Switch manufacturer, Cherry (now ZF Electronics), has color-coded MX switches to distinguish both the audible and tactile feedback of their switches. What’s more, to accommodate personal preference switches come in several varieties. This alleviates pressure on the hands and the actuation of the switch is mid key-press, making for more comfortable and accurate typing. The key also need not travel to the base of the keyboard in order to register. Switches allow better feedback to the user’s hands confirming a key stroke was registered. Mechanical keyboards use a switch instead of a rubber or silicon dome to register when a key is pressed. This causes cramping and increases the likelihood of typing errors (typos), making these keyboards sub-par for today’s competitive gamers and typing professionals. Although much quieter and inexpensive, rubber dome caps register only when the key has been fully pressed and requires more pressure to activate. Most keyboards available today use rubber or silicon dome caps, similar to what is found in television remote controls, to register a click. What differentiates mechanical keyboards from others is the mechanics (thus, mechanical. I suggest you make the jump if you need a brief history lesson or are looking for a place to start your own research. The folks over at have published a Mechanical Keyboard Guide that futher introduces you to modern mechanical keyboards. Several leading manufacturers including SteelSeries, Corsair, Razer, and Logitech have already added mechanical gaming keyboards to their lineups, in addition to speciality manufacturers such as Adesso, SIIG, Cherry, Topre, iONE, Deck, Rosewill, and DAS. Gamers are already considered an “enthusiast” bunch, so dropping $100-$150 dollars on a piece of hardware that will enhance their skills and possibly give them an edge over the the competition is a sound investment. Today’s competitive gamers require high precision instruments for accuracy and efficiency in order to stay ahead of the competition thus mechanical keyboards have been reintroduced to a new audience. In fact, IBM Model M “clicky” keyboards continue to be highly desirable amongst typing professionals and often appear on eBay demanding $100+. Keyboards had become a commodity and would remain so for the next 25 years. Mechanical keyboards are expensive to manufacture and were eventually phased out for cheaper, quieter, more feature-rich, and aesthetically pleasing keyboards as personal computing evolved towards entertainment and media.

It was fast it was accurate it was loud it was mechanical. Growing up using the IBM Model M “clicky” keyboard spoiled me. The computer is long-gone, but my father still owns and uses this keyboard in his otherwise modern home office despite its behemoth size and hideous appearance (the beige plastic is now an awful yellowish color). These audibly loud keyboards became known as “clicky” keyboards due to the clickity-clack the keys made when typing. What is a “clicky” keyboard, you ask? Many years ago (~1984), my father purchased an IBM computer that originally shipped with what is now known as a Model M keyboard. It appears “clicky” keyboards are making a comeback. Newegg and Google became my guides, and I immediately took note of all the recent buzz surrounding mechanical keyboards. I’ve purchased a few keyboards for client and family computers I’ve built, but I shop entirely different when it is something for myself. I haven’t shopped for a keyboard for myself in years, so I really hadn’t paid attention to what was out there to choose from. Replacing a keyboard I had become so fond of and familiar with was going to be difficult. Several keys just all-of-a-sudden stopped responding (unless fierce pressure was applied) and the enamel on the back-lit keys (primarily WASD) had rubbed off almost entirely. After five wonderful years, my original Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard began dying on me.

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