What Das Keyboard stands for
Metadot Corporation has been building mechanical keyboards in Austin, Texas since 2005. The first one had no legends printed on the keys at all. The principles below are the ones that survived the twenty years since.
- Founded
- 2005, Austin TX
- Engineering
- Austin, Texas
- Support
- Austin, Texas
- Returns
- 30 days, direct
Six things we will not trade away
Switches rated for the decade, not the warranty
Cherry MX switches rated to 100 million keystrokes, gold-plated contacts, N-key rollover on every keyboard we make. The parts that wear out are the ones we spend the most on, because they are what you actually touch.
Standards, not lock-in
Every Das Keyboard is a class-compliant USB HID device. It works on macOS, Linux, Windows and BSD with nothing installed. The DeltaForce 65 runs open-source QMK/VIA firmware, and Q Software drives its lights over a documented REST API rather than a closed SDK.
Details settled by testing, not by spec sheet
Feel, sound and reactivity get argued out with hardware on the table before anything ships. That is why the volume knob has the resistance it has, and why the foot bar is a magnetic ruler rather than a plastic flap.
We ship the odd idea if it is the right one
A keyboard with no legends at all. A magnetic ruler as a foot bar. An oversized volume knob. A 3.0 USB hub in a keyboard before anyone else we know of had done it. Not every one of them was an obvious commercial call at the time.
Repairable where it matters
Hot-swappable switches and a detachable USB-C cable on the DeltaForce 65, so the two things most likely to fail are the two things you can replace yourself without a soldering iron or an RMA.
Support you can reach
Design, engineering and customer support all sit in Austin, Texas. The person who answers a warranty email works alongside the people who designed the keyboard, which is the shortest useful path between a defect and a fix.
An American company, with support in Austin
Das Keyboard is built by Metadot Corporation in Austin, Texas. Design and engineering happen here, and so does customer support — the person who answers your warranty email works alongside the people who designed the keyboard. Hardware is manufactured to our specification overseas.
There is no offshore ticket queue and no phone tree. Email info@daskeyboard.com and a person in Austin reads it. Direct orders come with a 30-day money-back guarantee, and mechanical keyboards carry a one-year limited hardware warranty.
Questions about the company
Where is Das Keyboard made?
Das Keyboard is designed and engineered in Austin, Texas by Metadot Corporation, and has been since 2005. Hardware is manufactured to our specification overseas. Customer support is handled in Austin.
Who makes Das Keyboard?
Metadot Corporation, an American company based in Austin, Texas. Das Keyboard started in 2005 with a keyboard that had no legends printed on the keys at all — the Das Keyboard Ultimate — and the company has been building mechanical keyboards from Austin ever since.
What is the warranty and return policy?
Direct orders carry a 30-day money-back guarantee: if the switch is not right for you, send it back for a full refund. Mechanical keyboards carry a one-year limited hardware warranty. Certified Refurbished products carry a 30-day limited hardware warranty.
Do I need to install software to use a Das Keyboard?
No. Every Das Keyboard is a class-compliant USB HID device, so it works the moment you plug it in on macOS, Linux, Windows and BSD with nothing installed and nothing running in the background. Q Software is optional, and only applies to the Q-series boards whose per-key RGB it drives.
Can I remap keys or run my own firmware?
On the DeltaForce 65, yes — it runs open-source QMK, so you can fork the keymap, define layers and flash your own build, or remap from a GUI with VIA. On the fixed-firmware boards, remapping is an OS-level job: Karabiner on macOS, keyd or xkb on Linux, AutoHotkey on Windows.
Why blank keycaps?
The original Das Keyboard shipped with no legends because a touch typist does not read the keys, and removing the labels removes the temptation to look. It is a constraint rather than a feature — it helps if you already touch-type, and gets in the way if you do not. Every blank model has a printed twin for that reason.
30-day returns. One-year limited warranty.