What's so special about mechanical keyboards?


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How about the fact that you can type accurately without even looking at the keyboard? :)

 

 

Tactile feedback.  Even the touchscreens that vibrate for a split second when you touch them doesn't do the same thing.  Especially when gaming, you need to be able to "feel" which key your fingers are on.  If it was all a touchscreen it'd be too easy to accidentally slide your fingers off center and miss buttons (I've done this trying to play some emulators on Android/iOS devices).  The same reason some people prefer a manual transmission in their car, it gives you tactile feedback and lets you manually control how the car drives instead of just relying on fluid pressure, computerized sensors, etc. to predict what gear the car should be in.

 

Double whoosh...

http://www.cravingtech.com/mechanical-keyboard-different-cherry-switches.html

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I was wondering what's so special about those mechanical keyboard that gamers love, they're so expensive?

 

Mechanical keyboard is nothing special. It's a marketing hype. It has its uses, but keyboards like Logitech K750 or K800 are superior in many ways (silent, wireless, solar, cheaper and more pleasant to type). Claim that mechanical keyboards are faster for gaming is a lie. Main feature - faster USB pooling rate have nothing to do with mechanical keyboard. Mechanical keyboards have actuation point in the middle, and this makes it inferior to thin, high quality scissor-switch keyboard which is twice as fast as mechanical, because it actuates usually at same 2 mm distance, but release is instant. Mechanical keyboards are inferior in comfortability area for fingertips too for most players, because long travel distance of mechanical keyboard and no soft cushions results in hurt fingers after long gaming sessions, because of frequent attempt to reach button's contact point as fast as possible, which means hitting key's bottom quite hard. But worst thing about mechanical keyboard is noise which ruins high quality sound effects during in-game stealth moments and makes voice activated chat impossible. Mechanical keyboard is nothing more than resurrected zombie dressed in Christmas lights.

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WASD, Das Keyboard, Ducky, and CoolerMaster all have a little more understated designs if you don't want rainbows flashing across your keyboard with every keypress. I just got my dad a Das and he loves it.

 

Das Keyboard is great and built to last. That was my main keyboard before switching to a Corsair K70 for Cherry Blue's, media keys, and a backlight. The current revision has RGB backlight. They're sold as "gaming" keyboards these days but are probably more valuable for general typing/computing.

I honestly love the "noise" from my MX Blues.

+1

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I'd argue that they're for people who live alone (or at least have very understanding cohabitants).

 

Or a den, man cave, basement or bedroom door. :D

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Mechanical keyboard is nothing special. It's a marketing hype. It has its uses, but keyboards like Logitech K750 or K800 are superior in many ways (silent, wireless, solar, cheaper and more pleasant to type). Claim that mechanical keyboards are faster for gaming is a lie. Main feature - faster USB pooling rate have nothing to do with mechanical keyboard. Mechanical keyboards have actuation point in the middle, and this makes it inferior to thin, high quality scissor-switch keyboard which is twice as fast as mechanical, because it actuates usually at same 2 mm distance, but release is instant. Mechanical keyboards are inferior in comfortability area for fingertips too for most players, because long travel distance of mechanical keyboard and no soft cushions results in hurt fingers after long gaming sessions, because of frequent attempt to reach button's contact point as fast as possible, which means hitting key's bottom quite hard. But worst thing about mechanical keyboard is noise which ruins high quality sound effects during in-game stealth moments and makes voice activated chat impossible. Mechanical keyboard is nothing more than resurrected zombie dressed in Christmas lights.

I'm sorry but no. Everything you claim as 'fact' is indeed BS. Please either use a mechanical keyboard or get educated.

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Have you used a mechanical? Your statements don't make a lot of sense... I have a few laptops in the house with a variety of scissor switched rubber domes and I can assure you that typing on the mechanical is loads more comfortable. For starters, you have to actually bottom out on a rubber dome to have a key registered. You're also limited on how fast you can type as the membrane can only handle one key at a timeg to the bottom... This is contra to your claim that you have to actually bottom out all the time on mechanical.

 

Yes, I've used a lot of mechanical keyboards 20 years ago and I own K70 RGB. Also, I am talking about scissor-switch keyboards, not dome ones. Also, ability to handle multiple keys at the same time (N-key rollover) have nothing to do with mechanical keyboards it's depends on wiring, any keyboard can have it. You misunderstood sentence about bottoming out. Most players bottom out keys on all types of keyboards during fast paced games, because during intensive battles people use more force (speed takes over precision), this is the reason why mechanical keyboards are silent only in theory. Reality is that, high quality scissor-switch keyboard with all-key rollover is technically faster than mechanical keyboard, and users are getting that speed advantage effortlessly by superior design of silent scissor-switch keyboard.

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I am going to go with EJocys on this one.  I tried multiple mechanical keyboards myself, and I love my flat logitech way better.   

 

never though that mechanical improved anything for me, i always returned to my trusty  Logitech Illuminated Keyboard K740 and got a refund on the mechnical keyboards.

it is the best keyboard i ever used, and it is my third one (1 for home, 1 for office, and one broke, after i spilled my drink on it)

 

different preferences for different folks i guess.

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. For starters, you have to actually bottom out on a rubber dome to have a key registered. You're also limited on how fast you can type as the membrane can only handle one key at a time 

 

 

Well since rubber dome keyboards often have lower travel distance than the activation distance on a mechanical it doesn't matter much...

