Are mechanical keyboards good for typing and general use?

Gray2233 said:
They used to have a bit of a poor rep, but their modern switches are extremely similar to Cherry MX. They're a little more grainy in feel but I find them to be a good experience with my Patriot V730, and you can often find boards using them for a fair bit cheaper.
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Okay, so Kailh make the switches other manufacturers use in their keyboards.
 
chrcoluk said:
What has always put me off investing is in how long the labels on the keys will last, decades ago they lasted several years, but in recent years clear cost cutting has happened, and the main keys like the vowels and WSD are visibly wearing within a few months, its one thing for that to happen on a £10 keyboard but another on a £50 keyboard. Until I buy one I just wont know if it will have the problem.
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You need PBT keycaps, they don't have that problem :)
 
I have reds on my keyboard and I make more mistakes than I used to on my old Logitech Membrane keyboard. The higher actuation point of Reds means even brushing a key results in a key press so if you're generally fast but inaccurate Reds may not be the keys for you. It has made me a more accurate typist, just a bit slower.

Oh and it's easy to work out which keys will wear, you want 'double shot' keycaps. remove a key and if any light is visible through the cap then generally they won't wear out. Other keyboards often just have the keys printed on.
 
zaphod-159 said:
Isn't there a type of switch that produces less noise?
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Cherry Silent Red. They are the ones I use. They are quieter than even Logitech switches.

The problem with mechanical is that there are so many different types. Everyone has their favourite. Cherry Red are the most popular (because they are sold as gaming keys?). Personally I don't find any issue typing with them and I find so called feedback keys ( blues and browns ) annoying.
 
Space Monkey said:
You need PBT keycaps, they don't have that problem :)
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Good point. Definitely one to check. Fnatic keyboards certainly last a long time. I have worn out several Corsair keyboards. I broke two Logitech Romer G - all the keys fell off. The only make I haven't tried is Razer.
 
pp111 said:
Cherry Silent Red. They are the ones I use. They are quieter than even Logitech switches.

The problem with mechanical is that there are so many different types. Everyone has their favourite. Cherry Red are the most popular (because they are sold as gaming keys?). Personally I don't find any issue typing with them and I find so called feedback keys ( blues and browns ) annoying.
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It seems that keyboard preference is very individual; switches some people like others dislike, still others don't seem to care at all.
 
Rikmeister said:
It seems that keyboard preference is very individual; switches some people like others dislike, still others don't seem to care at all.
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Very much so yes. Personally I am far from a touch typer, I am a thump typer so any keyboard will do me, I just prefer the quiet ones to reduce the horrible clattering noise I make.
 
Plec said:
I like the feel, but can't tolerate the noise - even supposedly quiet ones. My short experiment ended with me reverting back to Logitech and my ultimate guilty pleasure the Microsoft Natural... :/
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I like the Microsoft Natural too. Have tried other keyboards but...
 
pp111 said:
Cherry Silent Red. They are the ones I use. They are quieter than even Logitech switches.

The problem with mechanical is that there are so many different types. Everyone has their favourite. Cherry Red are the most popular (because they are sold as gaming keys?). Personally I don't find any issue typing with them and I find so called feedback keys ( blues and browns ) annoying.
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Wish there was a place we could try them all out... Haven't changed my keyboard in yeras purely because of that...
 
zaphod-159 said:
Wish there was a place we could try them all out... Haven't changed my keyboard in yeras purely because of that...
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You can actually buy 'sample switches' that come on a little panel with the various switch types on for you to test, I found one for around the £10 mark last I checked.

Edit 2:

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £9.95 (includes shipping: £0.00)​
​

OCUK do sell sample packs but don't have any in stock, you can find sample packs for Cherry switches also while these are Kailh and Gateron.
 
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Gray2233 said:
You can actually buy 'sample switches' that come on a little panel with the various switch types on for you to test, I found one for around the £10 mark last I checked.

Edit 2:

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £9.95 (includes shipping: £0.00)
​

OCUK do sell sample packs but don't have any in stock, you can find sample packs for Cherry switches also while these are Kailh and Gateron.
Click to expand...

That sounds like a great idea although I'm not entirely clear on how you would use it.
 
Rikmeister said:
That sounds like a great idea although I'm not entirely clear on how you would use it.
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Obviously you can't type on it but you can press the keys a bunch of time to get a feel for them.

Your other options are finding a place with demo keyboards laid out or finding something you like the sound of and ordering from a place with a good returns policy on the chance you don't like your purchase.
 
Gray2233 said:
Obviously you can't type on it but you can press the keys a bunch of time to get a feel for them.
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I understood that much, the linked sample pack makes no mention (AFAICT) to the panel on which they sit (which would have made it esier to envision it's use. I guess you'd also need 10 keys - do you kow if these are universal or only work with the GMMK keys mentioned in the product information? Thanks.
 
Rikmeister said:
I understood that much, the linked sample pack makes no mention (AFAICT) to the panel on which they sit (which would have made it esier to envision it's use. I guess you'd also need 10 keys - do you kow if these are universal or only work with the GMMK keys mentioned in the product information? Thanks.
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I'm not entirely sure I understand you?

Assuming they're from the same year/batch a Cherry MX Red for example will always feel like a Cherry MX Red regardless of what base they're plugged into. The base/panel of keyboards obviously differs in various respects but you're mainly looking at things such as layout (EU, UK, USA etc), elevation, whether or not there's a wrist wrest attached. There's a fair few factors but the feel of the keys will always remain the same as long as they're from the same company and of the same type. As an example, my current keyboard is a Patriot V730 which uses Kailh brown switches -- these are also available from other companies such as Sharkoon on their SGK3 series as well as plenty of others. The switches are physically the same, it's only the enclosure they're sat in which differs.

Most companies use a range of switches, there are some which are technically exclusive but they tend to be in house, Logitech and DAS for example have such switches.
 
If you want the best keyboard for typing then get a Unicomp New Model M. Unicomp bought the tooling and patents from IBM for the Model M keyboard that was made in the 1980s. It is still considered one of the best keyboards ever made.
 
Gray2233 said:
You can actually buy 'sample switches' that come on a little panel with the various switch types on for you to test, I found one for around the £10 mark last I checked.

Edit 2:

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £9.95 (includes shipping: £0.00)
​

OCUK do sell sample packs but don't have any in stock, you can find sample packs for Cherry switches also while these are Kailh and Gateron.
Click to expand...
This is exactly what I needed, cheers
 
Gray2233 said:
I'm not entirely sure I understand you?

Assuming they're from the same year/batch a Cherry MX Red for example will always feel like a Cherry MX Red regardless of what base they're plugged into. The base/panel of keyboards obviously differs in various respects but you're mainly looking at things such as layout (EU, UK, USA etc), elevation, whether or not there's a wrist wrest attached. There's a fair few factors but the feel of the keys will always remain the same as long as they're from the same company and of the same type. As an example, my current keyboard is a Patriot V730 which uses Kailh brown switches -- these are also available from other companies such as Sharkoon on their SGK3 series as well as plenty of others. The switches are physically the same, it's only the enclosure they're sat in which differs.

Most companies use a range of switches, there are some which are technically exclusive but they tend to be in house, Logitech and DAS for example have such switches.
Click to expand...

Thanks Gray2233. That's very helpful.
 
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