Keychron K2 HE Special Edition Review: Mid-Century Magnetic

Keychron’s K2 HE Particular Version combines gamer-friendly Corridor Impact magnetic switches with distinctly non-gamer seems and a premium really feel. Should you’re after a keyboard on your mid-century gaming den, that is the clacker you are after.

After years of aggressive styling and RGB all the things, peripheral and element corporations appear to be selecting wooden accents because the retro-inspired type of the second. And as a gamer of a sure age, I could not be happier about it. The success of Fractal’s North case appears to have kick-started the development, and now Keychron is right here with a keyboard that matches its mid-century seems fairly properly.

However the Keychron K2 HE Particular Version is rather more than a (very) fairly keyboard. Its compact 75-percent format and double-shot OSA keycaps conceal Gateron Double-Rail magnetic switches, which allow you to customise their actuation factors in 0.1mm increments and assign a number of actions to a single key, primarily based on journey depth. For avid gamers who love fine-tuning options, these magnetic (often known as Corridor Impact) switches are wonderful. And regardless of being linear, they’re pre-lubed and designed for stability, serving to Keychron’s K2 HE really feel as premium and pleasing because it seems.

Keychron will launch its K2 HE fashions on Kickstarter first at a $5 low cost beginning at present. Or you possibly can watch for full manufacturing and decide one up from Keychron instantly starting in October, beginning at $130.

Design of the Keychron K2 HE

Keychron despatched us the Particular Version of the K2 HE in white, however the firm will supply up a number of variants. The Particular Version variations can be provided in black or white ($135 through Kickstarter or $140 in October), with rounded OSA keycaps that are not shine-through (limiting the RGB lighting that may escape between the keys), with steel prime and backside body items, and solid-wood sides.

It is a particular look that is not for everybody, however I believe that is the prettiest keyboard I’ve ever examined. Even when I am just a little afraid of what the white keycaps may appear like after a number of months of every day use. Personally, I would in all probability go for the black mannequin.

For many who do not dig the wooden look and like brighter RGB lighting, the K2 HE Customary Version ($125 through Kickstarter or $130 beginning in October) options shine-through keycaps with an OEM profile, and retains the steel body that helps add to the premium really feel. That mentioned, the core of the keyboard’s chassis is plastic. With the picket aspect panels faraway from our Particular Version overview unit, the highest and backside steel rails slide proper off, revealing a keyboard that appears fairly just like a white model of the less expensive Keychron K2.

Then once more, I am positive the plastic essential physique improves wi-fi indicators for the two.4GHz and Bluetooth connection modes. Wired connectivity is after all additionally supported. And the corporate features a first rate braided cable within the field, together with a hex wrench for taking off the wooden aspect panels and a small screwdriver for gaining access to the inside of the keyboard.

There are additionally further keycaps for Home windows or Mac, a keycap / change puller, and an extender for the RF dongle included. I primarily used the keyboard with the dongle plugged into one of many prime ports of my PC case (in addition to often over Bluetooth with my laptop computer) and by no means had any points with connectivity.

There are a pair of two-level flip-up ft on the underside for adjusting the keyboard’s rear peak. And whereas I do know you usually should not want to boost the angle of the keys whereas sitting at your desk, I did choose typing with the decrease of the 2 ft ranges flipped up, lifting the again of the keyboard up only a bit.

The keyboard additionally has rubber pads to maintain it steady in your desk. Its 2.13-pound weight additionally helps there, and would not really feel unnecessarily heavy.

As with earlier K2 variants, virtually all the bodily controls and connections dwell on the left edge. There you will discover the USB-C port for charging or wired use and two switches – one for Home windows / Android or Mac connectivity and the opposite for two.4GHz, wired, or Bluetooth modes.

Keychron claims that you will stand up to 72 hours of run time with the backlight on and 240 hours with it off, utilizing the 4000 MAh battery. I used the keyboard for work and gaming for almost two weeks with the backlighting on about 20% of the time (principally at night time whereas gaming), and by no means needed to cost it.

There may be technically yet another button, which I found whereas looking on the stabilizers. Clearly a bit of froth has been reduce away to offer entry to a reset change, which you may want ought to the keyboard ever lock up or in any other case turn out to be unstable. However in my time testing it, our overview unit by no means had any efficiency points.

The stabilizers are of the screw-in selection, mounted on the PCB (a liberal quantity of glue was additionally used on our overview unit), and so they preserve the larger keys from being wobbly. The smaller keys additionally really feel easy and steady, because of the 2 plastic rails of Gateron’s Double-Rail switches, which appear to carry the highest of the change in place horizontally as you press it down.

I usually strongly choose tactile (often clicky) switches for typing, however the linear switches that Keychron makes use of on this keyboard are in regards to the smoothest I’ve ever used. In actual fact, the lubed switches, mixed with the sound-dampening foam and stabilizers, ship a really feel and sound that I discovered myself preferring over the Corsair K65 Plus Wi-fi — even after I added tactile Holy Panda X switches and higher keycaps to the Corsair keyboard.

It is good, although, that the Gateron switches within the K2 HE really feel very good. As a result of whereas the keyboard is hot-swappable, it is designed for magnetic switches — which means it would not help the standard mechanical switches that dominate the market. In actual fact, it is not even suitable with all of Gateron’s HE switches — solely the dual-rail ones. As of this writing, the corporate has two dual-rail HE switches, and each are linear. It might be anathema to most critical avid gamers, however the clicky, tactile change fan in me is unhappy that I can not drop one thing tactile and noisy into this in any other case wonderful keyboard.

