An everyday mechanical keyboard - Keychron K3 Ultra

0:00 What's up, guys?

0:00 I've got not one keyboard, but two keyboards because Keychron put out a K3

0:05 both in an HE variant and the ultra 8K.

0:10 This one's got magnetic switches and that's pretty cool.

0:13 This one's got an 8 kHz polling rate.

0:15 Otherwise, they're very, very similar.

0:17 So, let's check them out starting with the 8K cuz that's what we need, right?

0:20 We need more Ks in our life.

0:22 Okay, let me look at the box first though.

0:23 Support all systems.

0:25 Hell yeah, it does Linux, macOS,

0:27 and I don't remember it says Win OS instead of just Windows,

0:30 but you know, whatever.

0:32 Each key is customizable online, that's correct.

0:34 8 kHz, precise and fast.

0:36 It's a 75% keyboard.

0:37 It's a low profile design.

0:39 Um and they've got these cool wood accents on the edges for both of them.

0:42 So, I'm actually really uh excited to look

0:45 at those because wood just looks great.

0:47 Stickers that I'm going to steal.

0:49 Make sure switch pins are straight before putting them in.

0:52 That's very important, otherwise your switch isn't going to work.

0:54 And then we've got our little quick start guide.

0:56 And then we've got our ooh right-angle USB-C cable with dongle.

1:03 I'll never get over saying the word dongle.

1:06 Such a dumb word.

1:07 Nicely sleeved.

1:09 It's got a ferrite bead.

1:12 And it's a decent length.

1:15 6 ft?

1:16 I don't know.

1:17 I I'm a big sucker for right-angle connectors as well.

1:20 They just make it look so sleek.

1:22 We've also got some accessories.

1:23 This is a USB-A to C adapter.

1:26 Uh and then we've got our dongle.

1:27 We've got a screwdriver.

1:29 Oh, you know, it's a real minor thing and people probably have screwdrivers,

1:33 but you don't always have like a little uh jewelry or glasses screwdriver.

1:38 Uh and they've got these really small uh tip sizes.

1:41 I know all about that.

1:43 And then we've also got love to see it.

1:45 It's a switch and keycap puller.

1:49 And then some extra keys if you want

1:52 to do like change your alt key or like Windows.

1:54 Like what's is this covered with Mac stuff?

1:56 Let's find out.

1:57 An ultra-slim wireless mechanical keyboard.

2:00 I you know, I can attest to that.

2:02 Oh.

2:04 This is nice.

2:06 Two-stage adjustable feet.

2:08 They've also got some nice rubber feet on the bottom here.

2:10 I like the bars myself, and they've got a couple on the top, too.

2:13 So, if you're not using the adjustable feet, that's okay.

2:15 You've still got some stickiness that's not going

2:17 to let the keyboard slide around as you're typing.

2:19 I'm going to put a bit of an angle on this bad boy,

2:21 and uh I've just got to say the wood accents are very pretty.

2:25 As for the construction of the keyboard itself, it's the K series.

2:28 So, K from Keychron is typically their plastic models,

2:32 um which is fine, you know, especially when you're doing a slim.

2:35 You want something to be light.

2:36 I'm totally okay with using plastic instead of uh aluminum at that point.

2:40 And there's not like it I mean it's flexy,

2:42 but you know, realistically, you're just putting this in a bag,

2:44 taking it out, popping it down, typing some stuff up, and putting it back in.

2:48 I like the white case.

2:50 I love the wood accents with the lighter wood.

2:52 I think it's a darker wood on the HE, so I'm excited to check that out as well.

2:58 But yeah, I love the low-profile switches.

3:00 I really like the really slim keycaps.

3:05 And the sound is different for sure,

3:06 because it's a little more like hollow, but I kind of like it.

3:12 It's definitely not going to sound as good as like a full-fat keyboard.

3:16 But I think if you're using this just on the go,

3:19 it has a pretty unique sound that yeah,

3:22 I'm not crazy about it, but I don't hate it.

3:24 If I heard someone typing on this thing, I'd be like,

3:26 "That sounds okay." Not much rattle in the stabilizers, that's good.

3:31 These are all pre-lubed switches, as well.

3:33 Let me take one out here.

3:35 Beep boop boop.

3:36 Beautiful.

3:37 These are banana tactile palms.

3:40 The bump is like all the way at the top,

3:43 too, which makes sense for a low-profile keyboard.