 

As for the second part there, it's plainly not true. mechanical and rubber dome both suffer from the same issues regarding multiple key clicks. it just so happens most mechanical keyboards are either PS2 which don't have the issue, or they're more expensive gaming models that come with anti ghosting technology built in, gaming rubber dome keyboardshave the same anti ghosting technologies though. 

 

My only reason for wanting a Mechanical keyboard is not because of the mechanical keys, in fact they're more of a detractor, but because I want an RGB backlit keyboard, and the mechanical keyboards happen to have better back light technology for the keys since every key is individually lit up in the sensor so you get goo strong light on each key. unlike my crrent logitech G something with a weak backlight and barely any back light at all up on the F keys. and while you can change between red-purple-blue, only red is strong enough to be usable as a color. 

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I'm sorry but no. Everything you claim as 'fact' is indeed BS. Please either use a mechanical keyboard or get educated.

I see you backed your opinion with facts and documented sources :). Tell me more how mechanical keyboard with 4 mm button travel distance is faster than scissor-switch keyboard with 2mm travel distance. Did you knew that if finger sped is 300mm per second, then bottoming out adds ~8ms delay to release action on mechanical keyboard while high quality scissor-switch keyboard don't have this issue. Also, on scissor-switch keyboard actuation moment happens at the same time when finger lands on the bottom (actuation = feedback) which feels better than on mechanical keyboard where you have 4-5ms delay. Mechanical keyboard is better for gaming only if you listen to marketing BS and it feels better due to placebo effect or if person used worse technology before, like dome keyboards.

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My only reason for wanting a Mechanical keyboard is not because of the mechanical keys, in fact they're more of a detractor, but because I want an RGB backlit keyboard, and the mechanical keyboards happen to have better back light technology for the keys since every key is individually lit up in the sensor so you get goo strong light on each key.

Individually lit up keys attracted me to Corsair RGB too :). Only after I bought and used it, I've understood that I have no use for this feature, because all point of effective gaming is not to look at keyboard, because action on the screen takes all attention. Main practical reason for keyboard light for me is to find it in the dark and hover my hands into initial correct positions. Non-individual lighting is sufficient for that.

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Not too crazy when you consider the advantages and durability. Enthusiasts always want the best and the prices often match it.

 

IMHO Mechanical is well worth the investment. I really don't find it comfortable typing on anything else... When you're typing for more than 12 hours a day between my job as a programmer and my relaxation time on IRC and the Web it is well worth the expense.

 

 

<snip>

I've never used a keyboard so much that problems begin to occur with it - so durability is a moot point to me.

 

And I see no advantages from the times I've used them myself. Having to push keys harder is a negative if anything, and the sounds are annoying.

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I use the G710+ from Logitech. It's slightly over your price range though. Actually, you said CAD!

 

http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product/logitech-logitech-g710-usb-mechanical-gaming-keyboard-920-003887-920-003887/10229282.aspx

 

BestBuy.ca has it for $100 exactly lol. Anyway, it's one of my favorite keyboards. Incredibly comfortable, and usually retails around $150 USD. Anyone who's used it in my home says something along the lines of feeling they could type a novel up with it.

 

I bought it not for the gaming element so much as I did for the comfort and the incredibly well-lit lighting for it. I actually bought a second one for my girlfriend too.

 

Hope that helps. (Y)

 

 

I have the same keyboard and I am pretty disappointed that in less than 12 months the stem of the D keycap basically cracked and disintegrated.  I had to take the right window key off to replace it. I also had to take something and cover the led because it was so bright.

 

Logitech, in their infinite wisdom, expect you to ship back the entire board just to replace one broken keycap. Instead of sending you one replacement keycap which would cost basically nothing, you have to pack up and send your entire keyboard back to them. I have no other keyboard to use in the mean time.

 

I used to like Logitech a lot more in the past. Between this and the OK button on my harmony 650 effing up they've been bumped down the list of companies I plan to buy anything from in the future.

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I also don't see the allure in them. I've used them and never found them to be very comfortable. I much prefer the third option of scissor-switch keyboards. They on't take much force, and require less travel distance. The keys are more stable than rubber domes due to the "scissors". I don't do much gaming tha requires intensive keyboard usage, so I don't know if there's any detriments in that regard. I find that scissor switch is much more comfortable for lengthy typing than both rubber domes (mushy) and mechanical (more force). Logitech makes some excellent scissor switch keyboards, I have the K800 which is great and runs sub $100.

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Maybe it's because I'm old and our first computers had Model M keyboards, but I love mechanical keyboards, seriously considering picking another one up for work since I'm a chat support rep, all I do is type

 

For understated and slightly lower prices SteelSeries 6Gv2 can be had on Amazon for under $100 us if you are patient but the come with reds and blacks, I currently have a black model for a few years and it's a tank 

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If the clickity noise is a turn-off when buying a mechanical keyboard, then avoid getting cherry mx blues and greens and get either reds, or browns, or blacks ; or just simply install one of those noise damper rings underneath the keycaps 

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Like Vvo said, get one that isn't clicky, not that hard a concept 

 

Even the non-clicky switches are noisy, and I don't like to travel too far with key presses.

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