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APT Hall Effect Mechanical Keyboard

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... / MECHANICAL KEYBOARDS / 65% KEYBOARDS / ACE PAD TECH

APT Hall Effect Mechanical Keyboard

Name: APT Hall Effect Mechanical Keyboard
Brand: Ace Pad Tech
SKU: apt-hall-effect-mechanical-keyboard
Price: 114.99 USD
Availability: OutOfStock
Rating: 1.5 (14 reviews)

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Product Description

The Hall sensor, for which this innovative keyboard is named, was popular in keyboards of the 1970s and ‘80s thanks to its reliability. Frequently used in nuclear reactors, missile silos, and aircraft cockpits, the sensor steadily became less popular due to high cost of production Read More

overview

details

reviews14

photos0

discussions201

Customer Reviews

1.5

(14 reviews)

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tiborh

Nov 6, 2021

Verified Buyer

Somehow, the review link of my old order led to this page, where the 60% board is shown (I have the full board) The keyboard rested on my shelf for a long time after the cable connector came loose and I collected the strength and skill to repair it (surface mounted, not through-hole). It turned out to be an easy matter, it was enough to melt the soldering material already on the board. It has been working fine since then. Hall effect switches are one of the greatest inventions for keyboard switches: no friction, easy to type on. So that is not a question. The real question is how good the implementation and manufacturing are. APT, rightly so, went for simplicity. From the extra switches provided with the boards, it is easy to see that a permanent magnet is moving closer and further away from the board, this way creating current in the coil below, which is part of the board, as well as the LED. Lubrication is not needed, even if you have a plastic slab sliding on plastic switch-housing, which is not a rough ride. The other mechanic component, the spring but that is also going smooth. It is also a good move that the stems are Cherry-compatible, so swapping the caps out to a different set is not a problem. (Some people do not like the modern fonts on the caps provided with the board. Key feel? Very light, very smooth. I like typing on this keyboard. If you like cherry red, you will also like these switches, they running smoother than Cherry. Noise level? Not as silent as Cherry silent red, and definitely more noisy than rubber-dome keyboards. But not too noisy either. The main disadvantage? The Fn key is in the place of the right Ctrl, so it needs some time to get used to it. If you do not use other boards, it does not take too long to learn how to avoid mistyping. Build? The keyboard body is a good, hefty slab of plastic. It does not move around or bend while you are typing. Feet? Rubber domes help the keyboard stay in place, and there are two screw-in feet for raising the part of the keyboard further away from you. I have no complaint about them. Solid. You can decide to go with or without them, no setting in between. Do I like it? Yes, I do. Do I use it regularly? Yes I do. the extra switches:

the foot:

unscrewed:

default key-caps:

inside:

replaceability:

cable (mini USB connector in board, not braided):

(Edited)

Recommends this product? Yes

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Jovian

Nov 30, 2018

Verified Buyer

As others have stated, the build quality is dubious. I got the 96 key with the frosted acrylic, and I didn't see any scuffs on the case, but the white keycaps had scuff marks instead. The USB seems fine, but the fact that the quality control appears to be all over the place from user to user should be a huge red flag, making this board hard to recommend. A shame really. Also: I bought the clicky version and now wish I hadn't, I thought it would be smoother than it is. Doesn't really have much of a bump, might as well have gone linear.

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Aventus

Oct 31, 2018

Verified Buyer

Huge disappointment. The build quality is perhaps the worst I've ever seen in any keyboard. Each switch feels different than the next, stabilizers are crap. Overall, almost-zero care put into the quality of the materials and build. The teak case looks sorta nice, but one side of the keyboard will feel like sandpaper while the other will be smooth. The hall effect switches have the scratchiest springs and are nowhere near as cool as they sound in theory. There's really no saving grace in any of the features. Just don't buy it, whatever you do.

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Drrragon

Oct 25, 2018

Verified Buyer

Very poor build quality, the space bar is not responsive as other had stated, the taekwood case that i order turn out to be a bit more than sandpaper with very deep scratch. It seem like they would just send an unfinished product to the customers, very disappointed. even the the key is smooth as described (i got the linear version) the sound from it is very bad and when u type there is a feeling that the trigger point for all the key is somewhat different. The rubber feet is uneven, no matter what i do, it can't be set firmly on my desk. The only redeemable about this drop is that massdrop support had been great, offer me a full refund. Other than that, what a waste of time and effort waiting for this keyboard to be sent. would not recommend at all.

