Choc keycaps are the undisputed champions of low profile mechanical keyboards. In particular, Kailh low profile flat keycaps have become an industry standard.
This article will cover the history of keycaps leading up to the evolution of the choc, the difference between various types of keycaps, and how to take full advantage of the versatility of modern choc keycaps.
Back in the 70s and 80s, keycaps were made out of heavy, injection molded materials. When it was discovered that the durability of the keycaps often outlasted the utility of the underlying keyboard, the fabrication process was changed to something more reasonable and affordable.
For a while, keycaps didn’t have a particularly strong presence in the home peripherals market. That’s because most keyboards in the 90s and through the mid-2000s weren’t using mechanical switches. There were some enthusiast and retro brands, given patronage by a small but loyal hardware community that was dedicated to quality, long lasting keyboards.
Eventually, mechanical keyboards saw a modern renaissance due to the mainstream push for higher quality, maintainable hardware. In 2008, Cherry made commercial agreements with several manufacturers of consumer PC keyboards. Their high profile switches became the de-facto standard for quality mechanical keyboards. Their keycaps were often shaped in such a way so that each row had a different slant, aligning with ergonomic standards at the time.
By 2015, a new demand was emerging: A lower profile switch, complete with a lower actuation point. Kailh choc switches emerged as the solution embraced by this new market. The result was lighter, thinner mechanical keyboards with the same satisfying action that their taller cousins possessed. They were rated for a staggering 70 million mechanical cycles.
Kailh choc switches used durable, flat keycaps, uniform across the entire keyboard. This design meant that the ergonomics of the keyboard didn’t depend on the cap shape, and could be determined entirely by the shape and design of the chassis itself. As of 2021, the popularity of choc keycaps is on the rise, as most manufacturers choose Kailh for their lightweight mechanical keyboard designs.
The ‘anatomy’ of a keycap, no matter the form factor, has a certain lexicon attached:
Legend: A keycap legend is the printed area on the top of a keycap. Most often, it has one, two, or three letters, numbers, or symbols that represent the result when a key is pressed. A key modifier, such as Shift or Function, is often required to produce the second or third symbol printed on the keycap’s legend. That is assuming, of course, that the operating system in question has the correct layout for that particular kind of keyboard. Otherwise, some custom key remapping might be required to make the function match the printed legend.
Keycap Mounts: The mount of a keycap is the method that allows the cap to snap into place atop the correct type of mechanical keyboard switch. Different mount types and locations prevent a Cherry switch from accepting a choc keycap, for example. Mounts are of particular concern for spacebar replacements. Depending on the size of the spacebar, and the design of the target keyboard, the mounting points might be different. It is suggested that the manufacturer’s documentation be consulted before replacing a spacebar with a third party keycap set, to make sure that the mounts are compatible.
Backlighting: In order to accept any kind of backlight that is produced by the keyboard, the keycaps must be partly or fully translucent (or transparent in the case of clear keycaps). Opaque molded keycaps will not allow light to pass through. This is a big consideration when ordering custom keycaps, particularly on gaming keyboards.
Profile: A keycap’s profile refers to the shape and surface contour of the plastic. Some keycaps are perfectly square. Others have rounded corners. Some keycap surfaces are flat, while others bubble upward into a slight ‘dome’, or inward into a slight ‘well’. Most choc keycaps are flat by default, though customized options provide a lot more variety.
Homing Bumps or Bars: By default, the ‘F’ and ‘J’ keys on a QWERTY keyboard have a small raised section that is intended to be a tactile reminder of where the index finger should be resting on the home keys. Similarly, custom keycaps may or may not have these homing bumps or bars. It is recommended that this feature be researched before replacing keycaps, to make sure that the raised feature is or is not there, as preference dictates.
The keycap type of any particular keyboard is associated with the switches that have been chosen for that keyboard. So a Cherry MX board will use the associated keycaps, while a Kailh choc red, brown, or white will use choc keycaps.
When selecting a keyboard, think about the profile that certain keycaps present. Most Cherry switches have longer travel between the ‘resting’ state of the key and the actuation point. So those keyboards generally have taller keys, which are sculpted to conform to ergonomic standards on a row by row basis. Some people prefer that design.
Most Kailh choc keyboards have shorter travel from a resting state to the key’s actuation. This means shorter, flatter keys with a more compact profile. The ergonomics are handled by the steeple and curve of the keyboard itself, while all of the keys are standard from row to row. A preference for shorter actuation and thinner keyboards in general indicates a preference for choc keycaps.
One of the big benefits to Kailh choc keycaps is that they’re fully swappable between rows. Because every row is uniformly flat, there’s no need to order new keycaps just because the function of two keys has been remapped, and the user wants that reflected on the keyboard. Instead, any standard sized key from any row can be exchanged for any other. This isn’t true of sculpted keys on Cherry keyboards.
