Gateron KS-33 Low Profile Strawberry Chocolate
The Gateron KS-33 Strawberry Chocolate is a factory-lubed 45g low-profile linear with a short 3.0mm travel and smooth POM-on-POK feel.
How it feels
Feel ratings not yet recorded for this switch.
How it sounds
Full review
Quick Summary
The Gateron KS-33 Strawberry Chocolate is a 45g low-profile linear aimed at slim, laptop-style boards rather than full-height MX builds. It pairs a POM stem with a POK top housing for a smooth, slightly muted keypress, arrives factory-lubed, and keeps a short 3.0mm total travel. If you want a quiet, low-effort linear for a thin keyboard and like the “strawberry chocolate” colorway, it is an easy, inexpensive pick.
Specs and Feel
This is a clean linear with no bump or click to interrupt the downstroke. Actuation lands at 45g, which sits in the medium-light zone: light enough for relaxed typing, firm enough to avoid stray presses. Pre-travel is roughly 1.7mm into a 3.0mm bottom-out, so the stroke feels noticeably shorter and snappier than a standard MX switch, which is exactly what you’d want from a low-profile board.
The POM stem riding in a POK top housing gives a smooth, faintly soft keystroke with very little scratch, and the factory lube smooths the stroke out of the box. Stem wobble is well-controlled for the format, though as with most low-profile designs the shorter stem leaves a touch less margin than a tall MX switch. A removable light window means RGB still reads cleanly through the housing.
Tuning
There’s little to do here. The switch is already factory-lubed and the low-profile housing isn’t built for easy filming, so most people should run it stock. If you’re chasing absolute smoothness on a premium build, a careful re-lube of the stem rails is the only meaningful upgrade, and it is optional rather than necessary.
Verdict
Buy this if you’re building or modding a low-profile keyboard and want a smooth, quiet, medium-light linear without fuss. It will not satisfy anyone after the deep, thocky sound of a tall MX linear, which is not what low-profile is for. As a comfortable, factory-finished daily-driver linear at a low per-switch price, the KS-33 Strawberry Chocolate is a good value. Recommended for slim-board fans; skip it only if you’re committed to full-height MX.
Frequently asked
Is the Gateron KS-33 Strawberry Chocolate a low-profile switch?
Yes. The KS-33 is part of Gateron's low-profile family, with a shorter total travel of 3.0mm and a flatter housing designed for slim, laptop-style keyboards rather than standard MX-height builds.
Does it need lubing or filming?
No. It ships factory-lubed and the housing is closed by design, so films do not apply here. For most builds you can drop these in and type.
How heavy is the Strawberry Chocolate switch?
It is a 45g linear in the medium-light range, easy to press for long sessions without being so light that you trigger keys by accident.
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