The Cherry MX Board 6.0 Mechanical Keyboard Review
by E. Fylladitakis on January 27, 2016 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Keyboard
- Cherry MX
- Mechanical Keyboards
Conclusion
I always try to use every keyboard that we review as my personal keyboard for at least a week. My typical weekly usage includes a lot of typing (about 100-150 pages), a few hours of gaming and some casual usage, such as internet browsing and messaging. Cherry's use of MX Red switches on the MX Board 6.0 is odd, as it is being marketed as a professional keyboard and the MX Blue and MX Brown switches are generally the preferred switches for typing. Despite the use of MX Red switches, which are not my personal favorite for typing either, the MX Board 6.0 was remarkably responsive and comfortable for long typing sessions. The large wrist rest helped as well, maintaining the palms of my hands at a comfortable position over the length of the typing session.
For gaming, the MX Board 6.0 leaves us with mixed feelings. The Realkey technology is supposed to minimize the latency of the keyboard and provides true N-Key rollover, which is nice for gamers, and the keyboard itself is very comfortable for prolonged use. However, it also lacks any form of programmability, macro keys or even just the capability to run macros (without the use of third-party remapping software). For me, since my gaming style frequently relies on macros, the MX Board 6.0 was impractical during my gaming sessions. Nonetheless, those who do not use macros and/or remap their keyboard for gaming will not have any issue using the MX Board 6.0.
The Cherry MX Board 6.0 is undoubtedly a very high quality keyboard, designed to be virtually indestructible and very comfortable for advanced professional users. However, we found Cherry's design confounding. MX Blue/Brown switches are far more popular with typists than MX Red switches, so it is strange that the company decided to offer such a keyboard only with MX Red switches. It is also strange that Cherry included the Realkey technology into this model, as it would be a feature appreciated by gamers, but professionals are unlikely to be swayed by it. Furthermore, the MX Board 6.0 lacks any programmability, a feature that is almost a necessity for gamers nowadays, but also very helpful for many professionals as well.
In conclusion, we feel that the Cherry MX Board 6.0 is aimed towards a very small, specific target group - those who want a top quality keyboard and do not care about advanced features, such as a programmable layout or macro capabilities. It would be an excellent choice for anyone who wants to buy one (and only one) keyboard for years to come, even for gamers if they are certain that they will not need any advanced features.
However with that said, the MX Board 6.0 solid quality comes with one significant drawback, and that's price. The MX Board 6.0 currently retails at the very steep price of $198 plus shipping, which greatly limits its market potential. Professionals can find very good mechanical keyboard retailing for nearly half the price. The very best gaming keyboards using Cherry's own MX switches, such as the Corsair Vengeance K95 RGB and the Cougar 700K, retail for less than Cherry's own implementation, and those keyboards feature programmability, RGB lighting, and macro key functionality that the Cherry does not. As a result, while the Cherry MX Board 6.0 is a product of excellent quality and design, it's misplaced in the market due to a lack of competitive pricing - and that's a significant problem when that competition is based around Cherry's own switches as well.
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Margalus - Wednesday, January 27, 2016 - link
Sorry, but I disagree vehemently.. I cannot stand Red, you may as well just use a cheap chiclet keyboard imo if you like red. That is what they feel like to me. Brown is the best compromise for mechanical, imo, if you don't want the extremely loud blues.Ancillas - Wednesday, January 27, 2016 - link
Have you tried the Clear switches that are on the CODE keyboard?SteelRing - Wednesday, January 27, 2016 - link
I have not tried Red, but I have Rosewill Blue, Rosewill Brown and CM Brown as well as CODE Clear. Blue was my first one and it types just fine for me, but after a while you get enough of that higher pitched clicking noise. Brown really hits it for me because it's just the right amount of force to my fingers and the subdued clacking sound is much more suited in professional environment instead of the Blue screaming "hey I'm typing here y'all better listen to it, hear how hard I'm working". With all the hype on the Clear CODE I picked one up on massdrop and it's by far the worst for me. It requires much higher actuation force so it's tiring my fingers much easily and it feels squishy to push down like there is a resistance all the way down and up, not snappy and sharp the way I like it. Clear is a total letdown so I'm sticking with Brown from now on.Samus - Thursday, January 28, 2016 - link
Brown is without a doubt the best because they don't actually make it feel like a mechanical keyboard. Studies have shown that error rates are higher on mechanical keyboards compared to membrane keyboards so the less mechanical of a feel, the more accurate you are likely to be.BurntMyBacon - Thursday, January 28, 2016 - link
@Samus: "Studies have shown that error rates are higher on mechanical keyboards compared to membrane keyboards ..."That's surprising. I guess mechanical keyboards aren't all they are cracked up to be. Still feel better to me, though. Is the error rate difference large or mostly insignificant? Does if vary highly between switch type? Are linears better than non-linears given the conclusion? Why don't you just post a link to the study. I've got more questions than appropriate for a single post given that the study doesn't line up with my personal observation. Perhaps it can give me some insight as to what I'm doing wrong with membrane keyboards and what I can do to fix it.
hansmuff - Wednesday, January 27, 2016 - link
What a weird keyboard. I don't mind spending $200 on a good keyboard, but certainly not one with that kind of font on it and orange back lighting. Looks like a very misguided attempt at a "gamer" keyboard.529th - Wednesday, January 27, 2016 - link
Terrible review. No in-depth examination, comparison, and explanation of the "new" Real Key technology that is incorporated into the board. How many other boards have this technology? Why, and how is it different than the others? Etc Etc. This lack of interest in the ONE thing that separates this board from others screams for your resignation and or being fired.ukyrgf - Wednesday, January 27, 2016 - link
Nearly every sentence starts with some nonsense fluff like "With all of that said," "On the other hand," "As a matter of fact," but they don't really make sense in context. Probably sponsored content by a non-native speaker. Oh, now I see the Amazon affiliate link!Ryan Smith - Wednesday, January 27, 2016 - link
It is not sponsored content. If it was, we'd tell you.And yes, E. speaks English as a second language.
catavalon21 - Wednesday, February 3, 2016 - link
Thanks, Ryan. E.'s English is better than any second lanuage I would dare take a stab at writing for an audience like this. Keep 'em coming.