Just wanted to tell you how precious your videos have been this week. I ordered my first custom keyboard, switches and keycaps couple weeks back and now I’m just waiting everything delivered to me. Meanwhile I got my eyes fixed so I don’t need to wear glasses, so since Wednesday I’ve been unable to use my eyes properly as they are healing, so I’ve listened probably most of your videos by now. Thank you team Hipyo!
From my own experience most people just don't care about their keyboard, until they use a mechanical. For most people a membrane is all you need, but a mechanical is really nice to have
when I got my first mechanical keyboard, my older sis was complaining that I wasted my money when I could have just use the office keyboard I have from work. Two weeks ago she tried out my keyboard because she needed to use my PC and she realized how nice it is to type on a mechanical one and now she wants to get her own lol
1000% this! I got a mechanical keyboard at work. It was cypher with mx blue's and really loud but people would use it and they loved it we all have keychrons now.
True, most people I know around me would be happy to use a Logitech K120. But I preffered a old Mac pro keyboard as it was louder then most cheap stuff. Then I built a keyboard myself and I'm not getting back to those cheap landfill keebs for at work (they better get me €130 to build a semi custom Akko for the office)
One thing I'd also mention is that mechanical keyboards don't have to be a hobby. In my 15 years of owning mechanical keyboards, I have bought 3 of them. They last a long time so once you have one you're happy with, there's no reason to buy more if you don't need more.
Honestly even though I probably spent more than I should have on my mechanical, it's probably going to save me money compared to all the membranes I'd otherwise have to buy in the coming years.
I've bought a bunch of mechanical keyboards in the last three years. Not because I'm a mechanical keyboard hobbyist, but because I have rather peculiar needs for my workstation, so it takes time to solve some problems, and thus my workstation is constantly under improvement, and the keyboard just happens to be one of the most significant items in a workstation. Specifically, since I do music and play games, I need a numpad for music and lots of mouse room for games, so I previously had a fullsize mechanical keyboard and a 60% mechanical keyboard and just kept switching them when switching tasks. But now I'm updating my workstation to a 75% keyboard for universal use (mechanical of course) and a separate numpad (which will also be mechanical). That's a lotta mechanical keyboards with sensible reasons for buying all of them without being a hobbyist.
You lightly touched on it, but there's also just the fact that you don't _have_ to get deep into "the hobby" to get a mechanical keyboard. Ten years ago, I decided I wanted one of these mechanical keyboards I kept hearing about. So I googled 'mechanical keyboards', went to the website with the coolest-sounding name (WASD Keyboards), picked the switches they said were quietest. That's the only mechanical keyboard I've bought in ten years. I didn't have to learn much of anything, I just bought a keyboard that sounded good. After ten years of several hours of use a day, it still works just fine, zero problems. I'm typing this on it right now. I've actually been tempted to buy a new one just because I wish it had a backlight, but it's hard to justify replacing something that's working just fine.
I think I have a membrane keyboard that I bought xmas of 2019, in New York, it was a keyboard, mouse, LED bundle all for $20. Still works basically fine, I doubt I’ll ever switch to mechanical, until this one breaks, if so, I’ll probably just get the cheapest keyboard
@@freeroamchips You should try a mechanical keyboard just to see if you like it, I used membrane for a long time and thought the same thing, then I bought a mechanical, and I'm never going back, if you want to try one without buying it, a lot of stores will have some on display that you can type on and see if you like it :>
When I switched to a mechnical the difference wasn't as big as I thought, but after several months I tested the membrane again and only then realized how hard I must press it, the wobblyness and difference between several keys. We can get used to all sorts of things, for example sound too, bad headphones doesn't sound that bad anymore after we get used to it, but beware of comparing them to good ones, then you hear the difference again.
This. Got a cheap mechanical keyboard for Christmas, and after daily driving it for a few weeks, the difference wasn't the biggest most profound thing ever, but just a simple change that's arguably better than a big change.
@@anatoliyatrilvik7660 I tried a few different mechanical keyboards at the computer store. Some allowed me to type fast while others gave me typos. I went with the one that gave me the least amount of errors. I now know mechanical keyboards aren't created equal. I'm actually quite faster at writing than I was before with a membrane. Not only that I'm having more fun typing again. As two parent threads up commented, membranes degrade over time and it's so subtle we don't notice. In addition, having a keyboard where the switches can be upgraded, caps replaced or themed, is a huge plus to my investment. Have fun either way you go; it's really whatever makes you the happiest at the end of the day. haha
I feel the same way, I have a mechanical, membrane and a cheap fake mechanical keyboard (mechanical keykaps style however membrane underneath) And the cheap fake one is by far the most comfortable keyboard because it’s easy to press down on and there’s no springs pushing back on my fingers (I play osu, basically an aiming guitar hero type game you must rapidly tap two keys when aiming at the circles, anywhere from 150-350BPM, making this feature crucial)
After building a mechanical keyboard ngl it's hard to use other keyboards, the feeling is really nice (especially after spending any significant amount of money 💀)
@@lostintechnology1851 mechanicals and membrane are distinctively different. Anyone could feel the difference in a blind test, there's nothing placebo about it.
@@lostintechnology1851 Mechanical keyboards work fundamentally different when compared to membrane keyboards. Your use of "placebo" is so incredibly wrong
@@lostintechnology1851 uh, okay i can see how you think the sunk(not en)-cost fallacy plays a role here, but it does not, there is no placebo either, they got a NICER DEVICE, and they are saying its NICER and they cant go back because who would have thought, its NICER? This entire thought was laid out in 2 seconds.
As someone who's only used cheap stock mechanical keyboards (mostly Mars Gaming) even if you didn't spend 200 bucks on a keyboard you still wanna take care of it and once it dies replace it with a similar one. My Mars Gaming Mk4 lasted about 8 years of use, abuse, and even traveling before the cable just died (i could fix it, but i don't have a clue what part got damaged and i don't wanna cut the whole cable open to see where the damage is, as i have no way to give it a new sleeve)
i have membrane keyboard at work, which feels terrible to type on, mushy, inconsistent typing, i can’t even type pass 45wpm. i have mechanical keyboard at home and can type faster than 70wpm. i know that’s not much, but that tells everything.
The thing is that it's something that applies everywhere, i went from using regular bikes to full sus bikes after i borrowed a KTM Tribute 2015 from a friend who had just gotten it and now i have a downhill bike myself (Specialized Demo 8 2009). I originally had a chinese brake bleed kit, but i was missing something for my new set of brakes and decided to spend 75 bucks on the original one. Now i take care of that kit like it's the most important tool i have. I went from using regular shoes to amateur running shoes because they have a lot of cushion and are wider, wich fits me better. I could keep on going for a while...
I remember when I got into soldering I started on a budget and man, it was a terrible experience. Buying quality tools and chemicals changed my life I will never forget an old anecdote told by Stephen Fry, to paraphrase, he was poor growing up and when their car broke down his dad purchased a car well outside their budget. Little stephen was surprised and asked his father "why did you buy such an expensive car, we can't afford it" and his dad replied "maybe so, but we are too poor to be cheap". His dad purchased a pricier yet more reliable well made vehicle that will last longer than having to constantly replace or fix a cheap vehicle. I live by that principle, granted people can argue not all expensive stuff is good, but a well made product is worth every penny over a cheap one that will break after a few uses.
I got a K95 Platinum for work and play for WFH before even Covid hit. Makes such a big difference in my day to day experience. They have us come into the office 2 days a week now and I have a membrane keyboard there. It's functional, but not anything I would call "enjoyable"
The reality is most people dont give a crap about the keyboard. The last time my sister visited me, we both had to spend a day working our respective jobs for a while. She was working on her laptop in another room, while I was in my office with the door closed. When I came out to talk to her, she commented on how loud my keyboard was and that she could hear it through the closed door 30 feet away. Loud? I dont even notice the sound anymore. I explained it was a mechanical keyboard and much nicer to type on than a cheap keyboard. I suggested she try it, as you can get quieter ones. She tried typing on it for a bit. I asked her how it felt. She said "Like a keyboard." So... yeah... that pretty much sums it up.
I once went to my mom's office (It was a small office and her boss was really chill) and I saw that her boss had a mechanical keyboard. I asked him how his keycaps was a different color and he began to explain a little on what a mechanical keyboard was to me. Of course I thought "What was the difference?" until he let me press the keys. Safe to say, I now have 2 keyboards for gaming and daily use lol.
My first mechanical keyboard was a very cheap one, can't go back ever since, now i have 5 with my favorite is the quickfire tk, love the TKL form but still have the numpad
I was at a hackathon once and saw my teammate brought a mechanical keyboard (a Keychron). I liked the per-key RGB lighting and customized keycaps. After seeing how my laptop keyboard got uncomfortably hot when compiling the project, he lent me it to use for a bit, and I fell in love with it. I bought my own when I got home from the hackathon.
@@bariumlanthanum6298 yeah laptops turn into toasters the second u make them do anything like compiling or render lmao. that is an on the desk type of activity if thats what ur doing with them lol.
@@mannyheffley5481 - Membrane keyboards are reliably cheap and reliably good. That's why they're made. People who want premium products often switch to mechanical, and there's nothing wrong with both markets existing simultaneously. Even the premium membrane keyboards are OK, and still cheaper than premium mechanical keyboards.
@@arthurwintersight7868but the fact you can get a 25 dollar board that feels better than a 40 dollar membrane one has nothing to do with price. The only good place for membrane is travel and small spaces like laptops
I used membranes for 11 years. They feel great when new. But 6 months later when they get mushy it just doesn't feel right. I bought a K552 with outemu blues for my sister last year cause she wanted one. I used it from time to time and it felt nice. So I delved into the world of switches and keyboard and keycaps and what not. I recently purchased a TKL from Ganss with silver linears. So far its great and it feels consistent and fast.
As someone who purposefully bought a membrane keyboard because I just prefer how it feels, y'all can do whatever you want, it's your keyboard and perhaps even your hobby. Go wild, mix them blue red n brown switches, get crazy with it, I love when people experiment and put time and effort into things they care about, especially when it has a tinge of chaos to it
Good for you. I just bought a 60% mechanical keyboard with outemu red switches because i just prefer how it feels and sounds. y'all can do whatever you want, it's your keyboard and perhaps even your hobby. Membrane keyboards feel mushy and cheap, because a rubber dome is relatively soft and not tactile. They also tend to wear out over time, as the amount of pressure needed for a key to press and unpress changes as the rubber weakens.
i only love a membrane keyboard in a night setting, or at a quiet workplace such as the library. my custom keeb has a personality to it, that's why i love it. also appreciate the fact that you enjoy seeing others customise things :))
@@ninx_music Outemu red lubed is way more quiet than my last overpriced "premium" membrane keyboard! But i also appreciate you for seeing others customise things! :)
@@theidiotgamer4306 yeah i get you. the only reason why i dont use silent switches it because there is a quiet, idk charm to membrane? because imo, buying a switch that's gonna be completely silent is gonna destroy the whole point of me buying switches yk? like i have ktt kang whites, and coulve stuck with the reds but i wanted more clackiness and sound, so i bought the ktt's
@@ninx_music Well i get you too. I tried to use a razer ornata, my old membrane keyboard, and i cant even use it properly!!! That's a premium membrane keyboard by the way, and it is useless to use... You have to push the buttons aaaaall way down. Its mushy and it sound louder than my mechanical keyboard!!!
I used a mech keyboard from ~1990 for almost 20 years, until the DIN plug annoyed me too much. After a short rubberdome break I got myself a Cherry MX Board and am soo happy with it, even if it's not what current keyboard enthusiasts buy. I hope it will last me 20 years as well.
What’s cool is you can still enjoy the flair of the hobby in your simplicity, like the availability of switches. Seems dumb, but with so many being available to change feel or feed into curiosity, that also just means availability of replacement parts ! So if you reach the end of life of one of your switches you can just order some new ones. Getting a full rubber sheet replacement for a membrane might be doable thanks to the weirdness of eBay but it’s not the same, let’s be honest. You can also mod the cable to replace the fixed (I assume) to a detachable one with USB C port, in case the cable ever frays. Or realign your stabilizers’ bar if they’re too rattly. What I’m getting at is that everything that we consider “mods” can be dripped down to “repairs” A friend of mine has I think it’s a steelseries from like 2010 with a row of macros keys off to the left and one of those keys is awfully close to Escape so to prevent accidental touches he swapped that singular switch to a tactile with a heavier spring (heavier than the rest of the keyboard which already uses blacks). Stabs were adjusted, and key caps changed because they got too shiny and/or the lettering wore off. It’s modding, but more in a repair way. And I expect that keyboard to last another decade. I hope yours will still receive your keystrokes in 20 years too
I will say that swapping to a mechanical has been life changing for my hand health. I have a lot of hand issues and being able to change my keyboard to help has been so great and so helpful
My wife was the same. She complained to me about her hands hurting after typing for an hour or so because it was uncomfortable to use her keyboard, It was just some no name brand keyboard + mouse combo deal. I bought her a Royal Kluge 96 with Cherry Reds because it was on sale and now she says she'd be able to type all day on it. It really is much more than just feel and sound with mechanical switches.
Same here I had an issue where a wood router and I got into a little battle, it won.. Still have full use of my hand.. thankfully But it's not 100% so being able to use a mechanical now is awesome and being able to choose a lighter key press is amazing not to mention the other cool stuff we can do with them.
but that was most likely due to other factors that have nothing to do with membrane, but with that explicit implementation. If you would have bought her a 6Gv2 her hands would probably been rekt for good.
