[Customized keyboard clearance strategy] How to play with the switch body, keycap, and structure? Focus on answering hot questions

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I just received a new keyboard recently, and I just took this opportunity to talk to you about how to choose a mechanical keyboard, as well as the keyboard topic that everyone has been arguing about recently.

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Facing all kinds of keyboards, how to choose a keyboard that suits you? In fact, the purchase of keyboards is not complicated. After sorting out your own needs, it is enough to master the following aspects.

● Type: Membrane keyboards are cheap but have little feel, while mechanical keyboards have a good feel but are more expensive. Membrane keyboards are good for office, mechanical keyboards are good for codewords and gamers.

● Axis body: The mechanical axis is rich in choices and has strong playability, and the optical axis responds quickly and has better maneuverability. At present, it seems that the mechanical axis is the mainstream, and the optical axis is the future.

● Keycaps: ABS, PBT, and POM are made of three materials. ABS is cheap and easy to oil, PBT is rich in color and does not oil, and POM has the highest wear resistance.

● Structure: There are tray type, top cover type, center and bottom type on the positioning plate, integrated type, etc., but the Gasket structure is the most popular now, and it is recommended first.

● Arrangement: refers to the key layout of the keyboard, there are 108/104/98/87/8468/60 arrangement, just choose according to your usage habits.

● Function: including RGB lighting effect, wired 2.4G Bluetooth connection, driver macro definition, multimedia buttons, knobs and small screen, etc.

Let’s take the GK75 I’m using now as an example. This is a mechanical keyboard with 75 keys + Gasket structure + two-color injection molded keycaps. A typical fully equipped mechanical keyboard, but the price is less than 400 yuan. By the way, I would like to thank the keyboard manufacturers for their continuous involution, which finally benefits consumers.

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A layman looks at the keycap, and an expert looks at the shaft. How to choose the optical axis and mechanical axis? From a structural point of view, the mechanical axis is a contact trigger, which completes keystrokes by touching the contact metal sheet; the optical axis is a non-contact trigger, which records keystrokes by irradiating light beams to the sensor. At present, the mechanical switch represented by Cherry is still the mainstream, after all, after five or six years of long-term improvement and upgrade.

However, the birth of the optical axis can fundamentally solve the defect of slow start-up speed of the mechanical axis. To be honest, many big brands are already promoting optical switches, such as Razer, ROG, and CORSAIR. It is not inferior to traditional mechanical switches in terms of feel and personalization. It is an undeniable fact that optical switches will replace mechanical switches in the future. .

Although the brand of Xiaodu Chong is not big, the market's sense of smell and reaction are still very fast. In the era of alternating old and new switches, it has released seven optical switch kits, corresponding to the different feel of black/red/tea/green/silver in the mechanical switch. Simply put, both the optical axis and the mechanical axis have a rich feel, but the quick response of the optical axis cannot be achieved by the mechanical axis.

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Don't look at the variety of customized keyboards, but they are all interoperable in structure. According to the relative positions of the positioning board, PCB board and the shell, the structure is mainly divided into six types: Tray mount, Case mount, Bottom mount, Sandwich mount, Integrated mount, and Gasket mount. Here we will focus on the Gasket gasket structure. This structure is to clamp the positioning board on the shell, and then place a layer of cushioning silicone gasket between the positioning board and the PCB board. This requires high precision in design and processing.

So, why did the Gasket spacer structure explode the entire keyboard circle overnight? This is because the spacer in the middle can act as a vertical buffer, and after the pressing force is evenly dispersed, it brings a unique and special warm feel.

The light flick structure of the Lite gasket is modified and upgraded on the ordinary gasket structure. The silicone material sandwich integrated cushion is more tightly combined with the positioning board and the PCB board. The newly added bottom shell sound-absorbing cotton Eliminates the impact of the shaft hitting the bottom, making the percussion feel extremely uniform, stable, soft and quiet.

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As an extremely customized keyboard brand, GK75 is an all-round exquisite small keyboard with high cost performance. Although its price is only in the early 200s, it has all the necessary functions and configurations, such as optical axis, gasket structure, three-mode wireless, multimedia knob, RGB lighting effect, macro definition driver, etc.

The color scheme of space gray and retro blue is full of literature and art, and the design of a few pink contrasting colors is a bit more lively and interesting. The two-color injection-molded keycap made of PBT not only won't wear out after long-term use, but also avoids the possibility of characters fading. In particular, the black translucent shell allows you to vaguely see the internal structure, and the RGB lighting effect can also be emitted around the keyboard.

The most special thing is its optical shaft knocking experience. First, the photoelectric fast response is obviously not comparable to the mechanical transmission. Secondly, the positioning plate and the shaft body fixed shaft are thickened, so that the shortcomings of poor stability are also overcome. In addition to the knob on the upper right corner to adjust the volume, more knobs can be installed, and the custom operation of turning left/turning right/in the drive can be set separately.

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As for the brand that focuses on customized keyboards, what about Xiaoduchong? Xiao Zong Chong is indeed not a first-line brand, of course, its price is also much cheaper, and the design, materials and workmanship are relatively speaking, and it is naturally quite realistic. Recently, on March 3, the "Crazy Kit Festival" event of the little nerd made all the matching kits a price of 238 yuan! The price/performance ratio has risen instantly! So is the keyboard worth buying for the little idiot? You have to know that you can buy a full-featured mechanical keyboard with full functions (optical axis/double injection molding/Gasket/RGB/three-mode/macro definition) for a little over 200. Who dares to say that it is not worth it? Of course, there are also disadvantages, such as insufficient light transmission of the keycap, small area of ​​the non-slip foot pad, and no multimedia side engraving on the keycap.

Optical axis or mechanical axis? This is a hotly debated topic in keyboard circles. At present, I admit that the stability and playability of the mechanical axis are higher, and I also admit that the early optical axis has a single feel and insufficient stability. But it is undeniable that the inherent advantage of fast response speed of the optical axis is the permanent flaw of the mechanical axis. As for the feel and stability, the optical axis is also on par with the mechanical axis through the internal buckle design and the thickened connecting axis. Instead of being old-fashioned, watching and waiting, it is better to experience the axis from the future—the optical axis in advance.

Chatting about life, sharing opinions, I am a playful dad, if you think the article is good, you can give it a thumbs up to encourage it, see you next time, bye bye~