Am I the only one who hates mechanical keyboards?

[yolosnail]

For me, I think mechanical keyboards just feel too big and too clunky. I honestly don't understand the appeal of a mechanical keyboard, how can people type on a keyboard with so much travel. I would rather type on a chiclet style laptop keyboard, or a membrane keyboard with a really short throw, I can type a lot faster on those. The keyboard that I find easiest and most comfortable to type on is the older style macbook keyboards, it's a shame that I don't like Apple products, although if I could install Mac OS on my laptop I definitely would.

[Yoinkerman]

Like whatever you like man

[Thermosman]

Couldnt tell you, never owned one, but I do think they are overhyped

 

[TVwazhere]

11 minutes ago, yolosnail said:

 I would rather type on a chiclet style laptop keyboard, or a membrane keyboard with a really short throw, I can type a lot faster on those.

You dont need to push the key all the way down to register a press. Additionally;

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/cherry-mx-speed-switches-corsair,31648.html

[Bananasplit_00]

i really hate chicklet, too short travel most of the time for what im used to. mech keyboard usiuall have much better builds than most membrane ones as well and the key switches feel really nice IMO. there are a LOT of shit mech keyboards like ones with Razer and Roamer G switches or super crappy cherry clones but cherry boards and other higher quality clones like Gaterons are pretty nice. havent tried any vintage switches but i hear alps are also pretty dope. i think a majority of people enjoy these boards because they are used to their shitty HP or Dell membrane keyboards(yah some of them are actiually nice, and there are a LOT of pretty nice membrane boards) and then they feel how responsive and quick a mech is and combined with the sound its a great expereince

[SlipperyPete]

18 minutes ago, yolosnail said:

For me, I think mechanical keyboards just feel too big and too clunky. I honestly don't understand the appeal of a mechanical keyboard, how can people type on a keyboard with so much travel. I would rather type on a chiclet style laptop keyboard, or a membrane keyboard with a really short throw, I can type a lot faster on those. The keyboard that I find easiest and most comfortable to type on is the older style macbook keyboards, it's a shame that I don't like Apple products, although if I could install Mac OS on my laptop I definitely would.

razer makes a nice gaming chicklet keyboard. its call the razer deathstalker.

https://www2.razerzone.com/au-en/gaming-keyboards-keypads/razer-deathstalker

i owned one for  awhile before i bought my first mechanical keyboard.

personally i really like both mechanical, chicklet and membrane

[yolosnail]

7 minutes ago, TVwazhere said:

You dont need to push the key all the way down to register a press. Additionally;

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/cherry-mx-speed-switches-corsair,31648.html

Not pressing the key all the way down just doesn't feel right to me.

6 minutes ago, Bananasplit_00 said:

i really hate chicklet, too short travel most of the time for what im used to. mech keyboard usiuall have much better builds than most membrane ones as well and the key switches feel really nice IMO. there are a LOT of shit mech keyboards like ones with Razer and Roamer G switches or super crappy cherry clones but cherry boards and other higher quality clones like Gaterons are pretty nice. havent tried any vintage switches but i hear alps are also pretty dope. i think a majority of people enjoy these boards because they are used to their shitty HP or Dell membrane keyboards(yah some of them are actiually nice, and there are a LOT of pretty nice membrane boards) and then they feel how responsive and quick a mech is and combined with the sound its a great expereince

I have a Dell OEM membrane keyboard that I 'borrowed' and I love typing on it, it's very quiet and has really low travel, same with my Microsoft Wireless keyboard that I got on sale about 8 years ago, I have used it pretty much every day since.

I also didn't mind the HP OEM keyboards we had in school, well the ones where the space bars actually worked. Why do people like to rip the space bars off and remove the metal bar?

[Guest]

I type fastest on mechanical keyboards because I don't need to look thanks to the feedback. It's purely a mental thing where if I don't get feedback it makes me look at the keyboard.

[Bananasplit_00]

5 minutes ago, yolosnail said:

I have a Dell OEM membrane keyboard that I 'borrowed' and I love typing on it, it's very quiet and has really low travel, same with my Microsoft Wireless keyboard that I got on sale about 8 years ago, I have used it pretty much every day since.

