When my mom was working on her doctorate, she sometimes took me along to the college library where she used a terminal to access research material. Although the memory is vague, maybe the terminal had keycaps like this. One of the ultimate expressions of the MT3 profile in my opinion. At first I thought the grey alphas were a bit too bleached for my taste. Looking at this photo of an IBM 3270 terminal , you can see the difference in contrast with the historical reference. Turns out I was worried about nothing. Once I'd installed the full set I was super impressed by the colorway.
Another great MT3 set with appropriately retro-styled packaging
MT3 is a high profile ABS keycap set, with a (very) spherical top and thick sides. The F and J home keys are even more spherical.
Legends are double-shot, clear and well defined, and also consistent across the board. Includes both Fn and Menu keys and, in the base set, a goodly number of additional keys to cover keyboard layout variations.
The sides of the keycaps are smooth, but the upper surfaces have a slight texture. This is in contrast to, say, SA keycaps which are very smooth and slippery on both the sides and typing surface. After a couple of weeks of moderate daily use, there is no evidence of shining.
I've been seeking a light grey set for a while, and the colour of the alphas is just right, as well as being very well matched to the white on black modifiers. In low light conditions it might be slightly difficult to read the white alpha legends on the light grey background, but the fact that the keycaps are not overly reflective helps.
I tried them on a white keyboard, but they didn't really match. The original IBM 3277 keyboard was beige, but I don't have a beige mechanical keyboard to try them on. Instead I've been using them on a black CODE keyboard with MX clear switches, which seems a very nice match. Used mainly for programming, they are comfortable to use all day.
The box is a clear nod back to IBM, and easily stands out on a shelf filled with generic brown boxes of keycaps.
Packaging was up to Drop's usual standard, was shipped the day after I ordered, and took about two weeks to get to Australia.
Overall another great MT3 set in an unusual but pleasing colourway.
There's not a ton to say about a good set of keycaps. There's also a lot of reviews that go over what's great about these that'll do them better service than what I could provide (especially as someone who isn't fully invested in the keyboard hobby).
The bullet points are as follows:
The texture of the caps is soft and pleasing to the touch.
If you like the scooped feeling of a MT3 set, you'll enjoy these. If your preference is more towards something like a Cherry profile, I'd recommend looking elsewhere. I like both, but I grew up in the 90's having typed on a few different keyboards and typewriters (yes, those wondrous mechanical devices that predate the computer) so switching to different key layouts doesn't bother me.
The keys are great for typing, perhaps not as great for gaming. I do both, and I don't mind them for gaming, but I think Cherry is a little more accessible in this area.
The colors are really nice and vibrant, and pair exceptionally well with my Series One Pro. The mouse is a slightly darker grey, but they're close enough to feel complimentary.
The set comes well packaged in a cool retro design. May or may not be your thing. As a designer it's definitely my thing.
What to consider:
You may not like the MT3 profile. I addressed this above. I like it, but not everyone will.
Some may prefer PBT over ABS due to shine. I don't really care. I've used everything from top of the line to cheap keys, and the colors matter more to me than something pristine. If you care more about presentation versus high use, you may want to look elsewhere (or simply, you know, never use them).
I'm not a big fan of the $150 entry for base + accents. Keyboards are an expensive hobby, and I know that there's much worse out there in terms of cost. At the end of the day, I realize I'm being overly critical here and that the price is in-line with plenty of other offerings. I think it's unfair to consider this a con, because I don't know the cost of production vs. development time, as well as creator compensation, and all of those things add up.
There are no home bumps for touch typing. There are noticeably scooped F and J keys to help finding the home row, but I could see where that would still be an issue for some people. I'm so used to finding the home row at this point I probably wouldn't require a touch typing legend to begin with.
Other Thoughts:
If I'm being nitpicky I'd possibly argue that the font size is a bit too large for my personal tastes. Still, it's clean and easy to read, so at the end of the day it's something that's more personal preference. To each their own, and I don't design keycaps so you can take my feedback here with a grain of salt.
In conclusion I'd say if you're looking for a nicely accented keycap set that's not outrageously expensive, and should supplement a fair amount of the casual user's needs, this would be a good place to start. Especially if you have something like a GMMK Pro (or similar board) that won't be covered by sets like Skylight.
So many ways to dress these up with different colors and novelties. MT3 profile is my personal favorite and these are a great addition to my collection.
I purchased the base with turquoise, and similarly to /dev/tty, this set goes with just about any board. I'm a huge fan of the MT3 profile, and these caps are incredibly versatile.