Not All Linears Are The Same!
Figure 1: Not even all of these (mostly) KTT-made linears are the same! After all of my years of collecting, reviewing, and obsessing over switches, I can say with certainty that linear switches are the most misunderstood of all of the switch types. No, I’m not talking about mechanically either, as all of the claims of them “just going straight up and down” are somewhat kind of true. (Not too much though, don’t get that excited.) The part that is often misunderstood, though, is usually in what is being implied when people say that these switches just go straight up and down – “All linears might as well be the same.” If the title of this article didn’t make that obvious enough to you, I find that sort of idea to be completely and utterly wrong. The people who make these implications wouldn’t say that a Cherry MX Black is the same as a Novelkeys Cream switch? They also certainly wouldn’t ever claim that every Gateron-made linear is the same as every fancy TTC one out there...
May 29, 2024
Colored Polycarbonate Cases The fully-built CSTM80 comes with a black top case. You don’t have to pay extra to get a “complete” product and even when products come in various colors, black is usually the most popular. But, top cases will be available in the following colors for easy swapping and matching to existing or future keycap sets: ▪️ White ▪️ Purple ▪️ Orange ▪️ Green ▪️ Black ▪️ Others are in the works and will be announced as they are ready Aluminum Cases Some folks prefer the heft and feel of aluminum wherever possible in their keyboard. While the CSTM does ship with an aluminum weight by default, you can also outfit it with a forged aluminum top case to round out a metal-themed build. The aluminum forging process is the same process used to create premium aluminum car wheels. In short, a single billet of aluminum is formed under immense pressure into the shape of the top case, resulting in a stronger case than a comparable CNC-milled aluminum case (while also wasting less material in the process). Aluminum cases will be available in the following colors to start: ▪️ Anodized Black ▪️ Anodized Silver Artwork/Designer Cases Last but not least, we are excited to partner with designers to create unique top cases (think of the Expression Series boards we currently offer—Shinai, The Lord of the Rings, etc) that can be swapped on CSTM80 to add an additional pop of flair to your setup. These top cases can be themed to perfectly match a keycap set that a designer is creating, or could be designed in isolation to match a variety of different keycap sets on the market. This will allow you to perfectly tune your CSTM80 keyboard to your liking and add a custom-designed top case as the cherry (no pun intended) on top to round out your build.