inside the world of mechanical keyboards

- Well. Why would anyone spend $1000 on a

mechanical

keyboard? I like the one from Apple. (David groans) We just got an interview with Taeha Types. Thanks to Shopify for sponsoring a portion of this video. Well, if you Google Answer in Progress, one of the first autocomplete features you get is about

mechanical

keyboards

. Oh. I used to be, I promise. Sabrina has one, I have one, Melissa has one, and I like my mechanical keyboard, but I don't really know anything about mechanical

keyboards

. I just googled keyboards and bought one that looks good. Turns out it was a mechanical keyboard and it's nice to type on.

But I'm not alone in my newfound love for mechanical keyboards. It seems that in recent years more and more people are buying mechanical keyboards. And recently, in my travels on the Internet, I came across these channels, forums, websites dedicated to customizing mechanical keyboards and building luxury mechanical keyboards. I also saw some of these keyboards selling for thousands of dollars. So what is the fascination with this old-fashioned technology? Why is it becoming popular again and, most importantly, why would anyone spend $1000 on a keyboard? Let's figure it out. (upbeat funk music) So, there isn't a book I can read about mechanical keyboards to make an elaborate book report, and in my research, reading articles and watching YouTube videos, I was able to learn the technical terms of the hobby.

But I felt like I was still missing something. I feel like just by Googling and searching online, I haven't really been able to find what's at the heart of this mechanical keyboard hobby and also what makes people really excited about mechanical keyboards and spend a lot of money on them. a good mechanical keyboard. keyboard. So I have a plan. It's a very complicated plan, it's a very ingenious plan, and it's one that no one has thought of before. (dramatic music) I'm going to ask someone. - I get a lot of comments from people saying, "I saw a video of yours and didn't think about it, and six months later, I have 10 keyboards." And I say, am I sorry? - This is David, also known as Glarses.

He has a YouTube channel where he builds mechanical keyboards and generally causes mayhem. - Screwing. Congratulations. - First of all, if you recognize this place... - Hello friends. Welcome back to the channel. - No, you don't. So I thought we'd start by looking at my keyboards, the ones I've had so far, getting your impressions of them, seeing what you like and what you don't like. My first keyboard was the Apple one. You know, I like it. (keys clicking) - You can't travel here. It's like you're hitting a piece of aluminum. I like that it is tactile. - So what is tactility?

It's like the little pop you hear when... - It's like that feedback you feel when you press down, that little bump that usually lines up when the switch is flipped. I like that, but other than that, I hate everything else about it. - Well, I like it. - That's all that matters. No, that's not true. - So my first mechanical keyboard was this one. - Mechanical switches! Actually, let's see what they are. Cherry reds. I also like the 75% design. - Everyone in my house complained because there was a lot of noise. - Oh, is this noisy? - This was loud. - I think my noise standard is... (nervous laughter). - So I went from that to this.

You know, a little calmer and no one in my house complains anymore. - So problem solved? - Problem solved. - Then we're done. - Well. - Yes. - The stabilizers are a little better. Um... They're still um... (keys jangling unpleasantly) (disbelieving laughter) - Still not a fan? - I'm still not a fan, but I like it better. - That's the end of my keyboard journey, and now... - This is the beginning of your keyboard journey. - So you have some keyboards you want... (bang) Wow. Oh! It's very heavy. - It has a two-piece aluminum casing and has an internal brass weight inside.

Oh, it's fine! - I don't know what these are called, like the non-square ones. - These are the modifiers. - These are called modifiers. Those that are not square feel much better. - We will continue like this. - This is linear and then this is tactile? It's kind of like bubble wrap. - Actually, that's not a bad description. You have to develop it and then it just collapses on itself. - It's hard to explain how things feel in front of the camera. - It is, isn't it? - The space bar is very nice. That is incredible!

I love this. - This is the next one. - Wow. This is really quiet. - You're dressed like that one. (Taha laughs) (David laughs) - To each of them I say, wow. This doesn't have any keys. This is like half a keyboard. - Oh. This is 60%. - These are the Cherry MX browns. I think what impresses me the most are the space bars. - It's a

world

of difference with Like (imitating the sound of a click). Horrific. - I feel like a hipster. I love the look of this one. I would feel like my fingers would get tired after a while of this.

