CHERRY MX Board 6.0 Review

If you demand the best out of your keyboard then you are in for a treat! Said to be the fastest keyboard in the world, we take a look at the Cherry MX Board 6.0 that promises precision and responsiveness like no other.

Product on Review: CHERRY MX Board 6.0
Manufacturer & Sponsor: Cherry
Street Price: €189 EUR – £140 GBP – $219 USD

In the business of making keyboards since 1967, CHERRY are widely known for their high quality CHERRY MX mechanical switches which has surged into the mainstream market. Based in Auerbach Germany, precision and performance are taken very seriously and shows in their products.

Their latest flagship, the CHERRY MX Board 6.0 fuses many of their latest innovations including RealKey (RK), realtime analogue processing which registers each and every key stroke faster than any other keyboard before it while utilising the CHERRY MX (Mechanical gold ‘X’ point) switches throughout. The MX Board 6.0 is also CHERRY’s own ‘first’ LED backlit keyboard where the backlit switches were made mostly due to demand from 3rd parties. So there is enough know how and quality to gain the attention of the seasoned user, though it is our duty to ask the question, is it good?

Overview by CHERRY

CHERRY, specialist in computer input devices, is presenting the MX Board 6.0, the world’s most responsive performance keyboard for enthusiasts. The keyboard combines the latest RealKey-technology for analog signal processing with the proven and precise MX-switches for uncompromised performance. With this flagship model, CHERRY aims for an absolute puristic design of the highest quality.

Technical Specifications

Technical Data:
Layout (country or language): Product dependant, see table “Models”
Housing colour: Aluminium (Sanded-Finish)
Key colour: black
Weight (product): aprox. 1350 g (Keyboard), 257 g (Wrist rest)
Total weight (with packaging): approx. 2300 g
Cable Length: 2 m
Storage Temperature: -20°C to 60°C
Operating Temperature: 0°C to 50°C
Current Consumption: max. 500 mA
Interface: USB

Product approvals:
• c-tick
• UL
• VCCI
• CE
• FCC
• BSMI
• KCC

System requirements:
• USB connection

Package Contents:
• CHERRY MX BOARD 6.0
• Wrist rest
• Operating instructions in hard copy

Dimensions (product): approx. 454 x 147 x 28.4 mm (Keyboard)
Packaging dimensions: approx. 482 x 237 x 70 mm
Reliability: MTBF (90) > 80,000 hours

Keyboard:
• Key technology: MX
• Service life, standard key: > 50 million key operations
• Operation characteristics: RED SWITCH Linear (45 cN)
• Inscription technology: Laser
• Inscription layout: Standard
• Number of Keys: Product dependant, see table “Models”
• Number of additional keys: 4

Warranty:2 years

Features
Key benefits
• The worlds fastest keyboard – with CHERRY MX and
CHERRY RK
• Mechanics: CHERRY MX technology – Gold Crosspoint
precision module for all keys “Made in Germany”
• Electrics: CHERRY RealKey technology – fully analog signal
processing
• Full N-Key rollover – all keys are read simultaneously
• 100 % anti-ghosting – no inputting errors
• Aluminium top housing with sanded finish and grease
resistant coating
• Bi-colour status keys (blue backlight when activated)
• Win-Key deactivation
• 12 double function keys
• Red LED key backlight with adjustable brightness (dimmer)
• Rubber palm rest with magnetic connector (quick-snap)
• 200 cm cable with textile covering

Packaging & Bundle

The packaging is fairly plain, yet classy in and understated way, running mostly on the brand image to capture attention.

At the back we get an image of the product with information about its features, we also get introduced to some German human in the ‘What you need’ section.

PC peripherals have a thing for inception… box within a box within a box… I do like cherries though.

Included inside is a large wrist rest, the frame is plastic but there is a soft rubberised surface which has enough squishiness to it to feel great. It attaches to the main keyboard through the power of magic-netism.

Inside CHERRY include a fabric case/bag which could offer some form of protection on the move or act as a dust cover if your keyboard will remain unused for a long period of time.

The MX Board 6.0, a solid no nonsense design familiar to many.

Closer Look

The top half of the construction is a solid, sandblasted piece of aluminium block which looks very sleek. The key caps are high quality laser engraved and smudgeproof, meaning it will stay looking fresh for as long as you can keep its crevices clear from dust, hair and other manner of things that work their way into your keyboard.

On the underside we find 6 non slip pads, as well as feet to increase the angle as required.

The wrist rest links with the main body of the keyboard and offers a large area of softness, not cushion but not plain hard plastic either.

For the moment Board 6.0 comes with Red switches only – no other variants will be available in the short-term but we’re hopeful that Cherry will supply an assortment of options as this will ultimately appeal to a wider selection of users.

On the F keys we find some volume and lighting controls, there are 10 steps of lighting including off, there is also a fine tune for the lighting offering subtle increments for your perfect level, there is also a simple on off switch too. On the far right of the board there are some media keys beside the CHERRY key, allowing to lock the FN function to double the F key assignments. There is also the function to deactivate the windows key.

The lighting ranges from very dim to very bright and there are various bi-lit keys which displays blue when a key is locked on, ie caps lock,num lock, scroll lock, as well as the Windows and FN key.

Performance Testing

Performance

In Aqua’s KeyTest, just mashing my hands on the keyboard instantly responded with full NKRO, I did spend a little time trying to fully hold down each key but I grew tired of using my arms and face (maybe I should have invited my neighbour round to help).

Typing and general use felt familiar yet comforting. The quality of the keyboard when typing is as you would expect and considering I rarely use CHERRY MX Red because I tend to end up having so many typos, I found myself more confident with the MX Board 6.0. Maybe its psychological, or simply the confidence in the anti-ghosting capabilities of this board, none of that matters because you just sense the quality and precision at your fingertips. In gaming, the response and precision was smooth and enjoyable and encountered no issues at all. Testing out my typing skills I managed to score above my personal average WPM (words per minute) of 55-60 with a score of 63 first time. The wrist rest proves very useful and comfortable, yet offered a slight annoyance as the mid section would become magnetically unstuck, then bounce back as it bowed away from the magnetic point on the main body, though this is mostly an oversight as it does not detract from its overall function and merely served as a minor distraction.

Generally it is fairly difficult to test the response and performance of a keyboard in a more objective and scientific manner but subjectively our impression is excellent, the MX Board 6.0 gave rock solid and reliable performance in typing and gaming.

Conclusion

Though CHERRY seem ambiguous about who the MX Board 6.0 is aimed at, there are certain truths worth considering. It is a high quality, high performing no nonsense keyboard that does away with frills yet offers just enough to please anyone who would consider themselves to be an enthusiast.

This does mean that there are some downsides, for the price (€189 EUR – £140 GBP – $219 USD), you do away with fancy software, macros and profiles which some gamers may not be able to do without. Also others who want a more flashy form of lighting may not enjoy the plain RED LEDs. Though if these things mentioned are not an issue and you are simply looking for a top quality mechanical keyboard without any fuss, then for all its simplicity you can’t argue with going for the best from CHERRY. Highly recommended, Gold.

‘Simply the best’, the MX Board 6.0 is a high performance, no-nonsense mechanical keyboard where quality gleams inside and out.

Pros.
+ High quality construction
+ Sleek aesthetic
+ Full NKRO
+ MX CHERRY switches with realkey technology
+ Included wrist rest
+ Adjustable backlighting

Cons.
– Price
– No software/macros