Mechanical keyboards are expensive and harder to find than regular keyboards, although vastly more common in the US than they were a decade ago. So why do people bother?
You feel every press differently on a mechanical keyboard than on a typical keyboard. It’s crisper, more tactile, more pleasant to use than the standard capacitive keyboard that feels like typing on popped bubble wrap.
Compared to the old days—and by old days, I mean the 2000s—there are tons of types of key switches. And yes, different ones feel differently.
the glory of mechanical keys
If you’ve gotten this far and are still left scratching your head, wondering “What’s a Mechanical Keyboard?” then the simple explanation is that, unlike the vast majority of keyboards that use a rubber mat that registers key presses via electrical charge, mechanical keyboards have an actual, physical key switch beneath each key cap.
These aren’t all the Cherry MX keys. And we haven’t even touched on the ALPs, buckling spring, Topre, or the myriad of Chinese switches, such as Kailh and Greetech. There’s no room in this story for all of that.
Instead, I’m keeping the focus on the three main varieties of the Cherry MX key series. Although these German keys weren’t the first invented, they were almost exclusively the choice for the keyboards that spearheaded the reentry of mechanical keyboards into the Western markets among gamers in the 2000s.
Picture your finger slowly pushing down on the key of a keyboard…
Cherry MX Browns – Partway, as the button is in the midst of being pushed down, there’s a bump that the key passes. You can feel it with your finger, although there’s very little noise. People who enjoy Browns like a bit of tactile feedback in their typing experience.
Cherry MX Blues – There’s an initial, shallow clack before the tactile bump shared with Browns. This makes them even more tactile… and a lot louder. These are my favorites. They’re loud enough to drive your roommates out or your spouse to divorce you. But they’re glorious for typing, if you can stand (or enjoy) the noise.
Cherry MX Reds – These switches have entirely linear travel. There’s no clack, no noise, and no bump. Gamers engaged in fast-paced games, such as first-person shooters, prefer these for their speed.
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