Mechanical keyboards are rather simple devices. A nice, functional input device doesn't have to be complicated, but in the last decade, we've seen a lot of functionality crammed into keyboards. I love experimenting with different switch types and I'm all about furthering what's possible with the devices on our desks, but I think we've gone a bit overboard in the keyboard department. Bells and whistles are great, but these five keyboard features are simply overrated.
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5 Knobs
There are already so many ways to set volume
Starting off with a rather hot take: I just don't get the appeal of knobs. They're probably the least egregious add to a keyboard on this list, but it's just one of those things that has more popularity than usefulness. I'll also acknowledge that you can remap knobs to do different functions, which is nice, but honestly, I don't find myself using my keyboard knob basically at all, even if I've set a custom function for it. I've tried to use them in my workflow for zooming, scrolling, and scrubbing, but I just couldn't get used to them.
Volume control is by far the most common function for a knob, and usually does so via your OS. I almost never change the main volume in my OS. Once I set it, I'll very rarely ever change it, but if I do want my total volume to be louder or quieter, I'll use my audio interface for that. I do like being able to "click" a knob to instantly mute, but again, for how popular they are, knobs won't provide much function for most people. They're harmless, but definitely overrated. If you like the sound of a knob to enhance your productivity, picking up a standalone one might be a better move in the long run.
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4 Displays
I almost never look down at my keyboard
One of, if not, the most important part of a keyboard is how it feels to type on. Any experienced typist or gamer is just not going to be looking down at their keyboard nearly at all. For this reason, displays are one of the most overrated features a keyboard can have. Anything that can be displayed on it can be done on one of my main displays. Why would I ever want a worse version of that, down on my keyboard? I'm not going to bother looking down if I can get the same thing at eye level.
Unlike the knob, there are so few actual uses for a display on a keyboard. The only one that might be useful is navigating keyboard settings on-device without having software installed on your PC. But this can be achieved without adding the cost of a dedicated display on-board. They're neat and cool in theory, but I'm skipping on any keyboard that has one.
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3 CNC machined construction
It doesn't need to double as a weapon
Using a keyboard that's been machined out of a chunk of aluminum definitely gives it a more premium feel, but it's unnecessary. These keyboards are very heavy, and while aluminum does afford them extra rigidity, if it's just sitting at your desk, you're not exactly in need of something that robust. On the other side of that coin, if you do want to carry around your keyboard, having one made from a solid block of metal is going to weigh you down quite a bit. It's certainly a feature that's nice to have, but it's overrated as far as I'm concerned.
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2 RGB lighting
It sells, but it's not practical
RGB lighting screams "gamer". It's cheap enough to put in a keyboard, and it certainly helps sell them to the mainstream PC gaming crowd, but it's not an integral part of a keyboard. White LED lighting is far more practical, and although I do like RGB lighting, it's definitely overrated. If the keycaps don't have translucent legends, it's even less useful.
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1 Rapid trigger
Doesn't make a big enough difference for most
One of the latest innovations in keyboard technology that has come to market in the last few years is magnetic switches, otherwise known as hall effect switches. These switches use magnets to produce input instead of a mechanical mechanism. The result of this is not only enabling analog input, but also allowing for technology like rapid trigger.
Rapid trigger is used to detect precisely when you let go of a key, and nullifies the input at that moment. Normal mechanical switches have a completely static reset point, meaning the key resets from 1 to 0 at the same point every time you lift from a keystroke. This sounds great in theory, but in practice, it's not something for everyone. For general typing, it's awful, and for gaming, you'd have to be in the upper range of skill in a given title to notice the difference and reap the benefits of such a technology. It's marketed heavily in basically every gaming keyboard that has magnetic switches, but in reality, it's something a very small subset of gamers can take advantage of.
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With keyboards, sometimes less is more
The inclusion of these features isn't a total deal-breaker for me (except maybe a display) and it shouldn't be for you, either. They're just far more popular than they really should be, and you can still have a fantastic typing experience without them. Finding a good keyboard within your budget that has the switches that feel the best to you will go a lot further than paying more for a knob or RGB lighting.