I'm frustrated that people continue to refer to rubber dome keyboards as "membrane" keyboards. Yes, it is technically accurate. However, it's sort-of like referring to "pickup trucks" as "automobiles". A dome keyboard is a dome keyboard and for all their faults and shortcomings they are still miles and miles better than the original membrane keyboards. (see: Atari 400, Timex Sinclair 1000, 20th-century McDonalds POS terminals, et cetera.) Back when I was a fledgling keyboard snob back in the late 1990s we called domes domes and membranes membranes. It absolutely rips my asshole open wide that when you search "membrane keyboard" now you get a million dome keyboards. Not that I want to use either, I have a fancy Kinesis keyboard (because I'm a hag with wrist issues), but it's the principle of the thing, damnit!
It seemed more like an advertorial than genuine journalism. I got my first mechanical keyboard without all that "snob" knowledge which was worn out 7 years later, i had to borrow a membrane until i got a new one and i hated every second of it. In my opinion the only knowledge you really need to guarantee it's an upgrade from membrane, is knowing the difference between linear, tactile and clicky switches.
That last part where the author states that you are not missing anything when using a membrane keyboard made me sad. As a person who has ADHD, ever since I got my keyboard I sometimes just type just because I love the feel and sound. mechanical is a experience I could never give up.
@@lostintechnology1851 One, I’m in therapy. Two, I stim with my keyboard and it feels good. Three, what…what does this do for you? Oh no, so mean? Congrats?
I think she’s also forgetting you can get a keyboard without being a hobbyist. I’ve recommended Keychron to many people who are happy with that as their one and only purchase.
I like my 96% keychron keyboard. I just got pudding keycaps and O-ring dampeners for it. It’s just a shame that when I was moving, the little side knobs to choose between Bluetooth and USB mode snapped, so it’s now permanently a USB keyboard.
I literally bought the cheapest mechanical keyboard that beat buy had in my area its a Logitech one and its is leagues better than any crappy garbage membrane keyboard for clost to the same price
My first keyboard was a membrane logitech. It was okay. My second keyboard was a cheap amazon mechanical keyboard that had knock off mx reds. It was also just okay, but orders of magnitude better. My third keyboard was a BlackWidow Ultimate 2016. That was by far my favorite keyboard, and I used it for 6 years. I just recently bought a Keychron v6 and I'm swapping the switches for Kaihl box navys. I like the Keychron because I can get rid of the useless existence that is the caps lock button. I'm sure I could have done this with another keyboard, but the build quality and hotswap-able-ness of the Keychron was a major selling point for me. I type all day and the only thing that keeps me from ending it all is the satifying "click" of each key. I'm only half joking, here, as I did have a brief stint where the sound of my keyboard played a larger-than-I'm-willing-to-admit role in keeping me on this side of the mortal coil.
I build myself a nice cheap keyboard for about 100 bucks, 75% gasket mounted, gateron milky yellows, and akko asa keycaps, and stopped there, that's all I need
I found this article overall amusing of a read. I've been on the search for a suitable mechanical keyboard for 2 decades and only seriously started looking 5 years ago. After using cheap membranes (Compaq Model 5107 and HP Keyboard 100) all these years I finally got ahold of a Rakk Ilis with Outemu Silent White switches. It is significantly more silent than the membranes I have used and sometimes forget I'm typing because of how quiet it is. Considering the amount of added features it was a nobrainer.
It’s extremely hard to go back to a membrane after you’ve been using a Mechanical Keyboard for over a little 4 years, I also built 2 in 2022 and 1 in 2021. I really got into mechanical keyboards in 2021 and started watching Switch and Click, Hipyo & Glarses! You guys are the best honestly
Yeah you literally don't press the keys hard enough anymore lol. What do you mean there's more to go? I've already pressed it 80% of the way. This is absolute shenanigans.
i cant go back to the im gonna try to press a membrane key oh whats this? it got a little stuck and i had to put even more pressure on it to get it to press
Can vouch for this. Switched to a redragon k630 w/ akko cs lavenders, by no means the best mechanical keyboard out there, but trying out my old razer cynosa v2 i can't believe i tolerated it.
I went to a Micro Center in Denver once and someone had brought their custom along with them. I complimented the keyboard and told them I wanted to try getting into the hobby eventually (they were the ones to recommended me the Kit Adam which is going to be the keyboard I get). I tried typing on the keyboard they brought for about 20 seconds and immediately noticed a STRONG difference in the comfort I feel. I still have to type on my membrane keyboard right now and as I type up the stories I write I notice the very strong amount of discomfort in my fingers.
One of the problems with a membrane is it is rated for 5 million strokes, and the rubber domes dry out. I noticed having issue with my membrane, but it has been 18 years with it, but I plan on soaking the domes. Meanwhile, Im kind of getting a little fatigue typing on a mechanical I am using, which is brown cherries....yet I have tried another blue gaterons and they were light and easy, so its finding the key switches right for you.
I'm typing for a living on a 15 Euro membrane keyboard. I've used a Cherry with MX blues for over a decade and it was great. But one day, my gf and me both got remote work jobs and now share a desk. We're both amazingly fast typists who press the buttons with more force the faster we type. Even a silent stock mechanical keyboard sounds like a machine gun or a jackhammer at high typing speeds. Now I got a bunch of advice from the custom keyboard community, which is nice. There are options to dampen your keyboard barebone, to get silent switches like the WS silent linear switches and either some dampening keycaps or to fill the keycaps out. This is several hours of work and orders at different vendors. If I don't enjoy the keycaps, I'll probably have to send some parts of the order back, while my right to return for the other parts expires while the new keycaps arrive. It would be a huge hassle to have what I've already got for 15 Euro: A rather silent keyboard which allows for really fast typing. Granted, I've enjoyed typing on my old Cherry a lot more. But when it comes to price/performance, a membrane keyboard is really hard to beat. I use a Logitech K120, but this isn't about a specific brand. There are lots of brands with solid membrane options for less than a set of quality keycaps.
@@daysebatista i try not to simp for companies, but im sadden to say im a very big simp for logitech, they just make good shit that doesn't break the bank. ive been using the same keyboard and mouse from them for 5 years
Yeah, enthusiasts tend to act like it's like crack for computers where once you switch over to it you'll be convulsing and violently throwing up if you try to use a normal keyboard again... and don't get me wrong, obviously it's nicer, but it's not nearly as dramatic as people act like it is. For the majority of people it's really not worth spending all that money on it.
I am no fanboy of brands but Logitech has been the only decent brand I can recall in terms of keyboards. I love the K120 and I am currently typing this in a wireless K235. I like the customization aspect and deep sound of thocky mechs though... for me personally membranes are for work, mechs for everything else, but that's a personal choice.
Funny mentioning the force needed for pressing down a mechanical keyboard switch. My membrain keyboards (one salvaged from recycle bin and other being microsoft sidewinder) were actually hurting my fingers after extensive writing. Which is why I bought mechanical keyboard with quite light-touch switches (kailh box brown) and they feel so nice!.
To be objective, membrane gets the job done, and that's all some people want. The feel aspect is so insignificantly unimportant, mk's are unnecessary expense for them. There's no right or wrong. It's just different perspective and expectation.
I went from a Cynosa Chroma which is like, "one of the better membranes" to an Asceny One, and it was life changing. I never knew that it was possible for my hands to not physically hurt while typing and for key presses to actually consistently register.
I'm waiting on my 3rd build parts to arrive! Going alloy now! Funny how when I show my friends my cool colorful boards at work they just smirk at me. As soon as they hear how sweet they sound they smile.
If you're using a decent membrane keyboard the domes should sort of 'snap' down once you've put just enough pressure on them. I personally love the feel of decent quality silicone domes because they're responsive, but also have just she slightest 'mush' to them. To me, it just feels smoother. No harsh 'switch snapping into place' feel, but snappy enough to be comfortable to type on. That's exactly how I like it.
Yeah the Apple ones are really nice for that specific feeling. I use a membrane for convenience and that smoothness. But I do prefer the concept and tactility of a mechanical overall although I don’t use one right now.
I have an ancient NEC (made by Cherry, somewhen before 2k) keyboard with rubber domes and it feels very ok. Maybe I like it more than some mechanical keyboards I have tried. Keycaps have a good design so I can be fast and precise, travel distance is quite large, which I like, and as you say, the keys sort of snap after pressing little over half way down, rarely it doesn't register the keypress. On the other hand I bought cheap membrane keyboard and it's just a mushy plastic board, hardly precise, bad keycaps, it's just terrible in comparison to the old robust "tank" :D. After this one dies, maybe it will be time for mechanical but until then I love this one :D
@@steposka ya my favorite keyboard ever is a compaq board that came with some of their workstations in the late 90s. it's quiet and precise, feels quality, and the keys feel awesome to type with. i got one from my dad when his company was getting rid of unused inventory, and a week later went back and fished a couple more of them out of the dumpster. only complaint is that you can't press more than 3 keys at a time. i have a mechanical board hooked up to my gaming rig, but i'm still using one of those compaq boards on my workstation. never found anything else as nice.
I've used a g203 prodigy and a steelseries apex 3 and I can definitely say that both of them feel like that
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The Apex 5 feels and sounds better than any clicky mechanical keyboard I've tried. But you're absolutely right about not needing to fully press a mechanical key. For example, I have a Logitech G613, and it's incredible how some keys need just about 0.1mm of pressure, which is awesome! The best part is, if you need two keypresses, you're likely fine with just touching the key once. The downside is, if you only needed one keypress, you might find yourself using backspace quite a bit. By the way, scissor-switch membrane keyboards can also be very good in terms of feel and quietness. Regarding sound tests, most reviewers do a terrible job by placing the mic on the same table or too close to the keyboard, making the tests almost worthless. Without a proper reference, even the quietest keyboards sound really loud. It would be great to see a comparison with something like the Magic Keyboard, which isn't the quietest either but would probably make for a good reference.
Having used many different mechanical keyboards, I really prefer well made scissor switches over mechanical. I think the bad reputation of scissor switches comes from two points. 1. Mechanical keyboards have somewhat controlled uniform qualities. They just need to know what type of switch they like, and buy whatever keyboard they like with the preferred switch. On the other hand, the quality of scissor switch keyboard differs vastly per manufacturer and there is no reference switch. 2. It's the marketing and perception. For obvious reasons, cheap keyboards are always membrane ones and people think good keyboards must be mechanical. That being said, I really believe a well made scissor switch keyboard is (almost objectively) superior to a well made mechanical keyboard.
My main issue with membrane keyboards is that people often argue about the cost being lower, but the problem is that when a membrane key breaks, (and by that I mean hard failure, like the dome tearing apart or the trace on the weird plastic film wears out) you're basically going to have to buy a new keyboard as repairing that kind of damage is a bit unreliable. If a mechanical switch breaks, you're good to go with just buying like a baggy of 10 and replacing the one switch that broke.
Depends on the manufacturer and the issue. Even the terrible membranes on Apple Magic Keyboards can be replaced to an extent. But it’s nowhere near the simplicity or availability of a mechanism on a mechanical keyboard.
ive been using the same membrane keyboard 6 years now and it still works perfectly. Mechanical keyboard fans severly underestimate the durability of these keyboards.
@@Artfacility I'm still using same the membrane keyboard that I got with my first PC. 4 pcs, several mice and 12 years of daily use later it's still working fine (with some scars made in moments of angry gaming lmao)
@@Artfacilitymy favorite mechanical keyboard is turning 7 years old now, still working like a champ, and it's not expensive at all, i paid 40$ for it if i remember correctly, and typing on that is much better than membranes, even my coworkers, they couldn't care less about computer let alone keyboards, all of them love my keyboard, i bought a cheap one to use at my office, 30$ and they love it
for the record, my G510 was over 10 years old, i used it everyday and the rubberdomes are still perfect but i get your point. Still the replacement was 40 bucks.
Definitely like this type of video! Although I used a cheap membrane keyboard for many, many years, and I got by with it just fine, the switch to mechanical is something that I will never regret. For someone, like me, who uses their keyboard almost all day, the improvement in feel and consistency actually makes a large difference over time. Plus, since my keyboard is such an integral part of my life, it's fun to be able to customize it to my liking, and try different options!
Indeed, I purcchased a knockoff mechanical keyboard (it was like $20 here in Peru), and it was like night an day how great it felt compared to even robust membrane keyboards (like the ones included with a Lenovo Thinkcentre)
I love the mechanical keyboards, but at work, due to issues in my left hand, I do have to use a very flat membrane (at least I presume its a membrane, Logitech k780, but not guchi for gaming) due to the time spent typing and some minor nerve damage. I do have my new mechanical coming in late this week because god I dislike my backup membrane keyboard at home (not the Logitech).
I watched this whole video, and several others on this channel, and for the life of me I can't understand why a mechanical keyboard is supposed to be better. And I have one! Typing on it right now. But if it registers a letter when you press it, that's a good keyboard. And I REALLY can't figure out how one sound is supposed to be superior to another.
I used to use this old Casio printer calculator to keep track of product at work. And it had the most amazingly smooth, super light yet tactile membrane keypad ever. I really wish I could get a whole keyboard that felt the same. Its basically what I hope topre switches would be like but not even those are as good. That thing really used to make question the whole mechanical keyboard thing. Edit: It's hilarious to me that people are still using these gifs I made (very crappily) for geekhack in like 2011 just for fun lol. @2:54
I had the same thought a few months back and tried to find replacement keys for the Casio that we have at work so I could mod them for my keyboard, but I couldn't find them anywhere. I think I would have to buy a bunch of these calculators, tear them apart and reassemble them. I'm not doing that.
i didn't know what i was missing out on until I got a mechanical keyboard.. i got one of those 15~ gamer membrane keyboards and I was happy with it. then I got my mechanical keyboard and realized I missed out on so much pure joy I get simply from the noises of this keyboard
I'm a software engineer. In work I tried a lot of mechanical keyboards with various switches, all of which were complained about for being too noisy. Silent mechanicals are really frustrating to type on for me, as not hearing the actuation means I make more mistakes, which costs me time, and most membrane keyboards give me bad carpel tunnel after a while. In the end I found that there are some membrane keyboards that are far better than others, because their actuation registers higher, and the keys have better stabilisation. For me the Corsair K55 was the solution, but I expect there are one or two more out there that are good too. I wouldn't knock membranes, there is an actual niche use for the good ones.
