by Tony Thomas
After playing with a very inexpensive Red Dragon mechanical keyboard for a few weeks, I decided that I wanted something that was quieter so that I would not drive my wife crazy as I typed. The "blue" keys in the Red Dragon have a high-pitched tactile click that is great for improving your typing speed but hard on the ears.
As a result I picked up a Techware "Phantom" TKL (ten key-less) keyboard that looks very similar to the Red Dragon but also includes RGB LED backlighting. It looks so cool.
Then, I started reading more and watching YouTube videos (very dangerous, BTW) and decided I need a keyboard that I can customize with different switches and keycaps.
The recently released Keychron K8 arrived on my doorstep followed by a smaller Keychron K6 to use with my iPad. I also picked up a few 60% keyboards and ordered a keyboard kit and some switches from China. Plus, keycaps from several different places.
I am now in that black hole that is the mechanical keyboard hobby and my wallet is a bit emptier. And yes, I paid for everything with my own money! (It's only money, right?)
I can tell you that mechanical keyboards and addicting. But, at least in my case, they have provided a needed productivity boost. I love to write free hand and to dictate, but there is something about a mechanical keyboard that gets my juices flowing!
If you are interested, there are plenty of great YouTube channels that are devoted to mechanical keyboards (Taeha Types, Switch and Click, The Techne, and TaeKeyboards are standouts) as well as a sub-Reddit: r/MechanicalKeyboards.
The good news is mechanical keyboards have made me way more productive since they are a joy to type on. If you are a writer or gamer, you may want to give mechanical keyboards a try!
