This may be controversial, but I've always favored the feel of low-profile scissor switch keyboards with rubber domes. I have continued to buy these over the years as my keyboards have worn out, but it is becoming increasingly difficult to find replacements with the standard layout that I like which are also cheap and affordable.

Back around 2005, I found that I really liked the Rosewill RK650. This is a very basic no-frills low-profile keyboard with scissor switches. I noticed later that they had been marked down significantly, likely to be discontinued, so I bought 10 of them to keep my own stock for the foreseeable future. I loved these keyboards and used them until they wore out or broke, keeping several for spare parts. The most obvious fault was the lettering, which was only painted on the surface, wearing off. The rough texture on the plastic keys also diminished, and the surfaces would become smooth. The silver paint would chip and the domes themselves would begin to wear.

After I ran out of these, I switched to the Perixx PERIBOARD-311PLUS, which I *loved*. It was a much more conventional IBM 104 layout and had backlit keys. The keys were painted from behind and the lettering laser etched, so it was impossible for the letting to come off. The keys were already smooth, so any surface wear was minimally visible. The only fault with these keyboards was the rubber domes wearing out. When they finally did, even when replacing them with a similar done, did not work reliably. Although I couldn't know for certain, perhaps there was wear on the matrix itself rather than the dome. This kind of fault is observed by keys not registering, even after fully bottomed out. Typing becomes unreliable and tedious. As much as I liked these keyboards, they never discounted as much as I liked, and I didn't have any spares by the time they were discontinued.

After this, I decided to try a wireless keyboard. I opted for a HP Wireless Elite Keyboard v2. It was comfortable with an "ok" layout. I wasn't a fan of the weirdly elongated delete key, but I was able to adjust. The problem I had with this keyboard, however, was the wireless signal. Maybe it was the material of my desk, but I had serious issues with random disconnects and key pressing going missing. I ended up solving the issue by using a taping a USB extension with the wireless dongle attached to the top of my desk. This was a less than desirable experience, but I was busy with work and ignored as a minor inconvenience it at the time. I did enjoy not having a wire draped across my desk though.

I kept this layout up until recently, and also added a Logitech Ergo wireless mouse, which also required dongle adjustment (the USB cable on my desk being upgraded with a hub). However, after a recent move, I have found there to be significant radio interference at my new apartment. There is an obvious "white noise" that is audible from my amplified speakers and both my wireless keyboard and mouse suffer from random dropouts, despite being very close in proximity to the dongle on my desk. So now I'm on the lookout for another scissor switch keyboard and it must be wired. I have decided that wireless has been too much of a hassle, and I can't tolerate dropouts anymore.

The issue I have is the difficulty in finding keyboards that I like. I am not a fan of mechanical keyboards. I really like the soft and quiet experience of rubber domes with the reliable actuation of scissor switches. I do not have the same kind of love for pure rubber domes without scissor switches, which have a very mushy feel, require a greater force to actuate, and are not as pleasant when bottoming out.

Does anyone else have this particular preference, and can anyone provide any recommendations on a replacement keyboard? I'm looking for a 104 key layout in a reasonable size with key caps that are not obnoxious. Ideally, a business class keyboard. I have so far tried buying some cheap keyboards by Dell and HP, but I've only been able to find ones with rubber domes and none with scissor switches.

So far, I am considering the Cherry KC 6000 Slim and the Cherry Stream. I would like to have a backlit keyboard again, but it's hard to find one that meets my minimum requirements.