Back when I was in an open office doing tech work, I used a Logitech Illuminated K740 with scissor switches. Much quieter than a mechanical and way better than standard membrane. So yeah, not all membranes are created equal, though I prefer my custom with Kailh Box Whites. 😂
I'm literally getting a mechanical keyboard for work because the membrane one I have is tiring me out typing on it. I don't know what it is but getting those modifier keys down with my pinky is really hard and I'm over it.
For me, both do the trick. I love the linear experience of mechanical keyboards, but I've played with a membrane keyboard for most of my life. I usually used keys half pressed to play, which is not ideal, but it worked. So, in conclusion, yeah, membrane keyboards will do the trick for most things, but if you have the money to spend (I say this because mechanical keyboards are quite expensive where I am located), and some time, mechanical keyboards are more worthwhile. You will get something that will last a lot longer and be more comfortable to use.
Where I live I spend half my paycheck on a keyboard (+/- 120$) and it's great. I'm still using it after 5 years without any issue, but I'm thinking now about buying a custom one it will be a tad expensive for me, but it will be worth every penny. Plus I hope to get a better job soon.
Genuinely, I actually prefer the "mushiness" of my membrane keyboard (I've felt shitty ones, don't get me wrong, but I like mine). Have a buddy who for YEARS has tried to get me into mechanical but none of the options I've tried measure up to my preferred feel of the membrane. I know I'm in the minority here but it's my truth nonetheless haha
@@theregularhuman Honestly after trying a couple tactile switches I understand some people still prefer membrane. Most tactiles are kinda meh and a quality membrane keyboard (and I don't mean cheap edgy gaming stuff) can feel quite good.
I understand your point, I have used a cheap mechanical keyboard (it had a few bad switches so I stopped using it), so I got a deal (20$) on a razer membrane keyboard, and it doesn't feel that bad, sure mechanic feels better, but membrane is quite good, I can do 110WP on it, no trouble @@SaHaRaSquad
I think there's a cost-benefit analysis that doesn't work out for a lot of people. If they buy a $25 mechanical keyboard, they're not necessarily going to get an experience *they* find markedly better than a membrane keyboard. It depends on what their attitude is. If the attitude is just, "I want it to put words on the screen when I hit the keys", a mechanical keyboard might be overkill. Especially if they don't spend a lot of time on a laptop or desktop. And most people aren't going to want to spend more than the bare minimum on a keyboard. The casual user (who I assume this is written for) isn't going to spend $50 to upgrade a $30 keyboard. They're going to plug it into their computer or connect over Bluetooth and call it a day. I just recently ordered the Keychron K2 v2, and I really had to have a conversation with myself justifying it. I think if you spend hours a day on a keyboard, and really care about the experience, you *can* justify dropping $80 on a keyboard. But lots of people are just going to say, "Meh. I'm fine with what my computer came with.". The two classes of people who really seem to be drawn to mechanical keyboards are gamers and typists. As far as mechanical keyboards being easier to press buttons on, and therefore better for disabled people: That probably varies a lot depending on the keyboard. one of the things I like about mechanical keyboards is that they do take more force to type on, so I make less inadvertent keystrokes. As I'm typing this right now, I'm using a Pauroty mechanical 60% keyboard, typing into my Dell Inspiron. That laptop's keyboard feels like garbage, because of the minuscule key travel. With a mechanical keyboard, I make fewer mistakes, specifically *because* it takes more force to type on. Now, granted, I got blue switches, but if I had to guess, the vast majority of people buying keyboards for the first time are going to get a keyboard far clickier than the one they're coming from. *Can* you get silent switches, etc.? Sure. But you have to know what you're doing. A random membrane keyboard that you pick out blindfolded is more likely to b e quiet than a random mechanical that you pick out blindfolded. And you kind of have to assume that most people are going in virtually blind. Don't get me wrong. I love mechanicals. I was using Model M IBM keyboards back in the early 90s. But especially for people who tap more on glass than they do on a keyboard, I can see why a mechanical keyboard might not make a lot of sense to them. Now, granted, it seems like she was pushing a particular keyboard, but I don't think her points were all wrong, necessarily. I code and I write fiction, so I spend a lot of time at the keyboard, so the feel was worth it to me. I can understand how a lot of people would be in the "don't care" camp, though. And on average, a membrane keyboard is going to cost you less. But the definitive "is all you need" is where she goes wrong. A membrane keyboard *may* be all you need, but not necessarily. It depends on how much you care about the experience, and how much you're willing to shell out to get a better one.
Can confirm that red dragon has a ton of potential. It was my first mechanical keeb that I used to learn all sorts of mods and whatnot on. Now it’s one of my favorites that I own and sounds phenomenal
I bought a RedDragon Kumera back in 2018 when only US layout was available and I love it. Far better than any membrane keyboards. More than 5 years later, the most used keycaps like WASD are wearing out but I kinda see that as a source of pride more than anything and otherwise functions perfectly. Only downside is the US layout but UK layouts are available now. Unfortunately they do seem to have shot up in price and the non-RGB model I got for only £29.99 no longer seems to be available so there are likely better deals out there.
The 30 dollar red dragon mechanical keyboard I bought is awesome. I also have a model M I got for 5 bucks at a thriftstore I use sometimes but it's not great for gaming so usually not. Membrane is fine, but with a little searching, even on a budget you can get so much of a better experience.
also got the 30 bucks redragon one for my first mechanical keyboard. I modded it a little with foam and blue tape and it was so much better than using membrane
@@myselph1761 when it comes to garage sales and other second hand salers not everyone knows what the have. To many people, a pile of keyboards all look the same.
As someone who switched from Cherry MX Blues to a membrane, I can tell you, the feeling of a good membrane, especially for writing, is sometimes preferable because of the ultra flat design. I own 3 mechanical ones and I love to type on them, but like, eh, the super flat keyboards are just nice, also wireless flat keyboards cost a lot more when they are mechanical.
As a mechanical keyboard user, I would like to point out that there are good membrane keyboards that feels decent to touch. Lenovo SK-8825, Surface keyboard and Magic Keyboard are good examples.
@@jierenzheng7670 Usually, but not necessarily. The Kailh X switch does not use rubber. A handful of nice desktop keyboards use it. High end Dell and some Lenovo laptops use rubber to protect the switch from debris, but not for the switch mechanism.
For me, my preference of mechanical v. membrane stems from the freedom of choice and customisability. I've definitely found membrane (even butterfly switch) keyboards that i really enjoy using, but the thing i _love_ about my mechanical keyboard is the fact that i was able to customise and choose every single element of it. There's something so rewarding about going through all the research, assembly and modifying something exactly to my liking - it was like i was taking full ownership of the keyboard and turning it into my own. All this to say, If the membrane keyboard market diversified and it became easier to customise every component, and i put in the time, research (and money, sigh) to make something that truly suited me -- i'd probably like it just as much as the mech i have now.
funilly enough "just get a keychron" is what i did and i love ti. got the keychron v1 max. my first keyboard with a gasket mount and now i am looking to mod the hell out of it now that ive been going through your channel for a while lmao
bought my wife a mech keyboard and i started to enjoy the sound of her typing. also, it looks like an old typewriter so thats cool. i myself found a great deal on a corsair K70 LUX that im getting new in box for $35 usd and im very excited to have that sound on my desk as well. i HATE the feel of membrane keyboards now and will not go back to the cheap OEM ever again. thanks for your videos
When I bought my first mechanical keyboard, something basic from Royal Kludge, I watched a few Linus Tech Tips videos about cheap keyboards and key switches and that one sounded the best for me - roughly the same process I use for most tech purchases I make. It was cheap and relatively easy. When I decided to make my own custom keyboard, I spent *hours* researching and comparing and going back and forth, trying to find stuff that was in stock and would ship relatively quickly. It was honestly kind of frustrating and annoying how many different things I had to balance (not to mention when my first set of switches were stolen from my mailbox after being shipped from China). That said, it was the time and money I was putting in *because* I wanted a mechanical keyboard that fit a certain criteria. I was close to just buying a prebuilt, which would have solved all of those problems and I still would have gotten a nice, mechanical keyboard out of it.
I bought a Royal Kludge keyboard out of curiosity about 2 years ago, and am still using it to this day as it was sufficient. Had to de-solder and move about 2 failing switches, which I personally don't mind as it was cheap enough and easy to fix. Am considering eventually upgrading the board, but as this gives the halfway actuation I want and the Red style switches sound fine to me. Mechanical keyboards seem like a fun hobby but having other priorities, it doesn't have to be the rabbit-hole it is often made out to be.
I have classic Mitsumi membrane keyboard from 1999. Metal bottom case, factory lubed stabilizers, and it's really fine to type. With individual membranes under every key, feels pretty consistant to type, for a membrane keyboard. Spacebar don't have any rattle and sounds suprisingly thoccy. But nobody build membranes like that anymore, you can't buy something like this new. This old thing is immortal.
I had a Mitsumi in the mid 90's that was really nice to type on, and as you said it was a nice deep sound without rattle, especially as it was a cheap keyboard even at the time.
This is the 2nd video from this channel recommended to me. The 1st was the one about low profile keyboards. I use a low profile keyboard, and was surprised to see the creator here not understand the point persons like me get them to begin with; ergonomics. So to then get one where he's talking about someone not understanding specific keyboards is hilarious irony. Especially when he intro dulls it down to zoomer slang like "bad takes". This is the epitome of "entertainer" in a field.
like i used a membrane keyboard throughout most of my teens, but thats because i never knew mechanical ones even exsisted, but now that i have dipped my toes into the mechanical keyboard world, i would never go back, and i purchased one you recommended the yunzii YZ-75 pro and its amazng
This kind of video is awesome! If we're talking about strictly office work then membrane is "all you need". However, I find typing for extended periods of time on a membrane keyboard to be tiring compared to a mechanical keyboard so even in an office I prefer mechanical.
My co worker uses the default membrane keyboard supplied in our office and she beats down on it LOUD because the input does not immediately register. Plus those things are basically thrown out once a key starts malfunctioning. My oldest mechanical is 4 years old and is very reliable (cost me about 20 bucks as it was a no brand China keeb). I have made back what I spent on it with the use I got and it still is very much serviceable.
This video is absolutely mindblowing for me, I have the membrane keyboard he was using as an example and for years now I thought it was mechanical because of how loud it is and because it is genuinely a lot better than keyboards I had used before. Now I need to find out what a mechanical is actually like.
membranes usually have like a cicle on the bottom which will just registers as you push down the key until it hits that circle thingy on the switch and mechanical have like a cross and is fully attached to the key that it depends the spec of a switch on how it registers a key press.
This was one of my favorite videos. Definitely would like to see more if the opportunity arises. Now, this article was so ludicrous that I'm not sure if I could have read it without pausing for periods of laughter.
I'm not too terribly invested into Keyboards, I just buy whatever mechanical looks good at best buy, but your channel has been super informative to me lately and I've just thoroughly loved the learning experience provided.
I am programmer for a lot of years, so I'm typing quite a lot everyday. I was using the the most average membrane keyboard you can imagine all the time, then when it finally broke, I caved in to all the mechanical keyboard praise and got a good mechanical one. Guess what. I barely noticed any difference. It's a keyboard. It types. What else do you need?
As somebody who got a semi-mechanical keyboard for sale for $13, the only regret I have is, that if the keyboard eventually stops functioning properly, I won't get a deal as good and end up feeling the emptyness from going to semi-mechanical to a membrane one. Also, cheap membrane keyboards can get real noisy as well if you are a fast typer. No way around that, unless you get a keyboard that is good at keeping the presses silent.
I switched from membrane keyboards to mechanical ones about 15 years ago. As a gamer, I've had the wasd buttons wear out after a couple years of use over and over again, whereas none of the mechanical keyboards I've had have actually had the switches wear out except my last keyboard which I'd had for around 7-8 years and was only skipping one key occasionally and I really debated replacing it at all. Money wise, mechanical keyboards have been a much better investment for me; more upfront cost, but less cost over time.
The funny thing is im finding myself flipping up the used part market in my town to find any chicony membrane keyboard from the 90s. Like the one i used in my office that came with a room size cutting machine from japan. Tough luck. 😢
Great video. Something else I think isn't often considered when comparing the two is that Mechanical keyboards can, with some skill, be repaired more often than membrane. Dead key? Replace the switch or, in my case on one keyboard, a resistor. Can't really do that with a membrane.
My favorite gaming keyboard ever was razor’s Anansi, which was a membrane keyboard. But I preferred it because of the additional macro key placement along the left side, close to the wasd keys, not because it was membrane.
I've been using laptops exclusively for the last ten years and dealing with membrane keyboards is less of a hassle than making space on my desk and carrying another keyboard. Also, I fixed the spacebar on my MSI laptop when it got stuck and now it sticks up a tiny bit more and feels exquisite.
I have a Redragon, Outemu Red Switch, as you cited, and it's quite ok, and was a world of difference from my old membrane "gamer" keyboard. I plan on customizing my Redragon sometime down the line, but in my country it's a little expensive to do so.
