What’s Happening in the Cherry Reorganization? Considering the “Next Decade” of the Mechanical Keyboard Market

This article was inspired by the following entry by XenoSpectrum, and organizes the entire keyboard culture from the author’s own perspective.

Recently, news broke that Cherry, a global key switch brand based in Germany, is discontinuing switch production in Germany and is considering selling some of its operations.

Reference: The fall and rebirth of the prestigious Cherry: What the end of German production, the possible sale of the gaming business, and the defeat of the “switch war” mean.

Cherry is the “grandfather” of the modern mechanical key switch, and I felt that “times have changed” with their movement.

We feel that this event is more symbolic of the fact that the “keyboard” product and its culture are at a major turning point, rather than a deterioration of one company’s business performance.

In this article, I would like to summarize what changes are taking place in the global keyboard culture from the flat perspective of a keyboard enthusiast and media operator, rather than elevating or criticizing any particular company.

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Cherry Restructuring Overview: What will change with the end of German production and business review?

Keyboard enthusiasts know that Cherry is a brand that has long set the standard for mechanical keyboards through its Cherry MX switches.

Today, however, the introductory content at the beginning of this section shows that the environment surrounding Cherry is changing at a dizzying pace.

The root of these backgrounds is the patent expiration of the Cherry MX switches in 2014.

The MX compatible switches such as Gateron, Kailh, and Outemu, which have now become commonplace, have become more sophisticated, and the pursuit of smooth operation and comfortable key feel based on pre-lubrication (factory lube) seems to have resulted in a reversal phenomenon with Cherry’s own position.

Looking at this alone, one might feel that “Cherry has weakened,” but this could be one of the natural reorganizations that occur in a mature industry.

The balance between “long-standing staples” and “new players” in any field changes.

Cherry’s news seems to indicate that this change is now in full swing in the keyboard world.

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Mechanical keyboards can no longer be described as “made in Japan vs. made overseas.

Keyboards are often labeled “made in Japan” or “made overseas,” but the actual content is mostly made up of an ecosystem that spans national borders.

In other words, we feel that the general structure today is that although the company name is Japanese, the actual manufacturing is outsourced to overseas OEMs in many cases.

One example is as follows.

• Development and diversification of switches is led by Chinese and Taiwanese manufacturers
• Trends in layout and design are strong in China and the West.
• Production bases are located throughout Asia (mainly in China and Taiwan)
• Media and individuals from around the world provide reviews and other information

In this way, rather than asking “which country the keyboard is made in,” it would be more accurate to say that the keyboard culture is a mixture of technologies, designs, factories, and user communities from all over the world.

Cherry’s change is also more visible if we see it not as a story of “the German brand has fallen” but as a story of the changing roles and structures within the global ecosystem.

This structure is not limited to keyboards, but is also evident in the dependence of U.S. clothing and appliances on Asian manufacturing, the fact that some German auto parts are produced in Eastern Europe, China, and Japan, and the fact that many Japanese appliances and clothing are made in overseas factories.

The division of roles between “high cost in Japan and mass production overseas” has become a common structure for many developed countries.

This is no exception in the keyboard industry.

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How does the world view the Japanese keyboard market?

How does the world view the Japanese keyboard market?

Due to the nature of Greenkeys’ information sources being relatively “outside” of Japan, we have had the opportunity to be blessed with contacts overseas.

What I have noticed in my online interactions with these people is that the Japanese keyboard market is quite “special”.

The keyboard has an aspect of “a mirror reflecting the language culture,” and it could be said that there is a “Galapagos phenomenon” in Japan based on this aspect.

These items are the “special parts” of Japan as I see it from those involved in keycap design and manufacturing in the Chinese, Asian, and European blocs.

In contrast to this perceived “specialness” is the “English array,” which in no way means that “Japan is special.

The Japanese market is one local set of conditions that exists in the world keyboard map based on the language “Japanese.

I personally feel more comfortable with the idea that

In addition, if an overseas company tries to prepare a Japanese-language array, additional costs will be incurred “to adapt it to Japan.

