Interconnection


New receptacles make key switch hot-swapping effortless

28 April 2021 Interconnection

Mill-Max receptacles have long been an excellent solution for making PCB components pluggable, removable and replaceable. Mill-Max has recently developed a new series of open bottom, low profile, solder mount receptacles specifically designed to make mechanical key switches hot-swappable.

The new 3305-X is designed to be soldered into a 1,50 mm minimum mounting hole, with an ultra-thin retention shoulder so plugged-in components sit nearly flush to the board surface. The open bottom design is meant to accommodate varying lead lengths, making this a very versatile receptacle.

The 3305-X series offers three length options of 2,67 mm, 3,30 mm and 3,94 mm, all with an above-board height of 0,25 mm, providing the low profile desired for optimal switch height and functioning. And while these receptacles are compact in size, high-quality materials make these easy-to-use parts both reliable and long-lasting.

Like all Mill-Max receptacles, the 3305-X series utilises a beryllium copper contact clip to make dependable, low-resistance connections with mated leads and maintain those high-quality connections after thousands of cycles (plug/unplug). The 3305-X accepts round leads of 0,635-0,940 mm in diameter as well as square and rectangular leads of 0,48-0,66 mm square – typical of the leads found on most keyboard switches.

The introduction of the 3305-X series and this style of receptacle means that repairing, upgrading, or customising keyboards – once tedious and time-consuming endeavours – have become viable options by eliminating the painstaking task of de-soldering then re-soldering an entire keyboard – a process which could take 90 minutes or more each time, depending on the user’s skill level. Conversely, after the one-time process of installing Mill-Max 3305-X receptacles, all the key switches can be replaced in just a few minutes, many times over, allowing users of all skill levels to join the hot-swap keyboard movement.


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