HHKB Professional Classic Review

Reading Time: 14 minutes.

This isn’t the first time I’ve had one of these keyboards on my desk. A few years ago I tried out the previous version of this keyboard, the HHKB Professional 2. There were certainly a few aspects that I liked, from the key feel to the location of the delete key. I had begun to become accustomed to it, and I was surprised to realize this might be a bad thing. I was afraid I could get used to things like the arrow key arrangement, the location of the control key, and the delete key, especially. Perhaps, as a few friends and exes have pointed out, I do have a problem with commitment? However, I think it’s more practical than that. It would be a real pain to change all my keyboards to the HHKB layout. On top of that, there are some keyboards, like that on my MacBook Pro or my iPad’s Magic Keyboard, that I can’t change. I’d have to get used to using two different keyboard layouts, switching between the two and making frequent typos. It just wouldn’t work.

And yet, like going back to the ex you know is bad for you, I was tempted to give the keyboard another go. Another chance at becoming committed to this funky layout, this strange and niche keyboard, and all the issues that would go with that. Unfortunately, it seems it might have stuck this time. At least, parts of it have.

The Layout 5/10

Let’s just get something out of the way quickly: fuck the arrow situation. Nope, not going to candy-coat this. It would take far too many words to describe the frustration I have with the arrows on this keyboard without cursing, but I’m going to try it anyway. I’ve used 60% keyboards before that didn’t have arrow keys, but they at least used the WASD keys. At least it was within reach and in a sensible inverted ‘T’ formation. On the HHKB, it’s the [;’/ keys. Yeah. Look down at your keyboard. They’re staggered, not next to each other, it makes touch typing difficult, they’re keys you’re not familiar with, it’s as bad as a situation as it could get. What useless idiot thought that was okay? The FN key is next to the shift key. There’s room for an actual inverted ‘T’ arrow arrangement with just a bit of tweaking, such as the layout of the NuPhy Air 60 V2. Just a small tweak, shrinking the right command and right shift keys a little. That’s it. That’s all they would have had to do. That’s what most 60% keyboard manufacturers do. But, no. Perhaps it’s tradition, perhaps it’s just an entire company of people operating without brains. The latter seems unlikely, and yet… the arrow keys, incredibly important keys, are arranged like trash and difficult to use. There are hundreds of better ways to do it. They couldn’t pick a single one. I will never stop being pissed that they ruined this keyboard’s potential with the arrow situation. Never.

Idiots.

Moving On… Kind Of

Now that we’ve addressed the giant, stupid elephant in the room, what about the rest of the layout?

When I first start using a keyboard with the HHKB layout, I always mess up the backspace or delete key. It’s located where the \| key is on most keyboards, at the end of the Qwerty row. I’ll often type \ when looking to delete text. However, after getting used to the layout for some time, I’ll struggle to go back. It’s a fantastic location for a delete key. It just is. Having it there shrinks the \| key, which you likely don’t use much, and gives us a backspace key within reach of our pinky, barely needing to shift your hand from the home row at all. On top of that, it allows us to split the top right key into two keys, adding a `~ key, perfect for programmers who have to use both more frequently than most people do. It’s why it’s “happy hacking,” I suppose. It’s a little more difficult on keyboards that aren’t designed for it, especially if they have an extra function row on the right side, a so-called 65% or 68% keyboard, but overall, more enjoyable.

They do mess up here, making the backspace key not become a forward delete key when the function key is pressed with it, instead moving forward delete up to the `~ key. However, they got the backspace key absolutely correct. Putting it anywhere else feels silly after you get used to it. It’s a key you use frequently, why not make it closer to your hands? Take the arrow configuration from every other keyboard manufacturer and the backspace location from this, and you’d have the perfect little 60% keyboard. In fact, I’ve done just that with a number of my 60-65% keyboards. Those are customizable, while the HHKB Professional Classic is not. Some of my keyboards I’m stuck with, like the one on my MacBook or iPad, and that’s frustrating. Fortunately, I mostly use my mechanical keyboards, and those I can (mostly) customize to use the HHKB layout, at least for the backspace key.

