A Tale Of Two Keyboards: Apple Extended Keyboard II Vs IBM Model M

Computers are a lot better than they were even a few years ago, and compared to the machines of the 1980s they’re in a different world. But what about the peripherals? Mice are better, but keyboards seem to have got worse. I’m no keyboard fanatic (the one built into my MacBook works just fine for me), but there are two legendary models from the 80s which seem to be the zenith of QWERTY design. The Apple Extended Keyboard II and the IBM Model M.

Photo credit [Wikipedia/ All About Apple/ Marco Mioli]

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Apple Extended Keyboard II

Apple Extended Keyboard II was the successor to, surprise, the Apple Extended Keyboard. Extended means that it had arrow and function keys, something the original Mac keyboard lacked. Steve Jobs hated buttons even then. The AEK II is still thought by many to be the best keyboard ever made. First, they seem to last forever. John Gruber of Daring Fireball recently replaced his 14 year old keyboard with another one he had thoughtfully squirreled away when it was brand new.

Photo [John Gruber on Flickr]

The keyboard is also legendary for the racket it makes when you type. This is the result of the Alps brand leaf springs under the keys. These mechanical switches are the reason for the durability and noise, but they also give tactile feedback not available from today’s membrane switches. When you press the key, you know you have pressed it. It also pops the key back up quicker than the rubber bubble in a membrane board.

The AEK II has another nice design feature: A power switch on the keyboard. If you want to use one today, though, you’ll need to pick up an ADB (Apple Desktop Bus) to USB adapter.

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Photo credit [Wikipedia]

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IBM Model M

It was Mac versus PC even in 1984. The Model M was possibly designed to feel like the old IBM Selectric typewriter keyboards that secretaries were used to. Like the Apple Extended, it was built like a tank and can still be bought today (good luck finding a clean, new one though). Try to find a pre-1993 model. Units after this were manufactured by Lexmark and are considered inferior.

The Model M has “buckling spring” keys. The picture shows how it works. The spring inside each keycap pushes harder the further the key travels, so there is a lot of tactile feedback. Again, like the Apple Extended, the M is noisy, so it might be best if you work from home. that said, I’ve seen plenty of people bashing living hell out of a laptop keyboard, so maybe you’ll get away with it.

It can prove hard to find a mint version of something this old. Ebay has both the M and the Apple Extended from around $10, but for that you’ll get the added bonus of years worth of keyboard cruft. There is a modern version of the Apple Extended II, which uses the same switch design, but users report that it falls short of the original. Called the Tactile Pro, it has the advantage of using USB (it’s a two port hub, too) and includes modern niceties such as the Optimizer, which is a key that alters the functions of the keyboard. It even has a power switch. The downside? It’s $150.

Another option might be the Steelseries 7G. Aimed at gamers, it has the mechanical switches prized by writers. These switches are gold plated, which is supposed to increase response time. You know, like gold plated plugs make your stereo sound better. The 7G is said to last for 50 million keystrokes, but as we don’t know how many keystrokes you get out of an old M or Apple keyboard, we don’t know if that is good or bad. We do know that it sounds impressive.

The other selling point is the buffer, although it appears to be PS/2 only. The buffer supports more multiple key presses than a regular keyboard. It, too, is $150, and you’ll have to put up with the ugly tangle of cables coming out of it: PS/2, USB, Mic and headphones.

You can get by with a modern keyboard. While they are usually cheap afterthoughts bundled with the computer, some models are at least designed to look good (Apple's new aluminum keyboard, for one). But it seems, in this case at least, they they don't make 'em like they used to.