I also didn't mind the HP OEM keyboards we had in school, well the ones where the space bars actually worked. Why do people like to rip the space bars off and remove the metal bar?

like i said, there are some nice ones, but im pretty sure gameing on any of those HP or dell boards is especially nice  thats another win with chicklet and mech boards, faster response times

[yolosnail]

1 minute ago, Legendarypoet said:

I type fastest on mechanical keyboards because I don't need to look thanks to the feedback. It's purely a mental thing where if I don't get feedback it makes me look at the keyboard.

See, I'm the opposite, when I type on a mechanical keyboard I often miss letters out because I don't press the keys down far enough and end up having to type slower in order to hit every key. With a low travel keyboard I know I've pressed the key once I've bottomed out, which because of the low travel is quicker so it makes me type faster

[Guest]

1 minute ago, yolosnail said:

See, I'm the opposite, when I type on a mechanical keyboard I often miss letters out because I don't press the keys down far enough and end up having to type slower in order to hit every key. With a low travel keyboard I know I've pressed the key once I've bottomed out, which because of the low travel is quicker so it makes me type faster

I guess that's why there's so many keyboard/switch types. Different (key)strokes for different folks, lol.

[Eduard the weeb]

I like the G810 

the switches feel good imo and it ain't to loud 

[yolosnail]

1 minute ago, huilun02 said:

Well if you just want to tell us that, could have made a status update on your profile page.

Because now that you started a discussion, everyones just gonna try to convince you to get one.

 

As for me I like the mechanical action. I'm with you about having a short throw. Doesn't mean it can't be mechanical or tactile.

I'm lazy and can't be arsed to arch my fingers or elevate with a wristrest. Wish for more mech kb with low profile caps and short actuation.

I know there are some out there, but it would be exorbitantly expensive to obtain one to my location.

I was just curious about whether there was anybody else who didn't like mechanical keyboards which is why I put a poll. I've never tried a mechanical keyboard with a short throw, but I'd love to give one a try but they're hard to find

[Mira Yurizaki]

I like the mechanical keyboards I've gotten because the feedback I get from them is much more pleasing than with membrane ones. I would go as far as to say I even like the extremely short travel metal hump buttons because they have much sharper feedback than membrane.

 

On another note, mechanical keyboards may have a long travel, but the keys themselves are considered "pressed" somewhere in the middle. I believe for standard Cherry MX keys, they actuate at 2mm even though the full travel is 4mm. So in practice, mechanical keyboards only need about the same travel distance as most others to actuate.

[divito]

1 hour ago, yolosnail said:

For me, I think mechanical keyboards just feel too big and too clunky. 

I'm not sure if this is a troll or not. Physically, mechanical board sizes and keys are practically the exact same size as any standard rubber dome keyboards (including the ability to change cases, and key cap profiles). The notion of being big or clunky could refer to the Model Ms and Fs from the 80s, but clearly you've never seen TKL, 75%, 60%, or even the 40% mechanical boards that exist.
 

1 hour ago, yolosnail said:

I honestly don't understand the appeal of a mechanical keyboard, how can people type on a keyboard with so much travel. I would rather type on a chiclet style laptop keyboard, or a membrane keyboard with a really short throw, I can type a lot faster on those. 

Travel typically refers to distance between keys, which are essentially identical on the majority of keyboards, regardless of switch type.

You seem to be referring to throw, as well as actuation distance. Rubber domes and scissor switches require a full throw to actuate, but scissor gives you a short throw based on design. However, it's still a silly thing to criticize on mechanical keyboards as a whole because they actuate before the bottom of the switch, and the throw can be customized to your liking with o-rings or dampeners to get just the right feel. 

It's precisely that customization which makes mechanical keyboards such a versatile and popular thing in the tech space, because you can get essentially get your perfect keyboard; from switches and key caps, to lighting, macros, function layers, o-rings/dampeners, etc...

[geo3]

4 hours ago, yolosnail said:

For me, I think mechanical keyboards just feel too big and too clunky. I honestly don't understand the appeal of a mechanical keyboard, how can people type on a keyboard with so much travel. I would rather type on a chiclet style laptop keyboard, or a membrane keyboard with a really short throw, I can type a lot faster on those. The keyboard that I find easiest and most comfortable to type on is the older style macbook keyboards, it's a shame that I don't like Apple products, although if I could install Mac OS on my laptop I definitely would.

Have you tried topre? 

[papes]

Sounds like a you problem.

[Kangaroo Factory]

I like Chiclet keys with scissor switches. I also like mechanical keyboards. Own both, so I switch back and forth. Hate membrane keyboards though. 

