Das Keyboard 4 Professional For Mac

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Das Keyboard 4 Professional for Mac DASK4MACCLI Black 104 Normal Keys USB Wired Gaming Mechanical Keyboard Blue Switches (Clicky) Ships from China. Most customers receive within 4-16 days. The Professional 4 version includes a USB 3.0 Hub featuring two fully powered Type-A ports, thereby easing the strain of Mac users that still employ Type-A peripherals. If you need backlighting and have a few extra bucks to throw down, consider the 4Q, which includes fully RGB Cherry MX Brown switches.

Computer keyboards can use electronic or mechanical switches under the keys. I'm a big fan of mechanical keyboards, because I can type faster and more accurately on them. Metadot makes some of the best Mac-specific mechanical keyboards out there, and today they've released the Das Keyboard 4 Professional for Mac. Here's my review.

The good

  • Available in two switch types, clicky and tactile
  • Media buttons and oversized volume key work well with iTunes
  • Lighter, thinner, more efficient than previous Das Keyboard model
  • Built-in USB 3 hub
  • Unique 'Footbar' stand
  • N key rollover support

Das Keyboard DASK4MACSFT 4 Professional for Mac - Soft Tactile. Mechanical keyboard designed for Mac with high-performance, gold-plated mechanical key switches lasting up to 50 million keystrokes. Buy Das Keyboard 4 Pro Mechanical Keyboard for Mac (Soft Switches) featuring Full-Sized Design with 10-Key Numberpad, Volume Knob & Mac-Specific Keys, Soft Switches with Tactile Bump, Plugs into Computer's USB Port, NKRO for Many Simultaneous Key Presses, Footbar Doubles as a Ruler, 2 x USB 3.0 Port Hub, Designed for Mac. Review Das Keyboard null. The Das Keyboard 4 Professional for Mac is built using premium materials and boasts a number of design improvements over its predecessors, but you’ll pay for the nose for it.

  • Expensive
  • Bulky USB cable looks clunky

The Das Keyboard 4 Professional for Mac is a great alternative to Apple's own keyboards. The Das Keyboard is much more comfortable to type on. It's also designed to be used with Macs and comes. You can buy the Das Keyboard 4 Professional for Mac (w/ Cherry MX Brown switches)  on Amazon for $161.99. If you’re looking for a more cost conscious solution, the Model S (w/ Cherry MX Blue switches) ($133 and below on Amazon) is still a good keyboard that will improve the typing experience, it’s just not as good as the Professional 4.

What makes mechanical keyboards special?

The key switches inside the MacBook are 'scissor' switches: rubber domes cover a circuit board. Each time you press a key, a scissor-shaped mechanism underneath the plastic cap collapses and you press the rubber dome to make contact with the circuit board underneath.

It's a good way to make an inexpensive, extremely low-profile and quiet keyboard, but it lacks the same crisp tactile response of a good mechanical keyboard.

Mechanical keyboards harken back to the dawn of the personal computer business. Many of us 'old school' computer users who came up during that time prefer them, as do a growing number of enthusiasts in gaming and other niche markets like journalism and programming.

Mechanical keyboards cost more money, they're heavier and they're a good bit noiser (more 'clicky') than modern scissor keyboards, but those of us who love them will tell you that they're faster and more productive on a good mechanical keyboard.

Brown

Inside the Das Keyboard 4 Professional for Mac

Metadot first came to prominence among keyboard enthusiasts in the mid-oughts with their Das Keyboard II, which featured mechanical keyswitches built by German computer hardware maker ZF Electronics (formerly Cherry). They've come out with new designs since then, and their original Das Keyboard Model S Professional for Mac remains one of my favorites.

The Das Keyboard 4 Professional for Mac sports a 104-key US QWERTY layout, complete with cursor keys and a numeric keypad. There are also dedicated media control keys built into the keyboard above the num pad that function as rewind, fast forward and play/pause buttons; a circular button mutes sound and a sleep key will also put the computer into sleep mode. A large rotary dial on the upper right side of the keyboard is smartly outlined in a red metallic finish; it controls volume.

Metadot first introduced the Das Keyboard 4 Professional in 2014 for Windows PC users. Mechanically, the Mac keyboard is the same. The Mac version's media keys activate iTunes and adjust system volume, and the command and option keys are correctly marked. The keys next to F13 (ostensibly SCRL LK and PAUSE on the PC version of this keyboard) control screen brightness.

Das Keyboard 4 Pro Mechanical Keyboard For Mac (soft Switches)

The keyboard attaches to your Mac using a 6.5-foot USB cable. Built into the back of the keyboard are two USB 3.0 ports, one of the first Mac keyboards I've seen so equipped (most have USB 2.0 ports instead). The USB 3.0 hub is a nice feature, but the long USB cable is very bulky and inelegant.

The new Mac Das Keyboard model is available with two different switch options: You can order it either with blue or brown switches. Both are mechanical; the blue version is more crisp and clicky, while the brown is softer but still very tactile. Both feel great, but I prefer the brown switches. Mechanical keyboard enthusiasts probably don't need a lot of prompting either way; we all have our favorites. I find the brown to be a bit less distracting, even though I don't get the 'click' that I do with the blues, which is oh-so-satisfying.

I still have my Das Keyboard Model S Professional for Mac, and it still works well. The new keyboard is thinner, uses a different typeface on the keys, and doesn't grab two USB ports.

Metadot's developed a different raising mechanism for the back of the keyboard than the integrated feet used by the older model. They call it the Footbar, and it attaches magnetically to the bottom of the keyboard when you want to use it.

Metadot has cheekily incorporated inch and millimeter measurements into the Footbar (it's actually about 16 inches long), so you can use it as a desk ruler if you're not elevating the back of the keyboard.

N-key rollover is an important consideration for discriminating mechanical keyboard enthusiasts. Keyboards with N-key rollover let you register as many key presses as you can manage at once without dropping any characters. It's one of the big reasons speedy typists looking for maximum accuracy prefer mechanical keyboards. Not only is N-key rollover supported, but you can toggle it on and off using a key command.

The Bottom Line

If you liked the Model S, you're going to love what Metadot's done with the 4 Professional for Mac. The choice of tactile brown Greentech switches and clicky blue switches gives discriminating mechanical keyboard enthusiasts a great choice - tactile but quieter, or loud and clicky. The Pro 4 for Mac is thinner and lighter than its predecessor. Outside of a rather awkward black USB cable, it's gorgeous inside and out.

  • $175 - Buy now

Are you a PC user interested in the Das Keyboard 4 Professional? Pick one up here:

  • $161.99 - Buy now

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