geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboard Keycaps => Topic started by: Electrofruit on Tue, 20 August 2013, 21:01:02
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I recently bought a new Das Keyboard Professional and have been using it for the past eight days.
Within that time I've noticed that the lettering on my more frequently used keys has already begun to rub off and grow dull.
A friend of mine who's owned an etched mech board for about two years told me he'd never heard of such ridiculously fast wear,
or had the same issue with his own board. I find it quite unacceptable that the letters should rub off at all given how terribly expensive the board was.
I'd very much like to know if this is normal, for Das specifically or for etched black caps in general. I'm thinking of returning it and buying a WASD board instead,
but not without feedback. I want to know if the etching on a WASD board will rub off like it has on my Das,
and if it's a problem with the printing method in general or with Das' bad OEM.
I'm a bit more inclined to believe it's the latter, but I'm rather unsure about it after reading what Mr. Kwong told me:
We use a very similar method to Das keyboards. [...] The plastic actually foams up and changes white when hit by a laser. You will experience the same wear with all black, laser etched keys.
If you are open to other keycap colors, all other colors are more durable than black keys due to the reaction of the plastic to the laser. Yellow, orange, and green, for example, are the most durable.
I'd like to hear from any users of laser-etched, black-capped Das or WASD keyboards about this. Thank you for any information.
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I really need a response to my question. Or, if it's more suited to a different forum, please tell me.
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the black burn-etching onto light colored caps lasts fine.
it's the "white" infill that stains in the long run, and it MAY also just chip and fall out (this is more rare) but it does happen.
(http://www.cute-factor.com/images/smilies/onion/th_111_.gif)
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I have a DAS that is 2 years old now. The letters are still there but they have faded. They fade very quickly, it is known that the quality of the caps for this keyboard is not that great.
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The stock DAS caps are going to be pretty low quality. And laser etching is usually not favored because it can wear very easily.
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Das caps aren't laser etched or printed. They're pad printed. And on top of that, I don't believe they have the UV protective coating that others have. I know mine became dirty fairly quickly.
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Das caps aren't laser etched or printed. They're pad printed. And on top of that, I don't believe they have the UV protective coating that others have. I know mine became dirty fairly quickly.
I got ripped off, my Das caps were already blank when I got them :(
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Also who's Mr. Kwong?
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Das caps aren't laser etched or printed. They're pad printed. And on top of that, I don't believe they have the UV protective coating that others have. I know mine became dirty fairly quickly.
i thought they were lazer etched then infilled?
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I'm almost 100% positive they're pad printed, and if I still had my Das, I'd get to scratching off the legends of a cap for you to show you.
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you can still scratch off infilled :D
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you can still scratch off infilled :D
Yes, but underneath, you would see they're not laser etched. Generally, laser etched and infilled are fairly flat, whereas pad printing tends to be raised from the surface.
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I don't see anything that looks like stickers around the letters of my keys, so I doubt they're pad-printed.
It is evident that it isn't particularly good quality printing though. I'm mostly sure I want to return it,
but I'm still wondering if it'd be worthwhile to get the WASD in black caps or go for a more durable color.
The letter fading isn't the only issue with this Das. It arrived with multiple scratches and blemishes on the gloss,
and the placement of the Fn key and the USB hub is completely asinine. It doesn't really feel like something I paid $124 for.
I'd probably keep it anyway but it seems the Brown switches aren't very suitable to my typing style.
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I don't see anything that looks like stickers around the letters of my keys, so I doubt they're pad-printed.
It is evident that it isn't particularly good quality printing though. I'm mostly sure I want to return it,
but I'm still wondering if it'd be worthwhile to get the WASD in black caps or go for a more durable color.
The letter fading isn't the only issue with this Das. It arrived with multiple scratches and blemishes on the gloss,
and the placement of the Fn key and the USB hub is completely asinine. It doesn't really feel like something I paid $124 for.
I'd probably keep it anyway but it seems the Brown switches aren't very suitable to my typing style.
Pad printing is not stickers... Why would you see stickers?
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You have the new version so quality might be worse than mine from 2 years ago