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What is a mechanical keyboard

What is a mechanical keyboard

Do you know what a mechanical keyboard is ? Even if you have heard of this keyboard. But let me tell you that they are not like regular keyboards at all. Because it has many features that you can’t find in a normal keyboard.

We will know about this in a more detailed way. If you love me and you spend a lot of your time working on your computer or playing games, you should know about the latest upgraded mechanical keyboard because if you don’t know yet, you are missing out on a better keyboard.

If you use computers a lot and have a problem with their keyboards. So in such a case, I have seen that many people are spending their hard earned money buying these consoles. This is because they do not know about this type of keyboard which is a mechanical keyboard. These keyboards are very cheap and even better.

But people often overlook this new upgrade many times due to the lack of information about it. But there is no need to do this anymore, so why today we will try to figure out what a mechanical keyboard is and how to choose all the keyboards, so that you can easily buy them. Then let’s start without delay.

What is a mechanical keyboard

A mechanical keyboard is also similar to the common keyboard in appearance but differs from others in the way it works. You can call a mechanical keyboard a keyboard with keys on the board that actuate themselves before the bottom point.

For example, cherry-style metal contact switches. When you press their keys down, a stem goes into the casing and allows the metal contacts to be touched. Here you can write each letter.

Other types of switches are also mechanical, but their mechanism of action is completely different. Topre switches are also very common but more expensive. These switches have a solid rubber dome and a cone-shaped spring.

In this, this actuation process is triggered by changing the amplitude of the spring when pressed, and the tangible bulge comes out when the dome collapse occurs. Apart from this, there are other types of switches like Alpine style metal contactors, interlocking springs, hall effect switches etc. But these switches are not so much visible on modern boards today.

If you are a regular user of keyboards, using a mechanical keyboard can make you a very efficient typist as you can be precise in it and you will always have a consistent feel of the keys as you type.

Many keys have high tactility which will help you predict when the press history will happen, so you can easily press one key and move the other keys without thinking about the first key. The key was chosen or not.

Especially for gaming, you can use such switches which are much smoother and faster to operate compared to other cheap membrane boards.

One thing we all have to agree on is that these mechanical panels are very sturdy and easily maintainable for many years because they were made for just a reason. Each key is very good and can reach millions of presses. Despite frequent use, a good mechanical keyboard can last for many years.

How does a mechanical keyboard work?

If you want to understand what makes mechanical keyboards so popular, you must first understand how these keyboards work.

If we talk about the basic feature, then whether any keyboard (mechanical or any other board) is working normally: such as if you press any key, that key press will be recorded by the electronics that the key is in the board, and send it to the computer, where it is converted to text. The thing that separates the different keyboards from each other is how your keyboard strikes are connected.

Most standard panels use a ” diaphragm ” system , in which a thin, dome-shaped layer of rubber or silicone separates the switch from the keyboard’s electrical circuits.

When a key is pressed, the membrane is pressed, allowing the two contacts to meet and record the keystrokes into the computer. Because the switch has only two positions: up or down. You cannot press a key halfway down.

On the other hand, the issue of mechanical keyboards is different, because there is no membrane in them. Here each stroke is handled by a physical mechanical switch which you slide up or down.

Each individual key has its own independent system, consisting of a key, a metal trigger, and a spring that depresses when pressed and returns to its uncompressed state for a successful strike.

Here the keyboard registers when the key is pressed when the key goes down halfway, it doesn’t need to go down.

Types of mechanical keyboard switches

There are three basic types of keys based on characteristics: linear keys, tactile keys, and clickable keys.

line keys

This is the simplest. They make you feel the same way until you hit them. There are no tactile feedback or noises when you press their actuation point (this is the point where a key press is registered – usually somewhere in the middle of the press). Therefore, most of the time, you can press the switch with a very light touch.

Touch keys

Provides haptic feedback when you hit the trigger point. When you press the key down, you will notice a small bump in it, which tells you that your key press has been registered successfully.

Clicky Switches

These keys give you an extra click sound, when the trigger point is pressed. The main advantage of Tactile and Clicky is that you do not need to press the switch completely. You can release the key when you receive any feedback.

How do you choose the correct layout and form factor (layout) for mechanical keyboards?

If you want to choose a mechanical keyboard, then you should choose the appropriate design for it, according to your need. This traditional full-size keyboard is still the most widely used keyboard and is also the most popular.

But if you wish, you can use the mechanical keyboard instead of the traditional keyboard with a mechanical transition for some changes.

The first is a full-size panel that contains all the keys you need to operate your computer without any tension. There are all layers of functionality in it and there is also a whole number pad in it. Its main drawback is its size.

It is more effective only because of its large size. Because it’s large, it has toggle switches in different places and you have to take your rings apart to type any numbers away from the main typing area.

The second is Keyless ( TKL ), also called 80% of its keyboards. These boards don’t rely on function layers for basic features, apart from that, there is no number pad in them. But there is definitely a number row. If you rarely need number plates, this could be a good option for you. Since there is no number pad, it becomes smaller than before, which brings the mouse closer to you.

The third is 60% of consoles , which have become more and more popular in the past few years. The 60% board contains only alpha, number rows, and modifiers. It does not have any dedicated arrow keys, an F description, and a number pad.

