For the gamers here the magnetic switches can act like a controller for a console. Which is to say, the problem with PC gaming for things like (say) a driving game was hitting “right” on the keyboard was an all-or-nothing thing. It was FULL ON right or straight ahead. It was a binary choice.
The new magnetic switches allow for partial key presses so you can steer (say) 25% or 33% or 45% or whatever. Same as you can with a controller.
I have not tried them yet but that is the promise some make. Given @HMS_Irruncible advice I think I might give these new ones a try. I got a lot of great use out of my current keyboard so no waste there.
If you do get a new keyboard it might be fun to run the dishwasher experiment on the old one. Whether it lives or dies, you’ll have gained a useful data point from the experience. And at no incremental expense.
My own supposition is that once it’s gotten thoroughly dry it ought to be good as new. The dishwasher’s own dry cycle should take care of most (all?) of that.
I watched a video about it and the dishwasher drying temp can exceed the temp of some of the plastics used in the keyboard (depends…some are fine, some are not). I know my dishwasher can get pretty toasty. Enough that it hurts to grab a plate with a barehand right after it is done drying.
The test idea is a good one but not sure I want to melt some of my keycaps into my dishwasher.
I can turn off the heat though and just let it air dry since there is no rush.
Good point. I had not considered the collateral damage potential. I withdraw my suggestion for heated dry.
I do sometimes speed dry things in an open oven set to the lowest temp. Works well to get the heat into the nooks and crannies that water likes to capillary itself into, without ever getting hotter than ordinary plastic materials can stand. Best to set the keyboard on something like a cutting board and put that on the oven rack. Direct contact between the wire oven rack and the plastic product may transfer more heat more locally than is healthy. Also keep the item near the front doorway of the oven, not stuffed back in the rear corners. At those low settings with the door open there’s quite a temperature gradient inside the cavity.
On a less serious note, this reminds me of some advice I once read:
Q: What’s the best kind of car to take off-roading? A: A rented one.
Next time you’re staying at an AirBnB, etc., with a kitchen, don’t forget to bring a test keyboard along.
Microcenter is so, so good. One of the things I miss most about Chicago.
How does that work? Games don’t have an input for “WSAD but at 45% strength”. You’d have to map it to a movement axis somehow, but then you’d have to map two separate keys to the same axis. Unless the keyboard driver itself can do that, I don’t see how that would work? And it seems like a few millimeters of actuation would be hard to precisely control in the first place?
PS I wonder if an ultrasonic cleaner (like they use for eyeglasses) filled with nonconductive fluid could work…
Many years ago my wife bought me a barber style brush (wooden handle with long soft bristles) for cleaning out the keyboard. I turn the keyboard over and shake it (like an Etch-a-Sketch) then use the brush to brush out anything that didn’t shake out. I’ve never been a big fan of compressed air - it just blows the dust everywhere. (I guess I’m too lazy to take it outside and do it.)
Out of curiosity, how does the keyboard get so dirty anyway? Is it all food?
In some 30 years of gaming and dev work (and the Dope), I don’t think I’ve ever purposely had to clean a keyboard of my own. I don’t do anything special to take care of them except replace them every few years when some of the keys break.
But due to hand pain, I only use ergonomic keyboards with laptop style switches. Maybe those are less prone to gunk build-up vs mechanical ones? And I don’t eat crumbly things at my desk.
I had AI answer this one for me. There is lots of info about this out there but, short version is some HE (Hall Effect) magnetic switch keyboards can run in an analog mode. Read: Maybe not all can so check to be sure first! ISTM only the expensive ones do this for now. Here is the AI answer:
Yes, Hall Effect keyboards can provide analog, incremental input similar to console controllers, but with some important caveats about game support.
How It Works
Hall Effect keyboards use magnetic sensors to detect how far a key is pressed, not just whether it’s on or off. This allows them to output analog signals based on key depth. Leading models like the Wooting keyboards support “analog mode,” which essentially turns key switches into controller-like analog input, useful for racing games or gradual movement. For example, in a racing game, lightly pressing ‘W’ makes your car creep forward while fully pressing it accelerates at full speed.
Key Capabilities
The keyboards offer several related features: adjustable actuation points (typically 0.1-4.0mm), rapid trigger for faster key repeat, and multi-stage actions where one key can perform multiple actions based on depth, speed, or tap style. In FPS games, this means walk, jog, and sprint from a single key.
Game Support Limitations
This is the critical part: analog keyboards often require dedicated software and are only fully effective in games that support analog input natively. Some keyboards can also emulate gamepad input through software, though this requires configuration.
The bottom line: they work great for games with native analog support (racing games especially), but for most keyboard-focused games, the incremental control is less universally applicable than with a traditional controller.
I did PC support way back in the day and saw some awful keyboards (gunked up in ways I don’t want to think about).
But even me, who is careful and keeps my PC clean, some junk gets between the keys over time. The spaces you cannot really get to easily when doing regular cleaning (hence the OP).
Skin flakes, hair, dust, food (unless you are scrupulous about not eating by the keyboard), liquids (unless you are scrupulous about not drinking near the keyboard), sneezing (eww), coughing (eww) and so on. It’s the little bits that add up over a year or whatever. Eat Cheetos at your keyboard? It will be a mess fast. But just sitting there and using it will get it gunked over time.
