Pennywoloz wrote: ↑17 Oct 2019, 20:00This could also go for Topre. What made cherry mx and its clones become the dominant key switch? We now have a rise in custom made keyboard switches (like the romer g and steelseries switches) but razers clones, gateron, greetech, etc and the original cherry are far more popular. Then I'm looking for some alps type keyboards and literally the only ones that aren't discontinued are the Matias, which I've heard aren't as nice as original alps. Keyboards like the filco zero and ducky 1087XM went out of production shortly after they were started. Why do you think this is? I've never tried an alps keyboard (I have ordered a set of the clicky, quiet click, and linear matias switches with keycaps from a guy on eBay, but that's not the same as trying it out on a real keyboard) and it seems like something I may be into but the matias keyboards are by their own admission "not used for gaming" (which I guess means they don't have nkro?). Why did cherry emerge as the dominant force in mechanical keyboards, and not alps, or topre? Or hell, buckling springs? While none of these kinds of boards have gone the way of the dinosaur, when compared to mx and clones, I'd be surprised if they comprised a tenth of the market share that cherry does.
Alps are hard to find and aren’t made any more , I don’t think it’s because people dislike them (although that’s my reason for not using them), and they are destroyed by dust and dirt, which is common for vintage boards. I think the main reason is accessibility. You can get cherry mx type switches anywhere nowadays