3:47 I had to find some like that for switches on my own keyboard,

3:50 and I'm actually quite fond of tactile with the bump all the way at the top.

3:53 Call me crazy, I don't care.

3:55 It's what I like, and you guys can hate me all you want for it.

3:57 Is this hot swap?

3:59 I think it is.

4:00 Let's find out.

4:01 Yep, it's hot swap.

4:02 Okay, sick.

4:03 Uh be careful when you're taking these out of your keyboard.

4:06 Um the little white diffuser light that I'm just guessing

4:09 is for the RGB cuz the LED is north facing here.

4:13 Mine popped out as I tried to get it out of there.

4:16 Let's just Yeah, let's just pop that back in.

4:18 We're good to go.

4:19 As for the rest of the keyboard,

4:20 all your switches and stuff are on the side here.

4:22 And this actually makes a lot of sense why they did

4:23 the right angle of connector because the USB-C is on the side here,

4:27 and so that's going to pop in and then not like

4:29 with this big protruding cable out the side of your keyboard, which is great.

4:32 We've got a couple of switches, Windows or Mac,

4:34 and then uh the bottom one is Bluetooth, wired, or 2.4 GHz.

4:39 The problem sometimes with looking at RGB keyboards

4:42 here is we've got all these studio lights, and it's a little hard to see.

4:45 Uh I can see it here, and it looks good.

4:48 The only unfortunate thing is you've got

4:49 that nice diffusion on the switch itself.

4:53 Let me take a look at that.

4:54 Yeah, that looks great.

4:55 But you're not going to see that on these because they're not shine through.

4:58 If you want to actually take advantage of what looks like pretty solid

5:01 RGB both in the keyboard and in the switches itself with that diffusion,

5:05 you might want to change the keycaps,

5:06 which is too bad cuz I actually really like these keycaps.

5:08 I just wish they were either shine through or translucent in some other way.

5:12 But that's okay.

5:12 Overall, so far I'm pretty impressed.

5:15 My only issue is I'm not a big believer in 8 kHz,

5:18 not when it comes to keyboard and mice.

5:21 I think a 1,000 Hz polling rate is more than enough.

5:25 It's the one factor of latency where I just don't

5:28 I don't see it making that much of a difference.

5:30 I think you're better off finding a faster display or a better graphics card.

5:35 But, you know, if you really want 8K, do it.

5:39 Let's check out the other keyboard that we've got right here.

5:42 And then I'll do a typing test on both of them.

5:44 This is the Keychron K3 HE.

5:46 The branding worked.

5:48 Let's open this bad boy.

5:49 I love the little holographic, the foil symbol.

5:52 That's great.

5:53 Basically the same contents as we had in the other box.

5:56 So, you've got your quick start guide, you've got your screwdriver,

5:59 you've got your keycaps now in black, you've got your cable now in black.

6:03 Love that the cables match the keyboards.

6:04 That's a minor touch.

6:05 Same with the dongles and the extensions actually, too.

6:09 And then, the keyboard itself.

6:12 I love how light these are, I really do.

6:14 Man, it's more of like a walnut.

6:16 I honestly wasn't sure if this was real wood or if

6:18 these were just plastic just because the way they're finished,

6:20 but it looks like this is chipped away

6:22 and that does look more like wood than plastic underneath.

6:24 But regardless, I think they're pretty and I very much enjoy them.

6:28 Otherwise, it's basically the same.

6:30 You're getting the same kind of chassis

6:32 with the multi-stage feet and the bar feet.

6:36 You're getting the 75% layout with your F row up top

6:39 and some arrow keys here and a page up, page down.

6:43 This one's got their linear magnetics, which is the ultra-fast lines.

6:49 I think I like the sound of this one more,

6:50 but the switch resistance is a little too heavy for me.

6:53 Like it's not bad, I can type on this just fine.

6:55 I just wish they were a little lighter.

6:58 Yeah, I prefer this one, the sound.

7:00 I think what I'm hearing is I'm hearing the tactile bump.

7:05 That's pretty good.

7:05 Test the stabilizers.

7:08 Also solid.

7:10 These are all pre-lubed as well.

7:11 And these ones are magnetic,

7:13 so the big difference with these ones are if you've seen

7:15 like the Wooting HE or other Hall Effect or TMR keyboards,

7:20 um you know that they're analog.

