-
January 2024 by Rashid Rahman
Great place for typewriter sales and service. The proprietor is very friendly and knowledgeable.
-
October 2023 by Rhoda Daye
A must visit experience. Kenneth Alexander is so nice and so full of knowledge about typewriters. My brother took me there for my birthday and it was such a joy. I collect vintage typewriters, and my brother bought this beautiful Underwood Olivetti, Lettera 22 for me.
-
August 2023 by David Ventimiglia
I don't appreciate being asked, "Why don't you want to fix it?" when I decline to pay $185 for a typewriter cleaning. Maybe that's the going rate, and that's fine. Just stop badgering me about "why" after I already politely decline.
-
July 2023 by Scott Vickers (scotrick)
I was gifted a Royal Quiet DeLuxe with stuck keys, a carriage that mainly returned whenever doing so seemed convenient, and all of the rubber on the platen was very cracked. In addition to all of the other issues, like a ribbon that din’t seem to move - Um.My Royal needed a bit of work. Now, this was some time ago, in 1993! When I was leaving California to strike out for college in another state, and of course, I had no real moneys to speak about, being a transfer student from California College of Arts & Crafts, and Berkeley fixed my typewriter and made it brand new! Well, made the machine work like the typewriter was new. They had shaved the platen, and cleaned and where necessary oiled whatever other bits there were. I teared up when I got it home, and I’m tearing up talking writing about it now. Thank you so much! I’m still using that Royal, though it’s obviously long overdue for a tuneup.
-
February 2023 by R
i bring my typewriter here every few years for tuning up and cleaning. they are timely, communicative & reasonable. i love to be able to keep my great grandmothers typewriter in such good shape that i still use it regularly for letter writing. I'm glad Berkeley Typewriter Repair exists.
-
February 2023 by Ed Teixeira
The man that works there was WONDERFUL Very Helpful and Knowledgeable. I would Highly Recommend this shop for All your Typewriter needs including ribbon
-
December 2022 by Joey S.
Went over to buy a ribbon for my Olympia De Luxe, earlier this year while on vacation in San Francisco. It was installed, with instruction how to put it in correctly. It had been incorrectly installed originally (by me perhaps) causing the problems I was encountering. No upselling, just plain good old school service. Giving me the time, good customer service and history on my typewriter. I will be going up there soon to get a ribbon for my portable Smith-Corona.
-
November 2022 by Brandon Mejia
Only spoke over the phone but staff sounded nice and very friendly overall wish i was closer to go in in person
-
July 2022 by Christina Bañuelos
This place is a real gem. Took me back to my childhood days of learning to type in school. Owner is very knowledgeable and helped me pick out a beautiful machine that I brought back to Colorado.
-
July 2022 by Brian B.
Joe was great. We were looking for a vintage manual and after talking to Joe, we narrowed it down to about six typewriters. Joe gave us a pile of paper and gave us helpful tips but no pressure or "selling." We settled on a Royal that fit our needs (and my wife's tiny hands). We paid by credit card, bought an extra ribbon as well. Joe let us know it came with a one year warranty and offered to carry it to our car. We'd gotten interested in getting a typewriter a couple of years ago upon seeing Tom Hanks' documentary which focused on California Business Machines on San Pablo Ave but they're no longer around. A word of advice: Do NOT buy a typewriter online. They all feel radically different. You'll have about a .000001% of finding a machine you'll be happy with. Even if you've typed on the "same" typewriter and feel you can buy online, they're all different. Come see Berkeley Typewriter, sit down and write a page or two before making up your mind. This place has been around since 1937 and Joe, the current owner, deserves your business.
-
July 2022 by Gus M.
They did a fantastic job cleaning and restoring an old L.C. Smith & Corona from the 1940s I bought at the flea market. It's a beautiful machine and I mainly used it for decoration, because it was so rusty I never thought it would work again. Berkeley Typewriter made it good as new - at a very reasonable price!
-
January 2022 by Gladys B.
Great job fixing my decade-old Laserjet PRINTER. Joe got on it immediately, and fixed it same day. And very reasonable cost. Highly recommend.
-
January 2022 by Tiffany S.
Stores like these are the reason why I feel so blessed to live in Berkeley. I was on the hunt for a very unique and special typewriter and I ended up finding it almost immediately at this store and it's only minutes from my home! The staff here are sooooo friendly and helpful - on the phone and especially in person. They go above and beyond to help you. I was even able to record an entire 5 minute video tutorial of how to use the Smith Corona I bought because god knows I will need it. This store is a must see even if you don't need a typewriter. It's like a museum and there are so many neato pieces here. Seems like prices range between $275-600 and the one I purchased came with a 1 year warranty which is a bonus!!
-
October 2021 by Ron N.
My Epson Inkjet Eco Tank printer had a paper jam and although I was able to get the paper out it, somehow it fouled up the printing so the text was only partial. I called around and found that some repair services don't work on inkjet printers but Berkeley Typewriter does. Joe, the owner fixed it in one day at a very reasonable price. It works perfectly now. I found him to be straight forward and competent. Highly recommended!
-
March 2021 by Arnav Misra
very nice and they are also very knowledgeable with typewriters
