OUTEMU Medium-Low Profile Brown Switches, 3-Pin 1.6mm Travel Distance Thin Tactile Key switches - 20 Pack - Cherry MX Compatible DIY Replaceable Switches for Mechanical Keyboard

I recently got a Zsa Moonlander keyboard, but hated the switches it came with. (I also hated the key caps, but we’ll get to that later). I realized that I’m used to low-profile keys, so I set out on a quest to see what I could do to make this keyboard work for me and my needs. There aren’t a ton of options in the low-profile MX-compatible area - in fact, I think this is one of the only ones. I gave it a shot since the price seemed decent. Initially I ordered the reds because one of my concerns was the clicky sound, but found out quickly that they were way too sensitive. Just resting my fingers on the keys might trigger a key press. I decided to give the browns a shot, and I’m so glad I did. They are exactly what I needed. Just enough resistance that I’m not accidentally triggering keys or triggering keys twice. They’re not any louder than the reds, in my opinion. They all work perfectly so far, but we’ll see how they hold up. This was my first time swapping out key switches, so I’m not sure if it was me, or if this is common, but the small pins on the bottom (specifically the one I circled in the photo I attached) had a tendency to bend when plugging it in. Sometimes it was probably my fault, but it also made me realize that a few of the switches actually came bent once I started inspecting. That part is really sensitive, so be aware. However, it’s also really easy to bend back into shape. So, I would just remove the switches that didn’t work, bend that piece back, and put them back in. This fixed the issue 100% of the time. As for the low-profile-y-ness, they’re perfect! I attached some pictures of my keyboard with the original switches and one of the original key caps, as well as some other key caps I tried, and the first few images are of the final key caps I settled on (well, more or less anyway). I found that the Nuphy key caps worked perfectly and were exactly what I wanted. I thought I ordered the shine-through version, but the ones pictured are not. So I’m waiting on a shipment from Nuphy for those, but it should be the last thing on the list to complete this setup. If you’re not a fan of the Nuphy caps, I also mixed in a few XVX key caps, which are very similar, but seem to have slightly less surface area than the Nuphy’s. They also seem a tiny bit more slippery. However, all of them fit on these keyswitches without issue. Definitely recommend giving these a shot!

I bought these to replace the Kaihl and Cherry switches that came on my ErgoDox EZ and my Planck EZ. Currently using the same key caps but may choose to replace those in the future. With that, here are some notes from installation and usage in each of the keyboards: TL;DR - These switches work for the ErgoDox EZ and Planck EZ. Full-sized key caps will bottom out before the switch does but they'll still reach their actuation point by a couple of mm's. They're easy to pull out of your keyboard on accident if you're removing your keycaps from them. Installation: 1. As other reviews have said, it's pretty easy to bend the pins on these guys but they're also easy to bend back in place. I didn't have any issues with any of them breaking but some were easier to install than others. 2. The bottom of the switches are shorter than full-sized MX switches but the pins are the same length. This wasn't an issue with all of the switches on my board, but I had to be picky about which switches were used where as the tolerances led some of the switches non-functional depending on where they were on the board since they couldn't quite reach the socket. 3. These work with full-sized keycaps but the keycaps bottom out before the switches do so you may want to consider replacing those as well. 4. I chose to remove the single stabilizer that is used on the Planck EZ's space key. These switches are sturdy enough to not need it and I bet that you it would not work with full-sized caps. Usage: 1. These switches can be pretty easy to pull off with the key caps so be aware that you might want to grab extras, just in case some pins break in the future. 2. On the Planck, if you grab the keyboard by the keycaps instead of the case, you're likely to accidentally pull a switch out. 3. With full-sized key caps, these feel like they have a much shorter throw than standard sized switches so be aware of that as well. 4. They sound, feel, and look pretty nice which is good considering that this is really the only option for "low-profile" MX style switches like these. 5. My typing speed actually improved on my Planck with these switches vs my Cherry silent reds. Guessing that this could mostly be attributed to the shorter throw that I'm experiencing from the key caps bottoming out but still! They feel fast lol.

These switches are fantastic if you're looking for lower-profile MX-compatible keys. In fact, as far as I can tell these might be the only lower-profile MX-compatible switches. I looked around for a while before finding these. Similar to another helpful review here, I bought these (OUTEMU Browns) for my ZSA Moonlander. I was hoping to find a middle ground between the Cherry MX Browns it came with and the Apple keyboards I'm used to using. Welp, I found it. The keys are definitely lower now, the difference in travel distance is huge and can really be felt despite (apparently) having the same "total travel" distance as the MX Browns. It also feels like a perfect middle ground because, while it is low profile, you still get the "mechanical" feel as well. I intend to buy low-profile keycaps as well, but at the moment my original keycaps work fine with these switches. Definitely recommend these if you have a keyboard with MX switches and want your keys lower. I couldn't find any other switches like this, so I hope they continue making these. In the video I included, keys S, E, and F are using the OUTEMU Browns, while all of the other keys are using Cherry MX Browns. You can see and hear the difference in height, sound, and travel distance when I press between the S and W keys.

The switches work, tested them out in my gmmk pro. I want to point out that the bottom housings of these switches are not identical to other MX format switches. The pins also aren't quite as long, a few mm short. In my experience this makes installing the switch in a hot swap socket more difficult and leads to bent pins. In the attached picture from left to right I have an outemu medium low profile switch, an outemu brown switch, and a kailh ice cream switch. The outemu bottom housing is clearly smaller and the pins are proportionally smaller as well. YMMV on if these fit your need.

To my knowledge, this is the only lower-profile switch that will fit mx boards. My other board has gateron low profile browns, so I was looking for a replacement mx style switch that would be comparable, mostly because the kalih midnight switches just felt slower/less crisp when typing. the glp browns feel a little smoother (pre-lubed) and a tad more consistent (spring wise) than these switches, but these switches do behave similarly to the the glp's so i'm happy!! The otemu browns have the shorter actuation and travel distance I was looking for with a nice tactile bump. I would recommend ordering one extra pack of 20 since these were a little more challenging to install (easy to kink/bend the longer pins).

these switches are nasty. the pre travel is loose and makes the switch feel really squishy. they're scratchy. lubing them does not fix them. these are the worst switches ever made. There is way too much stem wobble. they are awful.

These switches are perfect, tactile but with a shorter actuation than normal keys so they feel really fast. I had trouble finding stabilizers to fit them though. Durock stabilizers just barely work even though they are about 0.5mm too tall, but the stabilizers bottom out before the switch does, so you might want to stick to linear switches on your stabilized keys because it has a weird feel with tactile switches with the stabilizer bottoming out right at the tactile bump. I tried Gateron low profile stabilizers but they are not just shorter but also narrower and my keycaps get stuck on them so they didn't work, and they seem to be meant for even lower profile switches. In all these switches are exactly what I wanted but the stabilizer situation is weird.

Fit tighter than the original switches. Noticeably lower. Also the only option for lowered mx switches I'm aware of. Ordered 20 reds and browns. Only 1 had an improperly seated housing, just had to snap it in place. 0 bent pins out of the box. On the moonlander they fit extremely tight, seat them completely before inserting. The included removal tool is needed, annoying to use, but the switches fit so tight it bent the tool that came with the moonlander. 1 of the reds did seem slightly stiffer than the others... Seems good overall.