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
We frequently review mechanical keyboards here in AnandTech. Over half of them come with mechanical switches from Cherry, and for good reason. If you are keeping track of our recent reviews, you should have noticed that Cherry's switches generally are more consistent than any other type we have tested to this date. Cherry is virtually the inventor of the modern mechanical keyboard switch (not to be confused with the classic buckling spring), manufacturing and marketing them since nearly three decades ago. It is only because their patent expired that other manufacturers were able to copy their switch designs.
With all of that said, Cherry is not only supplying their switches to other keyboard manufacturers. As a matter of fact, the company has a significant line-up of their own keyboard and mouse products. On the other hand, Cherry's products are almost exclusively aimed towards professionals and for specific applications, such as keyboards with biometric or magnetic card readers for security. Considering the target market of their products, naturally their keyboards were using just plastic black or beige parts and never looked like anything special. However, Cherry is taking a huge leap of faith and releasing a new keyboard, the MX Board 6.0, which a mere glance upon it is enough to reveal that it is nothing like their previous products.
Cherry MX Board 6.0 Keyboard - Key Features and Specifications
- The world's fastest keyboard – with Cherry MX and Cherry RK
- CHERRY MX RED – Gold Crosspoint precision keyswitch for all keys »Made in Germany«
- Aluminium housing with sanded finish and grease resistant coating
- CHERRY RealKey technology – fully analog signal processing
- All keyswitches are read simultaneously
- 100% anti-ghosting - No inputting errors
Packaging & Bundle
The packaging of the MX Board 6.0 is the perfect example of the company's market philosophy; very sturdy, completely plain and painfully serious. It could be run over by a car and there would not be any damage to the keyboard or the rest of the contents, but there is almost nothing eye-catching about it. As a matter of fact, those who do not know of Cherry might not even realize that there is a keyboard inside the box without closely inspecting it.
Inside the box, we found the keyboard inside a very nice and soft pouch-cover, a large wrist rest and a basic manual. The manual is small and simple, but it is clearly written and more than enough for the few extra functions of the MX Board 6.0.
Finally, retail prices for the MX Board 6.0 are hovering around $200, with a price of $198 at the time this article was written.
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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.