Glossary
POM stem
A switch stem made of POM (polyoxymethylene), a stiff, low-friction plastic.
POM is an engineering plastic used for precision parts because it is stiff and slides with little friction. In switches it is used for a smooth keystroke; full-POM switches use it for the housing as well as the stem.
Where you will find it
Related terms
- 2.4G receiverA small USB dongle that links a wireless keyboard or mouse to a computer over the 2.4 GHz radio band.
- 75% layoutA compact layout between 60% and TKL that squeezes the arrows and a short column of navigation keys against the main block.
- Gasket mountA build where the switch plate floats on soft gaskets inside the case instead of being screwed to it.
- Hot-swappable switchesSwitches that pull out of the board and can be replaced without soldering.
- Low-profile mechanical keyboardA mechanical keyboard with shorter switches and keycaps, so it sits much closer to the desk.
- Polling rateHow often a keyboard or mouse reports to the computer each second, measured in hertz (Hz).
- QMK and VIAQMK is open-source keyboard firmware; VIA is an app that remaps a QMK keyboard without rebuilding the firmware.
- TKL (tenkeyless)A keyboard layout that keeps the full main block, arrows and navigation keys but drops the number pad.
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