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What is it like to use a mechanical keyboard?

NMF

NMF

macrumors 6502a
Oct 27, 2011
885
21
paulrbeers said:
Bull. I'm actually 32.
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Thanks for proving my point? You're practically prehistoric in the tech world. ;)

I don't know why you think linking me some articles written by a bunch of idiots means anything. I could link you to some articles written by people praising the Blackberry's physical keyboard and saying that no "work" smartphone will ever catch on without one. Guess what? Those people are idiots, not to be taken seriously.

I "work" from my computers as well and comfortably type over 85 WPM. I also used to use mechanical keyboards just like all of you sheep. I eventually switched to the Apple Wireless keyboards so that my typing experience was always the same regardless of whether I was on my laptop or or desktop. It took a bit of getting used to, but now I'm actually much slower on mechanical keyboards. Having physical space between your keys (i.e. "chicklets) it objectively superior to feeling tactile feedback when depressing them.

Again, you're just used to it. This entire mechanical "craze" is just people feeling nostalgic about their old computers. That, or some people are just thick-skulled and unwilling to retrain their muscle memory. So they keep clickity-clacking away on their ridiculously loud keyboards while the rest of us chuckle under our breath. :)
 
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paulrbeers

macrumors 68040
Dec 17, 2009
3,963
123
NMF said:
Thanks for proving my point? You're practically prehistoric in the tech world. ;)

I don't know why you think linking me some articles written by a bunch of idiots means anything. I could link you to some articles written by people praising the Blackberry's physical keyboard and saying that no "work" smartphone will ever catch on without one. Guess what? Those people are idiots, not to be taken seriously.

I "work" from my computers as well and comfortably type over 85 WPM. I also used to use mechanical keyboards just like all of you sheep. I eventually switched to the Apple Wireless keyboards so that my typing experience was always the same regardless of whether I was on my laptop or or desktop. It took a bit of getting used to, but now I'm actually much slower on mechanical keyboards. Having physical space between your keys (i.e. "chicklets) it objectively superior to feeling tactile feedback when depressing them.

Again, you're just used to it. This entire mechanical "craze" is just people feeling nostalgic about their old computers. That, or some people are just thick-skulled and unwilling to retrain their muscle memory. So they keep clickity-clacking away on their ridiculously loud keyboards while the rest of us chuckle under our breath. :)
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The youth of today: It's always "I'm right" even though you can't provide any validation of your argument. It's fine. Just because every high end keyboard comes with mechanical keyboards and every reviewer provides information why they are better, it's still "I'm right" and "You're wrong".....

Imagine how fast you could type with a good keyboard giving you tactile feedback rather than a keyboard that just goes "squish"? Probably could hit triple digits and with a much higher accuracy. It's fine. You just be happy with your "pretty" and "quiet" keyboard.....
 
NMF

NMF

macrumors 6502a
Oct 27, 2011
885
21
paulrbeers said:
The youth of today: It's always "I'm right" even though you can't provide any validation of your argument. It's fine. Just because every high end keyboard comes with mechanical keyboards and every reviewer provides information why they are better, it's still "I'm right" and "You're wrong".....

Imagine how fast you could type with a good keyboard giving you tactile feedback rather than a keyboard that just goes "squish"? Probably could hit triple digits and with a much higher accuracy. It's fine. You just be happy with your "pretty" and "quiet" keyboard.....
Click to expand...

I doubt that many would associate me with "the youth of today," I'm on the wrong end of my late 20's here. We could have attended high school together at one point.

The fact is I've used both and obviously started out on mechanical just like everyone else. I've been typing for a long time. I do see the value in keyboards designed to be ergonomic (and those are definitely some of the more hideous products on the market) but mechanical keys just aren't that important. If you're used to them and type better on them then more power to you, but to argue that they're inherently superior is just asinine. Having a decent amount of space between your keys is just as important. More important, in my opinion.