And then you just have this M key. (David laughing) Now I can understand that I'm here. They feel different, so I have a different response to them. - This is a SGI granite. Instead of MX switches, these have ALPS switches. - And these are switches that no longer exist? These are really cute. I feel like the secretary of "Monsters Inc." (David laughing) I'm watching you, Wazowski. - How do I get into this? Because clearly I've been doing something wrong and I don't like it... - This is all coming from a custom kit. In the hobby, when we say a kit, we basically mean it's a case, a PCB, and a board, and then you buy your own stabilizers, switches, and keycaps and basically build that keyboard from scratch. - Well then.

Keyboard. I want to use this keyboard later. (Taha screams) So, mechanical keyboards are made up of a few key components. You have the PCB, the case, the board, which form the brain and the body of the keyboard. The case houses all the components, while the PCB is the actual electronic circuitry that communicates with your computer. Each time one of the switches is pressed, a small electronic circuit is completed, sending a signal to your computer to inform it that one of the keys has been pressed. But then you get to the most interesting parts of a mechanical keyboard, the key cap and key switches.

The key cap is what you would normally think of when you think of a key on a keyboard. And to learn more about this, you can get them in a variety of different shapes, sizes, and materials. Basically, anything that can be customized can be customized on a key. There's even a thriving community of handmade caps, which are one-of-a-kind pieces of art that you can have as key caps. And in the process of researching this video, I ordered some new keycaps, which was fun. And in the process of sorting those things out, I ended up discovering this app from the sponsor of this video, Shopify.

So I decided to ask them if I could talk about the app instead of reading a normal ad, and they said yes, so now I'll do that. If you haven't heard of Shopify, it's a platform, you can create an online store, it's very intuitive, there are templates, it's drag and drop. Is very good. However, they basically have this app called Store and what it does is basically unify all of your orders into one app. It connects to your emails and finds the order numbers and because you can click, you can see all the details. Everything you need is there and you don't have to check your emails, look up the tracking number and then look at a website built by some guy in 2007.

We love it. You can ask it to send notifications when things are shipped, if there are any delays. The whole thing. The app also displays return policies, so it's easy to see if you can still return something, if it's shipping, or even if it's already arrived. It's all in the app and it's great. Basically, it is the best app if you shop online. You can find more information about Shopify and the Shop app in the link in the description. So thanks to Shopify for sponsoring this video and allowing me to tell you about my new favorite app instead of reading a typical ad and continuing with the rest of the video.

But pretty keys aren't the only interesting part of a mechanical keyboard. What's underneath, the key switch, is possibly just as interesting. This little thing is what makes a mechanical keyboard, well, mechanical. (change by clicking) When I talked to Glarses about these little things, I began to realize the incredible story that accompanies them. It is difficult to pinpoint the objective origin of mechanical keyboards. Manufacturers were experimenting with a variety of mechanical mechanisms. As time went on, computers stopped being room-sized machines owned by large corporations and universities. They became smaller and more affordable. This meant greater demand for keyboards, so manufacturers sought to increase production rates and reduce costs.

This gave rise to membrane keyboards, which use cheaply produced rubber sheets instead of individual switches (which break the keyboard). Well, I mean, that was the take. These cheap membrane keyboards produced a soft, rubbery feel instead of the satisfying click of a mechanical switch. This new form of keyboard was marketed as a quieter typing experience, but its main popularity was due to its price. While many mechanical keyboard companies went out of business or switched to producing membrane keyboards, companies like Cherry, now the most popular switch manufacturer in the

world

, continued to produce mechanical switches. While the typing experience was made worse by membrane keyboards, most people generally didn't care.

Personal computers were still considered a productivity tool, like a wrench or hammer, and were used for professional work rather than a personal electronic device. So, buying keyboards at an affordable price for home and office was the main concern. However, as we began to use these devices outside of work and our lives and identities became intertwined with technology, people began to see their devices as an extension of themselves, personalizing them to suit their needs. As a result, in the late 2000s, the first signs of the modern keyboard hobby began to flourish in Korean on desktop forums. Many consider this to be the beginning of the modern keyboard hobby.

So the boards on the OTD forums were only sold in Korea and in limited production, but over time the US got its own forums and it was on these forums that people started experimenting with the features of different switches. And what they discovered is that if they combined different pieces of different switches, they could create a Frankenstein switch. (creepily) ooooh! And it's from this kind of experimentation that we got fan-favorite Frankenstein switches like the Holy Panda. So the Holy Panda started out as a Frankenstein switch where people had to take two different switches and put them together to make them, but due to its popularity people started making the specs of a Holy Panda as a complete switch. - I guess the creation of Holy Panda accidentally created the change everyone wanted to try.

