I have a Keychrom K7 Pro with brown switches. I like the low profile keycaps and QMK has become a necessity. I am curious about red and blue switches. I understand the difference between all the switches and have keycap testers, which include many others, but I’ve not had the chance to type on all three.
I’m primarily concerned with how the feel of the switches you use contribute to your typing quality and overall experience. It would be great if you have any input spanning multiple switches.
P.S. I know there are keyboard subs, but I asked the question here as they are not as active
I use the one my dad uses
Remind me to tell you when I’m at home I’ll know then
Home Keychron K4v2: Custom built (franken switch) Kailh Silent Box Browns. Bottom housing, and Springs are from Kailh Box Royals. Top housing, stem, and tactile hammer from the Box Browns.
Work Keycron K4v3: currently have the stock Keychron Banana switch and they are ok. I like the spring weight but im not in love with the rest of the switch. My board also came with 5 bad switches so thats not a great selling point.
Travel Keychron K17 Pro: Gateron LP Blues, fewer options so these are the ones I like to annoy people with on the train or airplane.
I have a bunch of other keyboards with different switches ranging from Outemu silent white, purples, to Cherry brown, and silvers.
I cant even remember all the switches I have, and I have given away so many to friends…
How do you like the full keyboards you have? I’m looking for a new one
Charachorder, way better than a normal keyboard in every way, completely silent, tactile, essentially instant actuation… I will never go back
Membrane because I’m poor
Kailh Choc Sunsets. They’re tactile and have a decent snappiness-ploppiness balance. With low-profiles there isn’t too much to choose from.
My Keychron Q6 HE 8K just arrived, it has the “Keychron Ultra-fast Lime Magnetic Switch”, feels like regular MX reds, maybe a little softer. Was using a Logitech g815 with red switches, not much difference as far as switches go, sound absorption and key stabilizers are much much better on the Keychron.
At work using a Keychron K5 with Gateron low profile brown switches (might the same as yours), they are nice for typing with the tactile feedback although I prefer the longer key travel. I would say tactile feedback is better for typing but I also enjoy typing on linear switches thus Q6 HE purchase.
I haven’t noticed much of a difference in typing quality between switches. Key travel, sound damping and better key stabilizers were more of an overall improvement in typing experience to me.
catchy name
IBM Model M; there’s nothing better than buckling springs when it comes to tactility (and noise).
Those Keychron keyboards do look pretty neat, though.
Honestly it really depends what you are mostly doing with the keyboard. If you are planning on writing a lot, people usually lean toward tactile switches. It has a little bump on the click which feels quite nice. Strict gaming usually go linear since its faster to trigger. Then there is the weight. Lighter weight for faster pushing, higher weight for really knowing you are pushing the key.
My preference is a medium weight tactile switch, preferably silent. I thought the heavy switched were too much for my taste. Light didn’t have enough resistance.
The goldilocks zone of key cap weight!
I have that 8bitdo C64-styled keyboard. It has kailh box white v2 switches and aspherical keycaps, and I love that combination. Just feels right to my fingers and sounds great too.
Kemove K87 with Red switches and o-rings at work. Keeps noise down and the tenkeyless layout is a nice compromise between desk space and functionality. Might switch it out for an ikbc tenkeyless with Cherry MX Silent Red switches that I got for cheap once. That I purchased to see if something without o-rings would feel better, but I’ll have to fix a couple broken switches first.
At home, a no-name tenkeyless with blue switches because that was what was on discount and I didn’t mind the clicking. Before that, I used a Monoprice full-size with brown switches and o-rings to keep the loud pinging down. Miss the feel of the brown switches, but not how much space it took on my desk.
I originally worried that my typing accuracy would suffer on the reds due to the lack of tactile bump, but I’m growing to prefer it since I don’t find myself making more typos, while the low actuation force makes long typing sessions more comfortable. Haven’t looked at more niche low-profile, etc. options though, can’t quite convince myself to drop more than $50 on a keyboard.
Well, I gotta admit I am kinda of a freak when it comes to switch tastes. I love it to be loud, obnoxiously loud, with a huge accutation force. I have generally bounced between Box Jades/Navys and Kaliah Burnt Oranges, I really want my typing to be a sensual experience, feeling and hearing each keystroke. Since I do not do much high APM gaming, the extra force required never feels like it gets in the way; most others tell me they emphatically do not feel the same. So this is very much a bit of unusual take, and I do not know how relevant it will be for you.