You type better/faster on mechanical because that's how you learned to type. That doesn't mean the keyboards are objectively better. They're just what you're used to.
 
pastrychef

pastrychef

macrumors 601
Sep 15, 2006
4,753
1,450
New York City, NY
NMF said:
I also used to use mechanical keyboards just like all of you sheep.
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Listen, _-hole, I'm not telling you to use a mechanical keyboard. Use whatever the ____ you like. Don't call me a _______ sheep just because disagree with my opinion. What a ____.

NMF said:
You type better/faster on mechanical because that's how you learned to type. That doesn't mean the keyboards are objectively better. They're just what you're used to.
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Are you making this up along the way? As a baby, I learned to eat with plastic silverware, doesn't mean I eat slower with metal silverware now.
 
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mslide

macrumors 6502a
Sep 17, 2007
707
2
NMF said:
You type better/faster on mechanical because that's how you learned to type. That doesn't mean the keyboards are objectively better. They're just what you're used to.
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You're not going to find many people who would agree with any of your points. There's a reason why higher end keyboards tend to have mechanical switches and why so many people vouch for their superiority. Not every mechanical keyboard user is a sheep that uses them because some website told them to. It's not because it's what we're used to. It's because we've used both extensively and can definitely say the type of switch, among other things, makes a difference.

As for loudness, that depends on the switches and the person typing. There are lots of mechanical keyboards that, when paired with someone who types correctly, won't be very loud at all. I find that many, if not most, people use too much force when typing. It's those types of people that will be very loud on mechanical keyboards. Some of the loudest typers I work with use non-mechanical keyboards.

Nobody here is trying to force you to use a mechanical but to come on here and say that every mechanical keyboard user is just a sheep who only thinks they are better is what is asinine.
 
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takeshi74

macrumors 601
Feb 9, 2011
4,974
68
NMF said:
Mechanical keyboards are loud to type on. Like, really loud.
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Depends on the keyswitches used. Buckling spring keyboards, on the other hand, are all loud.

NMF said:
It's almost inappropriate to use one with a Mac, in my opinion. You have this sexy little computer than makes almost no noise, and you want to a get a clickity-clackity keyboard that annoys every other person in the room with you? Makes no sense.
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I don't see what one has to do with the other. I don't select buckling spring keyboards based on the noise level (or "sexiness") of my computer. I select them for typing feel. What truly makes no sense is assuming that your preferences are universal.

NMF said:
Having physical space between your keys (i.e. "chicklets) it objectively superior to feeling tactile feedback when depressing them.
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It's a subjective matter. Your preference != objective.
 
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paulrbeers

macrumors 68040
Dec 17, 2009
3,963
123
NMF said:
. Having a decent amount of space between your keys is just as important. More important, in my opinion.

.
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Just one comment on this post..... You do realize that even on a Mechanical keyboard, there is actually a space between the keys right? Infact, I would bet at on the actual surface you press on, there is generally MORE gap at the top between keys than on a chicklet keyboard. There might not be any plastic/aluminum between the keys, but there is still a substantial "gap" or "space" between the keys.

Invalidated.
 
Giuly

Giuly

macrumors 68040
Oct 16, 2009
3,348
4
That depends whether you ask for timezone, state o
If you go ahead and take away all of their clickety-clickety mechanical glory, then the Quiet Pro/Tactile Pro still have the most fantastic ergonomics as everything is just rightly placed/sized/spaced/raised on them.

Matias also makes a similar Mac keyboard with rubber-dome switches for $32, and if the ergonomics are remotely like the Quiet Pro/Tactile Pro, then it will a great keyboard, too, even though that one uses rubber-dome switches.

What distinguishes it most from all the chiclets and rubber-domes around is this:
tg0o.jpg


It's great for usability, but it got out of fashion somewhere in the late 90ies.
 
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Alrescha

macrumors 68020
Jan 1, 2008
2,156
317
You kids do not even know what a real mechanical keyboard feels like. You have not lived until you have typed on an IBM 3278* keyboard ca. 1975. PC keyboards? Of *any* era? Bah, humbug. :)

A.

* For the curious, these were "beam spring" keyboards, a precursor to the buckling spring technology that everyone gushes about now.
 
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