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Hot-swappable keyboards are pretty common nowadays, but for the uninitiated, the term might sound like pure jargon. So, what exactly is a hot-swappable keyboard and why should you buy one? Let’s examine this concept in-depth.

Hot-Swappable Mechanical Keyboards: At a Glance

	Hot-Swappable	Standard
Switch Type	Varies	Varies
Tools Required to Change Switches	No tools required	Requires soldering iron
Switch Mount	Socket	Soldered to the PCB
Can You Change Switches with the Keyboard Turned on?	Yes	No

Hot-Swappable Mechanical Keyboards: What Are They?

Hot-swappable mechanical keyboards use sockets that allow for easy removal and replacement of the mechanical switches fixed to the plate. The key difference between a hot-swappable and standard mechanical keyboard is that a hot-swap socket allows you to remove the switch with a pair of fancy pliers. A standard mechanical keyboard will have switches that are physically soldered to the printed circuit board. If you want or need to replace switches on a standard keyboard, you’ll need a soldering iron to de-solder the original switch from the PCB.

Since hot-swappable keyboards don’t use melted solder wire to connect the switches to the PCB, there are a few major functional differences. Firstly, hot-swappable keyboards tend to have less stable switches. A soldered switch is fixed to the PCB by a solid metal connection. This connection improves the stability of the switch and prevents it from coming loose in the socket.

Secondly, hot-swappable keyboards can have their sockets and switches maintenanced while the keyboard is plugged in and in use. That’s what the “hot” in “hot-swap” means. The keyboard can change switches while it is still “hot” (turned on) without damaging any components. A soldered keyboard must be powered down, unplugged, and de-static’d before you can maintenance its guts.

Things to Consider Before Buying a Hot-Swappable Keyboard

If you’re interested in buying a hot-swappable keyboard, here are a few things you should consider before you hit the “buy now” button.

Key Stability

How stable do you need your switches to be? If you’re someone who hits the keys really hard, you might want to opt for a more stable keyboard. While the difference in stability between hot-swappable and soldered keyboards is typically negligible, it isn’t zero. If you hit the keys extremely hard and you have loose sockets, you might end up knocking the switches loose while typing.

Maintenance Needs

One of the primary draws of hot-swappable sockets is that you can maintenance the keyboard more effectively without tools. You’ll be able to yank the switches and replace them if any go bad and you can even clean out the sockets if need be. If you’re someone who is going to need to replace switches often, this might be a huge draw of a hot-swappable keyboard. People who are still looking for their perfect switches might not want to buy five or ten keyboards while they try out switches. So, a hot-swappable keyboard can enable them to swap out the switches on the fly and find the ones they like best.

Price

Another thing to consider is that hot-swapping is a premium feature for an already premium product. You’ll have to pay extra for the ability to hot-swap your switches. If the keyboard is still cheap even though it has premium features, you’ll have to consider what was removed to bring the price down. There are some budget keyboards like the i61 61-key hot-swappable keyboard that can give you the feature at a low price. However, a standard, reliable hot-swappable keyboard is going to start at around $50 and a good keyboard with hot-swap sockets will go for around $100.