! But no one would say they’re sleek or compact. Even the smallest mainstream models, the “60%” boards, are about the size and weight of a paperback book. But that might be changing very soon.

！ 但是没有人会说它们时尚或紧凑。 即使是最小的主流机型，“ 60％”电路板，也差不多是一本平装书的大小和重量。 但这可能很快就会改变。

Cherry, the German company famous for creating the original MX switch design that started the modern mechanical revival, . Combined with an existing and growing offering from Chinese competitor Kailh, we’re about to see an explosion of sleek, streamlined keyboards that preserve the tactile feel and customization options that mechanical fans crave.

以创建原始MX开关设计而闻名的德国公司Cherry引发了现代机械复兴， 。 结合中国竞争对手Kailh提供的现有产品和不断增长的产品，我们将看到爆炸的，流畅，流线型的键盘，这些键盘保留了机械迷们渴望的触感和自定义选项。

为什么机械键盘这么大？ (Why Are Mechanical Keyboards So Big, Anyway?)

To understand the significance of new low profile designs, we have to look at why mechanical keyboards tend to be so much bigger than conventional rubber dome and scissor-switch designs. First, the modern Cherry MX switch isn’t modern at all, at least in terms of its overall design. German keyboard supplier Cherry first patented the original MX design way back in 1984. At the time, nothing about computers was small or sleek, so it really didn’t matter if your enormous keyboard couldn’t fit into a breadbox.

要了解新型薄型设计的重要性，我们必须看看为什么机械键盘往往比传统的橡胶弹片和剪式开关设计大得多。 首先，现代的Cherry MX开关根本不是现代的，至少就其整体设计而言。 德国键盘供应商Cherry在1984年首次为原始MX设计方式申请了专利。当时，关于计算机的任何东西都不是小巧或时尚的，因此，如果您的大型键盘不能放入面包箱中，则实际上并不重要。

Cherry’s MX switch design proved so popular and so resilient that the company began supplying the switches for other keyboard makers, including industrial and business-to-business manufacturers. You can find MX switch variants on thirty years’ worth of electronics, in everything from consumer-grade keyboards to retail point of sale kiosks to medical scanning equipment. And when it comes to the business-to-business stuff, none of it needs to look particularly good or fit into a backpack. Cherry did make some low profile switch variations, the ML series from the 1990s, but they never caught on with either Cherry’s corporate customers or keyboard enthusiasts.

Cherry的MX开关设计非常受欢迎且具有弹性，因此该公司开始为其他键盘制造商提供开关，包括工业和企业对企业的制造商。 您可以在三十年的电子产品中找到MX开关的各种类型，从消费级键盘到零售销售点亭，再到医疗扫描设备，应有尽有。 当涉及到企业对企业的东西时，它们都不需要看起来特别好或适合放在背包中。 Cherry确实做了一些低调的开关变体，它们是1990年代的ML系列，但是它们从未吸引过Cherry的公司客户或键盘发烧友。

When mechanical keyboards came back into style in the late 2000s, keyboards with Cherry MX switches were once again popular with consumers, particularly gamers and dedicated typists. (Don’t call it a comeback.) By that point, the original Cherry MX design patent had expired, allowing a growing number of companies to copy it and expand on it with more variations and cheaper “clone” switches. And now you can buy a Cherry-style mechanical keyboard .

当机械键盘在2000年代后期重新流行时，带有Cherry MX开关的键盘再次受到消费者的欢迎，尤其是游戏玩家和专业打字员。 (不要称其为卷土重来。)到那时，原始的Cherry MX设计专利已经过期，从而使越来越多的公司可以复制它并以更多的变化和更便宜的“克隆”开关对其进行扩展。 现在，您可以购买樱桃风格的机械键盘。

But make no mistake: despite the smaller cases, fancy switch variations, and near-infinite selections of key layouts and keycaps, most of the modern mechanical keyboards on store shelves are using 30-year-old technology for typing.

但是请不要误会：尽管外壳较小，花哨的开关变化以及键布局和键帽的选择几乎是无限的，但是商店货架上的大多数现代机械键盘仍使用具有30年历史的打字技术。

更新，较小的开关设计终于来了 (Newer, Smaller Switch Designs Are Finally Here)

In response to keyboard makers’ wishes to compete with the slim, sleek designs seen on products like Apple’s Bluetooth keyboards, Cherry has developed the new Cherry MX Low Profile Switch. This new design shrinks the overall switch dimensions from 18.6mm tall (from the bottom of the plastic housing to the tip of the cross-shaped stem) to just 11.9mm.

为了响应键盘制造商希望与Apple蓝牙键盘等产品上纤薄，时尚的设计竞争的需求，Cherry开发了新的Cherry MX Low Profile Switch。 这种新设计将整个开关尺寸从18.6mm高(从塑料外壳的底部到十字形杆的尖端)缩小到仅11.9mm。

This is a lot more impressive than it sounds. One of the key aspects of mechanical keyboards is a long key travel, the distance between the key’s resting position and its fully depressed position. Longer key travel is generally preferred by gamers and typists, and MX switches offer 2-4mm for either activation or full depression. For comparison, laptop keyboards tend to offer less than 1.5mm of key travel. The new MX Low Profile switch preserves an impressive 3.2mm of maximum key travel (the activation point might be less, depending on the switch variation).