One of the main sound checks and ways that people probably heard about a Santo Panda, and as I mentioned, it was mine as well, was the Taeha Types sound check, which was his Fjell with Santos Pandas, both That's how most people say, you know, you watch this video once and that's it. You are in the hobby, in the rabbit hole. (keys clicking) That really took it through the roof like it was the first big Frankenstein switch. - So during this time, the mechanical keyboard started to become (intense electronic music) very popular among gamers. And it makes sense because those are the kind of people who spend a lot of money on computer hardware to have optimal gaming settings for their zero millisecond lag response time, so they can be owned in the bronze lobbies of "Valorant." ".

And with the rise in popularity in the gaming community, we saw a massive boom in a type of switch called the Cherry MX switch. If you've ever tried to buy a keyboard online, you were probably given the option of a Cherry MX switch, either a red switch, a blue switch, or a brown switch. - I don't think many people would object to you saying that Cherry MX, or Cherry as a brand, is probably the biggest player in mechanical keyboards and has now become the de facto one. The expiration of the Cherry MX patent was probably the most important milestone for the explosion of boutique switches in the hobby. - Cherry's patent expiration was a game changer, an environment changer, a different sauce.

Because now that the original patent had expired, you could take the original design, modify it and remix it, and then you had a new switch, built differently. And this caused the emergence of new manufacturers like Gateron that make newCherry MX style switches without being sued, which is always a good thing I guess. But we also saw the rise of smaller community providers like Zeal and NovelKeys. And so arose this whole new wave of innovation from people making modified Cherry MX style switches. - People really liked Ergo Clear, but they didn't like the effort that went into making them.

You know, you needed two sets of keyboards where you needed to open them up and put a spring in and Zeal basically said, okay, I'm going to create the first line of custom switches made by the manufacturer community. That change was very, very, very important because it was the first change that the community made. -And now we come to the craziest part of this whole story, the Stealios controversy. Boom, boom, ba! Basically, Zeal, one of the community makers, was creating this switch called Zealio. It was a boutique switch that was sold through a variety of different markets.

Basically, Zeal would tell a group of marketplaces that they were allowed to resell the switch they were producing. However, one of these markets was selling counterfeit Zealios. Boom, boom, ba! So, they were actually official Zealios resellers. However, they were selling more than Zeal was supplying them, so they were getting some Zealios knockoffs from somewhere. But the counterfeit Zealios, also known as Stealios because they stole their design, you get the idea, were almost identical in feel, experience and design to the point where it was very difficult to tell the difference. And the quality was basically the same too.

Then people started wondering who was the manufacturer behind the Stealios, the fake Zealios. I guess if you can produce such high-quality fakes, you can produce your own genuine boutique switches, and that's exactly what happened. Many more people saw the quality of the Stealios and decided to make their switches with that manufacturer. Literally, crime does pay. What is this story? And that brings us to now. There has been an explosion of switch designs and many more manufacturers and the whole scene is full of unique designs and new and exciting ways to try out the hobby. There are different form factors, different touch responses, and custom, handcrafted keys. - Seriously, if you haven't built your own keyboard, I highly recommend it.

It's not as hard as you think and you actually end up with this thing that you can really say I built this thing that I know I use to write every day. It's pretty cool. Today, you can go online and design a board that's like nothing anyone has seen before or build a board that reflects your personality. And now it's my turn. So what are we building? - Which ones do you feel attract you the most? Let's eliminate a few first. - So I'm trying to find my favorite switch. How I do this? - You write on them, and then you write some more, and you keep writing until there is one that shines above the rest. - I'm like hypnotized by this. (David laughing) - It's good, right? - I was like (sigh).

This sounds like walking on snow in Minecraft. (keys clicking) I think this one should go away. I'm going to get rid of this. It's just not satisfactory. You are fired. I honestly think this is the keyboard that makes me feel the best. This is like popping bubble wrap all day and it's a really nice feeling. So I think I'm going to choose this as my ending. - Is the winner. I mean, I guess the closest thing we can build to your keyboard will be these Holy Pandas. - These are the Holy Pandas that I have heard so much about.

