Das Keyboard for Mac Review.

About a month ago I finally received my Das Keyboard for Mac. Prior to that I was using an Apple Design Keyboard. I know the Apple Extended Keyboard II is all the rage in geek circles, but I found the softer key action of the ADK much nicer. Still, I wanted to try the Das Keyboard out since its a USB keyboard that the closest to the ADK, and even closer to the AEKII.

I really like the design of it. Its black, which aesthetically fits much better with my MacBook Pro and my external monitor. It has two USB ports on the side- which are powered. That requires a cable with two USB plugs to plug in. Since I have a hub, and I’m not losing ports (but gaining better access to them), this is great. The weight is very solid, which helps keep the keyboard stable.

It also has media buttons, which are helpful- though I don’t like the placement of the function key. Its in the opposite spot over where the MacBook Pro has it. I would much rather had it in the same place. They key font is weird- and maybe that’s because all the text is in lower case, which I find not as pleasing and harder to read. Finally, they replace the Insert key with an eject key- which is great except I need the Insert key for vSphere servers!

As far as the action of the keys- I like it. Its not as nice as the ADK, but I bet its pretty close to the AEKII. It took me a bit to adjust as I think they keycaps are smaller. But after using it a month, I’m now pretty fast and accurate on it, which is great. The sound isn’t as pleasing as the ADK, but its not annoying at all. I actually like it.

My final verdict- if you like the old style keyboards, but want a modern replacement, get the Das Keyboard. It doesn’t get better than this.