HOW TO CHOOSE MECHANICAL KEYBOARDS

MECHKEYBOARDS.txt

HOW TO CHOOSE MECHANICAL KEYBOARDS by Dang Khoa

0. VERY IMPORTANT: DO NOT BUY FROM GAMING BRANDS like Corsair, Razer, Logitech, etc. THEY DON'T KNOW HOW TO MAKE KEYBOARDS. 

1. Keycaps material: the best type is PBT (ABS caps are usually trash that comes in stock). PBT is durable and beautiful but can be very expensive when you buy separate keycap set.

2. Hot-swap: I recommend you get a keyboard with this feature. It gives you the ability to change switches instantly like lego without crazy soldering. Switches don't last forever, remember that.

3. Switches: there are 3 types: clicky, tactile, linear. I always recommend going linear (red) because it's timeless. You cannot go to the workplace with clicky switches (blue) because it annoys everyone. Going tactile means you're a pussy.

3.1 Switches can be North-Facing or South-Facing: South-Facing is always better.
https://keyboardable.com/north-facing-switches-vs-south-facing-switches/#11-are-north-facing-or-south-facing-switches-better

4. Cable: the best kind of cable is Type-C but this can be controversial. The normal Type-A cables are fine but stay away from Micro USB. Good keyboards should have a detachable cable.

5. Gasket Mount: Gasket mount keyboards give you better feel but are expensive.

MY CURRENT BRAND TIER LIST:

SSS: Topre Switches Tier: Topre switches are godlike but only a few brands have it and it's insanely expensive, even keyboards pro don't buy these. You can't really customize Topre keyboards.
SS: Filco (high quality, expensive)
S: Leopold (loved by fans everywhere) => GET THIS IF YOU'RE NEW AND HAVE DECENT MONEY
A+: Akko (fantastic PBT keycaps with many colorful designs)

Hard to say: Keychron is a good brand but I really can't recommend it because they always give you cheap ABS keycaps and bad software