After hours of digging info on Kailh, my view on this specific brand changed quite a fair bit.
I would have never spent so much time browsing pages and pages of hate-filled comments (Razer using these switches didn't help) if it hadn't been for this board's layout, which I love. So I looked around (GH, DT, reddit, Youtube, blogs and so on) and realized that the major criticism toward Kailh switches dated back 6 to 10 months.
At the time, nobody had real feedback (as in "I spent a few months with them, here are my two cents") except for a chinese guy on reddit who had posted a photo of a first gen yellow Kailh switch, with a broken stem (this photo really did start the fire imho).
Looking for later reviews helped me realize that the switches we are now facing are in their third generation, they come from a need not only to make everything cheaper, but also to provide a solution to the Cherry MX shortage.
They don't actually break as much as we'd like to believe (and Cherry MX do happen to break sometimes as well), depending on the color, some people prefer Kailh to Cherry MX (as mozaiq mentioned), and part of the cheap feeling we may get from these switches, from an exterior point of view, MAY come from the fact that they are used by cheaper keyboards with a lesser reputation than a flippin' Filco.
All in all, actual feedback tends to depict Kailh as a decent switch brand (if you disregard the ethical standpoint toward clones), the only remaining question being the very long term usage (over 50 million key strokes).
That said, I decided to give it a shot with blacks. :)
Pr.PlumpBless your heart for going through that trouble! I myself have been scouring through the web to try and find comparisons, etc. on this particular board so I'm glad I'm not alone!
I already have a Poker with Browns, so despite a little more hesitancy toward the Kailh blues, I'm still interested in those since I don't have anything else to compare it to, besides my old NMB keyboard with the clicky "space invaders" switches. I really wanted to be a part of the Keycool 87 drop earlier, but what I really desired was the white version with the multi-colored lighting.
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Even then, I think at this price point, and for the layout, the 84 would be a great keyboard to try out so I can keep that at work instead of toting my Poker 2 back home on the weekends. :)
CbisquitI have to say, that white lit version looks sweet. But I want blue switches on the next tenkeyless I buy, and I read the same thing as Johan450 did, Kailh's blue version feels a bit sloppier than its Cherry counterpart.
Here is the review Johan was talking about, the most thorough I read on Kailh blue. Plus it's on a KC 87 : https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=62357.0
That's why I decided to go with black on this KC 84, and wait some more for a batch of MX blue. Probably on a Poker 2 when I get the money, it looks so gorgeous ! ^^
Johan450Yep, probably the "safest" bet. Although I'm pretty sure that red and black, due to their lack of tactile or clicky response, aren't any more risky.
@blau : Datasheets alone can't really prove anything... These are two different companies, Kailh can try to clone Cherry all they want, if they don't use the exact same machines and protocoles in their production, the swiches are going to be or at least feel (maybe just slightly) different. Worth the try in my opinion.
@Bread : White only it is. :s
I would have never spent so much time browsing pages and pages of hate-filled comments (Razer using these switches didn't help) if it hadn't been for this board's layout, which I love. So I looked around (GH, DT, reddit, Youtube, blogs and so on) and realized that the major criticism toward Kailh switches dated back 6 to 10 months. At the time, nobody had real feedback (as in "I spent a few months with them, here are my two cents") except for a chinese guy on reddit who had posted a photo of a first gen yellow Kailh switch, with a broken stem (this photo really did start the fire imho). Looking for later reviews helped me realize that the switches we are now facing are in their third generation, they come from a need not only to make everything cheaper, but also to provide a solution to the Cherry MX shortage. They don't actually break as much as we'd like to believe (and Cherry MX do happen to break sometimes as well), depending on the color, some people prefer Kailh to Cherry MX (as mozaiq mentioned), and part of the cheap feeling we may get from these switches, from an exterior point of view, MAY come from the fact that they are used by cheaper keyboards with a lesser reputation than a flippin' Filco.
All in all, actual feedback tends to depict Kailh as a decent switch brand (if you disregard the ethical standpoint toward clones), the only remaining question being the very long term usage (over 50 million key strokes).
That said, I decided to give it a shot with blacks. :)