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Clarify a point about microcontrollers.
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TimWescott
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Simple momentary push buttons can be made dirt cheap in quantity. Push-push switches, definitely not. The cost ratio between a momentary switch plus a bit of electronicselectronics*, vs. a mechanical push-push switch, is huge. As a bonus, a momentary plus electronics is cheaper to make reliable.

So on a cheap consumer product, the on/off switch is almost certainly implemented by a momentary switch plus some circuitry. For any given product, you'll have to do a visual inspection, plus maybe some poking around with a multimeter.

* And if the product has a microcontroller in it, that "bit of electronics" can easily be the microcontroller itself.

Simple momentary push buttons can be made dirt cheap in quantity. Push-push switches, definitely not. The cost ratio between a momentary switch plus a bit of electronics, vs. a mechanical push-push switch, is huge. As a bonus, a momentary plus electronics is cheaper to make reliable.

So on a cheap consumer product, the on/off switch is almost certainly implemented by a momentary switch plus some circuitry. For any given product, you'll have to do a visual inspection, plus maybe some poking around with a multimeter.

Simple momentary push buttons can be made dirt cheap in quantity. Push-push switches, definitely not. The cost ratio between a momentary switch plus a bit of electronics*, vs. a mechanical push-push switch, is huge. As a bonus, a momentary plus electronics is cheaper to make reliable.

So on a cheap consumer product, the on/off switch is almost certainly implemented by a momentary switch plus some circuitry. For any given product, you'll have to do a visual inspection, plus maybe some poking around with a multimeter.

* And if the product has a microcontroller in it, that "bit of electronics" can easily be the microcontroller itself.

Source Link
TimWescott
  • 47.1k
  • 1
  • 45
  • 108

Simple momentary push buttons can be made dirt cheap in quantity. Push-push switches, definitely not. The cost ratio between a momentary switch plus a bit of electronics, vs. a mechanical push-push switch, is huge. As a bonus, a momentary plus electronics is cheaper to make reliable.

So on a cheap consumer product, the on/off switch is almost certainly implemented by a momentary switch plus some circuitry. For any given product, you'll have to do a visual inspection, plus maybe some poking around with a multimeter.