About 15 years ago, I had the good fortune to be able to drive through Switzerland. This was done while following the route the blokes from the TV show Top Gear took whilst trying to find the :best driving road In the world” (which ended up being from Davos in Switzerland to Stelio in Italy).
When transitioning from Germany to Switzerland, as good as the Teutonic Autobahns are, the differences still surprised me.
The roads were billiard table smooth, the bridges as precision engineered as a fine Swiss watch and the whole thing was a delight to experience. Even if it did cost €50 to enter the country.
Which segues me nicely to the new Logickeyboard® I received the other day from new Australian distributor, Sydney based Adimex.
I have used a specific Logickeyboard for something like 15+ years, designed specifically for use with the Vegas video editing system It is very long in the tooth these days from constant use; all the mechanics are still OK, but some of the keycaps are worn and after this amount of time, some of the etched commands on them for Vegas have since changed and others added so it is also out of date in that sense.
As a keyboard for straight typing though, I have yet to find one better – the closest believe it or not is on my Tandy Model 100 which came out in 1982! (And still works perfectly).’
This new Logickeyboard Astra though is at another level altogether and the build and precision of it reminded me of those exquisite Swiss roads.
This new model is heavier and feels more solid than my original, and the “feel”, such an important part of a keyboard, is just right. When you switch to a new keyboard, whether it be temporarily, say using another computer, or permanently when acquiring a new one for your own use, often it takes quite some time to get used to it.
With the Logickeboard Astra, I had no such issues as was up to typing speed within minutes. Logickeyboard say it has been engineered to be able to sustain 10 MILLION keystrokes a day by the way!
The key mapping has been extensively overhauled to reflect how Vegas has matured over the years to start with and the key mechanisms now based on a “scissor switch” system. All keys are now backlit too, a huge leap forward and a must have in my opinion, and can display 5 different lighting levels.
There is a longer 1.8 metre cable too, and the company has seen fit to add 2 USB ports to the rear of the unit, which is a very welcome addition for those of us who use devices such as the Loupedeck CT and Blackmagic Design ATEM Mini Pro.
I have detailed lots about my issues 12 months ago regarding the symptoms and fixes for Carpal Tunnel, and feel very strongly as a consequence that in this day and age where we simply cannot escape the keyboard / mouse combination in our daily lives, then scrimping on these devices is really, really bad economy thinking.
So yes, at AUD$240 the price of the Logickeyboard Astra for Vegas is certainly not in you $2 Shop bargain basement dump bin (and nor is the Logitech MX Vertical Mouse at $168), but in the longer term, trust me, these are a very very good investment.
The bonus of course is that the Logickeyboard Astra for Vegas makes using the program itself much more of a delight and easier too. And you even get to find commands you may not have known existed further speeding up your workflow!
Logickeyboards are not just available for Vegas of course; there is a whole range of units out there for all the major video editing applications including AVID Media Composer and DaVinci Resolve as well as 3D / modelling applications such as Maxon Cinema 4D and graphics applications including Photoshop and other Adobe products.
There is also a bunch of add-ons such as protective skins, wipes and even spare parts available.
See the Adimex website to get the full range.
Film, Video & Virtual reality 