25!! This was a LOT less then the other keyboards above and if I did not like it I had not broken the bank on an impulse purchase.

The Xunian full size retro style round key wireless keyboard was perfect! Available in black or white I chose the white version which also included a wireless quality mouse. The round keys are comfortable and the louder than normal clicking sound gives it a typewriter feel. Sure it is not comparable to the other options described above but for now, and for only $25, it was perfect! Worth checking out if you are looking for a fun keyboard.