The majority of choc keycaps are made of ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) plastic. This is a smoother, slicker keycap. ABS keycaps are durable and less prone to cracking or shattering under sharp impact, but tend to pick up a ‘shine’ after a lot of use. White keys will tend to yellow a little in the sun over time.
Some of the higher quality flat choc keycaps are PBT (polybutylene terephthalate). The plastic of these keycaps is slightly sandy to the touch. They do not tend to yellow in sunlight, and they avoid the ‘shine’ issues of heavy use much better than their ABS cousins. Though higher quality, they are slightly more brittle under heavy impact, so avoid throwing a PBT-capped keyboard across the room if at all possible.
Custom or replacement choc keycaps are available directly from Kailh, or from a select number of choc keycap retailers.
Kailh created a choc switch specifically for laptop keyboards, called the choc PG1350. It should be noted that the keycap mount on the PG1350, though inspired by the low profile Kailh switch, is not compatible with standard choc keycaps. The mount had to be shifted to facilitate a lateral movable contact point. As the compact size prohibits the use of a click collar, the switch uses a click bar instead. The click bar is simply a rod spring that gets pushed aside, much like a click leaf design.
These subtle differences, but most importantly the different mounting points, mean that a different kind of choc keycap is required for any kind of modification or replacement. The laptop manufacturer is likely the first and best source of replacement for choc laptop keycaps.
Many types of choc customization are available, given the flexibility of being able to exchange any of the normal sized flat keys in any row.
Switching to alternate typing layouts is a customization that can be done without purchasing any new choc keycaps. For example, by going into the keyboard’s remapping or configurator options, a Dvorak layout can be programmed. After that, it’s a simple matter of swapping the keycaps into the correct order. The same is true for the Colemak and Workman keyboard layouts. Some keyboard configurators even offer these layout swaps as one-touch configuration changes, rather than requiring the user to painstakingly shift each key around in the software.
By purchasing a few custom or alternative language keycaps, and making use of an operating system’s native ability to parse other keyboard layouts, a U.S. English keyboard can be converted over to any of the popular foreign language layouts. For example, getting a custom ‘Ü’ keycap will allow a user to swap to the Azeri QÜERTY layout. Accented letters paired to the number keys will allow for an AZERTY layout. Similar swaps can be made for Sámi Extended, ĄŽERTY, QWERTZ and others.
Of course, custom keycaps might have nothing to do with functional key remapping. Custom color schemes are a common choc keycap purchase. Some gaming layouts might include a shifted color scheme for the ASDW keycaps, the arrow keys, or other game specific keys. Artistic keycap layouts might include national flag patterns, cascading color schemes, or thematic pallet switches.
Such modifications might require keycaps that replace the larger keys such as shift, tab, caps lock, enter, and the like. The width of each key is measured in units, or ‘u’. A common letter key is ‘1u’ wide. Keys that are one and a half times the width of a common letter key are ‘1.5u’. Double the width, ‘2u’, and so on. In this way, custom choc keycaps can be ordered that fit over the wider keys of a choc switch keyboard.
Until recently, custom choc keycap vendors were a rarity. Most of the custom keycap market catered to various types of Cherry keyboards, since they were the most popular mechanical keyboards on the market for quite some time. And, of course, the sculpted slant of high profile Cherry keycaps varied from row to row. Which meant that in order to change keycaps over to an alternate layout like Dvorak, new keycaps were required that matched the correct slant of the key’s new row.
With the rising popularity of Kailh switches, it was only a matter of time before the demand for choc keycap replacements picked up. For standard key replacements due to fade, damage, or shine, choc keycaps can be ordered directly from Kailh.
But as more of the mainstream and custom keyboard manufacturers create new low profile devices, the demand for more durable custom flat choc keycaps in a variety of colors has been growing. Over the past few years, some smaller vendors have offered printed keycaps in black and white, which are the most commonly mass produced choc keycap colors.
But only recently has a manufacturer dedicated an entire fabrication effort to nothing but custom choc keycaps and keycap sets. Hakkei has recently announced their intention to manufacture low profile PBT choc keycaps in their own unique style. The full scope of customization will depend on community demand, but they plan to offer at least two color sets for keycap sizes ranging from 1u to 2.5u. They hope to quickly ramp into other color pallets, clear caps, custom prints, and a variety of space bar designs.
Choc switches and their corresponding keycaps are becoming a larger part of the mechanical keyboard market. The push towards ever slimmer, lighter, and more portable keyboards naturally drives demand. Additionally, ergonomically shaped keyboards that use flat keycaps make excellent use of choc switches with a low actuation threshold.
Choc keycap replacement can come from necessity or from the desire to be artistically expressive. Both use cases are valid, and have been common in the Cherry switch community for some time.
There is a void in the custom choc keycap manufacturing sector. However, new companies and services are emerging to fill that void. The diversity of their keycap production will largely depend on customer demand, and how many different regional markets they can realistically compete within.
Coming Soon