My keyboard seems to get dirty with a mixture of dust, skin oils, facial hair bits that must drift off me, food debris (even if I’m being clean) and assorted gunk. It’s a nice keyboard and I wouldn’t feel right about treating keyboards like paper cups just because it’s a pain to clean – we generate enough e-waste as is. I also wouldn’t want to spend the required money to buy replacements on the regular.
I take it out now and then and blast it with an electric compressor designed for such tasks and that gets much of it out. It doesn’t get the stickier gunk out though so maybe once a year I go through it with Q-Tips and isopropyl. I tend to do this on RPG gaming night when we’re on a virtual table top and anything I need to do is usually mouse clicks. So, while we’re playing, I just lift 5-6 keys at a time, wipe them and the area under them and replace. Unplug the keyboard first so you’re not spamming ffffggtggryyyyttt in the chat box
My old keyboard had Cherry Brown switches which are clacky and is now my work laptop keyboard. That one used to have Cheery Blue switches which were even louder and I’d say were picked to assert my dominance over Teams meetings. Can’t ignore how little I care about this meeting if you hear me typing while you all talk! My current board has Marble White switches and makes a more subdued but more pleasant, rounder sound. More clock than clack.
I have a LOT of experience with putting keyboards in the dishwasher.
A few important points:
Place the keyboard upside down on the top rack of the dishwasher.
Wrap the cord around the keyboard so that it doesn’t flop around and potentially get caught in the moving parts of the dishwasher (many dishwashers have a spindle in the center which rotates and sprays water in different directions).
Don’t use soap. Wash with water only.
VERY IMPORTANT: You need to turn off the heat dry portion of the dishwasher’s cycle since the high heat can easily damage your keyboard. Sometimes this can be tricky since it will be labeled as something like “power saver dry” in which case you have to turn it ON to turn the heat OFF.
If it’s a wireless keyboard, make sure to take the batteries out.
If the keyboard has a fancy shmancy LCD display in it, don’t put it in the dishwasher as the display can be ruined.
Give the keyboard time to dry. Generally they’ll dry out overnight but I’ve seen some still have some moisture in them the next day. If you wait 2 days you’ll be fine. A week (mentioned upthread) is ridiculously long. They don’t take anywhere near that long to dry out.
I’ve probably cleaned about 30 or 40 keyboards over the years in the dishwasher. Two of them had been “ruined” by someone spilling coffee in them (they worked perfectly fine after going through the dishwasher).
YMMV.
Disclaimer: Keyboard manufacturers don’t recommend that you do this unless the keyboard is specifically designed to be waterproof. Do this at your own risk.
That happened to my favorite keyboard at work once. I took it apart and used a pencil to trace over the circuit board corrosion. To my surprise, the graphite was conductive enough to fix the problem! Will just try the dishwasher next time…
(Edit: oh wait, probably that won’t help if there’s actual corrosion and not just stickiness)
This is my keyboard (well, a picture of one just like it…I don’t go in for that whole rainbow thing):
Is that a fancy-shmancy display? Would it survive a dishwasher? (I 100% get you cannot make any guarantees…I certainly will not hold you responsible for my choices).
ETA: The cable is not detachable…the whole thing goes in.
I’ve spilled coffee and milk on my keyboards over the years and successfully cleaned them myself. What I’ve done is get a plastic container and first soak the keyboard in rubbing alcohol and then rinse it with distilled water. Let it dry under a fan until I’m sure all the water is out. From what I understand, water itself is generally not harmful to electronics, but impurities in the water can be. The impurities can dry on electrodes and cause shorts. By using alcohol and distilled water, it should limit the chances of impurities messing things up. I’m surprised that the dishwasher technique has so much success. I would have thought there would be soap residue to mess things up. Plus, impurities in the water could get in the keyboard. But it sounds like it works pretty well and is pretty easy.
There are loads of YouTube videos about them if you are interested.
It seems the main audience are pro-gamers because these keyboards are much faster than anything else. That is light years beyond my use case though. I am interested in the analog part.
Here is one example, you can search for many more:
Even expensive keyboards aren’t all that expensive. I have two sets of sheets so I can make the bed while I’m washing my sheets. If you want to maintain a really clean keyboard, why not two keyboards?
I’ve cleaned keyboards, but not very often. It’s something i sometimes do every several years. I don’t feel the need to have a pristine keyboard, though. Flakes of skin, bits of dust, cat hair (in my home) can all find their way into the keyboard. I don’t generally find they effect it’s function, though, so I generally just ignore them.
ETA: Note he compares four keyboards that use these switches but there are many more now. It’s a deep rabbit hole figuring what you’d like best (but kinda fun to go down if you are into it).
Also, your backup keyboard for when your good keyboard is being washed doesn’t have to be the very nicest. Just good enough to use for a couple of days, however often you feel the need to clean your keyboards.
I do already have a backup keyboard. It’s crap, used for building new PCs (just getting them sorted out) but it does the job ok. I agree I could live with it fine for a few days while the good one is sorted out. And, I’d appreciate my good one more when it got back into service!
