The man who went for a keyboard and came back with a duck...

Like most PC users, I've typed on and used a variety of different keyboards over the years, from the ancient 'Buckling Spring' type keyboard that came with my old 486 DX/66 PC, all the way through to more modern 'Rubber Dome' options with 'Scissor' keys, so when my keyboard started to get a bit worse for wear, I knew that there were numerous options out there to consider as a replacement.

The keyboard in question that needed replacing was a Saitek Eclipse that I'd had for just over a year or so. Enticed in by the fully backlit keyboard, LCD number pad and sale price on Amazon, it was chosen as a replacement for the previous Logitech KB740 that my wife had bought me some 3-4 years before (I really liked the keyboard but it started developing problems and sadly also became gummed up with something).

In comparison to the Logitech, the Saitek was just nowhere near as nice to use, in less than a year there were numerous keys where the lettering had flaked off, the LCD number pad that had initially helped draw me in proved to be terrible in comparison to using standard keys, the drivers never seemed to work properly meaning that I had to unplug and re-plug the keyboard in every time the PC was booted in order for the numpad to actually light up, and it simply felt much cheaper than the Logitech (which in truth it was).

Determined this time around to not get stuck with another sub-par keyboard, I decided to put in the hours of research that would hopefully help prevent another purchase like the Saitek (I'm sure their other stuff is quite nice, but the keyboard was a real let down in this case).

The first question that came up was whether or not to stick with the more common 'Rubber Dome' type keyboards used by the majority of people which uses small domes of rubber to push down onto a membrane over a circuit board to identify when a key is pressed (chances are that if you buy a keyboard for less than £50, it's going to be one of these), or to instead go for a 'Mechanical' keyboard where there's a direct switch in each key that will 'Actuate' when pressed.

Oddly enough, around 20-30 years ago, the majority of keyboards WERE Mechanical, with many typists still having fond memories of their old IBM Model M boards (that some still use today), but the advantage of the newer membrane boards was price – they are MUCH cheaper to manufacture compared to mechanical options and for a large percentage of users, they simply don't care that much about how a keyboard is made to pay more than a bare minimum to do the job, hence why mechanical boards had fallen somewhat out of fashion.

The past 5-6 years however have seen a resurgence of mechanical keyboards, often aimed either at the gaming market or for typists who are unsatisfied with the way membrane boards feel.

The decision is not actually that straightforward either, as there are people on both sides of the keyboard fence who will fight their corner to the bitter end about which choice is better, with arguments raging about number of macro functions, placement of keys, even the material of the key caps being used to try to gain an advantage in the debate.

Personally I think it simply comes down to personal choice, there are good and bad points about both types of boards and I very much believe that if you've tried both types and don't have an obvious preference after using them, then you should arguably go for the cheapest board that feels comfortable and not give a damn what anyone else thinks.

In my case, having used membrane boards for the past 7-10 years I've found their lifespan to be a key issue here, with many boards simply not performing anywhere near well enough after a relatively short space of time and requiring replacement within a few years - something that tends not to be an issue with mechanical boards due to their higher price and frequently stronger build quality.

After much to-ing and fro-ing I decided to go down the mechanical route this time.

The next major decision was what type of switches I wanted in my keyboard.

Whilst there are a variety of different switch types available (such as Buckling Spring, ALPS, Topres etc) the most common type found tend to be 'Cherry MX' switches, which come in a number of different colours all of which have their own specific features and responses, and this was the switch type I focused on.

There are around approx 7-9 different colour types of Cherry switches, but out of these there are really 4 main colours that you'll find in the majority of boards – Red, Black, Blue and Brown.

Both the Blue and Brown switches feature 'tactile' feedback, that is, that they give a slight 'bump' feeling at the point that they key actuates, with the Blues being firmer than the Browns whilst also providing a distinctive 'clicking' noise at the same time, whilst the Browns are silent at this point.

The Red and Black switches are 'linear', and unlike the Blue or Brown switches, they feature no bump at the actuation point and are both relatively quiet, with the key difference being the amount of pressure needed to activate the switch with the Blacks requiring more than the Reds.

One of the commonly heard things at this point is that certain switches are only really good for certain things, e.g. if your focus is purely on typing you should go ideally with the Blue switches or maybe the Browns, whereas for gamers that require quick key presses, then the Red or Brown will likely be the optimal choice (Browns are very much a middle ground between Blue and Red). Personally I again feel that this comes down to personal taste, in that I've seen plenty of people saying that they love typing on Red switches and hated Blues, and also that some 'Pro' gamers use Blue switches rather than Reds in a number of games...