@@2k1jyup this is what I went for, just wanted the experience of “baby’s first mod” without having to spend a ton and go through a bunch of effort. It’s a fun experience! It’s always nice to do something with your hands.
Hey, it's 7 months since you posted but, I have the exact same keyboard, and just happened to customize it with akko purples, lube and tape. I'm having aural bliss from it and I'm super happy. Definetely worth and kinda cheap.
I'd been using a run of the mill dell membrane board forever, until I came across this channel. I snapped up a brown switch Keychron C1 for like, $50 and I can never go back. It was so much better straight out of the box. I never noticed how hard I type until I tried this board. I am 100% for mechanical now because the bounce back quality and quicker actuation literally saves my hands. There are more flexible plate options and Alice ergo style boards out there that would make an even bigger difference and I plan to upgrade and pass on my C1 to a friend. A mechanical keyboard is a long term investment that absolutely can save the health of your hands and wrists. Getting tendonitis and arthritis is a huge concern for people in my field. So anything I can do to prevent that will save me Way more time and money in the long run than spending a couple hundred upfront for preventive measures that will increase the longevity of my career and use of my hands in general.
I type on a keyboard all day for work, then again when I get home and game on PC. Getting older with arthritis in my fingers, a neck injury and aching shoulders, I finally opted for an ergo mechanical keyboard that I could customize for my needs. After searching far and wide I settled on the Dygma Raise...and never looked back. No more shoulder pain, love the feel of the switches I went with (and can change out easily), the sound is so satisfying I just WANT to type. And it's beautiful to boot. Pricey? Yep (more so now than when I got mine 2 yrs ago). Worth it? Definately!
Interesting fact: the mechanical keyboard switches are also customizable so which means you could install lighter springs like 12 gram which littery are just better then the membrane which are locked to whatever they are to
I had thr wrong kind of membrane in mind when i clicked on this video, ive only ever had a mechanical so i forgot the other exists, the membrane i was thinking of is the dust shield+silicone membrane that act as protection on my keyboard, it's quite nice knowing nothing dust or liquid is getting anywhere near my internals
I recently needed to use a membrane keyboard for a few days, actually a fairly "decent" steelseries model, and you touched on the biggest issue with them in my opinion, and that is the need to fully compress the key for it to register the keystroke. I wouldn't have thought that I had become so accustomed to the 2mm actuation point of the switches I use, but my god I was missing keystrokes left and right just trying to do general typing on the membrane board. It actually felt to me like the keyboard was broken. That full keypress to register keystrokes takes SO MUCH more effort than most mechanical keyboards, despite the lower force technically required. And this is coming from someone who uses 85g springs!
The app development class I was in forced me to use a membrane keyboard and I had the same problem, I'd miss so many keystrokes and end up with literal jibberish for code
I will admit that I didn't think switching to a mechanical keyboard would matter to me I did try a well-regarded budget option and... it didn't matter to me. After using one for a year I pulled out my old membrane keyboard to see if it felt terrible now and it just didn't. I would have been just as happy with a membrane, that being said solid mechanical keyboards are so well priced, currently there really isn't significant cost savings to go membrane, and mechanicals are supposed to last longer and be more reparable. So while I agree most people won't care from a sound or feel standpoint, given that there isn't really a big cost saving, not much reason to go membrane unless your budget is like 10 bucks.
I bought my first mechanical keyboard a year ago. A royal kludge 100. I customized it to have akko ocean blues, sounds good to me. I use it on my office. Ended up buying two more keyboard, a local brand here in the Philippines, and that 8bitdo for that blue switches.
My personal pedantry: "membrane" vs "mechanical" is a false dichotomy. There are obviously mechanical keyboards which use a sensing membrane (Model M) and rubber dome designs which don't use a sensing membrane (Topre, BTC, etc). The sensing technology has no impact on the feel. A better distinction is the presence or absence of a rubber dome. (Not to say Topre isn't good ofc)
As a Keyboard enthusiast who interested in Automotive Industry, those article remind me of "Why Electric vehicle good for environment" which is not that good for environment actually.
Interested does not equate to any amount of profound engineering or technical experience. Science unfortunately for you, is not based on feelings or interest.
@@jonathancormack Well, the science is overwhelmingly that battery-powered personal vehicles are long-term harmful to the environment and highly destructive to 3rd world nations where Lithium is mined with slave labor to produce HQ batteries at such a high volume.
I'm not a snob, and I do prefer mechanical kb. I know some people personally that hates noisy mechanical keyboards in office (in our city where I used to live not so long time ago it's hard to obtain silent ones, especially in people's preferred format and already silent out-of-box without modifying). And now I'm stick with membrane because there's no other choice in my current living place (and it's louder than my previous mechanical one, but obviously cheaper, I think, 20 times or so and also significantly lighter in terms of weight) P.S. to be fair, office keyboards were much silent than my previous mechanical, it's just my current membrane one is super loud
I've been using membrane keyboards since I got my first PC about 20 years ago up until my first laptop. After that, I got really used to the low profile keys of the laptop. Now I'm using Logitech Mx keys but I would not mind if there was a switch alternative to the scissors mechanism. Is there?
I had a blue switch mechanical keyboard, but due to the sound my wife made me switch back to membrane, got a Corsair k55 pro, and its great, super silent and has great tactile feedback! Of course it was more expensive that the mechanical,but once you go mechanical you can not go back to a cheap membrane One.
or swap out the switches instead of buying a new one, blue ones are always the loud ones but there are tons of silent switches or if you want a satisfying but not so loud sound there are a lot, personally i don't like blue switches so i bought kaihl brown switches and then i upgraded it to akko v3 cream black pro and it sounded so good without modding it but it is also not loud that it annoys me, can't hear it thru headphones anyways.
you can try swap the switches with outemu/gaote silent cream yellow. some redditors said it's even more quiet than their friends' office keyboards at work.
I've tried typing on mechanical keyboards a few times when I've seen them in the shop. I hate them. The feeling, the noise. I'd pay much more for a membrane keyboard. I've been using the same membrane keyboard for 21 years, and I suspect it'll outlast me.
My keyboard snobbishness lies in layout choice (UK, ISO, Canadian, Japanese, Spanish) and letter sizes on the keys themselves. The latter is due to visual impairment. I always wonder why I either have to buy key stickers or a specially made keyboard just to get big bold letters on the keys. Doesn't anyone else have an issue with so much white/black space on the keys when more of it can be used to show the letter?
You should make some videos that compare boards currently on sale to ones on the horizon or in group buys. My latest question was Mode Envoy vs Zoom65 v2. Went with the envoy, but I was really hung up on the decision. Especially when dropping $200+ on something 8 won't receive for a few months.
I love the looks, customizability, durability, feel of different switches and even the sound mechanical keyboards can make - I find it a much more "fun" experience. However, as a musician/office worker both those things require the same thing in order to be able to churn out something fast and sustain comfort for a long time - very low and very soft action. I need a keyboard that: -is very flat, so I don't have to do anything unnatural with my hands other than just put them down on the table -has keys that are very easy to press so I don't have to exert any effort at all and can rely entirely on precision to type -has keys that are close together and have at best small gaps at the top (same reason) -has keys that are very shallow and don't allow for depth variance when pressing (because without this you have to retrain your pressure with every new keyboard) -has keys that are soft to the touch so that eliminates all stress of long hours of typing (unless they work by touch only and don't have to be pressed) -is almost completely silent so I don't go insane hearing the same noise countless times each day If a mechanical keyboard like that existed, I'd definitely buy it, but so far I've only managed to find some that address a few of these issues at the same time. But there are plenty of non-mechanical keyboards that are like this.
look for low profile mechanical keyboards and get linear switches. tactile and clicky are the ones that require more force, linear switches are smooth and have no "bump"when pressed
One thing I'd like to point out is that there's a GOOD type of mushy membrane keyboard, too. Like just a little bit of mushiness feels great. It can have a very short and snappy actuation point and snap quickly back into. My Logitech MX Keys is what I'm describing here, and oh my god I love it. Best keyboard I've ever felt to this day, and the only one that I actually went out of my way to type on when I first got it because it felt that good. I used to play competitive FPS's at a very high level as a teen, and you could easily do that with this keyboard as well. It's very responsive in games (but its dongle has to be quite close), and your points about poor responsiveness on membrane keyboards are just not true, at least on high end ones.
It gets a little complicated because Model Ms have membranes but they have clicky buckling spring switches. The former means they suffer from 2KRO but then Model Fs have discrete switches so they have NKRO and also have buckling springs.
Tried my dad's old Model F keyboard and was surprised how much force it requires to press down. It sounds nice, and as an HHKB user the weird layout isn't too bad. I'm just used to the feel of Topre which is part-membrane part-mechanical, has full NKRO, and requires very little force to press
As someone that tried 3 types of keyboard (standard membrane keyboard, slim membrane keyboard, mechanical keyboard) and ended up as the slim membrane keyboards as my favorite, here is what I feel is the pros and cons of each for me (I always bottom out my keys no matter the keyboard, don't want to pay more than 50 bucks on a keyboard, 100% keyboard, AZERTY layout) Mechanical keyboard : Pros (Customizable, Repairable, Feels better for gaming), Cons (AZERTY + 100% makes for really few cheap options, Height, Keeping clean and cleaning is a pain) Standard Membrane keyboard : Pros (Price, Somewhat ok feeling for gaming, lots of options), Cons (Feels terrible to type with, Height, impossible to clean / keep clean) Slim keyboards : Pros (Height, Feels great to type on and significantly improved my typing speed compared to mechanical keyboard, simple to clean / keep clean), Cons (Gaming on it felt a bit strange at first, not many options)
Another pretty infamous budget mechanical keyboard option are Dierya keyboards. Dierya is a Kemove brand and I personally use the DK61E. It might be loud, but it has brown switches and a thocky spacebar. In my opinion, for 30 to 50 dollars, they're pretty good! (imo ofc)
I love my mechanical keyboard. I absolutely love the clicky ones. My favourite keyboard used to be the IBM Model M. I've always hated membrane ones, especially the cheap ones where you had to jam they keys very hard.
ive been using a membrane for like 7 years, never even felt what a mechanical feels like, but yesterday i bought one, cant wait to feel and hear the difference!
![[UNCUT] รัฐสั่งหยุดปล่อยคลื่น! แต่หยุดพลังปะทุ “น้องหญิง” ไม่ได้ I คนดังนั่งเคลียร์](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/RmQh47eIiV0/mqdefault.jpg)
Howdy Hey! This is a different type of video with a new editor, please leave a comment with what you think!
Just wanted to tell you how precious your videos have been this week. I ordered my first custom keyboard, switches and keycaps couple weeks back and now I’m just waiting everything delivered to me. Meanwhile I got my eyes fixed so I don’t need to wear glasses, so since Wednesday I’ve been unable to use my eyes properly as they are healing, so I’ve listened probably most of your videos by now. Thank you team Hipyo!
@@VirtanenMatti Glad I can help!
I love you and your hooouu yeeaaahh sound
it looked great tbh
........................good...................its good...............
From my own experience most people just don't care about their keyboard, until they use a mechanical. For most people a membrane is all you need, but a mechanical is really nice to have
when I got my first mechanical keyboard, my older sis was complaining that I wasted my money when I could have just use the office keyboard I have from work. Two weeks ago she tried out my keyboard because she needed to use my PC and she realized how nice it is to type on a mechanical one and now she wants to get her own lol
1000% this! I got a mechanical keyboard at work. It was cypher with mx blue's and really loud but people would use it and they loved it we all have keychrons now.
True, most people I know around me would be happy to use a Logitech K120. But I preffered a old Mac pro keyboard as it was louder then most cheap stuff. Then I built a keyboard myself and I'm not getting back to those cheap landfill keebs for at work (they better get me €130 to build a semi custom Akko for the office)
Yup, most people couldn't care less about what keyboard they use and don't even know the difference between membrane and mechanical keyboards.
For most people don't know there even exists a mechanical keyboard... They have only ever seen membranes and assume that's all there is.
One thing I'd also mention is that mechanical keyboards don't have to be a hobby. In my 15 years of owning mechanical keyboards, I have bought 3 of them. They last a long time so once you have one you're happy with, there's no reason to buy more if you don't need more.
I still use my first mechanical keyboard. There's nothing wrong with, so didn't change it. Ironically, it's Roccat lmao
Honestly even though I probably spent more than I should have on my mechanical, it's probably going to save me money compared to all the membranes I'd otherwise have to buy in the coming years.
my membrane keyboard is 9 years old and it still works like new
I've bought a bunch of mechanical keyboards in the last three years. Not because I'm a mechanical keyboard hobbyist, but because I have rather peculiar needs for my workstation, so it takes time to solve some problems, and thus my workstation is constantly under improvement, and the keyboard just happens to be one of the most significant items in a workstation.
Specifically, since I do music and play games, I need a numpad for music and lots of mouse room for games, so I previously had a fullsize mechanical keyboard and a 60% mechanical keyboard and just kept switching them when switching tasks. But now I'm updating my workstation to a 75% keyboard for universal use (mechanical of course) and a separate numpad (which will also be mechanical).
That's a lotta mechanical keyboards with sensible reasons for buying all of them without being a hobbyist.
definitely. I'm deep in the rabbit hole currently, but this is a one-off project for me, not a ongoing hobby.