这比听起来要令人印象深刻。 机械键盘的关键方面之一是长的按键行程，即按键的静止位置与其完全按下位置之间的距离。 玩家和打字员通常更喜欢较长的按键行程，并且MX开关提供2-4毫米用于激活或完全按下。 相比之下，笔记本电脑键盘的按键行程通常小于1.5mm。 新型MX Low Profile开关保留了令人印象深刻的最大按键行程3.2mm(根据开关的不同，激活点可能更少)。

The MX Low Profile switch also preserves some of the more advanced features from modern MX variant switches, including compatibility with compact RGB LEDs offering nigh-infinite color combinations, and a stem that should be compatible with contemporary keycaps designed for MX keys. Some keycap profiles may be too tall to be fully depressed on a new low profile switch—Cherry hasn’t said much about this—but the new circular-reinforced stem and cross center should mean new keycaps can be designed for the low profile switches with minimal cost to suppliers.

MX Low Profile开关还保留了现代MX变体开关的一些更高级的功能，包括与可提供近乎无限的颜色组合的紧凑型RGB LED兼容，以及应与专为MX按键设计的现代键帽兼容的阀杆。 一些键帽轮廓可能太高而无法完全压在新的薄型开关上(Cherry对此并没有过多说明)，但是新的圆形增强杆和十字中心应该意味着新的键帽可以设计用于带有薄型开关的薄型开关。供应商的成本最低。

Cherry isn’t the only game in town when it comes to new, skinnier switch designs, either. Kailh, a Chinese firm that’s been manufacturing MX-compatible switches for years, released a new and wholly different low profile “Choc” switch last year. While it’s designed for easy adaptation on modern PCBs and plate mountings, the Kailh low profile design is incompatible with both standard full-sized Cherry MX switches and the new MX Low Profile design. In fact, Kailh’s switches bear a striking resemblance to the Cherry ML low profile design from the 1990s.

就新的，更窄的开关设计而言，Cherry也不是唯一的游戏。 多年来一直在生产与MX兼容的开关的中国公司Kailh，去年发布了一种全新的，完全不同的低调“ Choc”开关。 Kailh薄型设计专为轻松适应现代PCB和板安装而设计，与标准的全尺寸Cherry MX开关和新的MX薄型设计都不兼容。 实际上，Kailh的开关与1990年代的Cherry ML低调设计极为相似。

The Kailh switches with their rectangular stems are much smaller than the MX Low Profile switches, at only 5.9mm of total height. That smaller design comes with a compromise: the key travel has a total of 2.4mm with an activation at 1.2mm, making them closer to laptop-style keys than full-sized Cherry keys in terms of “feel.”

带有矩形杆的Kailh开关比MX Low Profile开关小得多，其总高度仅为5.9mm。 较小的设计带来了一个折衷：按键行程总计2.4毫米，激活深度为1.2毫米，就“手感”而言，它们比全尺寸Cherry按键更接近笔记本电脑式按键。

At the moment, Cherry is only showing off its MX Low Profile switch in a linear red variation, with a 45-gram activation force. Kailh is making its low profile Choc switches in blue “clicky”, brown “tactile,” and red linear variations, all with a slightly stiffer 50-gram activation.

目前，Cherry仅以线性红色变化展示其MX Low Profile开关，其作用力为45克。 Kailh将其低调的Choc开关制成蓝色“ clicky”，棕色“可触知”和红色线性变化，所有这些都具有稍微更硬的50克激活功能。

哪些键盘具有低调开关？ (Which Keyboards Have the Low Profile Switches?)

Not many, yet. Aside from purpose-built demonstration units at trade shows, there are only three keyboards on the market at the time of writing, all using the smaller Kailh switches: the , , and with a modified 60% layout. There’s also a Bluetooth variant of the tenkeyless model that’s much harder to find. Based on the branding and case designs, it looks like all of these keyboards are coming from the same whitebox manufacturer.

还不多。 除了贸易展览会上的专用演示装置外，在撰写本文时，市场上只有三个键盘，全部使用较小的Kailh开关： ， 和布局修改为60％。 Tenkeyless模型还有一个蓝牙变体，很难找到。 根据品牌和外壳设计，所有这些键盘似乎都来自同一白盒制造商。

In addition to demonstration models, Cherry showed off a new production design at CES from its corporate partner Vortex, makers of the popular series of 60% keyboards. The new keyboard is , a compact layout that crams in a full Function row and arrow keys into an all-metal case with a new USB-C connector. Another manufacturer, Ducky, had with USB-C and Bluetooth connections, plus full RGB lighting. Both of these keyboard designs, and at least a few more, should be available at retail sometime in the next few months.

