Do all Acer Aspire keyboards have same ergonomic features?

[Lle0623]

Just read Laptopmag.com's glowing review of Acer Aspire E 15 laptop. As a retired musician (keyboards), my hands have become arthritic & painful. The review stated, "...even with a number pad, the full-size keys are well-spaced. The keys are also pleasantly springy, and an actuation force of 72 grams gives them a weighty feel (anything over 60 grams is ideal)."
Is this keyboard feature a standard for the entire Aspire line? Or is it specific to the E 15 model only?
This is a true selling feature for me! I've never cared for laptop keyboards but found it awkward to use an external keyboard along with the laptop. A docking station really isn't practical for me either.

 

[Saga Lout]

How you considered a Bluetooth keyboard? I use one to send SMSs from my Android 'phone if they're going to run to more than three lines and I could use it on my laptop if necessary. It's no larger than a laptop and could sit in front of one.

I also struggle with arthritic fingers and had to give up my clarinet because my left hand can no longer manage the grip.

 

[Lle0623]

How you considered a Bluetooth keyboard? I use one to send SMSs from my Android 'phone if they're going to run to more than three lines and I could use it on my laptop if necessary. It's no larger than a laptop and could sit in front of one.

I also struggle with arthritic fingers and had to give up my clarinet because my left hand can no longer manage the grip.

Thank you for the quick reply! I hadn't thought about a Bluetooth keyboard. However, that would be no different for me than a wired or wireless keyboard. Still is quite cumbersome. I'm using an HP 635 that needs updates. It does have a 15" screen. I've always had laptops (instead of desk pcs) due to space limitations. I rarely take it out of my house. My work laptops had docking stations & multiple monitors.

But now I need to update & upgrade, so I've begun researching tablets, Chromebooks & laptops. Laptopmag.com writes very informative reviews, so before we further digress, let's go full circle back to my original question about the Acer Aspire keyboards.

If i can find an affordable laptop, I'd love to have the touch screen also... Plus i need an Office Suite of apps, for Word, Excel & PowerPoint. My HP has a suite of compatible apps from Kingsoft Office, which look & feel like MS Word, Excel, etc. Most likely a fraction of the cost of MS Office Suite.

Your opinions are most welcome!
🙂

 

[Saga Lout]

In those circumstances, I would look first into adding memory to the laptop and outputting the screen to a TV set. Tell the laptop to do nothing when the lid is closed, buy a Bluetooth keyboard, close the lid and the laptop can go under the table. You save space and money on the same day. Many of my customers in my part of England have that setup, some of whom are chairbound and don't want the weight on their lap.

Just my £0.02.

 

[hang-the-9]

The best keyboard in a laptop is tough, because they were last made in the Lenovo T420 models, IMHO I think there is the Lenovo classic system that was a higher end system with new parts, but made to have the feel of the old laptops.

For new setups, there are laptops which use mechanical switches with good feel but those are primarily in gaming setups.

What are you looking for in a laptop keyboard, wider spacing, lighter key press feel, both?

Finding a laptop keyboard is not the easiest thing, even in the same model name laptop makers can change keyboards. I have worked on quite a few laptops where the same model laptop had different part number keyboards, and people have purchased several of the same laptop to get very different keyboard feels.

 

[Lle0623]

In those circumstances, I would look first into adding memory to the laptop and outputting the screen to a TV set. Tell the laptop to do nothing when the lid is closed, buy a Bluetooth keyboard, close the lid and the laptop can go under the table. You save space and money on the same day. Many of my customers in my part of England have that setup, some of whom are chairbound and don't want the weight on their lap.

Just my £0.02.

I like this answer! Why add memory though? My HP 635 has 320 gb hard drive & I have only used 72 gb. It has 4gb RAM & AMD 1.30 GHz. It's slower than a hot summer day down south! A sloth is faster! (I'm ignorant of the tech side of computers, so please be patient with me?)
I use flash drives to save most important stuff & be portable. I had a great little Acer that i lost in a flood June 2016. My only flash drive with a cap was not damaged - just buried in mud & guck! It has a 1gb capacity & I've loaded it with music, docs, pics & spreadsheets - 800 MB still free!
I purchased my HP 635 refurbished from a small computer store here locally. It's a good laptop, just slow.
Based on info i just provided, please explain your statement about adding memory. It hasn't been upgraded to Bluetooth capability yet.
Thanks for your time & patience!

 

[Lle0623]

The best keyboard in a laptop is tough, because they were last made in the Lenovo T420 models, IMHO I think there is the Lenovo classic system that was a higher end system with new parts, but made to have the feel of the old laptops.

For new setups, there are laptops which use mechanical switches with good feel but those are primarily in gaming setups.

What are you looking for in a laptop keyboard, wider spacing, lighter key press feel, both?

Finding a laptop keyboard is not the easiest thing, even in the same model name laptop makers can change keyboards. I have worked on quite a few laptops where the same model laptop had different part number keyboards, and people have purchased several of the same laptop to get very different keyboard feels.

My initial interest in the Acer Aspire E 15 was the keyboard. The review (https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/acer-aspire-e15-e5-576-392h) stated "...even with a number pad, the full-size keys are well-spaced. The keys are also pleasantly springy, and an actuation force of 72 grams gives them a weighty feel (anything over 60 grams is ideal)." The 6gb RAM as well as the better battery life, various multiple ports & 1TB hard drive - not to mention great price - all were great selling points for my purposes. I'm not a gamer & stream music without videos, so my needs are geared to a post-retirement, self-employed, 2nd career working at home with online sales for myself & others. I also write essays/editorials, which I plan to submit for publication in various periodicals. I'm 62 & pretty laid back, yet competent in pc applications.
I have never cared for a laptop keyboard. I use touchpad & hoped for a touch screen too, but can't justify the extra cost.
Looking through the E 15's many keyboard threads in this forum are rather daunting & have burst my bubble on the E 15, so I'm completely open to advice & suggestions!

 

[Saga Lout]

Another 4GB of RAM would make a big difference. My wife's Aspire e5 series, circa 2016 started out life with 4GB and I doubled it now she can't keep up with it.

 

[hang-the-9]

I like this answer! Why add memory though? My HP 635 has 320 gb hard drive & I have only used 72 gb. It has 4gb RAM & AMD 1.30 GHz. It's slower than a hot summer day down south! A sloth is faster! (I'm ignorant of the tech side of computers, so please be patient with me?)
I use flash drives to save most important stuff & be portable. I had a great little Acer that i lost in a flood June 2016. My only flash drive with a cap was not damaged - just buried in mud & guck! It has a 1gb capacity & I've loaded it with music, docs, pics & spreadsheets - 800 MB still free!
I purchased my HP 635 refurbished from a small computer store here locally. It's a good laptop, just slow.
Based on info i just provided, please explain your statement about adding memory. It hasn't been upgraded to Bluetooth capability yet.
Thanks for your time & patience!

"Memory" is not storage space, it's RAM. random access MEMORY. Storage space is the drive space.
8 GB of RAM is the standard for modern use, and a solid state drive also speeds things up a lot.

For keyboards, there are many you may like https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/best-laptop-keyboards

But using the laptop with an external keyboard would open you up to a lot more options, even for shapes like ergonomic with tilted keys.

In my experience, the Lenovo higher end models have the best build quality and keyboards, T, W, P models. Like I said in my other post, probably the highest rated keyboard overall is the older keyboards in T420/420s and earlier systems.