I don’t get rid of the arrow keys though, because you don’t have to be a rocket surgeon or the brightest crayon in the shed to know the arrow keys are important.

Typing Feel and Sound 9/10

The keypress on a Topre switch is delightful. Snappy, slightly cushioned, and refined. It feels wonderful to type on. It’s not very loud either, even in the non-silenced version I have. In fact, the sound is almost pleasant. It still sounds like a plastic keyboard with a plastic case, but there’s a richness to the lower notes. Not thock, more of a subtler sound. The keys feel snappy as you depress those rubber domes until they fold and spring back up.

Under every Topre rubber dome is a cone-shaped spring. That spring isn’t there to push the rubber dome back up, it’s part of the circuitry. As the metal coil becomes tighter, the capacitance changes, signaling a keypress to the circuit board beneath. There’s no contact between the electronics that make a decision about the key being pressed or not, and the key itself. That removes the “mechanical” part of the keyboard and, to many people, this isn’t a mechanical keyboard. However, what you get for that is a design focused solely on that typing experience. A refined feel. I wrote down a word in my notes while testing the HHKB that I think sums it up well: plush. This feels like a high-end typing experience. The HHKB is plush.

https://leafandcore.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/HHKB-Pro-Classic.m4a?_=1

My first complaint was that I noticed the keys just don’t rebound as fast as my mechanical keyboards. The springiness of the rubber dome is less than that of a coiled metal spring. So, I notice that, after pressing your finger down, if you let up slowly, you can feel the key following your finger up. It’s not a huge problem for typing speed though. I’m still consistently getting over 100-110wpm on this, in my average range. Although I can do a slightly faster speed with some of my other keyboards, but that could be a number of factors, including angle, how often I use that board, keycap shape, and key switch.

As for the typing feel itself? I’ve compared keyboards to fidget toys and bubble wrap before, but the HHKB keyboard is clearly the most fidget-like of the bunch. It’s not just like one of those silicone fidget toys that are like endless bubble wrap, it is one! Each key has a tiny rubber dome you get to pop down for each key press. It’s a fidget toy and a productivity tool in one!

No wonder I wrote such a long review….

Stabilized Keys? Just One.

The switches and keycaps are made in a way that they don’t wiggle very much. Even the long shift key on the left side has no stabilizers, just a single switch and the keycap itself. Yet it’s completely stable. Next to no wobble, certainly no more than you’d get from a stabilized MX key. The only stabilized key on the entire board is the space bar. This has two stabilizers, like any standard space bar. They are lubricated as well, so you won’t even notice that space bar has something a little different under it. Thanks to the wider connection area on these keycaps over an MX-style switch, you won’t miss those stabilizers anyway. Every keypress is perfectly solid and smooth. It makes you wonder why other keyboards have to go through so much effort to make a new mechanism when the Topre switch style just works.

Design, Keycaps, and Case 8/10

The design of this reminds me of utilitarian field watches or a very specific Casio watch, the F-91W. It’s plain, it’s functional, it’s minimalist, it’s old school, and it’s well-made. Everything this keyboard needs, as far as design, is present and accounted for, and nothing else. There’s even blank areas on the front of the keyboard because the creators just didn’t need the space. It has a utilitarian look and feel.

I love the black on charcoal design. The letters and symbols, barely visible, on the keycaps should stay present for a long time. PBT resists shine, and has a pleasing matte texture. The symbols on the keyboard are dye sublimated, basically the ink is built into the plastic. Almost like a tattoo. It should never fade. It’s not quite as sharp as double shot keycaps, but it’s the next best thing, especially with PBT. The matte texture of the keyboard and keys really brings the entire presentation together.

As part of that “no bells and whistles” mantra, you won’t find RGB lighting. In fact, they haven’t added any backlighting to their keyboards, not even the ones that do use MX switches. There have been times when I wished I could get a light on this keyboard though. I do often have to look for numbers and some symbols still, and the functions, like volume up and down, aren’t something I’ve memorized yet. In fact, I mostly use my separate macro pad for those things. As a result, I never built up muscle memory and would need backlighting sometimes. It’s not something I think about or miss frequently, but a soft glow would be nice.