Specs

Software program for the Keychron K2 HE

Aside from its nice switches and beautiful aesthetics, I additionally discovered the software program for the K2 HE refreshing. As an alternative of some cumbersome, complicated, crash-prone program that is designed to work with 100 merchandise (and customarily results in 100 or so curses), Keychron makes use of an internet app (https://launcher.keychron.com/) for the K2 HE, which is the place you will assign keys, management the RGB lighting, report macros, and modify and assign issues to the magnetic switches.

I needed to plug the keyboard into my system with a USB cable to get the Launcher to acknowledge the keyboard, however apart from that, the method of utilizing the net app labored just about as I anticipated.

You get three domestically saved profiles, and you may modify the change actuation in 0.1mm increments.The operate row has media controls, however there isn’t any knob — and consequently, I typically discovered myself attempting to mash the quantity down when leaping right into a recreation after enjoying some music. So I clicked the tab for media controls and assigned the PgUp / PgDn keys to quantity management with a number of clicks. There was no have to hit a save button or one thing comparable, and the keys remained mapped to quantity management throughout a number of units.

There are some limitations, although. At one level I had the concept of attempting to map a light-weight press of the PgUp button to quantity up and a full press to quantity down. Nevertheless it seems that whilst you can fairly simply assign completely different actions to completely different actuation ranges on the identical key, the function seems to be restricted to controls from commonplace buttons or macros, and would not work with media controls.

When you can cycle by a number of patterns through the important thing lighting key within the upper-right nook of the keyboard, the Launcher can be the place you will have to go for finer shade controls, like selecting between single static colours. I rapidly grew uninterested in the various blinking rainbow presets, and ultimately settled on an orange hue that, when dim, labored effectively with the sunshine brown of the rosewood and the Escape and Enter accent keys.

Notice that, a minimum of on the Particular Version fashions, the RGB glow is held again by the stable keycaps. If lighting is necessary to you, you may wish to take into account the Customary Version mannequin, which makes use of shine-through caps to present it a extra conventional gaming keyboard look.

Gaming and typing on the Keychron K2 HE

I do a good bit of PC gaming, however I stick principally to technique video games and single-player FPS titles, so I am not the very best individual to take full benefit of the K2 HE’s magnetic switches. Nonetheless, I used the keyboard throughout a number of rounds of Dome Keeper and Cataclismo, and located it a wonderful companion that felt comfy and acquainted. That is doubtless partly as a result of I used the unique Keychron K2 as my every day driver for a few years, and 75-percent layouts are my favourite for each gaming and typing. However once more, each by way of change really feel and typing sound, that is the nicest 75-percenter I’ve used. I additionally like Corsair’s K65 Plus Wi-fi, however the K2 HE simply sounds and feels extra substantial (and, sure, thocky). The Corsair keyboard additionally had extra wobble on their stabilizers, however the distinction there is not drastic. I primarily discovered myself lacking the good steel knob on the K65.

Surprisingly, I additionally discovered myself wanting to make use of the K2 HE for work, regardless that it would not have tactile switches. I have been utilizing the 8bitdo Retro Mechanical Keyboard in current months, and I like its clicky tactile Kailh Field White v2 switches and retro NES-themed shell. However in comparison with the Keychron K2 HE, it feels extra like a child’s toy (which it’s, in equity, designed to imitate), with its creaking and hollow-feeling plastic shell and relatively cumbersome body.

The Keychron additionally has a retro look, nevertheless it feels and sounds a lot extra premium. And I am unsure if it is the operation power of the change, their pre-lubed parts, or the soundness of the dual-rail system (maybe a mix of all three), however I do not suppose I as soon as discovered myself double-pressing letters like I often do once I’m typing with linear switches. These are the nicest linear switches I’ve used for each gaming and typing – and Gateron deserves a variety of credit score for that feat.

Backside Line

If all you are after is an reasonably priced wi-fi 75-percent magnetic keyboard, there are definitely extra reasonably priced choices than the $130 Keychron K2 HE. Gamakay presents its TK75 HE for round $90, and it additionally features a knob, which Keychron’s fashions lack. However you will not get Keychron’s slick internet app for personalization and, whereas I have never tried them, I extremely doubt Gamakay’s switches really feel wherever close to as good because the surprisingly easy and steady Gateron Double-Rail switches in Keychron K2 HE. Severely, they really feel so good that I’m truly rethinking my decade-long love for tactile switches.

The K2 He Particular Version mannequin we examined prices $10 extra at $140 (or $135 in case you decide it up by Kickstarter), however I would argue it presents much more for that value. You get the identical nice switches and software program, plus wooden aspect panels that make the keyboard look rather more distinctive and OSA keycaps that really feel extra premium than the extra typical OEM shine-through keycaps on the usual mannequin. Should you can dwell with no knob and also you just like the current development of wood-accented tech, the K2 HE Particular Version is a surprising addition to your desk setup. And if all that sounds interesting to you and you are a gamer who loves the concept of extraordinarily tweakable Corridor Impact switches, this keyboard ought to in all probability be your subsequent tech buy. It combines the most recent change tech with the most recent in PC peripheral design tendencies at a value that, whereas definitely not low-cost, appears cheap for all the things Keychron delivers.