One of the most common phenomenon of long-used ABS keycaps is greasing or shining look. This is because after permanent exposure to UV rays, the plastic starts changing color. These effects are inevitable for ABS keycaps; however, if you spend on high-quality ABS keycaps, you can use your keyboard for longer.

ABS keycaps are mostly made by infecting to a mold of keycaps. Then, the letters are printed in the keycaps by pad printing, marking or engraving, depending on the manufacturers.

Since ABS plastic is popularly used for keycaps, you can easily find an ABS keyboard with various prices. However, one of the most desirable keycaps with high price comes from GMK brand.

In general, we can see that PBT keycaps are more expensive than ABS. This is because the production process for PBT keycaps is much more difficult. It’s not easy for the material to form a proper keycap with the molds. And, the material is expensive itself. Of course, you can find some pricy ABS keycaps due to their unique designs.

You can easily notice this material of keycaps because they are smooth and shiny. In contrast, PBT is matte. This difference comes from the material and compounds for manufacturing. You can not only see this difference but also feel it.

With this type of keycaps, you might feel smooth and your fingers can glide on the keyboard. And, after using it for a while, the keycaps can become greasy and shiny. However, for PBT keycaps, you will feel a bit sandy. This is also one of the biggest differences that helps customers to choose the favorite keycaps.