Effect of Mechanical Keyboard Switch and Backlight Status on Typing Performance and User Experience

Mechanical keyboards are one of the most used keyboards in daily work, and as the core component of a mechanical keyboard, keyswitches’ characteristics have been widely researched during the last several decades. Meanwhile, keyboards’ backlight design has become an emerging market trend, even though its actual influence on user experience remains unknown. Our study investigated the influence of keyboard switch characteristics and backlight states on typing performance and subjective typing experience. Thirty-three participants were involved in an English-language typing task on keyboards with four typical switches (red, black, brown, and blue types). Software was used to automatically record typing speed and accuracy, and a 7-point Likert subjective scale was used to evaluate typing experience. Results showed that tactile characteristics performed better than linear switches in typing speed, accuracy, and subjective refresh feeling in pair comparison of blue and red switches, and turning on the backlight effect improved typing speed, refreshing feeling, and pleasure. Among six physical characteristics of switches measured in the experiment, pre travel, reset travel, make force, and bottom force contributed more to better typing performance and subjective experience. Our findings provide keyboard manufacturers and researchers with a reference to optimize users’ typing experience.