It would be wrong to say that there are only these features in its function layer. That’s why you have to keep pressing the function and you can press different keys. For example stocks like Fn + WASD or Fn + JIKL. The main advantage of this is that it is very compact and efficient when you realize the use of its function layer.

If you don’t like any of these, I’ll tell you about some of these weird layouts that are slowly coming to the fore.

65% smaller size keyboard than TKL, but in this you will see some keys like arrow keys and some others like delete, page up/down, etc. This is a better keyboard in the middle. For example WhiteFox. It doesn’t take up much space and it also reduces the reliance on your job tiers.

Next comes the ultra-micro 40% class . These boards contain only alpha keys and some modifiers. These are basically pocket-sized and usually have at least two layers of function keys where all the basic keyboard commands are covered.

If you become good at 40% pad use then no better and more efficient than this will be available in the whole market because all switches are very close to you.

What makes a mechanical keyboard and why you should have one

The keyboards on your desktop computer usually have a rubber dome design. In this you must press the keys all the way down and contact with the dome causes pressure.

The downside to this is that the rubber diaphragms are often mushy and uneven and you have to squeeze all the way out with each squeeze. Whereas if we talk about laptops, scissor keys are used in them.

It provides some touch, but its lack of movement and its fungi slowly begin to deteriorate over time. Considering all these advantages and disadvantages, we can think that mechanical keyboards are better than all these keyboards but they are a bit expensive compared to the rest. At the same time, due to its length, it is better to use it.

How to choose a suitable mechanical keyboard?

You may now have selected all the board sizes yourself, but you haven’t chosen the switches yet. Because it depends on the user who wants the type of switch. There are many such brands available in the market which switch according to the choice of users.

In large e-commerce companies like Amazon, you will see items from many manufacturers. It contains many variants such as blue, green, brown, transparent, red and black . But before testing all the switches, it is important to know how many varieties there are.

By the way, there are three different types of it:

  • Clicky (blue and green)
  • Touch (brown and transparent)
  • linear (black and red)

With this said, all classes are split into two parts, one heavier and one a lighter version. Here I have provided a chart below according to their weights.

Noun Type working bottom
MX Blue Clicky 50 g 60 grams
Green MX Clicky 80 grams 90g
MX Brown touch. Contact. Link 45 grams 60 grams
MX Clear touch. Contact. Link 65 grams 95g
Black MX linear 60 grams 80 grams
Red MX linear 45 grams 60 grams

You have to choose the keys, but FYI, let me tell you that heavy typists mostly use touch and click keys, and often they just choose black.

How to choose a prefabricated panel?

By now you should have thought about the pieces you want to place, but now you have to choose all the boards. I mean to say don’t just look at gaming oriented consoles , it can be tempting to look at them because of the bright lights, while to use them we use buggy desktop software which is a poor quality version. Use the keys. There are many brands in the market like Cherry, Gateron, Kilh Mehjood and all of them are reputable switch manufacturers. For this, you will have to monitor everything, and only then you can choose a good keyboard.

What is the most popular mechanical keyboard?

If you are talking about the famous mechanical keyboard, it is none other than a German company named Cherry . Cherry made a famous switch called Cherry MX Switch which he made in 1980 and also patented it.

Very soon due to its popularity, these mechanical keyboards became a standard for all mechanical keyboards. Now this patent has expired and everyone can now use this design.

Now other manufacturers are also introducing their own key types. But despite this, Cherry MX Switches are still very popular.

What are the advantages of a mechanical keyboard?

By the way, mechanical keyboards have many advantages over their competitors such as rubber domes or scissor keyboards.

Enjoy a longer life

These mechanical keyboards have a significantly longer life. Most mechanical switches have a lifeline of 30 to 70 million keystrokes. Common membrane keyboards have a lifespan of up to 5 million keystrokes.

lack of wear out

Mechanical switches not only have a longer life, but they rarely have defects. Even after many years of use, it still looks and feels brand new. There are no stuck keys.

Improved writing experience/notes 

The mechanical switch offers more adjustment options than a simple rubber dome. No wonder there are so many different types of switches and they have different properties.

Some keys have actuation points that can be detected, and some also have additional audio feedback. With this you can optimize these keys according to your work.

High stability/durability

Mechanical keyboards are much heavier than membrane or scissor keyboards. That’s why they are more stable and more powerful.

What are the disadvantages of a mechanical keyboard?

Let’s get acquainted with some of the disadvantages of a mechanical keyboard.

sound level

Mechanical keyboards are often louder than other keyboards. Then for this you can use any silent mechanical keyboard models and also you can use O-Rings to reduce the sound of keyboards.

very expensive

Mechanical keyboards are much more expensive than most regular keyboards. But you should consider it a good investment because you can use this keyboard for many years without any problem.

high weight

The extra weight gives stability, but it is difficult to move it from one place to another. And even if you use it on your lap, you still have trouble using it because of its weight.

What did you learn today

I hope I have given you complete information about what is a mechanical keyboard and I hope you have understood the information about mechanical keyboard.

If you have any doubts about this article or if you want there to be some improvement in it, you can write low comments on it. Through these ideas of yours, we will get a chance to learn something and improve it.

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