I however immediately discounted the Blue switches because of their inherent clicking noise and general loudness in use along with their firmer activation point and bump. I also ruled out the Black switches after hearing a number of reports from people saying that they felt fatigued when using the keys for long periods due to their harder actuation pressure requirements.

This left me with a direct choice between Brown and Red switches, and in truth I must have spent 3-4 days agonising over which would likely be the best choice for my requirements. In truth I could have done either way, but in the end decided that because the majority of my time was spent gaming (either on World of Tanks or numerous FPS/TPS games) with occasional typing thrown in, that I would go with the Red switches over the Browns.

At this point you'd probably think that most of the hard work would be done, but then you enter the next minefield in regards to keyboard manufacturer, size and style of keyboard, prices, reliability, accessibility and even things like lighting and key placement!

After more research there were around 6-10 different manufacturers who consistently got good feedback and reviews for comfort of use, build quality and longevity and it was simply a case of narrowing the search down from there.

The easiest step here was to focus first on my budget which at £70 removed probably 5-6 manufacturers straight-away as even their more budget friendly options were outside my reach (which lead to the removal from consideration of very well regarded and popular names like Filco and Das Keyboard).

I also sadly had to remove Rosewill from my options due to not being able to find a UK supplier and simply not wanting the hassle of importing from the US (or having a US layout board either). Frankly, I think this is a major oversight on Rosewill's part as I'm sure there would be strong interest from the UK market in their products, but clearly this is not part of their current thoughts and thus I looked elsewhere.

I also removed all options that didn't provide a full 104 key layout, which removed 'TKL' or 'Ten Key Less' options (basically the numpad is removed) from the equation, and due to the budget restrictions the LED back lighting also had to make way (as I don't type in total darkness anyway and know my way round the keyboard regardless it was simply a nice 'extra').

In the end it came down to a choice between two suppliers – Cooler Master, and Ducky.

Cooler Master's offering was the CM Storm Quickfire XT, whereas Ducky were providing the DK2108 'Zero'.

Both are well regarded manufacturers, both boards look to be well built and likely to do a good job for my requirements, but in the end the stronger reputation of the Ducky along with what I felt was a slightly better key layout and key font decided the issue, and the DK2108 was duly ordered.

It arrived today, and in fact this whole article is written using it, and so far I have to say that I'm VERY impressed with it. It's definitely taking a bit of time to adjust to, having using membrane boards for the past decade, but the smoothness and accuracy of the key presses, the comfortable layout and even the lovely sound the board makes whilst typing is a genuine improvement on the previous boards.

I've had no problems so far whilst gaming either (even if it's just been approx 2 hours on WoT), and getting rid of the 'mushy' feeling I got from the other membrane boards is absolutely an improvement.

I also have no regrets about ordering the Red switches either, and whilst it would be unfair to dismiss the Brown switches having never used them, I can't see how I'd genuinely prefer the tactile bump in the majority of applications, nor would I want to give up the absolute smoothness of the Red keys either. Maybe at some point in the future I'll get round to giving a Brown switch board a good test, but for now I'm perfectly happy with the decision to go with the Reds.

I'm also not going to go into further detail on the Ducky board because there are already numerous reviews out there that will probably convey the necessary information better, and more accurately than I would, focusing on key features etc, but I certainly wouldn't hesitate to recommend the board to anyone currently on the hunt for a new mechanical board themselves.

The price clearly ISN'T cheap, and I'm fairly sure that there's probably a number of people sat there shaking their heads in disgust and shock at the thought of someone spending £70 on a keyboard, when they're perfectly happy with the £5 budget board they picked up at their local retailer (e.g. Asda/Walmart), but so far I think it's worth paying the extra for.

The build quality is excellent, with strong, thick plastic throughout. and on a bizarre and relatively irrelevant side note, this is vastly more reassuring to have to hand in the event of a zombie outbreak than the £5 budget special would be!

Considering that I've probably paid close to £75 on the previous two boards over the past 4-5 years, then assuming the Ducky lasts that long, I've certainly not lost out financially, plus I'll have had the benefit of a nicer, more accurate and more comfortable board in the meantime.