[bosozoku]

Quote

 

hell no! I do not like large travel, high keycaps - it is all awful! My favourite is Apple Magic Keyboard - the second is my MacBook retina 2015 keyboard! I can type extremely fast on these, and using mechanical keyboard my fingers are just stuck with large travel distance and high keycaps of mechanical keyboards! If only magic keyboard has illuminated keys! It would be the best keyboard ever!

[bloodthirster]

On 1/11/2018 at 11:52 AM, geo3 said:

Have you tried topre? 

I have a happy hacking pro and I absolutely love it.  I've tried various mechanical KBs (even bought a red dragon as backup), but I just dig the topre the best.

[d3adc3II]

On 1/11/2018 at 11:32 PM, yolosnail said:

For me, I think mechanical keyboards just feel too big and too clunky. I honestly don't understand the appeal of a mechanical keyboard, how can people type on a keyboard with so much travel. I would rather type on a chiclet style laptop keyboard, or a membrane keyboard with a really short throw, I can type a lot faster on those. The keyboard that I find easiest and most comfortable to type on is the older style macbook keyboards, it's a shame that I don't like Apple products, although if I could install Mac OS on my laptop I definitely would.

1. I think mechanical keyboards just feel too big and too clunky.

 

Mechanical keyboard got nothing to do with the size actually. It's about the switch, the keyboard comes in many size , more than you can imagine.

 

It can be 75% like KBD75, Vortex Race 3

It can be 60% like Poker 3

It can even be fullsize but is much smaller in size. For example: XD75RE

 

It can be much smaller than that.

 

2. how can people type on a keyboard with so much travel

 

It actually depends on the switch. Such switch like Cherry red has very short travel distance.

There are more than 30 diff kinds of switch for you liking. I'm sure there are some switches for you.

 

 

[alatron978]

My typing speed on my laptop is 92wpm. With my mechanical keyboard with mx speeds, its 65wpm.

[bowrilla]

If you haven't tried all the various switches out you can't generalize. There are switches with low travel in traditional casings like MX Silver (linear), Kailh Speed Silver/Copper/Bronze/Gold (linear/tactile/clicky/clicky). There are even extremely low profile mechanical switches with very little travel like Kailh PG1232 series with a travel of only 2.4mm. If you're referring to the overall height as being clunky and big then this is true to a point but you can reduce the height by going for thinner keys and low profile keycaps. 

 

The beauty of mechanical keyboards is that you can easily customize the keyboard to your liking and it is very easy to get the parts to build your own to your specific liking. You can mix the switches, make them hotswappable and so on. You can litereally get yourself the perfect keyboard.

 

I really like mechanical keyboards but I don't hate good non-mechanical keyboards. I like not having to bottom out which makes typing a lot smoother for me. In my curent keyboard project I'm mixing 4 kind of switches from linear over 2 different tactile switches to clicky ones. Linear switches with a bit higher actuation force for the arrow keys, tactile switches (a bit above MX brown in actuation force) for the regular keys, increased actuation force for the modifieres and the clicky switch for Esc. All are hot-swappable so I can always mix around. 

 

What I really hate though about (specific) non-mechanical keyboards is that you can't just remove the keycaps without destroying the key (at least that's very often the case). Makes cleaning a total pain. 

 

Generally speaking: it's a matter of preference. I know some people who hate long key travel and love their Macbook keyboards. Good for them. 

[Earnist_]

i dont even know what to say, just use an inferior keyboard then

[cluelessgenius]

honestly i also dont feel like they are vastly superior but mine does feel slightly better than the rubber nipple ones i had before. like i still wish mine had a more noticable bump but its still better than before. rubber ones feel mushy. at work im forced to use a rubber one and its flat like a notebook keyboard too. you can get used to it but something about the feedback you get from those rubber nipples just feel cheap and im sick of it. a premium feel is more important over time than many people think. my old monitor was the cheapest 24" that i could find while in college and the all plastic stand didnt bother me first but the sqeeking plastic sound i got everytime i bumped the table and it would wobble just got on my nerves. thats a big part of why im wall mounting even high end displays now. just to avoid that shit. my car is the same thing i didnt notice it when i got it but noch i notice every cheap plastic sqeeking sound in the interior. so yeah i guess mechanical keyboards just feel better to me.