I. Introduction
Many users will find that when buying keyboard products, different keyboards will have different printing on the font of the keycap. Some users are accustomed to using the font effect of the keycap to assess the quality of the keyboard. Although the choice of keycap engraving technology does have a lot of influence on the durability, keyboard feel and aesthetics of the keyboard, in fact, each technology has its own characteristics. It is a mistake to simply look at the appearance of the printing effect. Different users have different preferences for different keycap printing technologies. This time, I will introduce you to several keycap printing technologies currently in the market to help readers better understand the advantages and disadvantages of various keycap printing technologies. There is a certain reference meaning when buying a keyboard.
I believe that many users will find that there are more and more black keyboards on the market, but fewer and fewer white keyboards. In addition to consumers' own concepts, this trend is also important for the development of keyboard keycap printing technology. the reason. In general, there are six keycap printing technologies, including laser etching, screen printing and laser filler method, impregnation printing (sublimation), hollow printing method and two-color forming method. A few years ago, white keyboards became popular. At that time, laser etching technology was the most widely used in keycap printing technology. However, due to the relatively high cost of laser etching technology, and this printing method can only print darker fonts such as black or gray, and consumer preferences are gradually developing toward black keyboards, so manufacturers have begun to turn their attention to cost The ink printing is lower, and the color is richer, that is, screen printing. At present, the most widely used on the market is the keycap process of screen printing.
From left to right are-silk screen printing / ink printing-UV film-hollow printing
Various keycap printing technologies have their own advantages and disadvantages. The author of this article hopes that users can learn more about the development of keyboard keycap printing technology, and correct some of the wrong views of some consumers when purchasing keyboards. Let readers find their favorite keyboard.
Second, the patent of the white keyboard! Laser etching technology
Technology Introduction
Before introducing the laser etching technology, the author needs to remind consumers that the Chinese translation of the English "Laser" is laser. If it is transliterated, it is laser, which means that the laser and the laser are actually the same. At present, some businesses on the market like to separate the two rankings to achieve differentiated publicity. Some businesses even use the term "laser laser" to mislead consumers. The author reminds consumers that they must be careful not to be caught by certain businesses. Is misleading.
Pros and cons
Laser etching mainly uses the laser to draw the edges of the font on the key surface. The engraved strokes are somewhat shaped and line-shaped. If you look carefully at the printed strokes, you will easily find the depressed and burnt strokes. Now many white keyboards on the market basically use this keycap technology. Since this portrayal is a permanent physical portrayal, the font of the keycap can be said to not disappear, and the durability is quite good.
3. Screen printing and laser filling method
Technology Introduction
As consumers' preference for black keyboards is increasing, and the specificity of laser etching technology makes laser etching more and more rare. Ink technology, that is, screen printing technology began to enter the mainstream market. The screen printing process uses a more traditional screen printing machine for flat relief printing. The ink is only attached to the key surface, so the color selection is relatively rich, and it is usually used on some dark key caps.
Pros and cons
Ink printing uses ink dye, which is only attached to the surface of the keyboard, so the production cost is relatively low, and at the same time, it can be more rich in color, and it can easily handle complex ergonomically designed keyboards. However, this technology also has its disadvantages. Since the ink only stays on the surface of the keyboard, as the use time increases, the friction between the finger and the ink increases, and the ink dye will fall off, fade, and so on.
Due to the large differences in the characteristics of screen printing and laser etching, many manufacturers have adopted the technology of the two, which is the laser filler technology. The working process of this technology is generally to print on the keycap using laser etching technology, but the depth of the depiction is shallow, and then the ink dye is filled in the groove that appears by laser etching, so that the wear resistance of the ink dye is greatly enhanced . However, due to two printings, the increase in cost is also inevitable.
Technical identification
It is not difficult to identify the two technologies of screen printing and laser filler. At present, most black keyboards on the market use these two technologies, and the relatively low cost process is relatively simple. The common screen printing is relatively more used. In identification, as long as you touch the letter of the key cap, if there is a feeling of protrusion, it is generally a screen printing process. If the protrusion is not obvious, it may be the use of laser filler technology. [next]
Fourth, out of the misunderstanding! UV coating technology
Technology Introduction
UV coating technology is the most easily misunderstood by consumers. Indeed, the appearance of the keycap font using this technology has a feeling of sticking to it, which may be a little worse than the screen printing technology in the sense. However, UV coating technology is actually a technology developed in screen printing technology. The process of screen printing technology mentioned above only allows the ink to be attached to the keycap. This process does not perform well in durability, while the UV coating technology is to cover the ink pigment on the screen printing technology. A layer of plastic film reduces the contact between the finger and the ink color and enhances the durability.
Pros and cons
UV coating technology is an improved version of screen printing technology, so it has better performance in ink wear resistance, and the cost is relatively low.
