Qwerkywriter Typewriter Inspired Retro Mechanical Wired & Wireless Keyboard with Tablet Stand

These days, owning and using a manual typewriter is teetering on the brink of becoming the next "owning a record player to play vinyl records" niche sensation. In a digital age, making use of mostly mechanical, analog technology is a deliberate choice, but one that's fraught with much of the same baggage that caused us to abandon it in the first place. [To see what I mean, check out Scott Schad's nifty book, Typewriters for Writers (2014), where he lovingly describes the extraordinary lengths required just to do a small portion of the things even the most rudimentary text-centric software and apps can do with no manual intervention.] While the look and feel of a good manual typewriter is undeniably unique, properly maintaining and utilizing such a beast is probably well beyond those with just a casual interest. Enter the Qwerkytoys Qwerkywriter (Amazon, Official Website), which gives you much of the look and feel of a good manual typewriter, but with the benefits of the digital age. Paired with your computer or a good tablet and the right app, you can create an alternative writing environment that just might be the envy of even some of the more dedicated manual typewriter enthusiasts (although probably not Mr. Schad). A good, name brand mechanical keyboard - which anyone who spends any time typing should invest in - usually starts in the hundred dollar range and goes up from there. Even with those numbers in mind, the Qwerkywriter is pricey. And that price was lowered to $249.00. Of course, to be fair to the Qwerkywriter, it is a unique design, so it's not really surprising that it exceeds the price of most high-end mechanical keyboards, where it's probably easier to buy parts in quantity. The US keyboard layout model I'm reviewing features 83 keys, while the UK version has 84 (where the left shift key is instead two separate circular keys). Most of the keys are circular, while others, like BACKSPACE and ENTER, are rounded rectangles. These keys are beautifully crafted, although the space bar is unique among the keys and is neither as stylish nor feels quite as good when typing. A typewriter-style carriage return lever on the left side of the machine functions as a macro key, although, for enhanced authenticity, I just had mine duplicate the ENTER key's functionality. This is a Bluetooth-only device that supports just one profile at a time, so to use it with multiple devices you'll have to pair it again between device changes. The microUSB port is only for charging. Since there's no backlight, you'll get up to three months of battery life. Although it has automatic power saving, there's also a discrete on/off rocker switch. Towards the back, there's a generously-sized slot that should fit most tablets, like my Apple iPad Pro 9.7, or 2-in-1 computers, like my Microsoft Surface Pro 3, up to 5/8" in thickness. Of course, use of the slot is optional, and it's just as easy to use the Qwerkywriter with a desktop or other Bluetooth-enabled device. To the left and right of the slot are platen knobs, but sadly these are just for decoration and don't actually rotate (it would be cool to use them to move the cursor, similar to the dedicated cursor keys). Device dimensions are about 13" wide and 7" deep. Thanks to its aluminum construction and other mechanical parts, it weighs a solid 3 lbs. That heft helps with stability, and, like the Freewrite I reviewed earlier, helps with the overall feel versus a regular keyboard. I tried the Qwerkywriter with a variety of software and apps on my Surface Pro 3 and iPad Pro 9.7. It was on the latter that perhaps the most fun was had, using the popular Tom Hanks-driven Hanx Writer. Simulating the look, sounds, and yes, limitations of a typewriter on the iPad's screen paired perfectly with the authentic look and feel of the Qwerkywriter. Just like with the Freewrite before it, although not without its flaws, the Qwerkywriter is unique in the market and it services the purpose it was designed for well. You can have as little or as much of the "romantic" typewriter writing experience as you'll likely want, without all the hassle that goes into owning a real manual typewriter. Pluses: - Classy design - Good build quality - Great manual typewriter-like feel - Unique typing experience Minuses: - Pricey - Only one Bluetooth profile, so need to resync each time you want to use a different device with it - Space bar is a bit disappointing, though even that is somewhat authentic - Platen knobs are just for decoration Summary: Although you probably won't want to use the Qwerkywriter as your daily driver keyboard, it's a great, if pricey way to create a unique manual typewriter-like writing environment while still maintaining the many advantages of today's digital world.

I write about 5k words a day and I used a gaming keyboard for the springback on the keys, but it annoyed me for having functionality I didn’t need and clicking a wrong button could send me wherever. Figured this was probably a total gimmick but it does look good, so maybe? I love it!! Do get the wrist rest, but they keys feel good on your actual fingertips and you can find your position easily without looking down (f and j have bumps) like a regular typewriter. It has ctrl, esc, page down, etc but they’re well positioned and I’m not hitting them accidentally when I get on a tear. I wish it were wireless, but that said it hooks up effortlessly so wouldn’t want to trade that. The scroll works and the carriage return works- which was cute at first, and then I spontaneously started using them in earnest :) Others mentioned a delay. I experience that as well, but it’s intermittent and short and doesn’t really bother me much. But it’s definitely a thing that pops up every 200 words or so, and is resolved in a second or two. It’s maybe kind of a gimmick- but I love it! It’s great quality, perfect weight- I look forward to using it every day. Very happy with the purchase!

