I thought TMR was only for controllers until I saw this CHERRY keyboard

I'll be completely honest, despite reviewing gaming accessories (mainly Xbox controllers), until this week I thought TMR (tunneling magnetoresistance) was purely controller tech. Something reserved for premium joysticks and the next step from Hall-Effect on the market.

Thanks to CES 2026 though, my eyes have been opened to the CHERRY XTRFY MX 8.2 Pro TMR Wireless keyboard.

Despite the name sounding a little like a 2000s electro-house band, I'm actually intrigued by this magnetic-switch keyboard.

Everything you need to know about the CHERRY XTRFY MX 8.2 Pro TMR Wireless

Magnetic switches are having a bit of a moment right now, many brands have gone the Hall Effect route, which, thanks to magnets, offers adjustable actuation and rapid triggers without the wear down of touching parts, (the SteelSeries Apex Pro Gen 3 is one such example.)

CHERRY is taking that one step further with its new keyboard, using the latest magnetic tech, with TMR offering lower power consumption than Hall Effect for wireless devices and even higher precision.

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The CHERRY XTRFY MX 8.2 Pro TMR Wireless, launches to consumers on January 29. It’s a compact tenkeyless (TKL) board aimed squarely at competitive players, featuring an aluminum top frame, PBT keycaps, and CHERRY’s new MK Crystal Magnetic switches powered by TMR sensors.

CHERRY claims an eye-watering 0.01 mm precision, which is far beyond what I think any player would actually notice or need, but it does show how sensitive this tech can get.

One of the more interesting technical claims is the keyboard’s 8000 Hz wireless polling rate. Thanks to TMR’s efficiency, the MX 8.2 Pro reports inputs up to 8 times per millisecond while staying wireless — something that’s traditionally been difficult to achieve without compromising battery life or stability.

If they can pull that off without the battery dying in 20 minutes I will be impressed.

Customization is handled through CHERRY’s MagCrate software, where users can tweak actuation points, set multiple actions on a single key depending on press depth or hold duration, and generally fine-tune things to an obsessive degree.

There’s also dual hot-swap support, allowing users to mix and match magnetic and mechanical switches across most of the board. It's a surprisingly flexible option for anyone who doesn’t want to commit to one switch type fully.

I must be honest, though, the more I read about switch swapping and that whole rabbit hole, the happier I am that I'm a simple controller gal!

CHERRY also had another small (literally) announcement. Later this spring, it plans to release the K5 Pro TMR, a 65% compact keyboard that will also include the same TMR-powered magnetic switches into a teeny tiny form factor. It will bump the polling rate from 1000 Hz to 8000 Hz, making it a swift upgrade over previous K5 models.

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Pricing puts this firmly in 'a bit spendy' territory. The MX 8.2 Pro TMR Wireless will launch with an MSRP of $249.99, while pricing for the K5 Pro TMR will be revealed closer to its spring release.

Whether TMR in keyboards is a genuine leap forward or just ultra-advanced tech solving a problem the Hall Effect stuff already handled pretty well, I'm not sure.

But one thing’s certain, I didn’t have “TMR keyboard” on my 2026 bingo card, and now I’m very curious to see if it's the next big thing. You can check out the range direct over at CHERRY's website when the product goes live for sale.

What are your first impressions? Are you ready to drop $250 on 0.01 mm precision, or are you holding out for the reviews? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

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