除演示模型外，Cherry在其CES合作伙伴Vortex上展示了一种新的生产设计，该合作伙伴是广受欢迎的60％ 系列系列的制造商。 新键盘是紧凑的布局可将完整的功能行和方向键塞入带有新USB-C连接器的全金属外壳中。 另一家制造商Ducky，有带有USB-C和蓝牙连接以及全RGB照明 。 这些键盘设计以及至少其他几种键盘设计应在未来几个月内的某个时间点在零售中发售。

There’s another option for the more handy and adventurous user: building your own keyboard. Vendors are , available for those advanced hobbyists who can assemble their own particle boards and wire and program keyboards themselves. At least one member of has done so. Expect the Cherry MX Low Profile switches to be available for purchase soon, too.

对于更方便和喜欢冒险的用户，还有另一种选择：构建自己的键盘。 供应商 ，可供那些可以自己组装刨花板，自己组装电线和程序键盘的高级业余爱好者使用。 至少有一个成员这样做。 希望Cherry MX Low Profile开关也即将上市。

将会发生什么变化？ (What’s Going to Change?)

Probably less than you think, at least in the short term. One of the things that allowed mechanical keyboards to blossom into such a diverse segment was that the original Cherry MX switch design was out of patent protection, opening the doors for clones and refinements from a variety of suppliers. With a new switch design, Cherry will be able to exclusively manufacture the new low profile switches for twenty years in the US, and similar terms in most other countries. The same goes for Kailh’s switches, and any new designs that pop up.

至少在短期内可能比您想象的要少。 使机械键盘发展到如此多样化的领域的一件事是，原始的Cherry MX开关设计不受专利保护，为各种供应商的克隆和改良打开了大门。 借助新的开关设计，Cherry将能够在美国二十年内独家生产新的薄型开关，在其他大多数国家也是如此。 Kailh的开关和弹出的任何新设计也是如此。

That means keyboard makers will have to buy directly from Cherry and Kailh for their low profile switches—an expensive proposition. Or they could go through the even more expensive process of designing their own low profile switch. So new keyboard designs with these exclusive switches will be expensive for the time being, especially for Germany-based Cherry, as the expense of buying components from a single supplier puts a floor on competitive pricing.

这意味着键盘制造商将不得不直接从Cherry和Kailh购买它们的低调开关，这是一个昂贵的提议。 或者，他们可以经历设计自己的薄型开关的更昂贵的过程。 因此，带有这些专用开关的新键盘设计暂时将是昂贵的，尤其是对于德国的Cherry而言，因为从单个供应商处购买组件的费用降低了竞争价格。

And even if a new wave of smaller, sleeker mechanical keyboards sweeps across the industry, don’t expect these switches to show up in laptops any time soon. The 11.9mm housing of Cherry’s Low Profile MX switch is already more than half the height of a typical modern laptop—makers wouldn’t be able to fit those switches in with crucial components like the motherboard and battery without making their designs unfashionably thick. Even with Kailh’s shorter switch design and chunkier “gaming” laptops, don’t expect integrated mechanical keyboards on anything except the most expensive and niche models.

即使一波更小，更时尚的机械键盘席卷了整个行业，也不要指望这些开关会很快出现在笔记本电脑中。 Cherry的Low Profile MX开关的11.9mm外壳已经是典型现代笔记本电脑的高度的一半以上，制造商无法在不使设计变得过时的厚度的情况下，将这些开关与主板和电池等关键组件配合使用。 即使使用Kailh较短的开关设计和笨重的“游戏”笔记本电脑，也不要指望除了最昂贵，最特殊的型号以外，其他任何产品上都不会集成机械键盘。

While these switches won’t find their way into many laptops, expect them to pop up in Bluetooth-enabled designs right away. Wireless options for mechanical keyboards have always been a bit lacking—chock it up to a purist’s enthusiasm for wires, I suppose. But initial batches of keyboards with both switches have included Bluetooth variants, probably because the smaller cases and shorter overall height will be ideal for throwing those boards in a backpack for use with a tablet or phone.

尽管这些开关不会在很多笔记本电脑中找到用，但希望它们立即在支持蓝牙的设计中弹出。 机械键盘的无线选项一直都比较少，我想这是纯粹主义者对电线的热情。 但是最初带有两个开关的键盘批次都包含蓝牙版本，这可能是因为较小的外壳和较短的整体高度非常适合将这些板卡放在背包中，以供平板电脑或手机使用。

Assuming a mass adoption of one or both standards, there’s also the keycap situation to think about. MX-stem keycaps may or may not be compatible with the new Cherry switches, but they certainly won’t work for the Kailh switches, which use a double-prong connection instead of the cross-shaped stem. That’s not a particularly big deal—caps for different stems aren’t a new phenomenon, just ask Topre and ALPS fans—but it’s something you should be aware of if you’ve amassed an expensive collection of keycaps so far.

假设大量采用一个或两个标准，则还需要考虑一些关键的情况。 MX干键盖可能与新的Cherry开关兼容，也可能与之不兼容，但是它们肯定不适用于Kailh开关，后者使用双爪连接而不是十字形杆。 这不是什么大不了的事—仅询问Topre和ALPS爱好者，不同茎的盖帽并不是新现象，但是如果您到目前为止已经积累了许多昂贵的键帽，则应该注意这一点。

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