Well. If I'm honest, they look like any other switch to me. I'm excited. Cool! - Today we are building this Glacier 80 TKL. Do the honors. - It is a very elegant box. - It's charming. - Doing an unboxing on the Youtube channel Response in Progress. (David laughing) What's going on? What am I looking at? - So, this is foam, this is more foam, this is more foam. This is our PCB, which is kind of our... - This is the brain. - Keyboard brains. It is direct exchange. Okay... that's not a problem. - So this is, oh my God, I'm going to have to defend this. (David laughing) This is really heavy.

This is a real keyboard. - Now we have to stab this open. (David laughing) (plastic explosion) - There you have it. - Oh! - So the first thing you need to do when building a keyboard is to prepare our components. These are our stabilizers. - So the space bar doesn't wobble because of this? - Yes, exactly. You want to increase smoothness and we want to eliminate noise. - I'm very afraid of breaking it. - Honestly, you won't break it. And if you do, we have more. (David laughing) These are a little finicky. Let me do this one.

There you go. (David laughing) You actually need to unplug this because they are two singles that will be wired together. - I was afraid to break them. (suspenseful music) (David laughing) - There you have it. Now this is the fun part. We can flip a switch. - What exactly are we doing? (David laughing) I'm just pushing buttons. - I'm pushing it to make sure it feels consistent throughout the press. Make sure there is no ticking on the edges. So this will probably be the part where you'll speed up 14,000%. - I think it will be more fun if you just cut each click (key click).

Like (imitating clicking). Is this the last one? - MMM. - Made. - Wow. - Full keyboard, guys. - That's a nice keyboard. - Key covers. Eight. Six seven eight. - It's actually seven, eight, nine. They are also the wrong eight. That's number pad eight. - I tried. - Q, W, E, R, T, Y, U. - I have B and I want to put it next to A. (David laughing) I think these are the real winners. (dreamy music) (keys clicking) - Before A. (David clapping) - We did it. So is this my new Kaybo keyboard? - This is your new cable. - Compared to my first keyboard. (keys clicking) - Let's take that away from you. (keys clicking) - My first foray into mechanical keyboards. (keys clicking) For context, I don't like to do this softly and so forcefully.

Every time I see these videos online, I always think that they are really exaggerating this and then they like to tone it down, but it's not true. (keys clicking) - I think the stabilizers are probably the biggest difference. It's a simple modification that you can do with any keyboard, really. Once your ears are open to noise, you won't be able to stop hearing it. I mean, you don't know it's there, you probably don't care, but once someone tells you it exists and it doesn't have to exist, it's game over. - I guess I'm done with this keyboard. (David laughing) (keys clicking) Do you know what I wrote? - Subscribe to the Glarses channel. - In fact, I wrote thanks for watching.

Please subscribe. - Oh! (keys clicking) - To the Glarses channel. Thank you for doing this. - No problem. Thanks for helping. This was fun. - Can I keep this? - Yes, sure. Just pay me the amount for the keyboard and we can, you know... - How much does this keyboard cost? - Probably about 650 dollars. - Wow. Then be sure to subscribe to our Patreon. (Taha laughing) (David laughing) I was about to finish the job, but then I got an email from the king of mechanical keyboards himself. We just received an interview with Taeha Types. Oh Lord!

Hello. How are you? - Hello. Nice to meet you, Taha. - This is Taeha Types, possibly one of the most influential mechanical keyboard creators on YouTube. He has sound tests for seemingly every switch on the market and has built high-end mechanical keyboards for companies like LilyPichu, Dave2D, and Tfue. Basically, I've been on a journey with mechanical keyboards for the last two months. - So you are really fresh? - I'm very fresh, yes. This is like the central question of the video. This is where I started. Why would anyone spend $1000 on a keyboard? (Taeha laughing) - I think something I just realized is that there are certain things in my life that I use a lot.

I have a Herman Miller Aeron chair and most people would say why would you spend so much on a chair? But if you think about it, at least for me, sometimes I'm sitting in a chair for more than half the day, so why not invest in that? And as someone who spends many hours in front of a keyboard each day, I write constantly. I think people aren't used to thinking of the keyboard as something to invest in, but with the recent popularity of this hobby, I think a lot of us are starting to realize that the keyboard can be something nice. . - I definitely didn't realize the difference between a custom mechanical keyboard or even a modified mechanical keyboard compared to the mechanical keyboards available on the market. - I think the keyboard hobby is just one of those hobbies where you have to try it in person to really understand it.

