Product: Avant Stellar Keyboard	Company: Creative Vision Technologies
Web: www.cvtinc.com	Phone: 888-770-0500 xt. 105
Platform: Windows 3.x (or better) to use the keymapping software	SRP: US$190 Street Price: same
Cred Rating:	Special Award:

First of all, let me go ahead and say it: US$190 is a lot to pay for a keyboard, especially one that isn't split in the middle, or shaped for less wrist strain, or otherwise configured to enable you to avoid filing for Workman's Compensation. The Avant Stellar is not the keyboard for everyone -- it *is* the keyboard for the typing enthusiast.

Before you laugh, let me offer a brief history lesson. Back when DOS and WordPerfect 4.2 ruled the world, keyboards were really a big deal. PC makers actually bragged about their keyboards in advertising. These days, when you buy a PC, you get a plastic, mushy-keyed commodity part that was made for $2 in some Far Eastern nation and emblazoned with the company's logo. But back in the Golden Age, before anyone used a mouse, keyboards were important. Gateway sold a programmable keyboard that they advertised proudly, and IBM made fantastic keyboards with industrial strength mechanical switches. Many diehard computer users still swear by them.

The reason people were serious about keyboards is that you never took your hands off of them. There were no mice or trackballs -- you could do all of your word processing with your hands on the good ol' home row. Wordstar devotees wore out their control key, and Word Perfect fans actually needed all twelve function keys to get their work done. These days, the mouse is used nearly as much as the keyboard, and there are so many other ways that system builders can differentiate their computers, that keyboards are seen as an area where they can save a buck or two on the total system cost.

Anyway, back when times were better for typists, there was one keyboard that ruled the industry: the Northgate Omnikey. I can still remember reading Computer Shopper back when I was married to my Commodore 64, ogling the full page ads for the Omnikey, which not only shipped with every system Northgate sold, but was available separately as well. The Omnikey boasted the best keyswitches, the most powerful keymap editing software, and other incredible features, like function keys both across the top and along the left side of the keyboard. Northgate slipped into obscurity; I thought it had gone out of business completely until I saw Northgate systems being hawked on a cable shopping channel one night.

Seeing the Northgate system on TV reminded me of the Omnikey, even though I knew that the new Northgate now sells the same miserable keyboards as everyone else. I decided to do a bit of Internet research to discover what fate had befallen the Omnikey. I wasn't surprised to find that a small group of hardcore users were still working to draw more life out of their old Omnikey keyboards, and swapping tips on where replacements could be found. But what I was surprised to see was that there is a company out there carrying on the Omnikey tradition.

Creative Vision Technologies had the designers of the original Northgate Omnikey design a keyboard that is basically its equivalent. I have to admit that while I always lusted after the Omnikey, I never had the opportunity to use one, so you aren't getting the benefit of the experience of an Omnikey fanatic who has five of them stored in the garage so that they'll never be without one again. However, after using this keyboard for a month or so, I can tell you that I'm now a true Avant Stellar believer.

I'm a fast typist, and I take typing very seriously. I've never been happy with keyboards with membrane switches, I prefer the feeling of typing on a noisy keyboard with mechanical switches. Having used some of the original IBM AT keyboards, I had high hopes for the Avant Stellar (it uses the same ALPS keyswitches as the old IBM keyboards). I was not disappointed.

I knew that this was a different kind of keyboard as soon as I opened the box. For one thing, the keyboard is heavy -- it weighs about five pounds. The top of the keyboard is made of extremely sturdy plastic, and the bottom is made of rigid metal. This is an industrial strength piece of hardware. The other thing that sets this keyboard apart is that it comes with a tool for removing the keys, something you don't see every day. With the software that comes with it, you can reprogram the functionality of any of the keys, and using the tool, you can rearrange the keycaps to reflect the new layout.

Closer inspection and everyday use revealed even more nice touches in the design of this keyboard. For example, the key labels for the keys are actually molded into the plastic. If you look at the underside of a key, you can see that the label is actually a separate piece of colored plastic that was molded at the same time as the tan plastic of the key itself. I've seen the labels disappearing from the tops of the keys on lesser keyboards after relatively light usage; that will never happen with the Avant Stellar. The fold-down feet on the keyboard are covered with rubber so that it won't slide around on your desk (not that a keyboard this heavy roams much anyway). Clips are built onto the backs of the feet in order to hold the cable so that it lies on the desk properly.

Unlike many retro keyboards, the Avant Stellar sports the now ubiquitous Windows keys that were introduced with Windows 95. These keys are a mixed blessing. Contrary to popular belief, they actually are useful. For example, the Windows-E combination will open a File Explorer window. On the other hand, adding new keys leaves less space for old keys. Take a look at the narrow space bars on many new keyboards -- the Windows keys forced them to slim down. On the Avant Stellar, the Control and Alt keys on the right side of the space bar were downsized to make room for these new keys. On the other hand, unlike many modern keyboards, the backslash key is under the Enter key, making room for a double-sized Backspace key and following the convention set by the original IBM AT keyboard.

Overall, the Avant Stellar is a wonderful keyboard. I can hardly bear to use my generic Compaq keyboard at work any more because the Avant Stellar provides such a superior typing experience. I don't know of any medical evidence that indicates that mechanical keyboards are good for your hands, but mine are much more comfortable if I use the Avant Stellar (or my Adesso keyboard for the Mac).

The downside is that this keyboard costs a lot -- the generic Acer keyboard that came with my home PC costs about eight bucks. To me, the cost is completely justifiable. As a writer, I do a lot of typing, and $190 isn't that much to pay for a keyboard that makes me a lot happier to sit at the computer. However, when I asked my employer to cough up the money to get another Avant Stellar for me to use in the office, he didn't seem too excited about it. So, if you take your typing seriously, and you prefer mechanical keyswitches, I would strongly encourage you to try out the Avant Stellar.

By the way, Creative Vision Technologies also makes another keyboard, the Avant Prime, which is identical to the Avant Stellar except that it doesn't have the second set of function keys running down the left side. It costs $150. Since function keys aren't as important as they were back in the DOS days, you may find this keyboard more to your liking, and you'll save yourself $40.

- Rafe Colburn [3/10/99]

Other keyboards reviewed on Street Tech:

• NuForm Keyboard [9/9/97, Rating: 4.0]

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