Double Tapping Investigation Report

Detailed report on what the issue is, how it happens, and how to prevent it from happening to your Sim Pad.

What is double tapping?

Some users of Sim Pad 2 have reported that their Sim Pads are registering multiple key inputs when pressing the key once.

The percentage of people experiencing this issue is less than 0.1% and is not considered a major issue or defect with the device.

Sim Pads are designed similarly to other hot-swappable
mechanical keyboards and use the same materials and parts that are
industry standard with other mechanical keyboards.

Thus, we have since launched an investigation into why this issue is occurring, this is our findings:

Causes of double-tapping issues

Switch Damage

Damage to the switch can cause double tapping or non-responsiveness. The most common cause is either manufacturing defect or switch modifications. Switch modifications like lubing and filming can introduce dust particles and cause double-tapping. Internal components of a switch are highly sensitive so please exercise extreme caution when modifying a switch.

High number of hard presses can potentially damage the internal components of the switch, causing it to register multiple times. In our testing, We set up a rig to pound each key with 30 pounds of force at 2,500 RPM. The rig pounded the keys over 1,000,000 times and we observed no
changes in performance.

1,000,000 keypresses is equivalent to single-tapping Road of Resistence [Monstrata] 600 times consecutively.

Switches that are not properly seated in the hot-swappable sockets can also cause double-tapping.

Solution: replace the switch with another switch to test if the switch is causing double-tapping. If so, try seating the switch again and see if the issue persist. Otherwise, a replacement switch is needed.

Dust particles in sockets

Dust particles can cause issues with the sockets since the hot-swappable sockets are highly sensitive to disruptions.

Solution: in our testing, a blast of compressed air into the switch sockets can potentially help fix the double-tapping issue.

Improper swaps and excessive force

Our last test was conducted with a team of engineers from Kailh, the manufacturer of the hot-swappable sockets. Kailh hot-swappable sockets are rated for 100 swaps before any signs of deterioration.

Kailh engineers concluded that the double-tapping issues are caused by user error.

When replacing switches, it is highly likely that improper swaps and use of excessive force can shorten the lifespan or cause permanent damage to the sockets. If the pins are not aligned with the socket holes, it will move the socket out of place or even break apart from the PCB. This will cause detection issues or non-responsiveness.

We ran tests to see if inserting switches at different angles with varying degree of force causes socket damage. We found that the sockets can be damaged if the pins are not aligned with the socket and excessive force is used.

We believe this is the main cause for double tapping issues

Solution: Please contact us immediately if your keypad is within warranty period and we can see if a replacement PCB can be sent out to you for repair. If your keypad is outside of warranty period, we sell replacement PCBs on our store.

Conclusion

What we are doing about it

In order to perserve the lifespan of your keypad and prevent double-tapping, we recommend swapping switches with care and not use excessive force. Check if the pins are straight before inserting into the sockets.

Our latest product, Tap Trio, has implemented some new manufacturing techniques like soldering reinforcements and thicker PCB materials to make it more durable. We think this solved double-tapping issues as we have not gotten any reports of double-tapping issues from Tap Trios. We are looking at potential ways of implementing the new manufacturing process to Sim Pads.

This report was conducted and written by the Momokai Team with the help of mechanical keyboard and Kailh engineers.