Soft keyboard on T43?

[noranalyst]

Is the keyboard on T43 soft? When I write a text and have to have a thinking pause, I find the keyboard on T60 uncomfortable. Is T43 similar?

[ajkula66]

It's really not all that simple.

Both the T4x and T6x keyboards were produced by three different manufacturers: NMB (commonly referred to as "Thai keyboard" - best loved by the vast majority of users), ALPS and Chicony. These are worlds apart within the same generation, let alone moving from one lineup to another.

Without knowing which T6x keyboard you dislike, it's tough to make a recommendation on which T4x would work for you.

[brchan]

You can identify which kind of T60 keyboard you have by following the steps in this link: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=44310. Personally, I have found NMB to be the best in terms of crispness, sound and feel. An old Chicony T60 keyboard I had was a bit loud and clacky sounding. Not sure of ALPS, since I don't have one.

[Johan]

@ noranalyst:

If you're (really!) interested to learn about the difference(s) between the various keyboards for T4x/p's ad T6x/p's, then I'd suggest you have a look at the following threads: T42 Thai (NMB), China (Alps) Keyboard Impressions (long) and Indepth analysis of keyboard sturdiness: T4x vs. T6x (Long) and T60 Keyboard Comparison (with embedded pics) (as pointed to by brchan in the above post) and T60 compatible keyboards and finally this post and the links pointed to therein.

Both the T4x and T6x keyboards were produced by three different manufacturers: NMB (commonly referred to as "Thai keyboard" - best loved by the vast majority of users), ALPS and Chicony. These are worlds apart within the same generation, let alone moving from one lineup to another.

Just for the record; e.g. T4x/p NMB keyboards were (initially) manufactured in Thailand, and later on in China... and were sold with the same part numbers! According to many users (incl. me!) the "Made-in-Thailand" NMB's are significantly better compared to the "Made-in-China" NMB's. I've got a small stock of the 15" T4x/p Thai-NMB's, both with US-layout and with Danish layout...

Johan

[Saucey]

I thought the keyboard on my T43p was great already!
But... I guess I can check what is in the spare T42 .

Are T30's the same way too?

[ajkula66]

Are T30's the same way too?

On T30, the choice was between NMB and ALPS, no Chicony.

[noranalyst]

I have NMB on my refurbished T60. I think it is a habit matter to be comfortable with the keyboard, but for the sake of completeness, I mention this.

[ajkula66]

I have NMB on my refurbished T60. I think it is a habit matter to be comfortable with the keyboard, but for the sake of completeness, I mention this.

While I prefer NMB on the T4x generation, when it comes to T6x units I like ALPS better.

You won't know until you try it out...

[Systematician]

I have the NMB keyboard on my T60, and it is so stiff that it hurts my hands. If I want a much softer keyboard, and this is my first priority, should I replace it with the ALPS keyboard, the Chicony keyboard, or the one on T400? (Only the latter I have tried, and it is softer, but I wonder if either ALPS or Chicony is even softer and thus friendlier towards my fingers.)

[brchan]

I would rate Chicony about equal in NMB in terms of firmness, but slightly noisier. Key travel seems just a bit longer than on 2 of my T6* NMB ones. but is probably the result of other factors. Never had experience with alps.

It is possible that you got an unusually stiffer than normal keyboard, as I have never encountered any thinkpad keyboard that ended up hurting my hands. Maybe try sourcing a used keyboard off the marketplace here or on ebay?

[Systematician]

I guess that I only have slightly unusual preferences in this regard. I barely tried the keyboard on T440 as well, and it felt similar to my T60.

[Hans Gruber]

On myT43p all the keys sound good except for the arrow keys that sound clanky and cheap. I will look under the keyboard to see which maker it is. I am typing on my T61 and the keyboard has a nice feel with crisp keys. I have to look under this one as well to find out who manufactured it.

[brchan]

I personally prefer the feel of Chicony keyboards, after using NMB for a while. Crisper response than my NMB boards, and although noisier, reminds me of the model M keyboard sound. The keys do get a bit more shiny faster, however. I have a NMB keyboard on my T43, and the keys are indeed softer and feel to have less travel than any of the T6* ones.

[Systematician]

Thank you for that information. Let us hope that Lenovo makes something close to the T4x NMB keyboard in its retro project ...

[Hans Gruber]

Here are my two keyboard FRU's My current keyboard is FRU 08K4986. The backup keyboard is FRU 39T0519. My original T43 keyboard is FRU 39T0519 made in Thailand. The first two are made in China. The 2nd and 3rd have the same FRU #.