Finally, there’s the weight. Unlike mechanical keyboards, there are fewer moving parts. They actually made the top housing itself part of the switch housing. This reduces moving parts and weight substantially. This is a lightweight keyboard. Not so lightweight that it feels cheap, but light enough that you’d rather throw this in a bag than most other mechanical keyboards. I know my custom Boop keyboard with brass plate would not go well in a bag.

Customization 1/10

The difference between the wired HHKB Professional Classic and the Bluetooth HHKB Pro Hybrid should just be that the Hybrid has Bluetooth, and all the issues that come with that. An additional  wireless connection to your computer and the potential for noise that goes with it, possible lag, and, of course, batteries. However, the Hybrid typically costs $322, while the Classic is usually $81 less, at $241. Right now you can get them for $269 and $239, respectively. Why the change in price, bringing the Bluetooth into range with the Classic? One possible reason is that keyboard enthusiasts don’t care about Bluetooth keyboards that much. The keyboard stays on one part of the desk, and a cable running off it isn’t a big deal. Keyboard enthusiasts, the weirdos that we are, often prefer wired keyboards. They don’t require a battery pack that could swell or damage your setup, the cables can be quite cool (I have a custom coiled one), and there’s less latency for gaming. Frankly, many of us, myself included, don’t want a Bluetooth keyboard, let alone one that’s far more expensive than it should be.

So HHKB added another feature to make their Bluetooth keyboard more enticing: it’s the only model between the two with real customization. HHKB locked the Professional classic out of customization. That means you can’t fix the arrow keys on it. However, enthusiasts have found this is a completely artificial limitation, and that a little modification of the app can unlock full remapping of the HHKB Professional Classic, at least on Windows. It’s not as easy to fix if you’re on a Mac. But it’s possible! They proved there’s no technical reason to block the customization of this keyboard, only a profit-driven one. You’d think HHKB would just let enthusiasts update and customize their keyboards. After all, it’s a niche brand, why piss off what few customers you have? To treat your loyal fanbase like this is unacceptable. It’s not like HHKB is putting a Topre on every desk, why screw over the few people who want to buy one? Many people, myself included, don’t want more wireless keyboards and more lithium ion batteries around. Most enthusiasts prefer a wired keyboard. So why take away the other thing we want? Customization? Just for some short-term profits? Niche brands with a small user base always do well when the piss off their small group of buyers for some short-term gains, right? I’m sure some brilliant people at HHKB decided that.

Probably the same “brilliant minds” who thought the arrow keys should be like this:

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 V

Artificial Limitations Aside…

Once again, we’ll put aside the lousy decisions and scummy behavior of HHKB to discuss what limited customizations you can perform, and how easy it is to violate your delicate warranty.

As there have been on HHKB keyboards for multiple generations, this keyboard contains dip switches. Flipping these switches can make a few small changes, like switching your keyboard to Mac or Windows mode or switching the alt and command keys. Little else.

As for customizing the typing feel or keycaps, good luck. First, there aren’t many Topre keycaps around. The options are extremely limited. Secondly, you can’t just swap out these switches. The rubber domes under the keys are part of the board. To change the typing feel, you have to take the entire keyboard apart, voiding your warranty. There, you find that the rubber domes actually just sit on top of the PCB, with the capacitive springs under them. There’s nothing ensuring the alignment. It’s actually quite messy. You can order other rubber domes to play with the feel. In fact, I only took mine apart because one of my keys doesn’t have the same notchy feeling as the others, and I want to buy replacement domes to fix it. You’d expect everything to be perfect on a board like this, but I certainly wasn’t going to go through a lengthy return to fix one key. Unfortunately, I found that I’d have to order a part, and this keyboard is not easy to reassemble. Tricky, but not overly difficult if you’re experienced with tinkering with electronics.

