Mechanical Keyboard Review

June 7, 2020
Categories: reviews mechanical keyboards
Tags: keyboards cherry mx alps topre buckling spring

Bulk Keyboard Review

Unless you are using a device that has a limited input options (such as a tablet), having a keyboard is a must to do any serious work. Growing up though, I never really thought much about how keyboards could be different. Part of this was because laptops weren’t common for me to use till much later, and I would use the same keyboard between computer upgrades. It wasn’t until one of my friends got a fancy RGB gaming keyboard that realized keyboards weren’t all the same, you could get things like lights or strange layouts. Of course I had to get myself a RGB keyboard to show off cool things at LAN parties, so I got a Corsair K65 but didn’t really think too much about the switches.

It wasn’t till much more recently that I really started to pay more attention to the difference of the various kinds of mechanical switches. This world has been very interesting to dive into and I figured I could add my two cents about it (especially since it gives me something to do during the work from home due to COVID-19).

I’ve included recordings of me typing on the various keyboards, in both MP3 and FLAC for your enjoyment.

IBM Model M Buckling Spring

This is a beast of a keyboard, easily could double as a weapon and sturdy enough that it would be just fine afterwards. Besides that, the Model M holds a special kind of switch that gives it a special kind of feel (and extra loud sound) which has elevated its status to something mythical (at least on places like reddit). Of course this means going onto sites like Ebay will cost you an arm and leg for this keyboard, or you can get a modern remake from Unicomp with USB instead of a ps/2 connector.

I got mine from my friend’s dad who worked at IBM and has gladly emptied his basement of various computer bits over the years. It is a really cool keyboard to get to use, and being one of the two keyboards I have with a numpad, it does end up seeing occasional daily use. The buckling spring type switch is very satisfying to use, as you know exactly when it registers a keypress with a loud click and sudden ease of pressure in the keypress. The downsides to this keyboard are its size, noise, and force required to press a key.

Apple IIGS ADB Keyboard (PN 658-4081) Alps Orange

Getting to have the honor of being the first of the new generation of Apple peripherals, the keyboard that came with the Apple IIGS uses the Apple Desktop Bus allowing things like keyboards and mice (and other things) to be daisy chained together. It would then be used on Mac computers that came after before losing out to USB with the iMac. This keyboard is also very compact, but it includes a numpad and arrow keys (though in a very nonstandard position). There were a couple of difference switches used on the keyboard depending on when it was made, but this is an early model so has Alps Orange switches.

Now I’ll preface this with saying that I have only used this keyboard in short sessions, as I have only used it with my dad’s Apple IIGS. There are converters that would allow ADB devices to be used as USB keyboards and mice (or allow for the opposite), but I don’t have one of those currently. An interesting feature of the switches used is there is some tactile feedback, but it happens right at the start of the travel. For me this is kind of annoying, as you commit to pressing that key with the force needed to get past that tactile bump. Another weird quirk is that the bumps on the ‘F’ and ‘J’ keys are instead on ‘D’ and ‘k’, which messes with muscle memory for a short time. I do really like how small this keyboard is though, as it is slightly wider than a ‘normal’ 10-keyless keyboard, but you still get a number pad.

MicroConnectors (SMK-8112JU) Alps Black

A really weird keyboard to me, as it is a 3rd party clone of the Apple keyboard that came bundled with the brand new iMac, right down to the colors offered. Sporting the fancy new USB 1.0, with a built in USB 1.0 hub, this keyboard has come in handy for working with computers with limited USB ports. Though being a clone, it doesn’t skimp out and give a ‘dead flesh’ membrane and rubber dome set of ‘switches’, instead it uses Alps Black switches.

Being a USB device, having that built in hub, and being the second of my two full sized keyboards, has given me many reasons to use this keyboard. Being able to plug it into a Raspberry Pi Zero and still have an extra USB port for a flash drive is really helpful at times. For the typing experience, the Alps black switches are pretty enjoyable but still does require a decent amount of force per key press. The tactile feedback occurs about halfway down each key press, which isn’t as loud as the Model M but not quiet either. I also really love the 90’s aesthetics with the transparent plastics. Most of the time, I end up using this with my Bondi Blue iMac it came with.

Corsair K65 Cherry MX Red

Straight away, this keyboard screams gamer with over the top RGB lighting and a proud Corsair Gaming label. Small aside, while Corsair has made this keyboard for the past couple years, the first few years they put a different logo to try and push a special gaming line which mine has. So instead of the Corsair sailing ship, you get a stylized thing, that some describe as an ugly face, but to me looks like one of the Shadow’s ship from Babylon 5. Each of the keys has an individual RGB led, which using either the Corsair software or CKB Next you can make do all sorts of cool things. It comes with various key switch options and is part of a larger family of keyboards for all your gaming needs. Though I didn’t put much thought into which switches to get, so I got Cherry Reds since those were recommended for gaming.

This one has been my daily driver for a good number of years now, and tends to be what I compare everything else to. While I don’t think too much about the ability to mess with the RGB lighting anymore, I do miss it when working in low light situations. The Cherry MX Reds are a very solid set of mechanical switches, though they are ‘linear’ in that there is no bump or tactile feedback when you press on the key. When it comes to gaming, hands down my favorite keyboard to use; not having any feedback means I don’t have to fight it when making rapid inputs. For everyday typing, it is nice but then not having any feedback means it is easy to bottom out which can be jarring. There is also one annoying thing about this keyboard, since it has to power all those LEDs, the cable has two USB ends for getting the required power from two USB 2.0 ports. You can get away with only using one USB port if the port you plug into is USB 3.0, but then you still have an extra end to the cable hanging around. Newer versions of this keyboard use a single USB 3.0 cable (that is also detachable).

Leopold FC660C Topre 45g Silent

Rounding out the bunch is the smallest, not just because it doesn’t have a numpad, but it also enschews a whole bunch of keys. The function keys are all missing (though pressing Func + 1 to ‘=’ gives that key) as well as most of the 9 keys in the block above the arrow keys. The arrow keys are then jammed into the rest of the keyboard, which making a very compact layout. It also has a very different kind of switch from everything else I discussed here. Instead of having a solely mechanical switch, it uses topre switches which share a lot in common with simple rubber dome keyboards with carbon contacts connect the switch. Though topre switches measure the capacitance to decide when the key-press happens, which can emulate other switches that make contact before the key bottoms out.

Wanting to try out something different, I got this keyboard kind of recently and over the past few months have been using it for work. The typing experience is really something different that I don’t know how to describe, but I really enjoy. Writing code or other long typing sessions are enjoyable, and has become my favorite keyboard to use for this. Though something about it makes me feel like it wouldn’t be a good for gaming, which wasn’t something I bought it for anyway. This keyboard in particular has a large community behind it for tweaks and mods, which may improve this gut feeling about using it for gaming.