I'm a professional novelist, and I was given a Qwerkywriter keyboard by a fan. That was how I was introduced to this amazing keyboard. The one that the fan gave me as a gift lasted only a year or two, because I accidentally spilled coffee on it, and it was destroyed. However, loving the clicky feel of this keyboard, I immediately bought myself one, even though at the time it was over $300. The feel of this keyboard is superior, and its round keys mimic many of the keyboards on typewriters, which I also use in writing my novels. There are a couple of caveats regarding this keyboard, however. One, the Bluetooth connection has a very slight lag time, so I use this keyboard connected to a USB port, eliminating any lag time. Two, let me be clear that this keyboard is ideal for writers; if you are a coder or someone who works with numbers a lot, there is no number pad, so it is not ideal for these other uses. Three, the carriage return bar is really just an affectation; you won't find yourself using it when typing a document. The main thing that I love about the Qwerkywriter keyboard is its solid build and overall quality. The keyboard switches are mechanical, and therefore clicky, so there is wonderful tactile feedback when you're typing. The case is solid metal, so the whole thing has some heft and won't slide around your desk. I would recommend that if you do a lot of typing, you'll want to have a wrist pad in front of the keyboard as well as in front of your mouse. The reason for this is that the keyboard rests about an inch higher on your desk than normal keyboards. One final note, the top of the keyboard has a slot to hold a tablet, in case you want to use this as a tablet keyboard. I heartily recommend this keyboard for writers, especially writers of books, novels, plays, or other long form documents.

My keyboard had been the envy of many in the office.

High quality materials, amazing old-style sound. The minuses : no backlight and no button to switch between mac/win But overall I got what I wanted

打鍵感もタイプ音も理想のもので、大変満足しています。タイピングが楽しくなりました。

I originally put up a scathing review of this product - I still stand by the assertion that they should tell you it will be shipped from the US by UPS, and that they will levy extra charges to deliver it, instead of being everything paid through Amazon as most of the merchandise is on here. I got an email after purchasing that said there would be extra charges and there was no indication of this or prior warning, either in the description of price or during the checkout. So be aware there will be extra charges. Also, if you don't like the machine, it will be pretty damn hard to get the charges back if you want to return it... It's UPS and they are AWFUL to deal with when it comes to merchandise that has been shipped from outside Canada. Any other carrier, know what I'm saying...? As to the Querkywriter itself... I had a *terrible* time getting it to connect to my iPad. Be aware it is set up to use as a keyboard with a PC - the keys are laid out as a PC keyboard and not as you would find on an Apple. I have not tried it with my desktop Apple Mac, so I cannot say how it will work there... But it was a bear to use with an iPad!!! They advertise that it will connect by Bluetooth... In theory, yes... in practice... no. Yeah, it will hook up at first when you connect it, but disconnect after a minute. This happens *continually* and it got *tedious* to keep going into "Settings" and re-hook it up to Bluetooth. Then a minute later, it's off again! Not really useable at all. And they mention this problem if you go to the Querkywriter website too, so they are aware you will have problems using it with Bluetooth. They provide a work-around, if you are willing to spend even more money and seek out an expensive part... I went to the Apple Store and got an expensive connector ($49 CAD plus tax) that will interface USB to Lightning, plus provides a Lightning connection to a power supply - it is called a "Lightning to USB 3 Camera Adapter". Querkywriter recommends some connector that is only available in the States and does not supply the power, so if you get that, you will not be able to use it - because you will get an error message saying that the device draws too much power. It takes power from the iPad so you *must* have a power source to use this work-around. You connect the Querkywriter cable to the USB on the connector, and connect it to the iPad. Then you connect the connector to a power source via a Lightning charging cable. That done, it works perfectly! Of course, it is not portable and you will have cables all over the place, but there it is, if you want to use it with an iPad. Perhaps it works better with a Surface or some other PC or Android-type tablet...? It does type very nicely and with the setup I describe you can use it with the iPad. It works with all the apps that can use typing input. That said, you will need to go to some trouble and extra expense to set it up. I gave it 4 stars because of the difficulties. LATER: I have received a reply to this review from Querkywriter. They have offered to make it right. They said they are new to offering it outside the US and will change their shipping and payment procedure so it is like other things you buy here on Amazon in Canada that may come from outside the country, in other words, they will arrange for Amazon will collect all the charges upfront and no surprises. They also say they are going to have an upgrade machine soon that will be compatible with the iPad Pro with no connection problems, so that is good too. (But in the meantime, you will have to use the work-around. I have been using that and the machine works fine that way.) I have to say, at least I have found their customer service awesome and fast! Hopefully the shortcomings I mentioned in my review will be addressed soon. Oh, and I changed the rating to 5 stars, based on the customer service. At least they seem to be earnest and honest, which counts for a lot these days. STILL LATER YET: They have replaced the Querkywriter with a new one because of the problems I had with the Bluetooth connection with the iPad Pro - apparently they have fixed this issue. This one works totally well! I can use it with my iPad Pro and it doesn’t disconnect from Bluetooth anymore - excellent! I am totally impressed with the customer service from this company. They have bent over backwards to make sure I was satisfied with their keyboard, so it was worth getting in the end. Did I mention it is *really* nice to type on? I wanted it to be able to do a lot of writing and it serves the purpose well. It is so difficult to use those “chiclet” keys you get on the newer keyboards. With the Querkywriter, you get a real keyboard that works just like you remember from the days of real keyboards. It is not like a manual typewriter, but more like an electric typewriter used to be. It works very well and I can type easily on it. I would totally recommend this keyboard and it is worth the price you pay. I also like the “Steampunk” look it has sitting on my desk with the iPad Pro in the tablet slot - so cool!

El producto llego mal empacado, abollado en su caja y además esperaba mejor presentación del producto para su costo, venía en una bolsa blanca con la caja, su cable, sin más, ni instructivo sólo un qr para descargarlo.