The best known and most frequently encountered mechanical key switches come from a company called Cherry. These Cherry MX switches come in a range of styles that offer different operation and feedback to better match with your own personal preference and the work or play you plan to do most on them (though all have an actuation point 2mm). This rundown of the most common Cherry switches will help you better match what you need with the keyboard you buy. Keep in mind that although these details may differ somewhat in switches of a similar style made by companies other than Cherry, almost every manufacturer maintains the same basic color scheme to help keep confusion down.

Cherry MX Blue: A close approximation of the old-school buckling spring switch (see below) but with a new-style mechanism, Cherry MX Blue switches are both tactile and clicky, so you can feel as well as hear the completion of a keystroke. These are ideal for serious typists (many of whom insist the switches deliver a turbocharging bounce you can't get anywhere else), but not best for gaming applications, as they have a rather high actuation force (of 50 centi-Newtons, or cN) than you might prefer in a fast-twitch gun battle. Another potential downside: Some people find the keys' audible click quite loud and annoying, which may cause problems in close quarters, whether at the office or at home.

Cherry MX Black: With the highest actuation force of the standard Cherry varieties (60cN), the Cherry MX Black switch can come across as stiff and thus wholly unsuitable to the kind of nimble key work most speed and touch typists depend on. But this makes Black an excellent switch for cases where precision is paramount: entering mission-critical data, say, or gaming, as you will seldom have to worry about accidentally striking a key twice. Cherry MX Black switches are also neither tactile nor clicky.

Cherry MX Red: Similar to Black, Cherry MX Red switches lack both tactile and auditory feedback. But they have a lower actuation force (45cN), so they can be hit more quickly and more often, giving you the edge in any title demanding ultra-quick input. These same qualities, however, keep them from being a good choice if typing is your primary activity, as they make it a lot easier to register more keystrokes than you intend.

Cherry MX Brown: If you spend about as much time scribing emails and Word documents as you do mowing down charging enemies in first-person shooters, the Cherry MX Brown switch may be for you. Its 45cN actuation force is identical to what you get from the Red switch and, like it, the switch isn't clicky, but it gives you the same typing-boosting tactile bump you get from Blue.