Mountain had a dream start in my books with the Everest Max, which split a full-size keyboard into modules including a base TKL keyboard, add-on numpad, and cool media dock. The numpad also had further novelty features, such as additional display keys, further cementing its status as a flagship retail keyboard for those who prioritize customization without going the route of $500+ kits, keycap sets on multi-year lead times, and switches that would necessitate modding to meet the standards set forth there. Pre-built keyboards are getting really close to offering the user experience from such endeavors and often best them in terms of value for money and consumer-friendly software support. The Everest Max is one such example with five different LCD displays and five Type-C connections on the main unit itself, but the Max is quite large in footprint and not the most ergonomic, either.

Of course, the biggest barrier towards the mass adoption of the Mountain Everest Max is its $270 price point, so I was curious about what Mountain would do next. Its patent-pending modular feature had to be incorporated or there would not be much differentiating the keyboard from most others on the market. Perhaps something smaller than TKL would be apt, I thought, and Mountain clearly agreed with the Everest 60 adopting a 60% form factor. But even here it went with a 64-key layout on this US ANSI version, which allowed for dedicated arrow keys. The optional numpad is also more streamlined and better fits this more budget-oriented offering from Mountain. There are even a few updates and upgrades since the Everest Max launched, including doubleshot PBT keycaps by default, 5-pin hot-swappable switch sockets, pre-lubed switches under the Mountain brand, and some of my issues with the software solution having been address since I last checked it out.

But while the Everest Max justified its high pricing by being so over the top, the Everest 60 is a much harder sell at the $140 by itself. In fact, you really need to get the numpad to justify this design at all, which means spending $190 in total! For $190, you can get two sets of 60% keyboards and numpads from others, including some with wireless connectivity options and more color schemes. The bugs I found also weren't nice to deal with, although they are likely one-off problems considering Mountain did not even known of the possibility of these until I experienced them. Having no clicky switch option may alienate potential customers, too, especially as Mountain started out with Cherry MX switches on the Everest Max. Some of the more prosumer features are also going to draw complaints, including the retention of plate-mounted stabilizers, and the lubing and clipping as some will prefer doing it themselves. It's hard to say whether the Everest 60 will draw the attention of the more hardcore keyboard community 60% keyboards generally appeals to, but it would be impossible to deny the continuous innovation here. So while I am currently unable to recommend the Everest 60 to most people, I am happy to again award Mountain our innovation award for the patent-pending modular connection system.