The reason these switches are called "scissor" switches is obvious once you actually take a look at one. As you can see, the mechanism under each key looks like a pair of scissors.

The Alphasmart NEO, NEO2, and Dana models are of particular note because they each have a really nice scissor-switch membrane keyboard. Yeah, that’s right. A really nice membrane keyboard.

Apple's scissor-switch mechanism that it uses in the Magic Keyboard and MacBook Pro ultimately does the same sort of thing. If you had an Apple II, II+, or IIe, or a Mac up to the early nineties ...

Mechanical keyboards offer incredible performance and durability compared to membrane switch keyboards, and they’re loved by gamers and day-to-day PC users alike for their unique tactile feel.

Scissor switch keyboards also use rubber domes atop electronic switches on a single circuit board, but beneath each key is a hinged scissor-like mechanism that allows for a lower-profile keyboard ...

The Magic Keyboard's scissor switch features two plastic pieces that are crossed; the middle portion pivots, making the key movement possible. Unlike the butterfly switches used in the most recent ...

Per iFixit, the new keys also have more travel when you press them (about 0.5 mm more), and the keycaps themselves are about 0.2 mm thicker compared to the much-maligned butterfly switches.

It describes using an OLED panel in each key of the scissor-switch keyboard to illuminate the keycap. Maybe we’ll see such designs in future versions of its gaming laptops, like the Dell G3.

The return of the scissor-switch keyboard also doesn't appear to have caused any noticeable bloat on the physical design of the overall computer. A side-by-side shot, below, of the 2015 15-inch ...