4 things stopping mechanical keyboards from achieving total domination

I’ve said before that we’re going through the golden age of mechanical keyboards. Both the quality and affordability have never been better, and the interest from passionate fans and people outside the community has never been higher. However, it still feels like something is stopping mechanical keyboards from truly taking over — there seems to be an invisible ceiling that keeps things from getting truly exciting.

I am trying to figure out what’s at play here, and I’ve come up with at least four reasons why mechanical keyboards haven’t received their due recognition. I believe these four reasons are blocking the mechanical keyboard market from reaching the next level in the next few years.

It’s a niche group of hobbyists and enthusiasts

It’s easy to lose track of the fact that, compared to the larger majority of computer users, the mechanical keyboard users are still a small bunch. From what rough estimates I can find, the mechanical keyboard market is valued at less than half of the total worldwide keyboard market. Even without hard data, we know that the majority of keyboards in the world are still non-mechanical, between business users, commercial users, and average individuals.

There are many reasons to love mechanical keyboards, from the typing experience and unique designs, to the customization options and highly satisfying modding options. However, that doesn’t change the fact that in order for the market to expand rapidly and gain a majority share of the overall keyboard market, there’s still a lot of ground to cover.

The average user still doesn’t care about what type of keyboard is on their desk, and to change that mentality, it’ll take a few more years and some work on the other reasons I cover below.

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3 The perception of mechanical keyboards needs fixing

People still think they’re only for gamers and pretentious nerds

Nothing is immune to a few myths and misconceptions, and mechanical keyboard myths are also a thing. First off, people outside the community still believe that mechanical keyboards are only made for gamers and those who like to use fancy keyboards with needless features. Secondly, people think that every keyboard is the same, irrespective of whether it’s mechanical or whatever they’re using right now. And lastly, many still believe that they’re highly expensive and complicated.

If you’re someone who believes in these or other myths about mechanical keyboards, you’re missing out on a fantastic typing experience. Mechanical keyboards are for anyone who values a satisfying typing sound and feel, wants the freedom to choose a board of their size & looks, and wants to be able to customize their keyboard to their liking long after the initial purchase.

Once more users are brought into the fold, and they realize the true benefits mechanical keyboards have to offer, their perception will start to shift. Some day (hopefully soon), I believe we could see an overwhelming majority choosing mechanical keyboards over anything else.

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2 The limited availability is hurting widespread adoption

You won’t find your favorite at a local store

Some of you might not relate to this, but many people still buy their electronics offline from their nearest Best Buy or Micro Center brick & mortar shop. And such stores don’t stock anything outside the most well-known keyboards from big brands like Asus, Steelseries, Corsair, Logitech, Keychron, and Razer. Even if they wanted to, they probably can’t stock much variety due to the relatively limited offline demand for brands like Epomaker, Womier, Aula, Ducky, or others preferred by enthusiasts.

Even if you consider online marketplaces like Amazon, you’ll not find every single mechanical keyboard available. The availability on Amazon is certainly miles better compared to that in, say, a local Micro Center, but it’s still not ideal. You often need to order your desired keyboard directly from the manufacturer’s website, and people aren’t always comfortable doing so.

Until the demand for more custom and lesser-known mechanical keyboards increases, their availability will not improve. And the demand will only increase once more people take interest in them, and start demanding retailers to stock the products they want. The manufacturers that are currently focused only on D2C selling will also consider adding an offline sales channel if they see enough business happening there.

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1 The pricing still can’t touch that of mass-market keyboards

How do you compete with $10 office keyboards?

The fact is that the average user is still buying a cheap office keyboard from Amazon — it’s enough to meet their needs. They don’t care about the switches, keycaps, or foam inside their keyboard. All they need is something that has all the required buttons for keyboard input, and probably some RGB would be a bonus. When they can get all of that in a mass-produced membrane keyboard for as little as $10-$20, why would they consider even budget mechanical keyboards?

You might point out the $30 mechanical keyboards on Amazon, but those boards are a far cry from the decent budget mechanical boards from one of the better-known brands, like Royal Kludge. The price factor is again linked to perception — once people become aware of the vast gulf in performance and quality between a regular keyboard and a decent mechanical one, only then will they consider paying the premium it deserves.

For those of us already entrenched in the mechanical keyboard hobby, paying $50-$70 for an affordable mechanical keyboard might be a steal. However, for those who’ve never experienced one, it can feel like a big investment.

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Mechanical keyboards are on the cusp of something great

I believe that the mechanical keyboard market is brimming with exciting new developments. Combined with the new trends around magnetic switches and rapid trigger keyboards, and the growing popularity of custom DIY kits, the overall hobbyist keyboard scene is just waiting to explode. If you’re someone who’s been on the fence about buying a pre-built mechanical keyboard or building a custom one yourself, the time has never been better to indulge your mechanical keyboard hobby.