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A Beginner's Guide to Switches

theremingoat.com

11–20 of 42 posts

Re: A Beginner's Guide to Switches

#11
post #2

Aren't mag switches the new hotness?

Another semi recent one were optical switches (uses a tiny laser for when to actuate, lowest latency).

Hall Effect is the one that's probably going to stay longer, due to the possibility of changing the actuation point to your liking.

Re: A Beginner's Guide to Switches

#12

Anyone else here prefer just a good old fashioned chiclet style keyboard? I've tried mechanical keyboards before and they don't appeal to me at all.

Chiclet like the Apple one? I could never get used to its extremely shallow feel. But I do agree that mechanical isn’t necessarily better than alternatives.

Re: A Beginner's Guide to Switches

#13

Anyone else here prefer just a good old fashioned chiclet style keyboard? I've tried mechanical keyboards before and they don't appeal to me at all.

You mean Membran Keyboards? While there are membrane keyboards which feel half decent when new, they degrade very fast and especially uneven depending on key usage

Thus I generally dislike them

Re: A Beginner's Guide to Switches

#15

Does anyone have experience with carpal tunnel or RSI and mechanical switches? I’ve heard some people recommend ZSA keyboards for ergonomics but I’m unsure if mechanical keys are healthy compared to the softer keys of older ergonomic keyboards like the ones Microsoft made.

carpal tunell is 2015 news or so bottleneck is thinking not typing in programming

Re: A Beginner's Guide to Switches

#16

Does anyone have experience with carpal tunnel or RSI and mechanical switches? I’ve heard some people recommend ZSA keyboards for ergonomics but I’m unsure if mechanical keys are healthy compared to the softer keys of older ergonomic keyboards like the ones Microsoft made.

carpal tunell is 2015 news or so bottleneck is thinking not typing in programming

It’s still relevant for those who have injuries or pain. It’s not a thing just for programmers.

Re: A Beginner's Guide to Switches

#18
post #8
post #2

Aren't mag switches the new hotness?

Hall effect switches are more like the old hotness that fell out of style and is now viable again among the niche of people willing to pay high prices for keyboards.

Good mechanical keyboard can easily cost more than hall effect ones. It got worse when hotswappables came out and paying another hefty sum for just the replacement switches became easier / more acceptable.

Re: A Beginner's Guide to Switches

#20

Does anyone have experience with carpal tunnel or RSI and mechanical switches? I’ve heard some people recommend ZSA keyboards for ergonomics but I’m unsure if mechanical keys are healthy compared to the softer keys of older ergonomic keyboards like the ones Microsoft made.

Membrane "switches" have a pretty high actuation force all things considered (40-100g+), which is what the older MS keyboards use. There are plenty of mechanical switches that require less force to actuate, and Hall Effect switches can even have an adaptable activation point.
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