On the plus side, I realized why these are so expensive. The precision required to put one together would be difficult to manufacture. They really are more complex on the inside than your average keyboard.

I was worried the layout of this keyboard would be addictive, that it would become my endgame keyboard, with no more room in the hobby. But without being able to customize the layout, I can’t help but look at all of my other mechanical keyboards. On those, I can change the layout, making them more like the HHKB, at least in the ways that matter. It makes it hard for me to see it as an endgame. It could never claim a permanent, everlasting spot on my desk.

Vs the Pro 2

The HHKB Professional is the third version of a keyboard that was first released in the 90’s, the original HHKB. The Pro 2 made some drastic improvements, including a low power USB hub for connecting flash drives and a mouse to the keyboard. The third edition makes the move to USB-C, which would have enabled it to add a high-power USB hub, even an SD card slot! But HHKB didn’t do that. In fact, they didn’t put in a hub at all. The Professional Classic lost that great feature from the Pro 2. I was surprised and a little disappointed, having tested a Pro 2 out before.

There are some aesthetic changes. They removed the HHKB text from the lower right corner and instead moved it up to the top left edge. I figure, if they were going to do that they could have just added arrow keys down there. No, I’m not giving up on that.

Some tests online seem to suggest the new version is a little louder, but less clacky. It’s a deeper sound. Part of that comes from the new spacebar, which uses PBT like the other keys as well as the case, instead of ABS, like the old version. PBT is definitely the better choice here, and the new spacebar does feel great.

The PBT spacebar and USB-C support make this a better keyboard, but it would have been nice not to lose the hub feature along the way. My guess is they didn’t want to undercut the Bluetooth version any more than they already were with a hub, as the Bluetooth version wouldn’t support that.

Revisiting my HHKB Pro 2 Review

Obviously the biggest complaint I’ve had about the HHKB has been the arrow key setup. It’s bad, it’s a dealbreaker for most people, and it certainly should be. It’s why, in my first review, I said I would never buy that keyboard. I suppose, technically I bought the newer version of it, not that specific keyboard.

The other issue is the price. It’s a high price and you have to make that decision based on word of mouth. After taking mine apart, I can see why it’s so expensive, but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s a high price to pay for something you might not even like. At this price, it absolutely should have customization. Seeing as it could have customization, and they blocked it, that price is further unacceptable. It’s a weird board, with switches you haven’t tried, an arrow setup that no one likes, and a completely different layout. That makes it a risky buy, and it’s hundreds of dollars at that! However, since that first review, I’ve spent a lot more than this on the parts for custom boards I’ve assembled myself. I’ve come to see it as an expensive board, yes, but one that isn’t outside of the range of a good enthusiast keyboard. It’s a shame they withheld enthusiast features to try to push people to their more expensive models though.

In my first review, I mentioned feeling fatigued or cramped with the keyboard. I think this was a lot because of the layout pushing me towards moving my hands less. Back then, I typed with far more weight and moved my hands a lot more when I was typing. Since then, I’ve gotten better at typing. I’m faster, more accurate, and I stick to the home row more. As a result, I loved the layout and didn’t feel like it was cramped at all. It’s now the layout I put on my other keyboards… except the arrow keys, obviously.

Topre key switches are controversial. I know, if you don’t know much about keyboards, that’s got to sound insane. How could key switches be controversial? What is wrong with you keyboard fanatics? Did you not get enough hugs growing up or something?
And, to answer your question, can anyone really get enough hugs?

This part, however, is still accurate. Hug more.

Sustainability 5/10

They just had to wrap it in plastic, didn’t they? Cardboard box and container, no reason to have plastic, and then, boom, wrapped in plastic around the outside. Why? It was so unnecessary. It’s certainly better than the Bluetooth version, as you won’t have to worry about batteries that will eventually need to be recycled, producing some extra waste. However, it still has that extra plastic waste that just wasn’t necessary. It’s not a terrible amount, just a pointless waste. No plastic waste was necessary, yet they added it.