You lightly touched on it, but there's also just the fact that you don't _have_ to get deep into "the hobby" to get a mechanical keyboard. Ten years ago, I decided I wanted one of these mechanical keyboards I kept hearing about. So I googled 'mechanical keyboards', went to the website with the coolest-sounding name (WASD Keyboards), picked the switches they said were quietest. That's the only mechanical keyboard I've bought in ten years. I didn't have to learn much of anything, I just bought a keyboard that sounded good. After ten years of several hours of use a day, it still works just fine, zero problems. I'm typing this on it right now. I've actually been tempted to buy a new one just because I wish it had a backlight, but it's hard to justify replacing something that's working just fine.
i own a moonlander and i don't consider myself in "the hobby" at all. not sure how that happened...
i also been using a wasd with brown switches for like ten years now. best keyboard ever. i went through 5-6 mice in that time.
I think I have a membrane keyboard that I bought xmas of 2019, in New York, it was a keyboard, mouse, LED bundle all for $20.
Still works basically fine, I doubt I’ll ever switch to mechanical, until this one breaks, if so, I’ll probably just get the cheapest keyboard
Hey man you should get a royal kludge r65. It is an amazing deal and it sounds amazing but is also quiet.
@@freeroamchips You should try a mechanical keyboard just to see if you like it, I used membrane for a long time and thought the same thing, then I bought a mechanical, and I'm never going back, if you want to try one without buying it, a lot of stores will have some on display that you can type on and see if you like it :>
When I switched to a mechnical the difference wasn't as big as I thought, but after several months I tested the membrane again and only then realized how hard I must press it, the wobblyness and difference between several keys. We can get used to all sorts of things, for example sound too, bad headphones doesn't sound that bad anymore after we get used to it, but beware of comparing them to good ones, then you hear the difference again.
Awesome points!!
This. Got a cheap mechanical keyboard for Christmas, and after daily driving it for a few weeks, the difference wasn't the biggest most profound thing ever, but just a simple change that's arguably better than a big change.
@@anatoliyatrilvik7660 I tried a few different mechanical keyboards at the computer store. Some allowed me to type fast while others gave me typos. I went with the one that gave me the least amount of errors. I now know mechanical keyboards aren't created equal. I'm actually quite faster at writing than I was before with a membrane. Not only that I'm having more fun typing again. As two parent threads up commented, membranes degrade over time and it's so subtle we don't notice. In addition, having a keyboard where the switches can be upgraded, caps replaced or themed, is a huge plus to my investment. Have fun either way you go; it's really whatever makes you the happiest at the end of the day. haha
I feel the same way, I have a mechanical, membrane and a cheap fake mechanical keyboard (mechanical keykaps style however membrane underneath)
And the cheap fake one is by far the most comfortable keyboard because it’s easy to press down on and there’s no springs pushing back on my fingers
(I play osu, basically an aiming guitar hero type game you must rapidly tap two keys when aiming at the circles, anywhere from 150-350BPM, making this feature crucial)
@@agarion101 Sorry for your loss. I kid, but yeah really just shows everything is better than membrane. (Even mechanical keyboard wannabes.)
After building a mechanical keyboard ngl it's hard to use other keyboards, the feeling is really nice (especially after spending any significant amount of money 💀)
yes that is called sunken cost fallacy plus placebo
@@lostintechnology1851 mechanicals and membrane are distinctively different. Anyone could feel the difference in a blind test, there's nothing placebo about it.
@@lostintechnology1851 Mechanical keyboards work fundamentally different when compared to membrane keyboards. Your use of "placebo" is so incredibly wrong
@@lostintechnology1851 uh, okay i can see how you think the sunk(not en)-cost fallacy plays a role here, but it does not, there is no placebo either, they got a NICER DEVICE, and they are saying its NICER and they cant go back because who would have thought, its NICER? This entire thought was laid out in 2 seconds.
As someone who's only used cheap stock mechanical keyboards (mostly Mars Gaming) even if you didn't spend 200 bucks on a keyboard you still wanna take care of it and once it dies replace it with a similar one. My Mars Gaming Mk4 lasted about 8 years of use, abuse, and even traveling before the cable just died (i could fix it, but i don't have a clue what part got damaged and i don't wanna cut the whole cable open to see where the damage is, as i have no way to give it a new sleeve)
I think that it is wholly under rated/ under appreciated how much more enjoyable/efficient your job can be “using higher quality tools”
i have membrane keyboard at work, which feels terrible to type on, mushy, inconsistent typing, i can’t even type pass 45wpm. i have mechanical keyboard at home and can type faster than 70wpm. i know that’s not much, but that tells everything.
If you're spending 8 hours a day on it, it's worth spending some money on. Same goes for shoes, mattresses, etc
The thing is that it's something that applies everywhere, i went from using regular bikes to full sus bikes after i borrowed a KTM Tribute 2015 from a friend who had just gotten it and now i have a downhill bike myself (Specialized Demo 8 2009). I originally had a chinese brake bleed kit, but i was missing something for my new set of brakes and decided to spend 75 bucks on the original one. Now i take care of that kit like it's the most important tool i have. I went from using regular shoes to amateur running shoes because they have a lot of cushion and are wider, wich fits me better. I could keep on going for a while...
I remember when I got into soldering I started on a budget and man, it was a terrible experience. Buying quality tools and chemicals changed my life
I will never forget an old anecdote told by Stephen Fry, to paraphrase, he was poor growing up and when their car broke down his dad purchased a car well outside their budget. Little stephen was surprised and asked his father "why did you buy such an expensive car, we can't afford it" and his dad replied "maybe so, but we are too poor to be cheap". His dad purchased a pricier yet more reliable well made vehicle that will last longer than having to constantly replace or fix a cheap vehicle.
I live by that principle, granted people can argue not all expensive stuff is good, but a well made product is worth every penny over a cheap one that will break after a few uses.
I got a K95 Platinum for work and play for WFH before even Covid hit. Makes such a big difference in my day to day experience. They have us come into the office 2 days a week now and I have a membrane keyboard there. It's functional, but not anything I would call "enjoyable"
the only people who care enough to vote in a poll about mechanical keyboards are mechanical keyboard users
And people that hate them in an office lol
The reality is most people dont give a crap about the keyboard. The last time my sister visited me, we both had to spend a day working our respective jobs for a while. She was working on her laptop in another room, while I was in my office with the door closed. When I came out to talk to her, she commented on how loud my keyboard was and that she could hear it through the closed door 30 feet away. Loud? I dont even notice the sound anymore. I explained it was a mechanical keyboard and much nicer to type on than a cheap keyboard. I suggested she try it, as you can get quieter ones. She tried typing on it for a bit. I asked her how it felt. She said "Like a keyboard." So... yeah... that pretty much sums it up.
I once went to my mom's office (It was a small office and her boss was really chill) and I saw that her boss had a mechanical keyboard. I asked him how his keycaps was a different color and he began to explain a little on what a mechanical keyboard was to me. Of course I thought "What was the difference?" until he let me press the keys. Safe to say, I now have 2 keyboards for gaming and daily use lol.
My first mechanical keyboard was a very cheap one, can't go back ever since, now i have 5 with my favorite is the quickfire tk, love the TKL form but still have the numpad
I was at a hackathon once and saw my teammate brought a mechanical keyboard (a Keychron). I liked the per-key RGB lighting and customized keycaps.
After seeing how my laptop keyboard got uncomfortably hot when compiling the project, he lent me it to use for a bit, and I fell in love with it. I bought my own when I got home from the hackathon.
@@bariumlanthanum6298 yeah laptops turn into toasters the second u make them do anything like compiling or render lmao. that is an on the desk type of activity if thats what ur doing with them lol.
Wtf I can’t type on membrane it doesn’t pick up keystrokes because I type too fast
my first mechanical was a cheap one, and that felt miles better than anything with membrane switch. Also being able to swap individual switch is nice.
@@mannyheffley5481 - Membrane keyboards are reliably cheap and reliably good. That's why they're made. People who want premium products often switch to mechanical, and there's nothing wrong with both markets existing simultaneously. Even the premium membrane keyboards are OK, and still cheaper than premium mechanical keyboards.
my 30 dollar mechanical was miles better than membrane of same price. never again rubber dome its so shit
@@mannyheffley5481Saying keeb makes my skin crawl for some odd reason
@@arthurwintersight7868but the fact you can get a 25 dollar board that feels better than a 40 dollar membrane one has nothing to do with price. The only good place for membrane is travel and small spaces like laptops
@@collaredbut how long a mechanical keyboard last?
I used membranes for 11 years. They feel great when new. But 6 months later when they get mushy it just doesn't feel right. I bought a K552 with outemu blues for my sister last year cause she wanted one. I used it from time to time and it felt nice. So I delved into the world of switches and keyboard and keycaps and what not. I recently purchased a TKL from Ganss with silver linears. So far its great and it feels consistent and fast.
As someone who purposefully bought a membrane keyboard because I just prefer how it feels, y'all can do whatever you want, it's your keyboard and perhaps even your hobby. Go wild, mix them blue red n brown switches, get crazy with it, I love when people experiment and put time and effort into things they care about, especially when it has a tinge of chaos to it
Good for you. I just bought a 60% mechanical keyboard with outemu red switches because i just prefer how it feels and sounds. y'all can do whatever you want, it's your keyboard and perhaps even your hobby. Membrane keyboards feel mushy and cheap, because a rubber dome is relatively soft and not tactile. They also tend to wear out over time, as the amount of pressure needed for a key to press and unpress changes as the rubber weakens.
i only love a membrane keyboard in a night setting, or at a quiet workplace such as the library. my custom keeb has a personality to it, that's why i love it. also appreciate the fact that you enjoy seeing others customise things :))
@@ninx_music Outemu red lubed is way more quiet than my last overpriced "premium" membrane keyboard! But i also appreciate you for seeing others customise things! :)
@@theidiotgamer4306 yeah i get you. the only reason why i dont use silent switches it because there is a quiet, idk charm to membrane? because imo, buying a switch that's gonna be completely silent is gonna destroy the whole point of me buying switches yk? like i have ktt kang whites, and coulve stuck with the reds but i wanted more clackiness and sound, so i bought the ktt's
@@ninx_music Well i get you too. I tried to use a razer ornata, my old membrane keyboard, and i cant even use it properly!!! That's a premium membrane keyboard by the way, and it is useless to use... You have to push the buttons aaaaall way down. Its mushy and it sound louder than my mechanical keyboard!!!
I used a mech keyboard from ~1990 for almost 20 years, until the DIN plug annoyed me too much. After a short rubberdome break I got myself a Cherry MX Board and am soo happy with it, even if it's not what current keyboard enthusiasts buy. I hope it will last me 20 years as well.
This man has found their endgame and we should all strive to have this attitude with a board that works.
I hope they're browns, just to annoy even more people
The true endgame
What’s cool is you can still enjoy the flair of the hobby in your simplicity, like the availability of switches. Seems dumb, but with so many being available to change feel or feed into curiosity, that also just means availability of replacement parts ! So if you reach the end of life of one of your switches you can just order some new ones. Getting a full rubber sheet replacement for a membrane might be doable thanks to the weirdness of eBay but it’s not the same, let’s be honest.
You can also mod the cable to replace the fixed (I assume) to a detachable one with USB C port, in case the cable ever frays.
Or realign your stabilizers’ bar if they’re too rattly.
What I’m getting at is that everything that we consider “mods” can be dripped down to “repairs”
A friend of mine has I think it’s a steelseries from like 2010 with a row of macros keys off to the left and one of those keys is awfully close to Escape so to prevent accidental touches he swapped that singular switch to a tactile with a heavier spring (heavier than the rest of the keyboard which already uses blacks). Stabs were adjusted, and key caps changed because they got too shiny and/or the lettering wore off. It’s modding, but more in a repair way. And I expect that keyboard to last another decade.
I hope yours will still receive your keystrokes in 20 years too
@@Alltorn-N56 But... I need useless fancy weights I can't see at all nor will I likely ever see. I'm in too deep... How do I get out
I will say that swapping to a mechanical has been life changing for my hand health. I have a lot of hand issues and being able to change my keyboard to help has been so great and so helpful
My wife was the same. She complained to me about her hands hurting after typing for an hour or so because it was uncomfortable to use her keyboard, It was just some no name brand keyboard + mouse combo deal. I bought her a Royal Kluge 96 with Cherry Reds because it was on sale and now she says she'd be able to type all day on it.
It really is much more than just feel and sound with mechanical switches.
I have the exact opposite lol
Same here I had an issue where a wood router and I got into a little battle, it won..
Still have full use of my hand.. thankfully
But it's not 100% so being able to use a mechanical now is awesome and being able to choose a lighter key press is amazing not to mention the other cool stuff we can do with them.
As a person who has used membrane keyboards all my life, i disagree with this article.
but that was most likely due to other factors that have nothing to do with membrane, but with that explicit implementation. If you would have bought her a 6Gv2 her hands would probably been rekt for good.
I'm frustrated that people continue to refer to rubber dome keyboards as "membrane" keyboards. Yes, it is technically accurate. However, it's sort-of like referring to "pickup trucks" as "automobiles". A dome keyboard is a dome keyboard and for all their faults and shortcomings they are still miles and miles better than the original membrane keyboards. (see: Atari 400, Timex Sinclair 1000, 20th-century McDonalds POS terminals, et cetera.) Back when I was a fledgling keyboard snob back in the late 1990s we called domes domes and membranes membranes. It absolutely rips my asshole open wide that when you search "membrane keyboard" now you get a million dome keyboards. Not that I want to use either, I have a fancy Kinesis keyboard (because I'm a hag with wrist issues), but it's the principle of the thing, damnit!
It seemed more like an advertorial than genuine journalism.
I got my first mechanical keyboard without all that "snob" knowledge which was worn out 7 years later, i had to borrow a membrane until i got a new one and i hated every second of it.
In my opinion the only knowledge you really need to guarantee it's an upgrade from membrane, is knowing the difference between linear, tactile and clicky switches.
