Many people are in one of two camps: they either prefer silicone keypads or they prefer touch screens. But we’re here to tell you why silicone keypads are actually the superior choice for most applications.
From a usage, functionality, and durability point of view, here’s why your company should go with silicone over touch screens for your products.
1. Silicone Keypads are More Responsive
No matter what industry you’re in, from medical to construction, silicone keypads are simply easier to operate than their touch screen counterparts. Let’s say you work in construction or at a highway toll booth in the winter. It gets cold so you have to wear gloves. You really can’t get the response you want from a touch screen with gloves on, even if you have the special kind.
It’s easier to depress physical buttons to get the response you need, as touch screens require you to take off your gloves in order to register touch. Or maybe you work in a hospital and have to wear latex gloves while scrubbed into the operating room. Same thing applies. You can’t be taking off your gloves every time you need to use a device. It’s unsanitary.
Plus, in an environment where germs can be deadly, it’s much easier to sanitize a silicone keypad than a touch screen.
2. Silicone Keypads Are More Accurate
Accuracy is key in all the industries we service, whether automotive or medical. Because touch screens are more difficult to use and get an accurate response every time, silicone keypads are generally better for accuracy. With touch screens, sometimes you can hit the wrong keys by accident, and sometimes the system autocorrects into something totally different than your intended command.
Mechanical silicone keypads, by contrast, have distinguishable barriers and a host of other important physical characteristics that make mistakes less likely due to the clear separation between the keys.
3. Silicone Keypads Don’t Smudge
While we understand touch screens have an unmistakable popularity due to their use on phones and other devices, smudges and fingerprints remain the one big drawback of those types of screens. They make it hard to decipher what’s on the screen, resulting in mistakes pressing the wrong buttons. Even if you clean off the screen regularly, this takes time and can damage the screen itself due to improper use of cleaning agents that leave streaks. Taking time out to clean the touch screen eats into your employees’ productivity as well.
But with silicone keypads, fingerprints and smudges on keys generally don’t affect function. They can also be more easily cleaned.
4. Silicone Keypads Are Affordable
Silicone keypads simply don’t cost as much to manufacture as touch screens. In addition, their maintenance and repair costs are lower. Touch screens, when they break down, need a technician’s help, whereas silicone keypads are a more durable and inexpensive interface solution with a longer life span.
5. Silicone Keypads Have a Good Click Response
It can be very satisfying to hear that click of a button when depressing something on silicone keypads. Silicone has a physical click response—something you can’t get out of a touch screen, even with the sound up. As a result, you may have to keep jabbing at a button to be assured it actually registered.
With silicone buttons, though, the depression brings with it a distinct click or snap for assurances of the right response.
Contact Si-Tech
Want to know more about the benefits of silicone keypads for your business? Just get in touch with us at 757-887-8488.
