I really enjoyed this excellent video, thank you. There is so much eye candy on show here. I'm not ashamed to say that I've been tempted by at least four out of the five of them! Seems like many bullets dodged! I'm sure I'll end up picking one of these up as a purchase of the curious heart over the practical head.🤣 In the meantime I'll stick to my Splendid 33 and Baby compacts and put up with the extra weight!
The sound of the last typewriter reminds me of my Adler Norm 6, which I have here and use all the time. I was wondering how I could improve the sound. I put a cloth under it which improves the sound a bit but maybe there are other tricks. In the long term I'll probably get a quieter machine, I've read that the Hermes Baby is supposed to be extremely quiet... Is that true?
Ultra portable and extremely quiet doesn't mix. The small size and lack of mass, thin covers, no room for sound deadening and small diameter platens not allowing for a full size rubber layer are all factors that will make it nearly impossible to make such a compact machine quiet.
Absolute fair and correct points about the Groma Kolibri and Gromina. They are insanely fragile and a pain in the ass to maintain. They are however some of the most beautiful super-flat Typewriters you can find so if it's just for collecting dust in a display case they are really neat to have. Or if you are lucky enough to find a place that can repair these :P I still like these two models a lot but i would not depend on them as workhorses because they are just too "temperamental". They are more like Sport Cars that you can sometimes drive on a good day. I gave a deep consideration to a lot of these models you showed but realized ultra portables often come too many downsides so i went with the next best alternatives that are basically your standard travel typewriters like the Olympia Splendid series or the Adler Tippa from the 60s and early 70s. Both still very small and rather flat machines that are not too bulky. The Splendid models however are also quite heavy but soooo nice'n sturdy.
The Groma Kolibri was featured in the interesting movie about the Stasi and general life in the DDR: The Life of Others, Das Leben der Anderen. With the lovely Martina Gedeck, Ulrich Mühe and Sebastian Koch! The Typewritter was smuggled into the DDR to help document the issues of the suicides among the intellectuals in the DDR. Thanks for the review and I hope that your business thrives in the long run!
This is a really interesting topic. You might have saved us a bunch of money! Personally I have carried a typewriter around on little road-trips and enjoyed it, and had a tiny tiny miniature machine all through college. I've kind of settled on "pretty small", and have come to like the kind of things that have that hard clamshell case instead of some kind of wallet or briefcase. In my own limited experience the small Brother machines (Nagoya, Japan) like the Charger seem to really hold up, work well in general, make good clear type, and the keyboard is not TOO compact, which has been a problem. They are noisy! I think Brother might have made economy portable typewriters for other brands (I just got a portable ROYAL typewriter that was made in Japan, and seems related to the Brother. Maybe it's a Cousin?) so they are common and not expensive. Pulling out a typewriter in a coffee-shop, on a train (say) creates a little sensation, people take your picture, show their children... it leads to some lively conversation!
I suppose a lot of the ultraportable machines were originally designed for short correspondence or things like that while out of the office. They had a lot of potential but are very finicky and not very forgiving if they need a service. Even something as small as a missinv rubber foot can put the whole machine out of whack. Having said that, they are still fun machines. They just have a lot of limitations.
I'd love to see a video about the best desktop standards. I've got a Royal 10 KHM, KMM, HH. 30s L.C. Smith Superspeed, Remington 17.. I have so many of the "greatest" portables, SM 123s 5 series SCs, Olivetti 22 and 32, studio 44, and I still strongly prefer he desktops when space and weight aren't factors. Seems like they get no love. Tbh my Royal HH might be my favorite, and I got it for $15 bucks.. it's so ugly, but god you can fly on it.
Yes! Yes! Sound effects are annoying, overused, juvenile, unimaginative "because we can" things that interfere with hearing the narrative and distract from the flow. Please drop them. And you would be smart to re-record this vid without them. The video effects are distracting also. (Let's see if I can finish this video without having to bail.) Thanks for your consideration. EDIT: Nope, couldn't watch it. The-"flailing TH-cam hands" is also a self-conscious gimmick that is distracting rather than engaging. Too bad, because I think you might have some good information....
The best engineered, highest quality ultra portable ever made is the Princess. Thanks for a great comparison video!
🫨… missed the princess, I have my comments about it 😅.. It’s heavier than others though
I really enjoyed this excellent video, thank you. There is so much eye candy on show here. I'm not ashamed to say that I've been tempted by at least four out of the five of them! Seems like many bullets dodged! I'm sure I'll end up picking one of these up as a purchase of the curious heart over the practical head.🤣 In the meantime I'll stick to my Splendid 33 and Baby compacts and put up with the extra weight!
That’s the thing about honest reviews.. still I would keep 2 at least but some are a definite No go
The sound of the last typewriter reminds me of my Adler Norm 6, which I have here and use all the time. I was wondering how I could improve the sound. I put a cloth under it which improves the sound a bit but maybe there are other tricks. In the long term I'll probably get a quieter machine, I've read that the Hermes Baby is supposed to be extremely quiet... Is that true?