No matter how many videos you watch, no matter how many sound checks you listen to, nothing beats trying it out and experiencing it in person. I also went through what you went through. After feeling the first one, I thought, okay, this is addictive. (Taeha laughing) I understand why people spend so much on their keyboards. - Why do you think the hobby has skyrocketed in popularity? - I mean, I think my Tfue video definitely helped. He is probably still one of the biggest names in esports. I think the pandemic hit three or four months after my Tfue compilation came out and everyone started working from home and I think people in general consumed more content during the pandemic.

I guess people started to worry about their work setup, because everyone is working from home, they want to treat themselves, everyone is socially disadvantaged, they are trying to feel something through retail therapy, so I think the pandemic surely too He played a big role in the recent rise of the hobby. - I think, also, that there were many people during the pandemic who had never thought about a work setup. They had always worked in the library or in an office. - It's an interesting time for newcomers. I feel like it's a good time and a bad time for people trying to get into this hobby right now.

The hobby is going through a phase of increasing pain as everyone tries to scale to accommodate this influx of demand. There is that aspect of the customer experience that might bother people. One of the first confusing terms you may hear in the hobby is the word group buying and that is what the hobby still largely operates under. You can think of a group buy as essentially a kind of Kickstarter or Indiegogo project. Basically, people in the hobby essentially come up with a project idea. We're not mass producing these keyboards, right? They are individuals who execute their own projects.

It can take months, sometimes years. Right now, we are looking at timelines of years for certain projects. You have to have a lot of patience in this hobby. You should wait at least half a year, minimum, to consider it safe from now on. - What do you think is the future of the mechanical keyboard hobby? - I think there is still a lot to explore with switches. Everyone is still very hooked on the Cherry MX design style. I think it will be interesting to see what new types of switches emerge, for example. I mean, I'd love to see crazier keyboard designs.

I mean, who knows. Maybe one day we'll have an SD card reader or extra USB ports on a keyboard. Meetings, now may not be the best time to advocate for meetings, but I got a lot of questions like, where are these meetings located? How do I go to a meeting? Honestly, if you're interested in hosting a meeting, I'd say go for it. Everyone is looking for someone to take that initiative. So if there are no meetups in your area that you know of, don't hesitate to organize something. It is still a very friendly and community oriented hobby. - The meetings sound really exciting.

I've never been to a meeting. The only person I've met interested in mechanical keyboards is Glarses. - I think you also had a mini meeting there. - I guess I never really thought about going to a meeting. I thought the meetings sound great, but they're probably for people who know keyboards. - I mean, that was me too. It still seems nerdy to say I'm going to a keyboard meetup. (Taeha laughing) But I think the first one I went to really left a good impression on me, as well as how friendly everyone was, just being able to try and even touch all of these nice, pretty products that I have.

I've been watching online. Hopefully, once the world opens up more, we'll have more of those, but if you can get to a meeting, I recommend doing so. Meetups are probably the next big step in raising awareness of a hobby even more. - So in the process of making this video, I've been trying to figure out how to explain why the mechanical keyboard hobby is so appealing. And I think that's everything that everyone has already mentioned. It's the fact that you can build a keyboard that is completely unique to you, but it's also the fact that a custom mechanical keyboard is way better than anything you can find on the market.

ANDWith how digital our lives are and the time we spend in front of our computers, having a beautiful keyboard that looks and feels like yours has brought a little joy to a part of my life that is usually so mundane. But honestly, it's been very difficult to describe to people why this hobby is so appealing, but once you put a custom mechanical keyboard in front of someone and they type on it, I think you understand it right away. Everyone I've shown my keyboard to has said, yeah, now I get it. But also personally, with technology becoming more proprietary and closed and with big tech companies basically consuming the entire tech world, seeing that the mechanical keyboard hobby is still a small community of designers, hobbyists and enthusiasts who simply make keyboards because they love it.

It has been a breath of fresh air. And I think that's beautiful. And yes, while you can spend $1000 on a mechanical keyboard, you don't have to. You can build a nice custom mechanical keyboard for much less and it will last you for years. And honestly, I would recommend buying at least one custom mechanical keyboard in your life because it is a unique experience. In fact, in the process of making this video, our editor, Joe, built his own custom mechanical keyboard for the first time and I think he agrees. It's just something you have to really try to achieve. - It's cool and I didn't even mention the lights. - Anyway, thanks for watching this video.

If you like what we do, you can support us on Patreon. And if you don't have a couple of dollars to spare, you can sign up for our newsletter where we give away bonus material, playlists, and potentially some keyboard ASMR. Anyway, thanks for looking at keyboards. (bell ringing)