Cherry

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Cherry Corporation
Type Corporation
Industry Computer hardware
Founded 1953
Founder(s) Walter Cherry
Headquarters Auerbach in der Oberpfalz, Germany
Revenue €250M (2007)
Employees 3,100
FCC grantee code GDD
DE6 (Cherry Electrical Products)
UL File Number E75282
Website www.cherrycorp.com
www.cherry.de


Cherry is a German manufacturer of computer peripherals and devices. Cherry has its roots in the USA. They are well known to mechanical keyboard enthusiasts for making the very popular Cherry MX switch range as well as the less widely known Cherry ML switch. Cherry's double-shot keycaps, which are found on many of their older keyboards, are considered some of the most well-made keys in the industry, though in 2011 Cherry announced that it would discontinue manufacture of all double-shot keycaps, despite popular demand for them.

Hirose: Cherry Japan

Hirose Cherry Precision (now HST: Hirose Sensing Technology) originated as Cherry's sole Japanese distributor. After becoming a joint venture with Cherry Germany, Hirose sold their own versions of Cherry's switches in Japan, notable for having a different keycap mount.

Manufacturing partnerships

The production of some of Cherry's low-cost products has been outsourced to other manufacturers.

Chicony

Cherry's partnership with Chicony is a "a not so secret, secret". It was created to allow Cherry to gain access to the entry-level market, by providing keyboards with the Cherry name for potential customers who did not want to pay Cherry prices.[1] This was discovered with the Maxdata KB-0556, a product marked with the Cherry name, but with distinctive Chicony characteristics such as the keycap mount. The KB-0556 has since been found to have Chicony's UL File Number of E164844 on the rear label.

Primax

Further UL File Number examination has determined that the Cherry G82-27000 (part of the INITIAL range) was made by Primax Electronics.

Sunrex

The Cherry eVolution STREAM XT keyboard was made by Sunrex Technology. Whether all Cherry SX keyboards are from Sunrex is not known at present.

Product names and numbers

Cherry metal contact keyboards are listed on the wiki under their article numbers (also listed as part numbers), rather than the model numbers. In many cases, no model number appears to exist, especially with keyboards supplied for use with a computer or terminal. However, keyboards sold standalone have model numbers, for example Cherry G80-3000 is model MX 3000, while G84-4135PTMDE (a variant of Cherry G84-4100) is model ML4100.

Consumer keyboards and mice have short model numbers, typically with an "M" for mice and a "G" for keyboards. Some keyboards have classic article numbers, such as the Cherry eVolution STREAM XT (model G230, part numbers beginning G85-23100) and the Cherry INITIAL Corded MultiMedia Keyboard (model G270, part numbers starting G82-27000)

A newer style is to prefix the model number with "J" (JG for keyboards and JM for mice) and use numeric identifiers in the product names. The product names in these cases begin with one of the following prefixes:

  • KC — keyboard, corded (e.g. Cherry KC 1000, model JG-08, part numbers beginning with JK-0800)
  • KW — keyboard, wireless (e.g. Cherry KW 3000, model JG-05, part numbers beginning with JK-0400)
  • MC — mouse, corded (e.g. Cherry MC 4000, model JM-40, part number JM-4000)
  • MW — mouse, wireless (e.g. Cherry MW 2310)

In this last category, the model and part numbers no longer indicate the switch technology used in the keyboards.

Cherry logos

Products

See also

References

  1. Correspondence with Cherry Americas, 2016-02-04