5 ms·

For me, one nice thing about working from home all the time now is that I don't have to listen to everyone's annoyingly loud mechanical keyboards. I kinda hope

For me, one nice thing about working from home all the time now is that I don't have to listen to everyone's annoyingly loud mechanical keyboards. I kinda hope this fad dies before I have to work in an office again...

trynumber9 5y ago
Thankfully, Topre are not loud.
bouke 5y ago
Well or those pesky butterfly keyboards on previous MacBook Pro models. Those are also very loud!
lmilcin 5y ago
There are good mechanical switches that are silent. For example Cherry MX Silent Red. I also have a keyboard with Cherry MX Browns with o-rings to dampen them a little bit. There is no excuse, other than being totally obnoxious prick, for using a loud keyboard in an open office.
- foxfluff 5y ago
  There is no excuse for an open office.
bayindirh 5y ago
We have a bunch of old Sun Microsystems mechanical keyboards at the office, and they're not loud. I use a Cherry MX Brown equipped keyboard and it's not loud either. Does everyone use "Blue" switches over there? BTW, I don't believe mechanical keyboards are a fad. They're much better than the better rubber dome keyboards. Especially as they age.
- FPGAhacker 5y ago
  Out of curiosity, have you done typing tests? I did once with some keyboards I was comparing. For me there was a difference. At least in the moment. It's possible I was just better on one because it was similar to what I had already been using.
  - bluGill 5y ago
    Yes, not for speed by for quantity. My model m makes we want to type more. You might not think that is a good thing. ..
  - bayindirh 5y ago
    I've used a lot of keyboards in my life. The latest rubber domes I've used are either Microsoft and Logitech. Currently I'm using two keyboards daily, a Microsoft Sculpt (rubber dome) and a Logitech G710+ (Cherry MX Brown). Logitech is much more consistent, softer, strains my hands less, allows for faster typing. Rubber dome keyboards become heavier as they age, because their key stems wear down. They become extra heavy when you don't use them for some time, because grease tends to harden as they age. This is not the case with the mechanical switches. They just behave the same, all the time. On the worst case, a rubber dome keyboard needs so much force and has so much friction that it sprains your hand/fingers (Dell's low end bundled keyboards are an health hazard).
- someuname 5y ago
  >Cherry MX Brown Significantly louder than a standard Dell membrane keyboard, or Logitech MX Keys, or Apple.
  - bayindirh 5y ago
    I personally use MX Browns at home, but they're not significantly louder than a full size, well used membrane keyboard. Membrane keyboards tend to get noisier as they age and their stems wear down and their lubricants degrade. On the other hand, there are far more silent mechanical switches available. There are "Silent Brown" switches, "Red" switches without any tactile feedback, or "Silent Red" switches, with even less noise. If I decide to change my office keyboard one day, I'd buy Red or Silent Brown switches, not because standard Browns are actually annoyingly noisy, but we as people are under stress in the office and get irritated sometimes, and I want to be polite. As I said before, mechanical keyboards are not about the noise they make primarily, they're much more comfortable to use and they last a long time. Oh, I like the sound of my Browns, but it's just a secondary effect.
- GekkePrutser 5y ago
  Did Sun ever make mechanicals? I mainly recall the type 5 but it was rubber dome. The ones that came after were like cheap $10 pc keyboards.
  - donatj 5y ago
    The majority were rubber dome, and all the Sun keyboards I own are, but they made some mechanical type 5’s. They pop up on eBay once in a while. I am not sure the deal with their existence. https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=78888.0 https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=78888.0
basedbertram 5y ago
Oh wow, do people really bring mechanical keyboards to the office? I thought that was generally considered a no-no.
- DavidVoid 5y ago
  It depends on if they're quiet or not. My modded HHKB Pro2 is not any louder than the usual laptop keyboards are. MX Blue switches should be banned from offices though.
- Findecanor 5y ago
  Different keyboards are different, as are workplaces. I would never bring a keyboard with clicky switches to a shared workplace. There are also ways to make mechanical keyboards as silent as a classic office keyboards.
- some-guy 5y ago
  I thought so too, so I brought my 1989 Model M and asked everyone around me if they were okay with it, and that the first complaint I heard about it I would get rid of it. Slowly after that, people started bringing in all kinds of mechanical keyboards.
  - Aloha 5y ago
    My cube mates threatened to shove it where the sun don't shine if I dared used the one I brought to show off at work.
    - meepmorp 5y ago
      The nice thing about the Model M, and still more so the Model F, is that in addition to being a keyboard, they're very effective melee weapons.
      - Aloha 5y ago
        Indeed! Thought I dont like the layout of the Model F, and I dont get the folks who really want a Model F.