That last part where the author states that you are not missing anything when using a membrane keyboard made me sad. As a person who has ADHD, ever since I got my keyboard I sometimes just type just because I love the feel and sound. mechanical is a experience I could never give up.
I feel that. I have ADHD and autism and the feel of my keyboards are really soothing. The smooth sounds of the switches make me incredibly happy.
it's asmr when i don't even turn the computer on.
Same, sometimes I would disconnect my keyboard while watching a video and then just type on it because of the feel lmao
@@iWriteWithPride you should try touching grass and therapy, that helped me more then my mechanical keyboards
@@lostintechnology1851 One, I’m in therapy. Two, I stim with my keyboard and it feels good. Three, what…what does this do for you? Oh no, so mean? Congrats?
I think she’s also forgetting you can get a keyboard without being a hobbyist. I’ve recommended Keychron to many people who are happy with that as their one and only purchase.
I like my 96% keychron keyboard. I just got pudding keycaps and O-ring dampeners for it. It’s just a shame that when I was moving, the little side knobs to choose between Bluetooth and USB mode snapped, so it’s now permanently a USB keyboard.
I literally bought the cheapest mechanical keyboard that beat buy had in my area its a Logitech one and its is leagues better than any crappy garbage membrane keyboard for clost to the same price
I daily a Keychron with Gateron browns. For the price you can't get much better value for a MK.
My first keyboard was a membrane logitech. It was okay. My second keyboard was a cheap amazon mechanical keyboard that had knock off mx reds. It was also just okay, but orders of magnitude better. My third keyboard was a BlackWidow Ultimate 2016. That was by far my favorite keyboard, and I used it for 6 years. I just recently bought a Keychron v6 and I'm swapping the switches for Kaihl box navys.
I like the Keychron because I can get rid of the useless existence that is the caps lock button. I'm sure I could have done this with another keyboard, but the build quality and hotswap-able-ness of the Keychron was a major selling point for me.
I type all day and the only thing that keeps me from ending it all is the satifying "click" of each key. I'm only half joking, here, as I did have a brief stint where the sound of my keyboard played a larger-than-I'm-willing-to-admit role in keeping me on this side of the mortal coil.
I build myself a nice cheap keyboard for about 100 bucks, 75% gasket mounted, gateron milky yellows, and akko asa keycaps, and stopped there, that's all I need
These articles are written entirely by ChatGPT.
I found this article overall amusing of a read. I've been on the search for a suitable mechanical keyboard for 2 decades and only seriously started looking 5 years ago. After using cheap membranes (Compaq Model 5107 and HP Keyboard 100) all these years I finally got ahold of a Rakk Ilis with Outemu Silent White switches. It is significantly more silent than the membranes I have used and sometimes forget I'm typing because of how quiet it is. Considering the amount of added features it was a nobrainer.
It’s extremely hard to go back to a membrane after you’ve been using a Mechanical Keyboard for over a little 4 years,
I also built 2 in 2022 and 1 in 2021. I really got into mechanical keyboards in 2021 and started watching
Switch and Click,
Hipyo
& Glarses!
You guys are the best honestly
best keyboard channels
Yeah you literally don't press the keys hard enough anymore lol.
What do you mean there's more to go? I've already pressed it 80% of the way. This is absolute shenanigans.
i cant go back to the im gonna try to press a membrane key oh whats this? it got a little stuck and i had to put even more pressure on it to get it to press
I agree membrane hurts my fingerd
Can vouch for this. Switched to a redragon k630 w/ akko cs lavenders, by no means the best mechanical keyboard out there, but trying out my old razer cynosa v2 i can't believe i tolerated it.
I went to a Micro Center in Denver once and someone had brought their custom along with them. I complimented the keyboard and told them I wanted to try getting into the hobby eventually (they were the ones to recommended me the Kit Adam which is going to be the keyboard I get). I tried typing on the keyboard they brought for about 20 seconds and immediately noticed a STRONG difference in the comfort I feel. I still have to type on my membrane keyboard right now and as I type up the stories I write I notice the very strong amount of discomfort in my fingers.
One of the problems with a membrane is it is rated for 5 million strokes, and the rubber domes dry out. I noticed having issue with my membrane, but it has been 18 years with it, but I plan on soaking the domes. Meanwhile, Im kind of getting a little fatigue typing on a mechanical I am using, which is brown cherries....yet I have tried another blue gaterons and they were light and easy, so its finding the key switches right for you.
I'm typing for a living on a 15 Euro membrane keyboard. I've used a Cherry with MX blues for over a decade and it was great. But one day, my gf and me both got remote work jobs and now share a desk. We're both amazingly fast typists who press the buttons with more force the faster we type. Even a silent stock mechanical keyboard sounds like a machine gun or a jackhammer at high typing speeds.
Now I got a bunch of advice from the custom keyboard community, which is nice. There are options to dampen your keyboard barebone, to get silent switches like the WS silent linear switches and either some dampening keycaps or to fill the keycaps out. This is several hours of work and orders at different vendors. If I don't enjoy the keycaps, I'll probably have to send some parts of the order back, while my right to return for the other parts expires while the new keycaps arrive. It would be a huge hassle to have what I've already got for 15 Euro: A rather silent keyboard which allows for really fast typing. Granted, I've enjoyed typing on my old Cherry a lot more. But when it comes to price/performance, a membrane keyboard is really hard to beat. I use a Logitech K120, but this isn't about a specific brand. There are lots of brands with solid membrane options for less than a set of quality keycaps.
The only membrane brand I would use is also Logitech. They are extremely good, aren't they?
@@daysebatista i try not to simp for companies, but im sadden to say im a very big simp for logitech, they just make good shit that doesn't break the bank. ive been using the same keyboard and mouse from them for 5 years
Yeah, enthusiasts tend to act like it's like crack for computers where once you switch over to it you'll be convulsing and violently throwing up if you try to use a normal keyboard again... and don't get me wrong, obviously it's nicer, but it's not nearly as dramatic as people act like it is. For the majority of people it's really not worth spending all that money on it.
I am no fanboy of brands but Logitech has been the only decent brand I can recall in terms of keyboards. I love the K120 and I am currently typing this in a wireless K235. I like the customization aspect and deep sound of thocky mechs though... for me personally membranes are for work, mechs for everything else, but that's a personal choice.
honestly your content started exciting me about building a keyboard for myself. just as it freaked me out with the technicality and variations ^^
Funny mentioning the force needed for pressing down a mechanical keyboard switch. My membrain keyboards (one salvaged from recycle bin and other being microsoft sidewinder) were actually hurting my fingers after extensive writing. Which is why I bought mechanical keyboard with quite light-touch switches (kailh box brown) and they feel so nice!.
I love Kailh switches. I have Kailh Box V2 White in my keyboard. Great balance between smooth typing and tactile feedback.
membrane has its uses and benifits such as
1: being cheap
2:
3:
4:
5:
Wait... how did you know I made this joke in the video
@@HipyoTech magic
@@eeveeblazelol LMAO
To be objective, membrane gets the job done, and that's all some people want. The feel aspect is so insignificantly unimportant, mk's are unnecessary expense for them.
There's no right or wrong. It's just different perspective and expectation.
If you factor in durability, it might actually cost more
I went from a Cynosa Chroma which is like, "one of the better membranes" to an Asceny One, and it was life changing. I never knew that it was possible for my hands to not physically hurt while typing and for key presses to actually consistently register.
I'm waiting on my 3rd build parts to arrive! Going alloy now! Funny how when I show my friends my cool colorful boards at work they just smirk at me. As soon as they hear how sweet they sound they smile.
If you're using a decent membrane keyboard the domes should sort of 'snap' down once you've put just enough pressure on them.
I personally love the feel of decent quality silicone domes because they're responsive, but also have just she slightest 'mush' to them.
To me, it just feels smoother.
No harsh 'switch snapping into place' feel, but snappy enough to be comfortable to type on.
That's exactly how I like it.
Yeah the Apple ones are really nice for that specific feeling. I use a membrane for convenience and that smoothness. But I do prefer the concept and tactility of a mechanical overall although I don’t use one right now.
I have an ancient NEC (made by Cherry, somewhen before 2k) keyboard with rubber domes and it feels very ok. Maybe I like it more than some mechanical keyboards I have tried. Keycaps have a good design so I can be fast and precise, travel distance is quite large, which I like, and as you say, the keys sort of snap after pressing little over half way down, rarely it doesn't register the keypress. On the other hand I bought cheap membrane keyboard and it's just a mushy plastic board, hardly precise, bad keycaps, it's just terrible in comparison to the old robust "tank" :D. After this one dies, maybe it will be time for mechanical but until then I love this one :D
@@steposka ya my favorite keyboard ever is a compaq board that came with some of their workstations in the late 90s. it's quiet and precise, feels quality, and the keys feel awesome to type with. i got one from my dad when his company was getting rid of unused inventory, and a week later went back and fished a couple more of them out of the dumpster. only complaint is that you can't press more than 3 keys at a time.
i have a mechanical board hooked up to my gaming rig, but i'm still using one of those compaq boards on my workstation. never found anything else as nice.
A good rubber dome was the natural progression of the buckling spring IBM invented, and it still holds up to this day. Completely agree with you
I've used a g203 prodigy and a steelseries apex 3 and I can definitely say that both of them feel like that
The Apex 5 feels and sounds better than any clicky mechanical keyboard I've tried. But you're absolutely right about not needing to fully press a mechanical key. For example, I have a Logitech G613, and it's incredible how some keys need just about 0.1mm of pressure, which is awesome! The best part is, if you need two keypresses, you're likely fine with just touching the key once. The downside is, if you only needed one keypress, you might find yourself using backspace quite a bit.
By the way, scissor-switch membrane keyboards can also be very good in terms of feel and quietness.
Regarding sound tests, most reviewers do a terrible job by placing the mic on the same table or too close to the keyboard, making the tests almost worthless. Without a proper reference, even the quietest keyboards sound really loud. It would be great to see a comparison with something like the Magic Keyboard, which isn't the quietest either but would probably make for a good reference.
Having used many different mechanical keyboards, I really prefer well made scissor switches over mechanical. I think the bad reputation of scissor switches comes from two points. 1. Mechanical keyboards have somewhat controlled uniform qualities. They just need to know what type of switch they like, and buy whatever keyboard they like with the preferred switch. On the other hand, the quality of scissor switch keyboard differs vastly per manufacturer and there is no reference switch. 2. It's the marketing and perception. For obvious reasons, cheap keyboards are always membrane ones and people think good keyboards must be mechanical. That being said, I really believe a well made scissor switch keyboard is (almost objectively) superior to a well made mechanical keyboard.
My main issue with membrane keyboards is that people often argue about the cost being lower, but the problem is that when a membrane key breaks, (and by that I mean hard failure, like the dome tearing apart or the trace on the weird plastic film wears out) you're basically going to have to buy a new keyboard as repairing that kind of damage is a bit unreliable.
If a mechanical switch breaks, you're good to go with just buying like a baggy of 10 and replacing the one switch that broke.
Depends on the manufacturer and the issue. Even the terrible membranes on Apple Magic Keyboards can be replaced to an extent. But it’s nowhere near the simplicity or availability of a mechanism on a mechanical keyboard.
ive been using the same membrane keyboard 6 years now and it still works perfectly. Mechanical keyboard fans severly underestimate the durability of these keyboards.
@@Artfacility I'm still using same the membrane keyboard that I got with my first PC. 4 pcs, several mice and 12 years of daily use later it's still working fine (with some scars made in moments of angry gaming lmao)
@@Artfacilitymy favorite mechanical keyboard is turning 7 years old now, still working like a champ, and it's not expensive at all, i paid 40$ for it if i remember correctly, and typing on that is much better than membranes, even my coworkers, they couldn't care less about computer let alone keyboards, all of them love my keyboard, i bought a cheap one to use at my office, 30$ and they love it
for the record, my G510 was over 10 years old, i used it everyday and the rubberdomes are still perfect but i get your point. Still the replacement was 40 bucks.
Definitely like this type of video!
Although I used a cheap membrane keyboard for many, many years, and I got by with it just fine, the switch to mechanical is something that I will never regret. For someone, like me, who uses their keyboard almost all day, the improvement in feel and consistency actually makes a large difference over time.
Plus, since my keyboard is such an integral part of my life, it's fun to be able to customize it to my liking, and try different options!
Indeed, I purcchased a knockoff mechanical keyboard (it was like $20 here in Peru), and it was like night an day how great it felt compared to even robust membrane keyboards (like the ones included with a Lenovo Thinkcentre)
I love the mechanical keyboards, but at work, due to issues in my left hand, I do have to use a very flat membrane (at least I presume its a membrane, Logitech k780, but not guchi for gaming) due to the time spent typing and some minor nerve damage. I do have my new mechanical coming in late this week because god I dislike my backup membrane keyboard at home (not the Logitech).
Also a recent article from her "Looking for the perfect gaming laptop for Black Friday? Try a Chromebook"
I watched this whole video, and several others on this channel, and for the life of me I can't understand why a mechanical keyboard is supposed to be better. And I have one! Typing on it right now. But if it registers a letter when you press it, that's a good keyboard. And I REALLY can't figure out how one sound is supposed to be superior to another.
I used to use this old Casio printer calculator to keep track of product at work.
And it had the most amazingly smooth, super light yet tactile membrane keypad ever. I really wish I could get a whole keyboard that felt the same.
Its basically what I hope topre switches would be like but not even those are as good. That thing really used to make question the whole mechanical keyboard thing.
