What’s the story on Mechanical Keyboards?
 

Keyboard at the accountants office shit the bed. It’s one of mine. Hers was so damn wore out the keys would catch and it made me crazy so I got pissed and brought my own. It’s probably a decade old and shit the bed.

All that really only matters to the extent that I was looking at reviews of keyboards. Virtually all the sites mentioned several mechanical keyboards. Huh. Weird. Whatever. I got on the accounting subreddit and searched keyboards. Virtually all of those dorks recommended a mechanical keyboard other than a couple recommending a Logitech MX series.

So I have to question what’s so good about them? Im sure they’re better than the Apple IIE ones we had in school when dinosaurs roamed the earth, but I went to great pains to reduce the keystroke distance by buying a Surface Bluetooth keyboard at the farm and the house.

Best I can tell is the response time is a little better for gaming and some people like the tactile click of the switch. Which the tactile feel of the surface ones are good enough for me.

What am I missing?

My wife and I both run Corsair Mechanical Keyboards. I don't recall the model but they're pretty swanky. **EDIT** Corsair K90 w/ the black alum. chassis.

Red Cherry MX switches, Full aluminum chassis (my favorite part) and full RGB yada yada with additional keys on the left side for macros etc.

My thoughts:

I absolutely love the clicking sound that my keyboard makes. Others find it annoying. Mechanical keyboards for the most part aren't quiet, so i wouldn't recommend them for office use for that simple reason.

The feel of mechanical switches are a lot nicer. These keyboards are a lot easier to clean too.

Overall, i think my wife and I's boards were around $200 each. I'm not sure they're worth it, but once you go mechanical you never go back.

Side note: As an avid Corsair product user i can say that their software is shit. Logitech has better software.

EDIT: Our boards are probably at LEAST 6-7 years old and are still going strong. Even after my goddamn mother in law spilled water all over my board.....mother****er im still not over it.

The most important thing for buying a mechanical keyboard (IMO), is getting one with the sounds you prefer. The wrong one very quickly will start to grate on you and make everyone in your house/office hate you. My preference is for blue, but for the sake of my lab mates switched to brown in the office. :)

Put this video on a loop in the background. After a while you'll realize you have a strong preference for one, or a strong hate for one!


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Regular keyboard keys have little silicon like membranes under the key, and the keys just squish into the membrane. Mechanical keyboards have an actual mechanical switch. Each one is individual too, so you can remove a single key and replace it. Mechanical keyboards tend to be much "Clickier" like he said above. It can drive some people crazy. The switches come in many different styles though, and some are not nearly as clicky as others. I also have the Cherry Red MX switches, and they're loud as hell. But they're very quick and accurate, and it absolutely makes a difference playing games.

They are much more expensive, but they'll last forever. All the keycaps are easily replaceable. Whether it's worth it for your situation, it's hard to say.

https://i.imgur.com/a8yHkpg.png

Hoo boy I'm not sure I'm good for that.

There really is nothing like typing on one. And I find the clicking satisfying.

You should try out the Olympia Report Deluxe. Report as in gunshot.

I got two corsair ones that were around 200 dollars. Not too bad of a price.

The response is night and day, honestly.

That said you can get hybrid types (with quick-tension switches) like a SteelSeries Apex 100 at Wal-Mart for $30 bucks and they feel closer to your old cheapies with performance that's closer to mechanical. I like these for work as they make the transition from my gaming keyboard palatable and they don't click as loudly.

As for gaming and true mechanical, I like Corsair with Cherry MX switches.

Mine isn't a super cheap-o. It's a $80 bluetooth job.

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/...AC_SL1200_.jpg

https://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-WS2...s%2C138&sr=8-3

This is my 2nd Mechanical Corsair and I can't live without it. Having the programmable keys is a huge deal to me as I grew up on a gateway keyboard. Also the Corsair lasts longer and has better features than the Razor or Logitech. I just buy the 2 year extended warranty at microcenter for $40 and trade it in every couple of years. The Logitechs i've had fall apart very quickly so I'm done with their cheap crap.

I worked in an open space environment with a lady that had a mechanical keyboard. I wanted to throw that keyboard down some stairs until there was hardly anything left.

I've never liked Bluetooth peripherals because of the latency and issues with disconnects I've experienced as compared to USB-based RF devices. It's odd given they both run on the 2.4 GHz RF band. At least the newer 5.0 tech seems to be improving things. Of course, many new laptops don't even come with a USB-A port so you either have to get a USB-C dongle or go with Bluetooth.

Logitech has a keyboard (K375) and mouse (M720) that can run on either type of connection which is pretty cool.

I prefer wired overall though. The only reason I even keep a wireless set is for traveling and mostly I just use the mouse and the laptop's keyboard.