Ultra portable and extremely quiet doesn't mix. The small size and lack of mass, thin covers, no room for sound deadening and small diameter platens not allowing for a full size rubber layer are all factors that will make it nearly impossible to make such a compact machine quiet.
Insightful 👌🏽.. that’s what I always say. Plus, no space for any padding
Hermes baby aren’t that quite 😅.. they are still better than many other typewriters when it comes to noise
To improve noise dampening.. I would try padding the inside of the frame where possible, plus use a good pad like the one we sell on our website.
Ok thanx a lot@@MrMrsVintageTypewriters
First to comment! Keep going! ❤❤❤
🫡 Thanks ☺️ .. Pleasure
Absolute fair and correct points about the Groma Kolibri and Gromina. They are insanely fragile and a pain in the ass to maintain. They are however some of the most beautiful super-flat Typewriters you can find so if it's just for collecting dust in a display case they are really neat to have. Or if you are lucky enough to find a place that can repair these :P I still like these two models a lot but i would not depend on them as workhorses because they are just too "temperamental". They are more like Sport Cars that you can sometimes drive on a good day. I gave a deep consideration to a lot of these models you showed but realized ultra portables often come too many downsides so i went with the next best alternatives that are basically your standard travel typewriters like the Olympia Splendid series or the Adler Tippa from the 60s and early 70s. Both still very small and rather flat machines that are not too bulky. The Splendid models however are also quite heavy but soooo nice'n sturdy.
Someone finally gets my point 🫡
The Groma Kolibri was featured in the interesting movie about the Stasi and general life in the DDR: The Life of Others, Das Leben der Anderen. With the lovely Martina Gedeck, Ulrich Mühe and Sebastian Koch! The Typewritter was smuggled into the DDR to help document the issues of the suicides among the intellectuals in the DDR. Thanks for the review and I hope that your business thrives in the long run!
Interesting 🧐.. they are bloody good looking but design didn’t help make it a success.. thanks for the support
Yes it was used because it was flat enough to fit under the floor and could easily be hidden.
This is a really interesting topic. You might have saved us a bunch of money! Personally I have carried a typewriter around on little road-trips and enjoyed it, and had a tiny tiny miniature machine all through college. I've kind of settled on "pretty small", and have come to like the kind of things that have that hard clamshell case instead of some kind of wallet or briefcase. In my own limited experience the small Brother machines (Nagoya, Japan) like the Charger seem to really hold up, work well in general, make good clear type, and the keyboard is not TOO compact, which has been a problem. They are noisy! I think Brother might have made economy portable typewriters for other brands (I just got a portable ROYAL typewriter that was made in Japan, and seems related to the Brother. Maybe it's a Cousin?) so they are common and not expensive. Pulling out a typewriter in a coffee-shop, on a train (say) creates a little sensation, people take your picture, show their children... it leads to some lively conversation!
Thanks for sharing 🥰. Typewriters are definitely a conversation starter with people on the road.
Great comparison video! I love my Groma Kolibri, but can’t argue with your critique.
Thanks!
😀, thanks, it’s based a lot of comparisons. Still every typewriter is special 😁
I appreciate the honest description of those typewriters, very helpful in my quest. But are there 1-2 models that you actually recommend?
Baby Hermes .. Lettera 32-22… Olympia splendid … brother deluxe ( metal frame )
I suppose a lot of the ultraportable machines were originally designed for short correspondence or things like that while out of the office. They had a lot of potential but are very finicky and not very forgiving if they need a service. Even something as small as a missinv rubber foot can put the whole machine out of whack.
Having said that, they are still fun machines. They just have a lot of limitations.
Totally agree 👍🏼
I have an antares annabella that looks lovely but I agree the internals are a bit flimsy.
Unfortunately yes VS similar ultra portables
Please do a typewriter give away. I LOVE YOU
Hopefully
I'd love to see a video about the best desktop standards. I've got a Royal 10 KHM, KMM, HH. 30s L.C. Smith Superspeed, Remington 17.. I have so many of the "greatest" portables, SM 123s 5 series SCs, Olivetti 22 and 32, studio 44, and I still strongly prefer he desktops when space and weight aren't factors.
Seems like they get no love. Tbh my Royal HH might be my favorite, and I got it for $15 bucks.. it's so ugly, but god you can fly on it.
Underwood SX is also fine and under appreciated line of writers.
Plan to do top 5… annoyingly , I don’t have all in my workshop at the
Time being
🫡
Excellent review! The sound effects aren't helpful.
Thx for your suggestion ☺️
Yes! Yes! Sound effects are annoying, overused, juvenile, unimaginative "because we can" things that interfere with hearing the narrative and distract from the flow. Please drop them. And you would be smart to re-record this vid without them. The video effects are distracting also. (Let's see if I can finish this video without having to bail.) Thanks for your consideration.
EDIT: Nope, couldn't watch it. The-"flailing TH-cam hands" is also a self-conscious gimmick that is distracting rather than engaging. Too bad, because I think you might have some good information....