• Design and mold per array
• quality check
• Local Package Manual

In recent years, more and more brands are challenging the Japanese-language array model, as many companies believe that the Japanese market still has potential for growth.

This is a sign that the keyboard market as a whole is shifting from an era in which it is sufficient to look only at ANSI to one in which local needs are also properly addressed, and that the assumption that “a Japanese company can produce a Japanese layout because it is Japanese” is no longer valid.

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HHKB and REALFORCE – the position of Japanese brands

HHKB (PFU Corporation) and REALFORCE (Topre Corporation) are the two most commonly mentioned brands from Japan.

Most keyboard people in the countries I work with are familiar with these two, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that they are words that come up in online chats in the context of “Speaking of Japan.

The keystroke feel based on the capacitance non-contact method, the design concept and robustness to withstand prolonged input, and the so-called “horse saddle” concept of HHKB have long been supported by many users not only in Japan but also around the world.

These two companies have been designing and manufacturing their main lineup of keyboards, keycaps, and key switches basically in Japan* , and their packages are labeled “Made in Japan,” making them a rare presence in the Japanese keyboard market.

We believe it is important to look at HHKB and REALFORCE not as “Japanese symbols” but as “one approach” within the global keyboard culture.

These two companies are.

• Continued use of the capacitance no-contact method
• Continued emphasis on the typing experience and high durability of the design.
• Having maintained a “manufacturing style” that includes domestic production.

We have come up with our own answer by combining multiple factors such as

More recently, models with MX-compatible switches, such as the HHKB Studio, have appeared on the market, and there has been a move to experiment with new directions within the same brand.

This is not about denying conventional products or swinging them one way or the other,

Doubling down on trying to meet
“new options” while holding on to “what we’ve always valued”.

I think it can be seen as a

It is clear that each brand takes a very different approach in the same area of keyboards.

*This article is based on the assumption that each company’s current product lineup is officially marked “Made in Japan” or the like.

While the existing HHKB Professional series continues to be produced in Japan under the “Made in Japan” concept, the new HHKB Studio line was planned by PFU America, designed in cooperation with Huge Design of the U.S., and mass-produced at an overseas factory (China). The new HHKB Studio line, on the other hand, is planned by PFU America, designed in cooperation with Huge Design, Inc.

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Cherry Reorganization Poses Questions for Keyboard Users and Manufacturers

As we have seen, the reorganization of Cherry, the rise of CherryMX-compatible key switch brands, and the global trend toward domestic planning and design and overseas OEM manufacturing are all part of the same major trend.

The author feels that these facts pose one question to us keyboard users and to all people and companies involved with keyboards, including keyswitches, keycaps, and keyboards.

The question is.

What will the keyboard culture leave behind and what will it change?”

That is to say.

• Manufacturing technology method
• Uniqueness of input keys
• Keystroke feel due to structure
• physical layout
• design
• production system
• Price Range
• How to engage with user communities

Which ones to protect and to what extent, and which ones to change in a flexible manner?

I believe that there is no single answer to this question, and that there should be as many brands and as many communities as there are.

Cherry’s restructuring and major changes in the keyboard industry are transitional events that are happening rapidly because of the globalization of manufacturing and logistics today, and we expect that the “next decade of keyboards” will be accompanied by more significant changes.

Also, this trend will undoubtedly involve the “development of AI technology.

In the first place, the continued improvement in the accuracy of “language input” has the potential to change even the concept and position of the “physical input device called the keyboard” itself.

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Greenkeys and the “future” of keyboard culture

In the context of “keyboards” in Japan, Greenkeys is a “pop-up” media that emerged only a few years ago.

To our predecessors who know the history of the past, it would be nothing but “noise saying something like that.

However, it is a medium that “allows us to observe changes that are definitely happening now” without the filter of “history”.

Whether it is Cherry’s restructuring, the local situation in the Japanese market, or the trial and error of each brand, each one is a fluctuation occurring within that ecosystem.

Keyboard culture will continue to change. We believe that our role as a media outlet is not to be pessimistic or optimistic about these changes, but simply to follow them carefully.

I believe that the “keyboard culture of the next decade” can be seen at the end of this activity…

With this in mind, I would like to conclude this writing.