microtivity IM206 6x6x6mm Tact Switch (Pack of 12)

These switches work great, but be advised, they are MOMENTARY, normally open switches, so they are not the "click once for on, click again for off" kind of switch. This product should be described accordingly on the product page. If you need momentary switches, these are for you. If you need the other kind, look elsewhere.-----UPDATE, 2/17/2012-----I thought I ought to clarify my review, to help people better understand my comments.There are two types of "tact" (momentary push-button) switches: locking and non-locking.The locking kind of switch gives a user the distinctive "double click" when pressed, like the push-button switch on a traditional Maglite flashlight. The switch is momentary, but locks in the "on" position, giving the user a closed circuit that stays closed until s/he pushes the button again.The NON-locking kind of tact switch, as the name implies, does not lock in the "on" or "closed" position, so power will only flow as long as the user presses and holds the button down.These Microtivity switches are NON-locking tact switches, but nowhere in the description does it say that. Further, other reviewer comments may lead folks to believe these are the locking kind, when they are not. Thus, you have my review.On another note, I find these switches do not stay well-seated in the microtivity breadboards I ordered, especially after having moved the switches around a few times. I recommend you double check your layout prior to seating your switches to avoid this problem.Good luck on your projects, and happy prototyping!

This is a very good product, but the reason why I am writing this review is to support the company behind the product, for all the assistance they have provided over the past few months.Thus far, I have purchased these products (among others), and they are all of excellent quality. I would give 5 stars to each of them. microtivity IM211 Push-and-lock Button Switch (Pack of 8) microtivity IM206 6x6x6mm Tact Switch (Pack of 12) microtivity IM161 LCD Module 1602, White on Blue with Backlight microtivity IL151 5mm Clear White LED w/ Resistors (Pack of 30) microtivity IL182 5mm Assorted Clear LED w/ Resistors (4 Colors, Pack of 40) microtivity IS112 7-segment LED Display, 1 Digit Red Common Anode (Pack of 4) microtivity IS132 7-segment LED Display, 1 Digit Blue Common Anode (Pack of 4) But, most important, I would also give 5 stars to Microtivity's customer service. Each time I needed additional information on a product, Microtivity would quickly reply providing the info I needed, be it by sending me a link to their own website (if available) or by writing an answer to my specific question. This is the kind of customer support that you don't see often, and it is most impressive when it comes from a relatively small company.Because of the quality of both their products and customer assistance, I 100% recommend Microtivity as your seller.

Thought that they would be great for breadboard projects, and for the price I was excited to try them out. I quickly found out, however, that they do not seat well at all on the breadboard. I went through the entire bag trying to get just one to stay on the board, but they all kept popping off no matter what I did. Frustration not worth the price.UPDATE: I stumbled upon this while trying to figure out how to make this at least useful: (https://www.sparkfun.com/products/97)Member #183815 / about 4 years ago / 22"GUYS! I've discovered an excellent technique for making these types od buttons breadboard friendly. First, using pliers, remove the kinks from the legs, making them straight pieces of metal flush with the sides of the button. Next, grab the middle of each leg with the pliers and twist 90 degrees."I tried the 90 degree thing and it works. They aren't perfectly secure, but they aren't popping off the board now either.

These switches work as advertised. Like other Microtivity products there is a card showing how to wire it up. Like other Microtivity products, the plastic baggie is sealed and opening it requires a knife which can be tricky.As far as the product iself, I have to knock off a star because these don't fit correctly in breadboards. They kind of sit on top of the board and don't really click in place. While they function OK, it isn't really worthy of five stars.I wouldn't not buy these because of it. they work great, just don't flip your breadboard upside down.

Even being cheap, these switches feature the same build quality as what comes in expensive CD and DVD players. I recently took apart a broken DVD player (disk drawer was broken) and retrieved the switches from it thinking they would be better quality than the ones I ordered off of Amazon from Microtivity. To my astonishment, the switches were identical! They feel, look, act, sound, and even smell the same! Well I didn't smell them but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt! They are virtually identical in every way I can detect. I will be using this in many projects to come!

These little tact switches are exactly as advertised. Worked perfectly in my breadboard and then worked perfectly when I needed to mount them to pre-drilled PC board. I'm really crumby when it comes to soldering small components, but these buttons still work great even after all the smoke clears. The audible and tactile click lets you know when the button is depressed and released.I wired one up to my homemade snesberry pi (Rasp Pi in a Super Nintendo case) to actuate a reset command. It still works perfectly even though my 3 year old has probably clicked it thousands of times.