I propose a project...

[TreyRust]

... My laptop is a thinkpad X200, thinkpads are know to have good keyboards, but its nothing compared to an honest to god mechanical.

So, I;ve been thinking, it would be quite a challenge to design a tactile keyswitch, to replace the scissor switches. But since I've found my zenith, I've fallen in love with linear keyswitches, so here is my proposal:

It's not an impossible challenge, I would draw up some diagrams but, I'm to tired so, I'll just bore you with the technical talk.

Instead of having a rubber dome, we have a spring. Now, you have to use a spring that when compressed, is the SAME height as the dome with compressed. NOTE: It should still have a little travel when it bottoms out, so that its the pad stopping it, and not the spring itself.

Then you need a little pad that is just a TINY bit longer than the spring when fully compressed, that will be glued to the bottom of the keys, for the contact, and voila! If you followed my calculations EXACTLY (and, I'm not wrong...) you should have a linear keyswitch for a laptop!

It's a project I want to work on, I just need the money to blow. I can grab another 'board for my laptop on ebay for $25. Then I would just need the springs, and I'm sure I could come up with something for the pads really easily (dads got a BIG shop I can play with)

The biggest challenge is finding springs that are the right size and, right pressure.

Additional notes: Another thing I would do is, experiement with the different pads, the pad should be a highly compressable rubber I suppose, so that you don't HAVE to slam it to the bbottom to make sure it registered. And Trying the different lengths of padding.

Please take note that, I've thought this through fairly thoroughly, I just haven't described it as such (are as well).

Feel free to make comments, or show me were this has been done before if it has, I sure couldn't find it...

I'm aware this probably won't be as good as an honest to god switch, but its better than what this computer has.

Trey.

[The Solutor]

Frankly the  X200's keyboard is one of the best keyboard available, if you have the one made by NMB, and still a very good one if made by Chicony.

Is very unlikely that modding it you will end with anything better

[kinkng]

Frankly the  X200's keyboard is one of the best keyboard available, if you have the one made by NMB, and still a very good one if made by Chicony.

Is very unlikely that modding it you will end with anything better

How does the keyboard on an X201 compare to the X200? Are they the same?

[TreyRust]

Good point, one of the reasons I got the computer, but I do love linear switches! It even if I didn't keep using it, the tech could be applied to other scissor switch boards, and there aren't many mechanical "slim" boards

[ch_123]

With the old rubber sleeve Thinkpad keyboards, this would have been easy. With scissor switches, I'd imagine it would be messy, and the difference wouldn't be worth it.

[The Solutor]

How does the keyboard on an X201 compare to the X200? Are they the same?

They are the same

[The Solutor]

Somebody prove to me that the Thinkpad scissor switches are really that different from anybody elses scissors.

[video=youtube;5wjBQE0_ejQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wjBQE0_ejQ[/video]

Do this with your HP :becky:

[alaricljs]

Yeah, but don't pour too fast (like in a real spill) since it'll just flow over the keys and into the rest of the laptop instead of just draining out of the keyboard tray.  

[ch_123]

Somebody prove to me that the Thinkpad scissor switches are really that different from anybody elses scissors.

Not all scissors are equal, as should be apparent to anyone who has typed on more than one type of scissor board.

Why exactly? I guess that there are differences between the exact construction used by different manufacturers (supposedly there are a few OEMs for the Thinkpad keyboards, and some are better than others), and even from the same manufacturer there are probably different tolerances depending on how much the customer wants to spend.

[TreyRust]

My X200 was out for 3 days after getting water on it, it was draining fine, and it was one hell of a spill. The keyboard has really cool drains on it, with a real neat shield, it was cool looking at all that when I had it apart.  It would have been fine if, I hadn't turned it over to open it up right afterwards...:noidea: still calling myself and idiot for that.

But a few days later, I found a little bit of corrosion on an IC, got some alchohol and it booted right up

Do THAT with your HP, because it went further than the keyboard, it got under the hinge for the lid too, and that doesn't have drain.

++thinkpad

Trey.

[ch_123]

Or the Thinkpad ones will get better too?

Whatever suits your view of the world better I guess.

[ch_123]

They are originally a Swiss company, IIRC.

Either way, all the manufacturing is done in China anyway. It's like saying the Filco is a Japanese keyboard when it's a rebrand of a generic Taiwanese OEM board.

[The Solutor]

Lenovo is a Chinese company.

Lenovo is a chinese company who avoided to fire all the IBM employers

Logitech is an American one.   I'm rooting for the American World View.

Luckily Logitech Is a swiss company, founded by Italian and Swiss people, lead by Italian or Swiss people depending on the moment

[The Solutor]

The Samsung Google Netbook has a very good reputation for scissor switch

Thy are surely better than the ones used on the average HP,Acer, Dell products