What’s a hot-swap keyboard? The key to a custom typing experience explained

Regular keyboards are just so boring. You’ll usually find them in black, and sure, some might have a bit of RGB thrown in to spice things up. Some might have features like dedicated macro keys or something similarly dear to gamers, but the thing that makes them boring is that anyone can buy the same thing.

The thing that makes our phones unique, for example, is how we customise them with new covers and skins. It’s a similar story with keyboards. Regular keyboards are fine, but they’re not customisable. Hot-swap keyboards, on the other hand, can be made to be utterly unique.

What is a hot-swap keyboard?

A keyboard comprises several layers. Ignoring the housing, which is usually made of plastic, the lowest layer in a keyboard is the printed-circuit board or PCB. The PCB houses all the electronics that make a keyboard work. This includes the circuit that determines which key you pressed, the interface for your PC, the places where the keys interact, etc.

ALSO READ: Types of computer keyboards: A complete guide

In a regular keyboard, the keys are soldered in, meaning they can’t be replaced. This is normally fine as keyboards, especially mechanical keyboards, don’t break so easily and people don’t think of replacing switches. Hot-swap keyboards, on the other hand, are designed in such a way that the keys can be popped out and swapped out with new ones.

To be clear, when we’re saying keys, we’re referring to the entire key, including the mechanism that makes the key move up and down, and not just the outer later.

Benefits of a hot-swap keyboard

1. Customisation:

By far the biggest benefit of a hot-swap keyboard is that you can fully customise it. If you don’t like the feel of the keys, you can replace them. Key switches aren’t very expensive, and keycaps can also be had for a song if you know where to look. Take some time mixing and matching parts to come up with a keyboard that is unique and very personal. In fact, if you don’t like the base, you can swap out the base while still keeping the keys that you like. There’s a lot you can do.

2. Repairability:

Another big benefit of such a keyboard is simply the fact that repairs are easy. Since nothing is soldered to the PCB, any key that breaks can be easily swapped out with a new one. Replacement PCBs also tend to be cheaper.

ALSO READ: Mechanical keyboards vs chiclet keyboards: What’s the difference?

You’ll be surprised to hear that hot-swap keyboards can be much cheaper than regular gaming keyboards. You could spend upwards of Rs 25,000 per keyboard if you wish to, but you can also get a basic hot-swap keyboard for as little as Rs 2,000.

Hot-swap keyboards are cheap, fun, and very customisable. There’s really no excuse not to get one.