Edit: It's hilarious to me that people are still using these gifs I made (very crappily) for geekhack in like 2011 just for fun lol. @2:54
I had the same thought a few months back and tried to find replacement keys for the Casio that we have at work so I could mod them for my keyboard, but I couldn't find them anywhere. I think I would have to buy a bunch of these calculators, tear them apart and reassemble them. I'm not doing that.
Maybe it was a topre style? Have you looked into those
@@cooleyzz Yeah I used to own a Topre board if that's what you mean. It wasn't as nice as the calculator. Too scratchy for me.
@@dacasman did you lube them up?
Holy crap, dude you made the gifs? They helped me finish a school project lmao
i didn't know what i was missing out on until I got a mechanical keyboard.. i got one of those 15~ gamer membrane keyboards and I was happy with it. then I got my mechanical keyboard and realized I missed out on so much pure joy I get simply from the noises of this keyboard
I'm a software engineer. In work I tried a lot of mechanical keyboards with various switches, all of which were complained about for being too noisy. Silent mechanicals are really frustrating to type on for me, as not hearing the actuation means I make more mistakes, which costs me time, and most membrane keyboards give me bad carpel tunnel after a while. In the end I found that there are some membrane keyboards that are far better than others, because their actuation registers higher, and the keys have better stabilisation. For me the Corsair K55 was the solution, but I expect there are one or two more out there that are good too. I wouldn't knock membranes, there is an actual niche use for the good ones.
Back when I was in an open office doing tech work, I used a Logitech Illuminated K740 with scissor switches. Much quieter than a mechanical and way better than standard membrane. So yeah, not all membranes are created equal, though I prefer my custom with Kailh Box Whites. 😂
I'm literally getting a mechanical keyboard for work because the membrane one I have is tiring me out typing on it. I don't know what it is but getting those modifier keys down with my pinky is really hard and I'm over it.
For me, both do the trick. I love the linear experience of mechanical keyboards, but I've played with a membrane keyboard for most of my life. I usually used keys half pressed to play, which is not ideal, but it worked. So, in conclusion, yeah, membrane keyboards will do the trick for most things, but if you have the money to spend (I say this because mechanical keyboards are quite expensive where I am located), and some time, mechanical keyboards are more worthwhile. You will get something that will last a lot longer and be more comfortable to use.
Where I live I spend half my paycheck on a keyboard (+/- 120$) and it's great. I'm still using it after 5 years without any issue, but I'm thinking now about buying a custom one it will be a tad expensive for me, but it will be worth every penny. Plus I hope to get a better job soon.
Genuinely, I actually prefer the "mushiness" of my membrane keyboard (I've felt shitty ones, don't get me wrong, but I like mine). Have a buddy who for YEARS has tried to get me into mechanical but none of the options I've tried measure up to my preferred feel of the membrane. I know I'm in the minority here but it's my truth nonetheless haha
You are most def not in the minority lol, dude's gatekeeping hard
Try a customized mechanical keyboard and then you can compare to your membrane
@@theregularhuman Honestly after trying a couple tactile switches I understand some people still prefer membrane. Most tactiles are kinda meh and a quality membrane keyboard (and I don't mean cheap edgy gaming stuff) can feel quite good.
There are a TON of mushy silent switches out there. I highly doubt you even tried a good chunk of them.
I understand your point, I have used a cheap mechanical keyboard (it had a few bad switches so I stopped using it), so I got a deal (20$) on a razer membrane keyboard, and it doesn't feel that bad, sure mechanic feels better, but membrane is quite good, I can do 110WP on it, no trouble @@SaHaRaSquad
I think there's a cost-benefit analysis that doesn't work out for a lot of people. If they buy a $25 mechanical keyboard, they're not necessarily going to get an experience *they* find markedly better than a membrane keyboard. It depends on what their attitude is. If the attitude is just, "I want it to put words on the screen when I hit the keys", a mechanical keyboard might be overkill. Especially if they don't spend a lot of time on a laptop or desktop. And most people aren't going to want to spend more than the bare minimum on a keyboard. The casual user (who I assume this is written for) isn't going to spend $50 to upgrade a $30 keyboard. They're going to plug it into their computer or connect over Bluetooth and call it a day.
I just recently ordered the Keychron K2 v2, and I really had to have a conversation with myself justifying it. I think if you spend hours a day on a keyboard, and really care about the experience, you *can* justify dropping $80 on a keyboard. But lots of people are just going to say, "Meh. I'm fine with what my computer came with.". The two classes of people who really seem to be drawn to mechanical keyboards are gamers and typists.
As far as mechanical keyboards being easier to press buttons on, and therefore better for disabled people: That probably varies a lot depending on the keyboard. one of the things I like about mechanical keyboards is that they do take more force to type on, so I make less inadvertent keystrokes. As I'm typing this right now, I'm using a Pauroty mechanical 60% keyboard, typing into my Dell Inspiron. That laptop's keyboard feels like garbage, because of the minuscule key travel. With a mechanical keyboard, I make fewer mistakes, specifically *because* it takes more force to type on. Now, granted, I got blue switches, but if I had to guess, the vast majority of people buying keyboards for the first time are going to get a keyboard far clickier than the one they're coming from. *Can* you get silent switches, etc.? Sure. But you have to know what you're doing. A random membrane keyboard that you pick out blindfolded is more likely to b e quiet than a random mechanical that you pick out blindfolded. And you kind of have to assume that most people are going in virtually blind.
Don't get me wrong. I love mechanicals. I was using Model M IBM keyboards back in the early 90s. But especially for people who tap more on glass than they do on a keyboard, I can see why a mechanical keyboard might not make a lot of sense to them.
Now, granted, it seems like she was pushing a particular keyboard, but I don't think her points were all wrong, necessarily.
I code and I write fiction, so I spend a lot of time at the keyboard, so the feel was worth it to me. I can understand how a lot of people would be in the "don't care" camp, though. And on average, a membrane keyboard is going to cost you less.
But the definitive "is all you need" is where she goes wrong. A membrane keyboard *may* be all you need, but not necessarily. It depends on how much you care about the experience, and how much you're willing to shell out to get a better one.
This article made me want to get a mechanical keyboard. - Typed on a membrane
Can confirm that red dragon has a ton of potential. It was my first mechanical keeb that I used to learn all sorts of mods and whatnot on. Now it’s one of my favorites that I own and sounds phenomenal
I bought a RedDragon Kumera back in 2018 when only US layout was available and I love it. Far better than any membrane keyboards.
More than 5 years later, the most used keycaps like WASD are wearing out but I kinda see that as a source of pride more than anything and otherwise functions perfectly.
Only downside is the US layout but UK layouts are available now.
Unfortunately they do seem to have shot up in price and the non-RGB model I got for only £29.99 no longer seems to be available so there are likely better deals out there.
Major agree, Red Dragon are SUPER underrated and have lots of protentional
The 30 dollar red dragon mechanical keyboard I bought is awesome. I also have a model M I got for 5 bucks at a thriftstore I use sometimes but it's not great for gaming so usually not. Membrane is fine, but with a little searching, even on a budget you can get so much of a better experience.
also got the 30 bucks redragon one for my first mechanical keyboard. I modded it a little with foam and blue tape and it was so much better than using membrane
Say sike right now, you got a MODEL M for $5??
@@myselph1761 when it comes to garage sales and other second hand salers not everyone knows what the have. To many people, a pile of keyboards all look the same.
@@MezzoForteAural Now I long for the day when someone sells a keycult for $20 because they think it's "too heavy".
it's also a hotswap borad so the potential is pretty high.
As someone who switched from Cherry MX Blues to a membrane, I can tell you, the feeling of a good membrane, especially for writing, is sometimes preferable because of the ultra flat design. I own 3 mechanical ones and I love to type on them, but like, eh, the super flat keyboards are just nice, also wireless flat keyboards cost a lot more when they are mechanical.
As a mechanical keyboard user, I would like to point out that there are good membrane keyboards that feels decent to touch. Lenovo SK-8825, Surface keyboard and Magic Keyboard are good examples.
Throwing the Logitech K860 into the mix if ppl are looking for short travel. Can recommend.
I'm pretty sure Surface and Magic are scissor switch.
@@rightwingsafetysquad9872Scissor switches are membranes because of how they work.
@@jierenzheng7670 Usually, but not necessarily. The Kailh X switch does not use rubber. A handful of nice desktop keyboards use it. High end Dell and some Lenovo laptops use rubber to protect the switch from debris, but not for the switch mechanism.
Ignore the desk and chair snobs. The floor is all you need.
For me, my preference of mechanical v. membrane stems from the freedom of choice and customisability.
I've definitely found membrane (even butterfly switch) keyboards that i really enjoy using, but the thing i _love_ about my mechanical keyboard is the fact that i was able to customise and choose every single element of it. There's something so rewarding about going through all the research, assembly and modifying something exactly to my liking - it was like i was taking full ownership of the keyboard and turning it into my own.
All this to say, If the membrane keyboard market diversified and it became easier to customise every component, and i put in the time, research (and money, sigh) to make something that truly suited me -- i'd probably like it just as much as the mech i have now.
funilly enough "just get a keychron" is what i did and i love ti. got the keychron v1 max. my first keyboard with a gasket mount and now i am looking to mod the hell out of it now that ive been going through your channel for a while lmao
bought my wife a mech keyboard and i started to enjoy the sound of her typing. also, it looks like an old typewriter so thats cool. i myself found a great deal on a corsair K70 LUX that im getting new in box for $35 usd and im very excited to have that sound on my desk as well. i HATE the feel of membrane keyboards now and will not go back to the cheap OEM ever again. thanks for your videos
When I bought my first mechanical keyboard, something basic from Royal Kludge, I watched a few Linus Tech Tips videos about cheap keyboards and key switches and that one sounded the best for me - roughly the same process I use for most tech purchases I make. It was cheap and relatively easy. When I decided to make my own custom keyboard, I spent *hours* researching and comparing and going back and forth, trying to find stuff that was in stock and would ship relatively quickly. It was honestly kind of frustrating and annoying how many different things I had to balance (not to mention when my first set of switches were stolen from my mailbox after being shipped from China).
That said, it was the time and money I was putting in *because* I wanted a mechanical keyboard that fit a certain criteria. I was close to just buying a prebuilt, which would have solved all of those problems and I still would have gotten a nice, mechanical keyboard out of it.
I bought a Royal Kludge keyboard out of curiosity about 2 years ago, and am still using it to this day as it was sufficient.
Had to de-solder and move about 2 failing switches, which I personally don't mind as it was cheap enough and easy to fix.
Am considering eventually upgrading the board, but as this gives the halfway actuation I want and the Red style switches sound fine to me.
Mechanical keyboards seem like a fun hobby but having other priorities, it doesn't have to be the rabbit-hole it is often made out to be.
I have classic Mitsumi membrane keyboard from 1999. Metal bottom case, factory lubed stabilizers, and it's really fine to type. With individual membranes under every key, feels pretty consistant to type, for a membrane keyboard. Spacebar don't have any rattle and sounds suprisingly thoccy. But nobody build membranes like that anymore, you can't buy something like this new. This old thing is immortal.
I had a Mitsumi in the mid 90's that was really nice to type on, and as you said it was a nice deep sound without rattle, especially as it was a cheap keyboard even at the time.
This is the 2nd video from this channel recommended to me. The 1st was the one about low profile keyboards. I use a low profile keyboard, and was surprised to see the creator here not understand the point persons like me get them to begin with; ergonomics. So to then get one where he's talking about someone not understanding specific keyboards is hilarious irony. Especially when he intro dulls it down to zoomer slang like "bad takes". This is the epitome of "entertainer" in a field.
like i used a membrane keyboard throughout most of my teens, but thats because i never knew mechanical ones even exsisted, but now that i have dipped my toes into the mechanical keyboard world, i would never go back, and i purchased one you recommended the yunzii YZ-75 pro and its amazng
This kind of video is awesome! If we're talking about strictly office work then membrane is "all you need". However, I find typing for extended periods of time on a membrane keyboard to be tiring compared to a mechanical keyboard so even in an office I prefer mechanical.
outemu silent lime is just right for the office. I typed a ton of texts on it without any fatigue, and it is quietter than a membrane.
I'd rather she just say, "Hey, I want ya'll to check out this membrane keyboard" instead of crapping on those who enjoy quality keyboards.
My co worker uses the default membrane keyboard supplied in our office and she beats down on it LOUD because the input does not immediately register. Plus those things are basically thrown out once a key starts malfunctioning. My oldest mechanical is 4 years old and is very reliable (cost me about 20 bucks as it was a no brand China keeb). I have made back what I spent on it with the use I got and it still is very much serviceable.
Saying "membrane is all you need" is the kinda like saying "it's not necessary to wear shoes outdoors."
This video is absolutely mindblowing for me, I have the membrane keyboard he was using as an example and for years now I thought it was mechanical because of how loud it is and because it is genuinely a lot better than keyboards I had used before. Now I need to find out what a mechanical is actually like.
did you get to try a mechanical?
membranes usually have like a cicle on the bottom which will just registers as you push down the key until it hits that circle thingy on the switch and mechanical have like a cross and is fully attached to the key that it depends the spec of a switch on how it registers a key press.
This was one of my favorite videos. Definitely would like to see more if the opportunity arises. Now, this article was so ludicrous that I'm not sure if I could have read it without pausing for periods of laughter.
I'm not too terribly invested into Keyboards, I just buy whatever mechanical looks good at best buy, but your channel has been super informative to me lately and I've just thoroughly loved the learning experience provided.
I am programmer for a lot of years, so I'm typing quite a lot everyday. I was using the the most average membrane keyboard you can imagine all the time, then when it finally broke, I caved in to all the mechanical keyboard praise and got a good mechanical one.
Guess what. I barely noticed any difference. It's a keyboard. It types. What else do you need?
