Over a decade before I was born, IBM began manufacturing a keyboard that became a legend: the Model M. As any mechanical keyboard fan who lived through the last decade knows, the Model M's claim to fame is its buckling springs. As former TR staffer Cyril Kowaliski's example of the Model M proves, that switch design has stood the test of time.

Unicomp acquired the rights to IBM's buckling-spring designs in 1996, and it's been producing variations of the Model M with buckling springs intact for over 20 years now. However, the keyboard market has changed drastically since the Model M's first debut. Mechanical switches and slim chassis now dominate the keyboard enthusiast landscape. I've spent some time with Unicomp's Ultra Classic to determine whether it can hold its own in the modern keyboard market for gamers and typists.