Other Stuff

Sometimes a review has some random notes, stuff that doesn’t fit into the other categories. I don’t have much, but there were a few things I still wanted to bring up before wrapping up this review.

First, there’s the cable that comes with this. It has a 90º angle on the connector, but no other bends in the cable. That means the cable just hangs off the side of your desk or connects at an awkward angle. They could have just included a 90º adapter, or perhaps used a nice coil cable. It’s not bad, and I’m sure you have USB-C cables laying around, it’s just an odd choice.

Then there’s the quality control. My `~ key was broken from the start. It works just fine. These keys compress a small spring, which doesn’t push up on the key, just changes the capacitance on the board under the spring as it compresses. The part that pushes up on the key is a rubber dome. On my one key, that rubber dome is defective, and doesn’t pop up as much. It just kind of mushes down. It’s a quality control issue, and I’ll have to replace it myself. That’s not something you want to see on a $200-$300 keyboard.

Overall 7/10

What have I done? I used this keyboard far too long in tests and now I type \ on all my other keyboards. I’m going to have to go through and edit all of them to move the backspace key down where it should be, on the Qwerty row. This is good. This is a nice change. The ~ key is a bit too far away on the HHKB layout for my tastes and I prefer the Fn+J I had been using for years after a 60% keyboard introduced me to that location and I loved it, but it’s fine. It works.

The truth is, I didn’t set out to use this keyboard so long. Sure, the review took a long time to finally finish up, but it’s not that. I’ve loved this keyboard. The poppy typing feel, like a fidget toy, the compact layout, the small space on my desk allowing more room for my iPad, macro pad, and trackball. It’s a wonderful little keyboard. Sure, the arrow situation was designed by a psychopath who wanted to destroy something beautiful, but the rest? Incredible. Those arrows will be a deal-breaker for most people, and they’re pretty close to a deal-breaker for me too. It’s awful, and sometimes makes me so frustrated I want to rip the thing off my desk and lock it away somewhere, never to disgrace my desk again. God, at least let the inverted ‘T’ layout be a dip switch option or something. This is just disgustingly bad. You can’t feel where all the arrows should be with your hand, you have to move your hand around so much that it reduces the accuracy of muscle memory. I’ve certainly gotten better at it, but a minute on a keyboard with arrow keys and I’ve found my natural home once again.

I love the typing feel, the size, and most of the other details about the layout. If you’re willing to use a macro pad for your arrow keys, or just spend an eternity getting used to this layout, then this is the keyboard for you. But it’s so hard to recommend this keyboard when it comes with such a glaring flaw. It’s a keyboard for the kind of enthusiast who has other keyboards they can use when they get tired of the lack of usable arrow keys on this keyboard. For the curious geek who just wants to try it out and has deep pockets for this often ridiculous hobby. But without those arrow keys, I just can’t recommend it. It’s not an end game, it’s not a primary keyboard, it’s a toy, a plaything. Maybe for tossing in a suitcase for travel, but not to be your one and only board, not if you do much typing and would need those arrow keys, as I do.

I both love and loathe this keyboard. If you can go without usable arrow keys, definitely give this keyboard a shot. It’s a lovely typing experience and I really do love most of this keyboard. I also completely hate it for how great it could be. Its potential is so much more than what we got. Until HHKB makes some changes, either with personalization or dedicated arrow keys, I can only really recommend this to the very niche crowd of keyboard enthusiasts who can swap it out when they get tired of not having arrow keys. Or, like me, add a layer to their macro pad for arrow keys nearby.

I’ll likely continue using this keyboard after this review is done. I often will change things up for a while after a review of something like this, but something about this keyboard is just too sticky to give up so easily. Perhaps I’ll keep it around a bit longer. It’s a decent keyboard, just a shame the company clearly has some voices within who should be ignored, namely anyone saying they should artificially cripple the keyboard that could propel them out of niche markets and into the mainstream. This keyboard could be more. As it is, it’s just a toy for the enthusiast to use, love, and then put away.