Topre Type Heaven

TYPE HEAVEN

Branding	Topre, TYPE HEAVEN
Manufacturer	Topre
Layouts	104-key
Keyswitches	Topre Switches
Interface	USB
Dimensions	455 x 156 x 31 mm / 17.9 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
Weight	1400 g / 3.1 lbs
Years of production	2013
Price	$150-180 USD

Type Heaven (typeset TYPE HEAVEN) is a keyboard brand produced by Topre since 2013. It is intended as a low-cost alternative to the popular Realforce line of keyboards. Topre have been making capacitive switch keyboards since 1983 for various companies in fields such as banking, broadcasting and data entry.

History

The Type Heaven was introduced at Computex 2013<ref name="th_1"/>. From the start, Topre authorized distribution and technical support for North America has been handled by Seasonic USA. Seasonic USA, a subsidiary of Taiwanese Sea Sonic Electronics Co., Ltd., has also extended Topre original 1 year warranty to 2 years, dramatically increasing Type Heaven's value. North American keyboard retailer 'EliteKeyboards' was the first to start selling the Type Heaven on Amazon.com in July, 2013.

In January 2014, South Korean retailer 'Leopold' introduced a localised version of the keyboard with Hangul legends<ref name="th_3"/>.

In June, 2015, Topre were present at Computex where they demonstrated a new version of the Type Heaven with backlit RGB legends<ref name="th_2"/>. Reportedly, the backlit model has Cherry MX compatible sliders and an adjustable actuation point with settings for 1mm, 1.5mm, 2mm, 3mm<ref name="th_2"/>. They also teased additional Type Heaven models with coloured cases, although these models appear to have the standard laser-etched keycaps. The backlit model with adjustable actuation points will be priced slightly higher than the standard Type Heaven and is expected to be released in 2016<ref name="th_2"/>. It is possible that the Type Heaven RGB was simply a proof of concept that may never see production, or a stand-in as Topre prepared a new case for the Realforce RGB keyboard, slated for a US release in November, 2016.

Design details

General construction

The Type Heaven uses uniformly weighted 45 gram Topre switches and has the same metal-plate mounting as Realforce keyboards. Its case styling is new and appears to have a smaller footprint than Realforce keyboards. In particular, the Type Heaven's back edge has been reduced and rounded over, while its sides and front edge have sharper lines. Underneath, there are height-adjustable feet and a cable routing channel allowing the user to run the cable out from the left or right edge of the keyboard.

Keycaps

With the exceptions of the spacebar on the Realforce and re-legendable keycaps on some Topre OEM keyboards, the Type Heaven is the first Topre keyboard to have ABS keycaps rather than PBT. The keycaps are interchangeable with standard ANSI Realforce 104 keyboards. The legend printing method is laser etching. The gold colour of the legends is achieved as a direct result of the laser etching process and a coating is applied over the top to improve legend durability. Details of the keycaps used on the RGB backlit version of the Type Heaven are not yet known as Topre did not allow Computex 2015 attendees to remove keycaps.

Outsourced components

One or more of the Type Heaven's components are made in China<ref name="th_1"/>, presumably to reduce its price in comparison to the Japan-made Realforce keyboards. Topre have confirmed that at least one component, the switch springs, are Chinese-made. Other parts, such as the rubber dome sheet and likely the sliders and their housings, are made in Japan by Topre. The rubber dome sheets use the same material and construction process as those in Realforce keyboards.

Type Heaven model reference

Topre Model Number	Model Name	Connector	Number of Keys	Windows Keys	Key Weight	Key Labelling	Enclosure Colour	LED Colour	DIP Switches	Release Date	Availability
ZA0100	Type Heaven	USB	104	Yes	Uniform 45g	Laser (ABS)	Black	Green	No	2013/06	Available US
ZA0100-R	Type Heaven	USB	104	Yes	Uniform 45g	Laser (ABS)	Red	?	No	2016/?	Available Korea UK US
ZA0100-W	Type Heaven	USB	104	Yes	Uniform 45g	Laser (ABS)	White	?	No	2016/?	Available Korea UK US
ZA0100-P	Type Heaven	USB	104	Yes	Uniform 45g	Laser (ABS)	Pink	?	No	2016/?	Available Korea UK US
?	Type Heaven	USB	104	Yes	Uniform 45g	Laser Hangul	Black	Green	No	2014/01	Available Korea
?	Type Heaven	USB	104	Yes	?	RGB Backlit	Black	?	?	?	Unreleased
?	Type Heaven	USB	104	Yes	?	Laser (ABS)	Dark Grey	?	?	?	Unreleased
?	Type Heaven	USB	104	Yes	?	Laser (ABS)	Olive Green	?	?	?	Unreleased
?	Type Heaven	USB	104	Yes	?	Laser (ABS)	Silver	?	?	?	Unreleased

Gallery

• Type Heaven
• 
• 
• 
• 

• Type Heaven with RGB backlighting
• 
• 
• 

• Type Heaven with coloured cases
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

External links

• iqmore.tw — Review of Topre Type Heaven keyboard (Chinese only) Dated 2013-07-25. Retrieved 2015-07-07.
• imgur.com — Imgur user bambinooo's album of Topre Type Heaven images Dated 2013. Retrieved 2015-07-07.

References

<references> <ref name="th_1">(Wayback Machine) CNet Asia — Topre makes 'affordable' Type Heaven keyboard Archived 2013-06-10. Retrieved 2015-07-07.</ref> <ref name="th_2">Geekhack — Computex 2015 Zeal's picture dump thread Dated 2015-06-02. Retrieved 2015-07-07.</ref> <ref name="th_3">Leopold — 커뮤니티 > 공지사항 > TYPE HEAVEN 한글 각인 모델 출시 공지(1/10) Dated 2014-01-09. Retrieved 2015-07-08.</ref> </references>