Cherry Keyboards 'R' Us Blog

Klingon Keyboards

Cherry like to be innovative and produce unusual devices from time to time. The Klingon keyboard is no exception.

Although based around a ’standard’, tried and tested product - the G83-6105LPQGB-2 (of which the 25 millionth product rolled off the production line in 2006) - the layout is it’s unusual part. The idea was born in the Cherry office here in the UK and started off as a simple marketing exercise. Once a press release was issued on the Internet, interest started to come in for such an unusal product and because forward orders were received, the product had to be put into production. The G83-6105LPNKL-2 is now a standard part within the Cherry product range.

The keyboard carries letters from the Klingon alphabet, sourced from the Internet and there is a Windows font to accompany it. This allows Klingon enthusiasts and those who are fluent in the language, to easily type e-mails and/or IM’s to their fellow Klingon fans. As with any keyboard, the Klingon keyboard can operate as a standard UK layout version when connected to a PC.

Press releases for this product caused quite a stir when a ‘fake quote’ was published, reportedly from a Klingon official - the complaint was raised by the gentleman who bears this name as part of an official Klingon site, but this seems to have done the keyboard’s popularity little harm. Orders and enquiries are still coming in….

Rumours of Romulan, Vulcan and other variants are not without substance - though time will tell…..!

Wireless Keyboards - 2.4ghz vs 27mhz

Cherry’s wireless keyboard and mouse sets come in two different versions and this can affect the way in which they operate.

27mhz radio frequency is used in more Cherry products than any other:

Sirius - M82-24700GB, Control - M82-24710GB, Barracuda - M85-25700GB, Stingray - M85-25710GB, Liberty - M-5650

The frequency allows connection distances of up to 2m, but can be a little further, dependent upon the conditions in which the device is used - this can be up to 5 or 6 (as we’ve found from experience!). However, within 27mhz there are some limitations as to the number of devices that can be present in a small location. This can then cause some difficulties with interference between devices, even when the ‘connection procedure’ is followed to attempt attachment to a different channel ID.

The connection procedure for Cherry 27mhz devices is simple. Once the batteries are installed, the receiver should be connected to a free USB port on the PC. When connected, the keyboard and mouse may well automatically function, but in case of any problems, there is a ‘Connect’ button on the receiver, as well as one underneath the keyboard and mouse. The connect button on the receiver should be depressed for a couple of seconds, followed by the one under the mouse, then the one under the keyboard and the devices should be connected.

With 2.4ghz devices, the range is far greater - 10m - as standard, though again, dependent upon conditions, this may increase. 2.4ghz is found in the following devices:

Marlin - M85-25800GB, Mover - M-200S, Ergo Shark R - M-200R, Ergo Shark L - M-200L

These devices are all ‘pre-coded’ with their receivers, making sure that there is no cross interference between devices. The only down-side to this, is that if the receiver, keyboard or mouse fails, the entire set would have to be replaced. However, as these are Cherry devices, this is extremely rare!

Different keyboard layouts

Cherry Keyboards are available in a variety of language versions and it’s worth mentioning  the differences between a standard UK layout and two other ‘English’ language types.

A UK Keyboard contains 105 keys - this is the sort of keyboard shipped with most standard PC’s - though recently some manufacturers have taken to including Multimedia products with their systems, which allow the control of packages like Windows Media Player or iTunes. However, although these are additional keys, they do not change the actual layout of the main keyboard.

Occasionally, PC’s are shipped with one of two alternative English layout keyboards - US English or EU. Whilst they are very similar to a UK keyboard, there are some important differences:

1.  A UK Keyboard contains 105 keys. EU or US keyboards have 104 - the key that’s missing is the one between the left-shift and the ‘Z’, that contains the \ and | symbols.
2. US and EU keyboards have a straight Enter key - UK keyboards have an inverted ‘L’ shape enter.
3. There is no £ sign on a US or EU keyboard
4. There is no € symbol on a US keyboard - on a UK keyboard it’s accessed by holding down ALT-GR and 4, on an EU keyboard by holding down ALT-GR and 5.
5. On EU and US keyboards, the # key is on the number 3 - on a UK keyboard this is next to the enter key
6. The number 2 key on US and EU keyboards contains the @ symbol. This is on the key next to the # symbol on a UK keyboard.

If you connect a keyboard to your system that’s different in layout to the one the system is set to, it will continue to operate as the system language. There is no ID within the keyboard to specify the language and Windows determines how the keyboard types.

Each country has it’s own specific layout - some examples are:

GB = UK English, US = US English, EU = European English, ES = Spanish, DE = German, FR = French, AR = US/Arabic, IT = Italian, SF = Swedish/Finnish, DK = Danish, RB = Cyrillic