Customizing Your Keyboard: Keycaps, Switches, and Beyond

For many keyboard enthusiasts, the keyboard that comes in the box is just the starting point. The world of keyboard customization has grown into a substantial hobby with its own community, specialized online stores, group buys for limited edition components, and annual conventions. Even if you are not going to go deep into this hobby, understanding the basics of keyboard customization gives you options for improving your typing experience.

Keycaps are the plastic covers that sit on top of the key switches. They are what your fingers actually touch and what displays the labels for each key. Keycaps can be swapped out relatively easily on most desktop mechanical keyboards. Replacement keycap sets are available in an enormous variety of colors, fonts, materials, and profiles.

The profile of a keycap refers to its height and the angle of the top surface. Different profiles create different typing feels. Cherry profile is low and relatively flat. SA profile is tall and sculpted with a deep concave top surface. OEM profile is the most common default on standard keyboards with a moderate height and slight forward tilt. DSA profile is uniform height across all keys with a flat top. Each profile feels different under the fingers and changes the aesthetic of the keyboard significantly.

The material of keycaps affects both feel and durability. ABS plastic is the most common material and tends to develop a shiny, smooth surface over time as the oils from your fingers polish the surface. PBT plastic is more expensive but more resistant to this shine and texture change, maintaining a slightly rougher, matte feel for longer. PBT keycaps also tend to be slightly thicker and have a better sound when typed on.

The legend, meaning the text or symbol printed on each keycap, can be printed in different ways. Standard printing methods like pad printing or laser etching sit on the surface of the keycap and can wear off over years of use. Double-shot keycaps are made by molding two layers of plastic together, with the legend formed by the inner layer showing through a hole in the outer layer. Double-shot legends are essentially permanent because the legend is part of the plastic structure, not a surface print.

Switch customization is another dimension of the hobby. On hot-swap keyboards, switches can be removed and replaced without soldering. This lets you try different switch types and change your keyboard's feel completely. Some enthusiasts maintain collections of different switch types and swap them in for different tasks or moods.

Lubricating switches is a common modification that smoother and quieter the typing feel. Applying a small amount of specialty lubricant to the moving parts of each switch changes the friction characteristics and can transform a scratchy feeling switch into a silky smooth one. This process requires disassembling each switch, which is tedious but results in a noticeably improved feel that many enthusiasts find worth the effort.

Films are thin plastic or foam pieces inserted between the two halves of a switch housing. They reduce the wobble of the switch housing and can change the sound of the switch. Sound dampening foam placed inside the keyboard case is another common modification that reduces the echo chamber effect of the case and makes typing quieter.

For keyboard simulator users, all of this customization context is interesting because it helps you understand what variables create the typing experience you have with any physical keyboard. The visual and audio experience of the simulator is fixed by the software, but your physical keyboard choices have a wide range of variables that you can tune to your preference.