I'm guessing it's simple aesthetics, but also there is no lettering to "wear" (not really an issue with quality keycaps), and you can rebind keys without being "wrong". I've used blank keyboards over the years and the lack of printed keycaps is a look all its own.
I bought (imported!) a happy hacking pro 2 like 8 years ago and I wanted it to be blank. There was no german layout (still not existing?) and wrong labels are a no go for me.
Its still my daily driver and I love it.
Just yesterday I cleaned it, removed every key etc. Its every time a total mess to put it together but I eventually made it.
> Just yesterday I cleaned it, removed every key etc. Its every time a total mess to put it together but I eventually made it.
I regularly clean my HHKB. I simply remove all the keys and lay them out in the exact same layout as they're on the keyboard, which makes it easy to then put them back on. I cannot believe the filth that's underneath the keys and always think: "I can't believe it's been that long I haven't cleaned it"... Yuck. Keyboards are disgusting!
I put the caps in a lingerie bag and toss it in the dish washer. Throw in the mouse pad while I'm at it, then go wild with isopropyl alcohol on anything that can't go in the dish washer.
Most keys were also upsettingly dirty. I think its like 2 years I cleaned it the last time. I put them all in a pillowcase and use the washer.
I tried a similar approach to yours the first time I did it and messed it up. I get better each time doing it. Its like a puzzle game. Took only a hour or so.
First, John Maeda had written about this idea of a computer keyboard being more like a (musical) instrument than a tool.[^1] That always stuck with me.
Second, in itself, a keyboard is a complex object residing in my space. To me, the letters add visual noise. It's just a low hum, not a loud screech. But I would buy the blank version.
My take on "ze Germans", "psycho-acoustics" and "badass typists"
First off: As a native German-speaker, I always have to giggle with the whole "Das" Keyboard. "Das Keeboahd. Jaaaa."
Secondly: As silly as "...the psycho-acoustic experience [...] an unmatched typing experience" sounds. I know exactly what they're talking about. And it matters to me.
Maybe, as a neurodivergent person, it's because it provides a stim that I need in exchange for sitting still. So, to their credit, "psycho-acoustic experience" nails it for me.
Thirdly: Not in this lifetime will I buy a product named "Badass4" made for "badass typists" (Honestly, wtf?). I will not get into criticizing the overall shape. That's a matter of taste. Let's just say, the Altair I speaks to my preferences.
I'm French and have my keyboard setup to French, but I use a German keyboard that I bought used for dirt cheap. I touch type so I usually don't look at it, but in general it would be better if it was completely blank instead of having some keys right and some wrong.
I had the same curiosity about offering a blank keyboard because I've been using one for 8 years or so after it was recommended by a former co-worker who I have huge respect for. So I'll give it a shot to explain the difference after I got adjusted to it:
I did not realize that my brain was still wired to look at the keyboard periodically, specifically when dealing with special characters and really anything outside of typical alphanumeric. I only realized after the adjustment that each time I had to find one of these keys it was a minor interruption to my current thoughts. The best way to describe it is imagine a piano with every single key labeled as to what the note is. It would be difficult to teach people to think about the creativity and harmony and melody aspect of music and to directly translate what they hear in their head into muscle memory to reproduce it. With the keys labeled it would be like training wheels and difficult to get people off of this because the translation would constantly be:
- I hear a "G" in my head
- I see a "G" on the piano
- I play the "G" on the piano
Instead really what you want the brain to do is say:
- Here's what I play to get the sound in my head
With no in between. Or similar to learning a new language and having to internally translate things to your native language before you can understand (or the reverse for speaking). Instead you just want to immediately know what this language is saying with no native translation.
TL,DR: Once you really internalize that looking at the keyboard makes 0 difference, it's one less minor thing for your brain to think about and your flow isn't interrupted as frequent by internal thoughts. Using a blank keyboard is just a (admittedly somewhat extreme) way to force yourself into this.
I actually pulled that example from watching my sibling learn the piano in the 90's using that exact method. The teacher used stickers on the keys to speed up the initial muscle memory building (it also kept younger kids from getting discouraged so easily due to difficulty). After a few simple tunes and when they knew where "G" was without the stickers and without counting from middle "C", the stickers came off and the ear training began to play what they hear.
One funny thing about being a largely self-taught guitarist is that I spent years with the instrument not knowing the names of the notes I was playing. Especially since guitarists tend to play a lot of tablature, you can get surprisingly adept without knowing the notes. This works out ok for a while, but eventually becomes limiting as you try to expand your fretboard and music theory knowledge.
Absolutely! In fact a pretty common entry point to gaining fretboard knowledge is to learn various interval shapes across string groups, usually starting with octave shapes. Then you move on to major and minor thirds, and fifths.(Although I'm sure for many self taught guitarists, like me, you learn a 5th shape before anything else, since this forms the common and remarkably useful "power chord").
It's complicated a bit by that pesky 2nd string, which is tuned to a major 3rd from the 3rd string (all other string pairs have an ascending 4th between them). But still quite useful in helping new players learn to get around the fretboard.
Self taught guitarist here as well, and it's fascinating to see another person having such a similar experience as me! Usually people look at me in confusion when I say this stuff.
I've covered up certain logos in my line of sight while working to reduce visual distraction. I'm not as confident about my touchtype confidence that I could do it for the keys.
This podcast talks a bit about the visual system's role in focus:
If you don't look at it, why do you care if it has typography? (that's an honest question, not a rhetorical point dressed up as a question)