Serious qustion: why do people correlate a keyboard’s weight with its quality?
For the unitiated, there is a notion in the keyboard hobby that heavier keyboards feel more premium. I understand that there may be other reasons to target heavier keyboards - mainly as heavier and more dense keyboards can correlate with deeper type sounds (depending on other factors) - but the part that is very unintuitive to me is the part where people seek heavier keyboards for the inherent sake of heavier keyboards.
For me, I’d rather have a lighter keyboard so the idea of paying more for a product that will be more difficult to handle is very counterintuitive. “Well that’s just your preference, pal” - yes, this absolutely is. I am also in no way critiquing people’s preference for heavier keyboards as I fully support any preference that’s not detrimental to others. I am writing this post with the hopes of understanding this preference, regardless of whether I ultimately relate to it or not.
The reason this question itches me is because I can’t think of another non-consumable product where weight is valued. For example:
Would you pay more for a heavier laptop? It doesn’t compute any faster or slower or have longer or shorter batter life; it’s just heavier… maybe because we put a block of brass or copper in there?
How about a computer mouse? Interestingly, I believe most mice manufacturers have moved to make their mice lighter and weigh less! Do people in this hobby prefer heavier mice?
Or maybe a watch? If Apple’s next line of Apple Watches came out with a premium version that is 5 pounds heavier but with no additional features, how much would you pay up for it?
OK, OK, all of my examples so far are for products that you have to move or carry, and you’re usually not carrying keyboards… but then what about printers, computer monitors, or desktop computers? Do people also seek heavier printers, monitors and desktops because they feel more premium? Why don’t we see PVD waifus on the bottom of printers? Untapped market perhaps?
I just want to affirm that I am very much asking this as a literal question. I fully support people seeking heavier keyboards - I just wish I knew why.
For me, it’s about use-case. If I want a portable keyboard, I’d like it to be pretty light (if not featherweight). If I want one that lives on the desk, I might prefer it have enough weight to stay firmly planted in-place.
I have a bunch of keyboards, and weights range all over the place. So does the quality - and I wouldn’t say they correlate all that strongly. I have some pretty cheaply-made ones that are heavy - one is even a junky plastic one with literal lead weights in it. I also have one extremely well-made keyboard that also happens to be my heaviest, but it’s the machining and finishing quality that make it good.
That said, I think weight can give the impression of quality in a surface-level sort of way. With keyboards specifically, older and more durable boards tend to be much heavier than the cheap pack-ins that come with PCs, for example. Classic comparison would be an IBM Model M with a steel plate vs the typical Dell dome board in the school library.
It’s also true that some reviewers enjoy a heavy keyboard, and place value on that aspect. I think metal also comes across as more “fancy” than plastic all other things being equal - but of course, they rarely are. My plastic Classic TKL comes across as more thoughtfully made than my aluminum AL-71 to me - but it might not to someone brand new to custom keyboards. Weight can be impressive if you aren’t sure what you’re looking for.
At the end of the day I don’t think most enthusiasts make a direct correlation between weight and quality - but I do think many do appreciate weight as one of many aspects.
I’ve never understood this either, but I thought this was more widespread than just keyboards.
I remember getting an alarm clock at some point that I wound up taking apart and found a 0.5" steel rod rattling around in the bottom of the thing. Perhaps it was simply a counterweight (it was top-heavy), but I feel like “more heavier == more betterer” was at play, too.
Because a heavier keyboard does give a crisper sound and a more stable feel. The keyboard doesn’t move around so much when you’re blind typing, which makes for a better experience. More importantly, nowadays, products are trying to save money, and it is widely recognized that heavier products tend to use more raw materials and cost more to produce higher quality products.
thanks for your thoughts. if i’m understanding you correctly, you’re saying:
that while typing regularly, you can feel more movement in lighter keyboards than heavier keyboards? i personally don’t feel any movement in any of my keyboards, and i even use all my keyboards without feet, so your feedback would be quite surprising to me.
you’re saying that more material is inherently higher quality? if that’s the case, wouldn’t that mean that larger layouts and form factors are inherently better quality than smaller ones - for example, you’re saying that a TKL is inherently better quality than a 60%?
Keyboards aside, you can see this correlation in many everyday things: furniture, kitchen appliances, clothing, rugs, etc. Things that use denser materials often are higher quality and generally last longer, especially if our point of reference is things made in the past (solid wood furniture, metal appliances, wool clothing). I realize that input devices are primarily electronics, but I suppose you could think of a keyboard case as being a type of furniture or decorative piece at least. Plastic will crack and weaken over time as leeched plasticizers or UV radiation make it increasingly brittle – non oxidized metal won’t have this issue.
Now will an all brass keyboard function any better or last any longer than an aluminum case, definitely not. I think this is where we get into the social perception part of all this. Yes, having varying types metal and portions of higher density metal does shape the sound, but I’d wager someone would want a board made out of expensive material because it has more perceived prestige or rarity. In fact, I’d argue that the same person who would buy a solid brass or ss board would be the same person buying a solid titanium board if offered which would be significantly lighter.
All that being said, there are usability concerns as you noted, and with the wrong design (no grooves for your fingers to pick it up), heavy boards can become quite the hassle - my RAMA U-80A is a pain in the ass to reposition. And there has to be a diminishing return on the weight vs perceived quality of products. No one wants a 5lb salt shaker for instance.
interesting. i guess we’re coming from different worlds then because i personally would not want my furniture, appliances, clothing or rugs to be heavier, nor do i consider denser material to be inherently superior. as a counter example, i believe cashmere is generally considered to be superior to wool as it is lighter and less dense, and consequently more light and breathable while also being warmer.
I’ll preface this by saying that I use a plastic keyboard almost exclusively.
I think you’re co-mingling a lot of different ideas. Sure, lighter furniture would be great but unless it’s a complex design with expensive materials (e.g. expensive) it likely means that it’s not built to support a lot of weight over a long period of time so it’s more likely to break. Furniture is very expensive as it is and I’ve seen the higher end stuff that is lighter but it’s generally cost prohibitive for many.
To address your last example you wouldn’t be comparing a wool sweater to a cashmere one, you’d be comparing a low-quality cashmere one to a high-quality one. For a fabric like that it’s unlikely that there will be a significant difference in weight but I’d imagine there would be one. But a denser cashmere would likely have the same light and breathable properties without the concern you’d have with durability in the lower quality garment.
Why stop at tungsten? I’m sure getting your hands on a few kg of depleted uranium and machining a case out of it would be easy, right? Or at least a case weight?
