1. The higher actuation point gives them a feel that's completely distinct from Cherry, although I suppose you either like this or dislike it.
2. They seem to be a more "forgiving" switch than Cherry, in that they tend not to bind if you strike them off-center.
3. When found clean and in good shape, vintage Alps are incredibly smooth.
4. Matias' modern Alps clones are widely available, relatively cheap, and although different from old complicated Alps, very good switches in their own right.
5. Vintage Alps boards are still pretty affordable and easy to find (as opposed to Cherry).
6. It's something new and different, which is alluring for a lot of folks.
1: I agree. Even in similarly weighted switches between the two switch families, the feel is always quite distinct. The reduced travel is another huge factor here, even if it's only a .5 mm difference. It's that extra bit of travel that the stem well in a Cherry MX switch provides versus what we have with Alps. I think this is what makes Alps SKCL Greens so unique when tried side by side with incredibly smooth vintage MX blacks. SKCL browns feel more like blacks, but that lack of that extra bit of travel still makes them hard to really compare.
2: I've heard mixed opinions here. Some say that MX are far more forgiving to off-center presses while Alps bind like crazy. I'm unsure. I've had some boards that have had switches that wouldn't play nice with off-center presses, and others like my Hammer that are just fine regardless of where they are pressed. If I had to give my opinion though, I agree with you. They aren't that sensitive to binding, and I also feel that they are not as wobbly as MX in terms of stem wobble.
Ironic, because my Hammer Alps build uses an MXAlps plate and the switches are incredibly solid, but in some native Alps boards, ie with straight up Alps plates, I've had switches "rock". With how they're mounted, they can sometimes have the tendency to rock back, but this isn't much of an issue.
3: So true. Alps are super smooth switches and their hefty design with that monster of a slider and the dry film lube makes them really robust and solid switches compared to the dainty Cherry MX.
4: I need to try these. This is the key to more Alps love though. If only Matias could get a foothold, but it'd take a revolution in the keyboard scene and consumer market for that to happen.
5: Yep, and I don't think the hype trains we're seeing are going to persist. That is, I think prices will equalize again in time. The fact Alps is more obscure than Cherry and is cheaper was a huge incentive to me.
6: Totally this. I love discovering new things about the Alps world every day!