Types of mechanical keyboard key remover: Pros & Cons

Types of keyboards by key structure and other design features

When choosing mechanical keyboard key remover, most users pay attention to the type of connection, design, location of buttons / layout. But design features usually fade into the background.  Therefore, in this article on the AKC blog, we will analyze the main types of keyboards by type of buttons, their advantages and disadvantages.

Membrane keyboards

They occupy more than 70% of the total keyboard market because they are easy to manufacture and inexpensive.

It is very simple to imagine the construction of mechanical keyboard key remover. There is a bottom board with contacts; on top of it is a gasket, usually made of three layers of rubber or silicone. In those places where you need to close the contact, a kind of caps is provided with keys with plastic rods attached to them. When you press the button, the rod pushes the membrane. But the contact closes only when fully pressed.

Average Life of Mechanical Keyboard

This system leads to gradual wear of the membrane backing - the average key life is only 5 million keystrokes. On the one hand, this is quite a lot. For example, on average, you type 23 thousand characters per day (we are talking about office work that is not directly related to text content). Those if you count only normal wear and tear, the keyboard will last almost 60 years.

But on the other hand, keep in mind that there are very popular keys (space, gaming WASD). They account for 10-20% of all clicks, respectively, they will fail much faster.

Pros and cons of membrane mechanical keyboard key remover

Pros

• are inexpensive;
• all structural elements take up little space;
• the technology allows you to make a sealed structure, that is, waterproof and waterproof models that are not afraid of overturned cups of coffee, and in case of heavy pollution, they can be washed under the tap;
• most membrane keyboards are silent - they don't click when you press the keys.

Cons

• the lowest service life due to gradual wear of the diaphragm;
• the consequence of the first point is a gradually decreasing sensitivity, and so it is initially low. This means that the keys must be pressed clearly and completely;
• not all users are happy with the tactile response.

The purchase of a semi- mechanical keyboard key remover will help reduce the number of cons. It combines the advantages of membrane and mechanical models (we will talk about the latter below). Semi-mechanics will please with a long service life. True, the price of such devices is higher, and they are not often found on sale.

Scissor keyboards vs mechanical keyboard key remover

These keyboards also have a rubber or silicone membrane. But the contact is closed not by a cap, but by a special mechanism installed under each key. It consists of two crossed plastic plates, connected to each other by a movable loop. In general, the entire device resembles a pair of scissors, which explains the name of this type of keyboards.

The design reduces the key travel. Pressing is very soft, so it is convenient to type large amounts of texts. The lifespan is twice as long as that of membrane - approximately 10 million keystrokes for each key.

Pros and cons of scissor keyboards

Dignity

• provide speed dialing;
• soft and short button movements;
• durability is twice as high as similar membrane keyboards;

Disadvantages

• the price is higher than that of the membrane mechanism;
• the sound is louder, although there are usually no pronounced clicks;
• require enough space in the device case;
• may be damaged by liquid ingress.

It is worth noting that scissor-type keystrokes are relatively rarely used in keyboards for PCs; in the overwhelming majority of cases, they are installed on laptops. So this is a good solution if you want a mechanical keyboard key remover  like a laptop.

Mechanical keyboard key remover

They are rightfully considered the best type. The share of "mechanics" on the market is already about a quarter of all keyboards, and it is growing as new models are released. This is facilitated by a high resistance to natural wear and a decrease in the load on the user's hand when used correctly.

The mechanical switch works in the middle of the movement, so the keys do not need to be pressed all the way down (many users take a long time to adjust to the new typing principle).

Within this group, several more subtypes can be distinguished, depending on the type of switch. The most attractive ones are linear, soft and relatively quiet.

The Features of mechanical keyboard key remover

The design features and metal materials provide the longest service life of the "mechanics" - each key can withstand up to 50 million keystrokes.

Pros and cons of mechanical keyboards

Pros

• reliability - up to 50 million keystrokes for each key. And in the event of a breakdown, you can replace a single button;
• when used correctly, they reduce the strain on the fingers and can increase the typing speed;
• the keys quickly return to their original position.

Cons

• you will have to pay extra for quality - these are the most expensive keyboards on the market (among devices with a "standard" mechanism);
• also the loudest, even modern linear models;
• you need to get used to such keys - if you press the buttons all the way, the typing speed will decrease, your fingers will quickly get tired, and the sound will be annoyingly loud;
• small debris and moisture easily get inside the structure.

Summary

Projection mechanical keyboard key remover are far from the most popular, but the original type of device. It is not a set of keys, but a small projector that forms a light image in the form of buttons on a smooth surface. When you touch the projection of a key, the sensors respond to the laser reflected from your finger and match it with the corresponding button, as if you pressed it on a conventional keyboard.

Projectors make it clear that the future is here, allow you to project any layout and take up little space. But using such a keyboard is not very convenient - there are a lot of accidental triggers, it is difficult to use the ten-finger dialing method, and the installation site of the device should be perfectly flat.