trynumber9 5y ago

Thankfully, Topre are not loud.

bouke 5y ago

Well or those pesky butterfly keyboards on previous MacBook Pro models. Those are also very loud!

lmilcin 5y ago

There are good mechanical switches that are silent. For example Cherry MX Silent Red. I also have a keyboard with Cherry MX Browns with o-rings to dampen them a little bit. There is no excuse, other than being totally obnoxious prick, for using a loud keyboard in an open office.

foxfluff 5y ago
There is no excuse for an open office.

bayindirh 5y ago

We have a bunch of old Sun Microsystems mechanical keyboards at the office, and they're not loud. I use a Cherry MX Brown equipped keyboard and it's not loud either. Does everyone use "Blue" switches over there? BTW, I don't believe mechanical keyboards are a fad. They're much better than the better rubber dome keyboards. Especially as they age.

FPGAhacker 5y ago
Out of curiosity, have you done typing tests? I did once with some keyboards I was comparing. For me there was a difference. At least in the moment. It's possible I was just better on one because it was similar to what I had already been using.
- bluGill 5y ago
  Yes, not for speed by for quantity. My model m makes we want to type more. You might not think that is a good thing. ..
- bayindirh 5y ago
  I've used a lot of keyboards in my life. The latest rubber domes I've used are either Microsoft and Logitech. Currently I'm using two keyboards daily, a Microsoft Sculpt (rubber dome) and a Logitech G710+ (Cherry MX Brown). Logitech is much more consistent, softer, strains my hands less, allows for faster typing. Rubber dome keyboards become heavier as they age, because their key stems wear down. They become extra heavy when you don't use them for some time, because grease tends to harden as they age. This is not the case with the mechanical switches. They just behave the same, all the time. On the worst case, a rubber dome keyboard needs so much force and has so much friction that it sprains your hand/fingers (Dell's low end bundled keyboards are an health hazard).
someuname 5y ago
>Cherry MX Brown Significantly louder than a standard Dell membrane keyboard, or Logitech MX Keys, or Apple.
- bayindirh 5y ago
  I personally use MX Browns at home, but they're not significantly louder than a full size, well used membrane keyboard. Membrane keyboards tend to get noisier as they age and their stems wear down and their lubricants degrade. On the other hand, there are far more silent mechanical switches available. There are "Silent Brown" switches, "Red" switches without any tactile feedback, or "Silent Red" switches, with even less noise. If I decide to change my office keyboard one day, I'd buy Red or Silent Brown switches, not because standard Browns are actually annoyingly noisy, but we as people are under stress in the office and get irritated sometimes, and I want to be polite. As I said before, mechanical keyboards are not about the noise they make primarily, they're much more comfortable to use and they last a long time. Oh, I like the sound of my Browns, but it's just a secondary effect.
GekkePrutser 5y ago
Did Sun ever make mechanicals? I mainly recall the type 5 but it was rubber dome. The ones that came after were like cheap $10 pc keyboards.
- donatj 5y ago
  The majority were rubber dome, and all the Sun keyboards I own are, but they made some mechanical type 5’s. They pop up on eBay once in a while. I am not sure the deal with their existence. https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=78888.0 https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=78888.0

basedbertram 5y ago

Oh wow, do people really bring mechanical keyboards to the office? I thought that was generally considered a no-no.

DavidVoid 5y ago
It depends on if they're quiet or not. My modded HHKB Pro2 is not any louder than the usual laptop keyboards are. MX Blue switches should be banned from offices though.
Findecanor 5y ago
Different keyboards are different, as are workplaces. I would never bring a keyboard with clicky switches to a shared workplace. There are also ways to make mechanical keyboards as silent as a classic office keyboards.
some-guy 5y ago
I thought so too, so I brought my 1989 Model M and asked everyone around me if they were okay with it, and that the first complaint I heard about it I would get rid of it. Slowly after that, people started bringing in all kinds of mechanical keyboards.
- Aloha 5y ago
  My cube mates threatened to shove it where the sun don't shine if I dared used the one I brought to show off at work.
  - meepmorp 5y ago
    The nice thing about the Model M, and still more so the Model F, is that in addition to being a keyboard, they're very effective melee weapons.
    - Aloha 5y ago
      Indeed! Thought I dont like the layout of the Model F, and I dont get the folks who really want a Model F.