Performance

The NovaTouch key system is very good and definitely a viable choice for anyone looking at mechanical keyboards with Cherry MX Red switches, or higher-end membrane keyboards. The tactile feedback you get with this hybrid mechanism is somewhere between the MX Reds and a medium hard-membrane keyboard. The actuation force is linear or close to, but tactile feedback at the bottom is greatly reduced as compared to a full mechanical key, which does take some getting used to as you loose a little of that crisp tactile feel you get on MX mechanical switches, but it is not a deal breaker as it does not increase typing fatigue noticeably. I transitioned from a keyboard with Cherry MX Reds to the NovaTouch really quick. Their typing accuracy and fatigue levels are identical. Only the MX Blues are better for me, but here, your mileage may vary as no two hands are alike.

This keyboard is definitely on par with the soft MX Reds for speed typing, and I think I can even go a bit quicker on the NovaTouch. One of the reasons the transition was so quick is that the NovaTouch key registers a push without bottoming out. For double tapping, the keys work great and are on par with the MX Reds.


The NovaTouch uses a standard ten-key-less layout. The sample we received for review uses the standard Nordic layout with a big space button. CM Storm adhered to the normal localization schemes and only added an FN button near the right control button.

Noise wise, the NovaTouch has the edge over pretty much any full mechanical keyed keyboard I have tested over the last year or so, and this is even without the rubber dampeners installed. With the rubber dampeners, noise emission is still greater than on a membrane keyboard, but slightly less than on a fully mechanical one, which is as expected due to the lack of physical contact for actuation and the membrane at the bottom that dampens acoustics.

It seems as though CM Storm pulled it off with their NovaTouch hybrid switch keyboard. You get a no nonsense keyboard that performs while typing and gaming. The NovaTouch keys are very good for typing, albeit not quite as good as the MX Browns, but these switches can definitely hold their own against the Cherry MX Reds for gaming. The feel is different, but the hybrid switches do have some advantages. For one, noise output while typing is lower since there is no additional physical layer of contact, and the variation in force needed for actuation over the key's travel-time is smaller.

After spending almost two weeks with the NovaTouch keys, I find them to be better than the old MX Brown equipped keyboards I had been using before, in a scenario where I use a keyboard slightly more for typing than gaming. The NovaTouch TKL retails for a whooping $199, but you can find it online for around $170, which makes it a more reasonable buy considering the performance it offers. Its price is, in my opinion, a bit too high for something that is just a wee bit better for gaming than an ordinary Cherry MX Red equipped deck. It is, however, a significantly better keyboard for people who type as much as they game. The compromise on NovaTouch keys is better for these fingers than on Cherry MX Reds and MX Browns, which I honestly did not expect.