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Epixal

Oct 21, 2018

Verified Buyer

Experiencing similar issues most people had. Subjectively, I am not fond of the mushy springs included nor the rattling click mechanism. Luckily these seem both to be easily addressable with the design of the switch. The stabilizers also seem rather cheap and do a lousy job, at least out of the box. The board completely stopped working for me as well after a few days of LIGHT use. Upon opening up the keyboard, I noticed the usb connector had separated from the pcb completely. I was really looking forward to cleaning / lubing this board up, removing the clickers, and replacing the springs. Pity such interesting switches had to come with a board with terrible QC / questionable secondary components. EDIT: Managed to resolder the USB back onto the board and get it (mostly) working. I removed the clickers and cleaned/lubed the stabilizers while I had the board apart. I wasn't able to replace the springs as they are larger in diameter than the standard mx springs I had. This is to make room for the magnet in the stem. Linearizing the switches helped the key feel/sound, however they are still a bit mushy for me to use regularly. The stabilized keys are much less sticky with fresh lube, but they still feel like crap compared to cherry / costar competitors, however there is very little stabilizer rattle. I doubt I'll be tinkering on this board much more as the bamboo plate is VERY snug in the teak case and can be very difficult to remove without damaging.

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Croktopus

Oct 17, 2018

Verified Buyer

Echoing a lot of what other people said. Keys are all a bit mushy, but the spacebar is so bad that I'm missing it on like, half my key presses. Gonna try disassembling and removing whatever's causing this (I imagine foam). Just looking at the other keys, they honestly feel a bit like those fake rubber domes. I got the clickies (regretting not doing linears, but I plan to take out the clicky mechanism), and the tactility and clickiness feel disconnected from one another, and after the tactile event these feel a bit mushy. Also, super disparate feel (my J key actually feels pretty good, but the S is almost linear). I will say that they're pretty smooth, so I have high hopes for their potential after modding.

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Piefayth

Oct 17, 2018

Verified Buyer

Strictly disappointing. Does not sit level. One of the feet on the case screws itself around the screw, rather than holding steady so it can be turned into the case. This results in the screw being all the way into the foot where it is difficult to retrieve. Nevermind the feet; it does not sit flat when they are removed either.
The stabilizers are as bad as everyone says, although mostly only the spacebar suffers terribly. No programmability for keys or LEDs (on a 60% board?!). There is an awful sound at the end of each keypress when you bottom out (kind of like a spring twang) that is only somewhat muffled by a nicer set of keycaps with o-rings. The switches have an interesting feel, but the press is unexpectedly scratchy. It's much nicer typing on a light linear cherry switch.
I do like the aesthetic of the teak, and appreciate the few extra included switches.

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static.overdub

555

Oct 24, 2018

PiefaythSo you're saying that if I wanted a keyboard to annoy coworkers with a "boing boing" sound, this would be it?
No really, I'm sorry this was terrible. So much potential, gone.

Razlak

Oct 13, 2018

Verified Buyer

I will just echo the same complaints as the rest, mushy space bar, scuffs all over the case, and a completely useless "manual". Main keys aren't half bad though.

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MagicSmoke

388

Oct 12, 2018

Verified Buyer

108 key frosted PMMA. Low-ish rating for inconsistent key sound and feel. Stabilized modifier keys are a bit mushy. Spacebar feels fine go figure. fn key location is flat wrong. Manual needs a group intervention!

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tremblane

Oct 12, 2018

Verified Buyer

The "manual" (if you want to call it that) is a single sheet of paper, with 4 pages printed on it in booklet form. It's shrunk down so far and photocopied so much, it's lost clarity so the keyboard shortcuts diagrams are unreadable. Everything about it says cheap and unprofessional. And there are typos. I'm trying to imagine somebody holding the printout, examining it thoughtfully, and saying "Yes, yes this is quality work. This is what I want to include with the finely crafted keyboard".
Already the Esc and keypad enter keys have gotten stuck in the down position, and the Esc switch will pop off the PCB every 10 presses or so. I've come very close to losing the spring several times.
Mine also has some of the scuffing on the corners like others have posted pictures of. Not nearly as bad, but still visible.
And the best part, I can't even use it, as the USB connector wasn't even soldered on. The pressure of the back plate was holding it down enough to make contacts. When I took off the back plate to see what was going on with the switch that was popping out, the USB connector just fell off. It looks like an attempt was made to apply solder, but clearly not enough to do anything.
So:
- Poor quality control - Unusable due to switches popping off - Unusable due to the USB connector not being properly soldered - Cheap and unreadable "documentation"

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XMIT

881

XMIT

Oct 19, 2018

tremblaneI tried to write a good manual for the XMIT branded versions of these boards that I sold. It's a little out of date but it's here: http://www.xmitkeyboards.com/hall-effect-keyboard/manual/ . Sorry to hear that the OEM is sending out a crummy copy of that.