However, due to the technical limitations of the coating itself, the UV coating process cannot be used to make keyboards with complex shapes. At the same time, there are still some defects for backlit keyboards and so on.
Technical identification
The UV coating process is one of the most easily identified keycap printing technologies. As long as you observe carefully, the user sees the feeling that there is a film on the keycap, that is the UV coating process. Some consumers may think that the UV coating technology is ugly and is a low-end sign. In fact, this idea is completely wrong. There are many high-end keyboards on the market that use this process, including the classic Dell 81XX series and Razer Tarantula.
5. Patent of high-end backlit keyboard! Hollow printing
Technology Introduction
All the above-mentioned processes are those that cannot transmit light or have poor transmittance effects, and the biggest feature of hollow printing is that the appearance is more beautiful, it can transmit light from the bottom of the keycap, and the font is almost never worn. Almost all mobile phones currently use this process. On the keyboard, most of this process is a high-end backlit keyboard and a part of Apple's special keyboard.
Pros and cons
The light shines through the keycap itself, and the look and feel effect is quite obvious. At present, many high-end backlit keyboards use this design, including the more famous Eclipse (Eclipse). However, due to the use of a special transparent material, the material is not comparable to ordinary keycap materials. This is in many ways, including elasticity, hardness, wear resistance, etc.
Due to the problem of the material itself, the hollow printing technology rarely appears in high-end game-level keyboards. Even the famous Eclipse II can still only belong to the general level in feel. Razer Tarantula is also only used in relatively special, relatively few programming buttons to use hollow printing technology. Perhaps beauty and wisdom can't be equal, and the hollow printing technology is more suitable for users who pay attention to appearance.
Technical identification
Keyboards with hollow-out printing generally have a backlight function. After all, this process is designed for users who want to make the keyboard transparent. We can also see it clearly in appearance. The feel of the transparent material is relatively weak. This defect is worthy of attention for users who are interested in purchasing a backlit keyboard. [next]
6. Other top key cap printing technologies
In addition to the four widely used keycap printing technologies mentioned above, there are actually two top-notch technologies that are rarely seen in the Chinese market due to cost and other issues. These two technologies are impregnation printing (sublimation) and two-color forming.
Impregnated printing (sublimation)
Impregnated printing is a printing method that is very different from ordinary ink printing. It uses not common liquid pigment inks but solid resin inks. The most common type of impregnated printing is the "baking print" photo of the ceramic cup.
The firmness of this printing is extremely high and it is almost impossible to be worn away. In addition, resin-based inks are inherently superior in gloss and shape.
But the process of impregnated printing is much more complicated than ordinary pigment ink printing, and the cost is extremely high, so currently only RealForce keyboards use this printing method. However, from the above picture we can also find that RealForce is a Japanese manufacturer, and it is rarely seen in China. A few years ago, a small batch of products arrived in Wuhan, but the price was also above 2,000 yuan.
Two-color forming
Two-color molding is the use of a mold to combine two different colors of plastic together, using the difference between the two plastic colors? Qun Yunzui hemorrhoids 6 ?? Shang Wei Nong Panpu Moyu hemorrhoids ?? Sparrow fold ⒉ ash submachinery value of the south scorpion worm? Pu Yi Ji mei Mei concave concave? Bei Ji oblique Qi Zhi Zhi Su? Zhihuai 怼? / P>
This top technology has a very high fixed cost of manufacturing, and at the same time it is difficult to show thin text, monotonous colors, and low complexity of strokes. Cherry, a famous mechanical keyboard manufacturer, uses this printing method for many keyboards. It can also be found that many of the black keyboards of Cherry are relatively coarse in size.
In fact, in terms of keycap printing technology, there are many other technologies besides the ones introduced above. For example, the latest OLED buttons directly put an OLED screen on the keycap, but the prices of those products are always at five. Above the number of digits, and basically there are few opportunities to see in China, which is not meaningful to consumers. This article introduces you to six more mainstream keycap printing technologies, mainly for several reasons, including correcting some users' misunderstandings about keycap printing, and helping readers learn more about the development process of keyboard keycap printing technology. , Has a certain reference role when buying a keyboard
But laser etching also has its drawbacks. First of all, because laser etching only directly depicts on the keycap, no ink is used, so only a single black font can be printed, and at most only a grayish font can be made, but high-end consumers will not like a single Color, and the characteristics of laser etching technology are destined to miss this technology and colorful high-end keyboard. In addition, the laser etching production line is relatively expensive, and the special characteristics of the etching machine make it more difficult to apply in complex ergonomically designed keyboards, which greatly limits the development of laser etching printing.
Technical identification
Due to its particularity, laser etching technology can only be applied to white keyboards. Many white keyboards currently on the market use laser etching technology. To identify the laser etching technology mainly depends on the feel of touch. Generally speaking, the keycaps printed by laser etching technology will have obvious groove feeling.
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