As somebody who got a semi-mechanical keyboard for sale for $13, the only regret I have is, that if the keyboard eventually stops functioning properly, I won't get a deal as good and end up feeling the emptyness from going to semi-mechanical to a membrane one. Also, cheap membrane keyboards can get real noisy as well if you are a fast typer. No way around that, unless you get a keyboard that is good at keeping the presses silent.
I switched from membrane keyboards to mechanical ones about 15 years ago. As a gamer, I've had the wasd buttons wear out after a couple years of use over and over again, whereas none of the mechanical keyboards I've had have actually had the switches wear out except my last keyboard which I'd had for around 7-8 years and was only skipping one key occasionally and I really debated replacing it at all. Money wise, mechanical keyboards have been a much better investment for me; more upfront cost, but less cost over time.
The funny thing is im finding myself flipping up the used part market in my town to find any chicony membrane keyboard from the 90s. Like the one i used in my office that came with a room size cutting machine from japan. Tough luck. 😢
Brown switches for me. Love em. Gonna do a tape and O ring mod for my work keyboard.
Great video. Something else I think isn't often considered when comparing the two is that Mechanical keyboards can, with some skill, be repaired more often than membrane. Dead key? Replace the switch or, in my case on one keyboard, a resistor. Can't really do that with a membrane.
Yes, that one switch costs more than an entirely new membrane keyboard.
@@debasishraychawdhuri That is just incorrect
@@debasishraychawdhuribro what substance are you on
My favorite gaming keyboard ever was razor’s Anansi, which was a membrane keyboard. But I preferred it because of the additional macro key placement along the left side, close to the wasd keys, not because it was membrane.
I've been using laptops exclusively for the last ten years and dealing with membrane keyboards is less of a hassle than making space on my desk and carrying another keyboard. Also, I fixed the spacebar on my MSI laptop when it got stuck and now it sticks up a tiny bit more and feels exquisite.
You know who else leads users to buying keyboards they don't need? Mechanical keyboard snobs.
I have a Redragon, Outemu Red Switch, as you cited, and it's quite ok, and was a world of difference from my old membrane "gamer" keyboard. I plan on customizing my Redragon sometime down the line, but in my country it's a little expensive to do so.
Tape mod bandaid mod holee mod and pe foam arent really that expensive
@@2k1jyup this is what I went for, just wanted the experience of “baby’s first mod” without having to spend a ton and go through a bunch of effort. It’s a fun experience! It’s always nice to do something with your hands.
Hey, it's 7 months since you posted but, I have the exact same keyboard, and just happened to customize it with akko purples, lube and tape. I'm having aural bliss from it and I'm super happy. Definetely worth and kinda cheap.
I'd been using a run of the mill dell membrane board forever, until I came across this channel. I snapped up a brown switch Keychron C1 for like, $50 and I can never go back.
It was so much better straight out of the box. I never noticed how hard I type until I tried this board.
I am 100% for mechanical now because the bounce back quality and quicker actuation literally saves my hands.
There are more flexible plate options and Alice ergo style boards out there that would make an even bigger difference and I plan to upgrade and pass on my C1 to a friend.
A mechanical keyboard is a long term investment that absolutely can save the health of your hands and wrists. Getting tendonitis and arthritis is a huge concern for people in my field. So anything I can do to prevent that will save me Way more time and money in the long run than spending a couple hundred upfront for preventive measures that will increase the longevity of my career and use of my hands in general.
I type on a keyboard all day for work, then again when I get home and game on PC. Getting older with arthritis in my fingers, a neck injury and aching shoulders, I finally opted for an ergo mechanical keyboard that I could customize for my needs. After searching far and wide I settled on the Dygma Raise...and never looked back. No more shoulder pain, love the feel of the switches I went with (and can change out easily), the sound is so satisfying I just WANT to type. And it's beautiful to boot. Pricey? Yep (more so now than when I got mine 2 yrs ago). Worth it? Definately!
Interesting fact: the mechanical keyboard switches are also customizable so which means you could install lighter springs like 12 gram which littery are just better then the membrane which are locked to whatever they are to
I had thr wrong kind of membrane in mind when i clicked on this video, ive only ever had a mechanical so i forgot the other exists, the membrane i was thinking of is the dust shield+silicone membrane that act as protection on my keyboard, it's quite nice knowing nothing dust or liquid is getting anywhere near my internals
I recently needed to use a membrane keyboard for a few days, actually a fairly "decent" steelseries model, and you touched on the biggest issue with them in my opinion, and that is the need to fully compress the key for it to register the keystroke. I wouldn't have thought that I had become so accustomed to the 2mm actuation point of the switches I use, but my god I was missing keystrokes left and right just trying to do general typing on the membrane board. It actually felt to me like the keyboard was broken. That full keypress to register keystrokes takes SO MUCH more effort than most mechanical keyboards, despite the lower force technically required. And this is coming from someone who uses 85g springs!
The app development class I was in forced me to use a membrane keyboard and I had the same problem, I'd miss so many keystrokes and end up with literal jibberish for code
@@matt5g gotta bring your own keeb next time mate, lol
I am the exact opposite. The shallow actuation point is not satisfying for me. I prefer to feel the bottoming out like playing the piano.
I will admit that I didn't think switching to a mechanical keyboard would matter to me I did try a well-regarded budget option and... it didn't matter to me. After using one for a year I pulled out my old membrane keyboard to see if it felt terrible now and it just didn't. I would have been just as happy with a membrane, that being said solid mechanical keyboards are so well priced, currently there really isn't significant cost savings to go membrane, and mechanicals are supposed to last longer and be more reparable. So while I agree most people won't care from a sound or feel standpoint, given that there isn't really a big cost saving, not much reason to go membrane unless your budget is like 10 bucks.
I bought my first mechanical keyboard a year ago. A royal kludge 100. I customized it to have akko ocean blues, sounds good to me. I use it on my office. Ended up buying two more keyboard, a local brand here in the Philippines, and that 8bitdo for that blue switches.
My personal pedantry: "membrane" vs "mechanical" is a false dichotomy. There are obviously mechanical keyboards which use a sensing membrane (Model M) and rubber dome designs which don't use a sensing membrane (Topre, BTC, etc). The sensing technology has no impact on the feel. A better distinction is the presence or absence of a rubber dome. (Not to say Topre isn't good ofc)
As a Keyboard enthusiast who interested in Automotive Industry, those article remind me of "Why Electric vehicle good for environment" which is not that good for environment actually.
Interested does not equate to any amount of profound engineering or technical experience.
Science unfortunately for you, is not based on feelings or interest.
@@jonathancormack Well, the science is overwhelmingly that battery-powered personal vehicles are long-term harmful to the environment and highly destructive to 3rd world nations where Lithium is mined with slave labor to produce HQ batteries at such a high volume.
i bet my life savings that the video will start with "Howdy Hey"
I'm not a snob, and I do prefer mechanical kb. I know some people personally that hates noisy mechanical keyboards in office (in our city where I used to live not so long time ago it's hard to obtain silent ones, especially in people's preferred format and already silent out-of-box without modifying). And now I'm stick with membrane because there's no other choice in my current living place (and it's louder than my previous mechanical one, but obviously cheaper, I think, 20 times or so and also significantly lighter in terms of weight)
P.S. to be fair, office keyboards were much silent than my previous mechanical, it's just my current membrane one is super loud
I've been using membrane keyboards since I got my first PC about 20 years ago up until my first laptop. After that, I got really used to the low profile keys of the laptop. Now I'm using Logitech Mx keys but I would not mind if there was a switch alternative to the scissors mechanism. Is there?
Bro i recommend taking small sticks or something like cut out q-tips and wedge them in the keycaps so it becomes something like a wooting.
I had a blue switch mechanical keyboard, but due to the sound my wife made me switch back to membrane, got a Corsair k55 pro, and its great, super silent and has great tactile feedback! Of course it was more expensive that the mechanical,but once you go mechanical you can not go back to a cheap membrane One.
or swap out the switches instead of buying a new one, blue ones are always the loud ones but there are tons of silent switches or if you want a satisfying but not so loud sound there are a lot, personally i don't like blue switches so i bought kaihl brown switches and then i upgraded it to akko v3 cream black pro and it sounded so good without modding it but it is also not loud that it annoys me, can't hear it thru headphones anyways.
you can try swap the switches with outemu/gaote silent cream yellow. some redditors said it's even more quiet than their friends' office keyboards at work.
I've tried typing on mechanical keyboards a few times when I've seen them in the shop. I hate them. The feeling, the noise. I'd pay much more for a membrane keyboard. I've been using the same membrane keyboard for 21 years, and I suspect it'll outlast me.
What was that super quiet mechanical keyboard at 2:16? And where can I purchase one?
My keyboard snobbishness lies in layout choice (UK, ISO, Canadian, Japanese, Spanish) and letter sizes on the keys themselves. The latter is due to visual impairment. I always wonder why I either have to buy key stickers or a specially made keyboard just to get big bold letters on the keys. Doesn't anyone else have an issue with so much white/black space on the keys when more of it can be used to show the letter?
You should make some videos that compare boards currently on sale to ones on the horizon or in group buys.
My latest question was Mode Envoy vs Zoom65 v2.
Went with the envoy, but I was really hung up on the decision. Especially when dropping $200+ on something 8 won't receive for a few months.
I love the looks, customizability, durability, feel of different switches and even the sound mechanical keyboards can make - I find it a much more "fun" experience.
However, as a musician/office worker both those things require the same thing in order to be able to churn out something fast and sustain comfort for a long time - very low and very soft action.
I need a keyboard that:
-is very flat, so I don't have to do anything unnatural with my hands other than just put them down on the table
-has keys that are very easy to press so I don't have to exert any effort at all and can rely entirely on precision to type
-has keys that are close together and have at best small gaps at the top (same reason)
-has keys that are very shallow and don't allow for depth variance when pressing (because without this you have to retrain your pressure with every new keyboard)
-has keys that are soft to the touch so that eliminates all stress of long hours of typing (unless they work by touch only and don't have to be pressed)
-is almost completely silent so I don't go insane hearing the same noise countless times each day
If a mechanical keyboard like that existed, I'd definitely buy it, but so far I've only managed to find some that address a few of these issues at the same time. But there are plenty of non-mechanical keyboards that are like this.
try to search for low profile mechanical keyboards maybe with brown or red switches
depending on what type of switches you need
look for low profile mechanical keyboards and get linear switches. tactile and clicky are the ones that require more force, linear switches are smooth and have no "bump"when pressed
One thing I'd like to point out is that there's a GOOD type of mushy membrane keyboard, too. Like just a little bit of mushiness feels great. It can have a very short and snappy actuation point and snap quickly back into. My Logitech MX Keys is what I'm describing here, and oh my god I love it. Best keyboard I've ever felt to this day, and the only one that I actually went out of my way to type on when I first got it because it felt that good. I used to play competitive FPS's at a very high level as a teen, and you could easily do that with this keyboard as well. It's very responsive in games (but its dongle has to be quite close), and your points about poor responsiveness on membrane keyboards are just not true, at least on high end ones.
It gets a little complicated because Model Ms have membranes but they have clicky buckling spring switches. The former means they suffer from 2KRO but then Model Fs have discrete switches so they have NKRO and also have buckling springs.
The reason Model M uses membrane: it's cheaper
Tried my dad's old Model F keyboard and was surprised how much force it requires to press down. It sounds nice, and as an HHKB user the weird layout isn't too bad. I'm just used to the feel of Topre which is part-membrane part-mechanical, has full NKRO, and requires very little force to press
As someone that tried 3 types of keyboard (standard membrane keyboard, slim membrane keyboard, mechanical keyboard) and ended up as the slim membrane keyboards as my favorite, here is what I feel is the pros and cons of each for me (I always bottom out my keys no matter the keyboard, don't want to pay more than 50 bucks on a keyboard, 100% keyboard, AZERTY layout)
Mechanical keyboard : Pros (Customizable, Repairable, Feels better for gaming), Cons (AZERTY + 100% makes for really few cheap options, Height, Keeping clean and cleaning is a pain)
Standard Membrane keyboard : Pros (Price, Somewhat ok feeling for gaming, lots of options), Cons (Feels terrible to type with, Height, impossible to clean / keep clean)
Slim keyboards : Pros (Height, Feels great to type on and significantly improved my typing speed compared to mechanical keyboard, simple to clean / keep clean), Cons (Gaming on it felt a bit strange at first, not many options)
Get a slim mechanical keyboard that will feel miles better and type even faster
Thumbs up for this video, but why is the NMCI on hold music playing in the background?
What are the keycaps at 2:08? The keeb looks like a Keychron Q1 Pro, but I'm not sure. Thank you!
Drop MT3, unsure about the colour scheme tho
Another pretty infamous budget mechanical keyboard option are Dierya keyboards. Dierya is a Kemove brand and I personally use the DK61E. It might be loud, but it has brown switches and a thocky spacebar. In my opinion, for 30 to 50 dollars, they're pretty good! (imo ofc)
their name is a liiiittle bit unfortunate lol
I love my mechanical keyboard. I absolutely love the clicky ones. My favourite keyboard used to be the IBM Model M. I've always hated membrane ones, especially the cheap ones where you had to jam they keys very hard.
Model M is a membrane board... It's action is mechanical but its contacts are within a membrane.
@@heavyhauler426it's more mechanical than not
I use a Keychron K4 pro with the provided hot-swappable red switches at the office, and people are saying that the sound is SMR.
ive been using a membrane for like 7 years, never even felt what a mechanical feels like, but yesterday i bought one, cant wait to feel and hear the difference!
it feels compeletly diffrent (i just switched)
update please