7:21 And so that you can like,

7:22 let's say you're holding W for WASD for walking around,

7:27 you can push it down a little bit and that's why these are

7:29 linear instead of tactile so they have that full range of motion.

7:34 But you can push it down like a little bit and your guy's going to walk

7:37 forward and then you press it down all the way and he's going to run.

7:39 Kind of like if you had a thumb stick and you're

7:40 pushing it forward a little bit versus all the way.

7:43 I personally don't really need these things

7:48 or want these things in my keyboards.

7:50 I think they're a really cool, not even gimmick,

7:52 I think they're a genuine feature that a lot

7:55 of people actually utilize and use to the full extent.

7:58 But for me, like I've been gaming on regular keyboards

8:01 for my whole life and so the thought of like

8:04 only slightly pressing a key to walk forward a little

8:06 bit just feels weird to me and so I don't know.

8:08 It's It's not for me,

8:09 but I do appreciate the technology behind it and what it's allowing

8:13 uh new gamers or even old gamers that can learn new tricks,

8:16 just what it's giving them in this modern day and age.

8:17 So I think that's pretty cool.

8:18 Okay, let's take the P for ploof keycap off.

8:23 Oop.

8:24 Ah, nice and green.

8:27 Well, there we go.

8:28 That took a little force, a little effort, but uh we're there.

8:30 And as you can see, there's no pins because they're not

8:33 using contact pins to see if you're making contact with anything.

8:36 It's all magnetic.

8:37 Just for reference, this one's got the pins cuz

8:40 it's the regular keyboard and then this one does not.

8:45 It is in fact pinless.

8:47 Let's see just how good the actual type feel is when I've got to, you know,

8:50 actually type a message or word instead of randomly mashing keys

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9:35 Okay, I'm not going to warm up.

9:36 I'm just going to give it a go on the Hall Effect version first with the linear

9:40 switches and that'll be my warm up

9:42 for that guy and hopefully these both go okay.

9:45 And away we go.

9:53 118 99%.

9:54 That's not bad.

9:55 That's not bad.

9:55 Let's see if the other one does any better.

9:57 That one had the feet at the same height so we're

9:59 not going to blame anything about a height angle kind of thing.

10:01 All right, and away we go.

10:07 No.

10:09 Ever so slightly better.

10:10 120 99%.

10:12 Made a small mistake at the beginning and kind of at the end.

10:15 I do think I still prefer the sound on the HE with those switches,

10:19 but I really I'm I'm a big tactile guy as long as the bump is at the top.

10:24 That's weird.

10:25 I don't care.

10:26 Like it or hate it, that's what I do.

10:28 And uh I actually really enjoy it on a keyboard like this.

10:31 These do have various like PET film and case foam

10:34 and whatnot for some extra sound absorbing, but you know,

10:36 when it's a thin keyboard, you're not going to be able to fit quite

10:38 as much of that in as you could something else.

10:40 Overall, I mean, you could customize it a little bit.

10:42 You can maybe tape mod it.

10:43 I'm not sure.

10:44 It's pretty slim already, but I'm sure you can,

10:45 you know, painter's tape is pretty thin, too.

10:48 If I had to pick one, like that I strongly prefer, I'm quite torn.

10:53 I think they're both beautiful.

10:54 One thing to note, these both have the same 2600 mA hour battery.

10:59 However, the 8K gets like 500 plus hours of battery life.

11:06 The HE gets closer to 55.

11:10 We're not sure if it's just because, you know,

11:12 the switches require more power cuz

11:14 they're always checking like what position they're

11:16 at and whatnot versus these are just kind of like on-off switches basically.

11:19 If you're going to be running these on battery,

11:22 which in all fairness, they're low-profile slim keyboards.

11:25 These are travel keyboards.

11:27 Like you will be running them on battery probably if you want to buy

11:29 them unless you're just looking for some super minimal desk piece or whatever.

11:33 And so in that case,

11:34 I actually really do care that the battery lasts for like hundreds

11:38 of hours on this one and tens of hours on this one.

11:41 That's a massive difference and especially because like I said earlier,

11:45 I'm not I'm not too into the whole Hall Effect or TMR analog switch craze.

11:51 I'd go for the 8K one and then I just wouldn't run it at 8 kHz.

11:54 I'd probably just run it at 1,000 Hz and it would still do just fine.

11:58 The best part is if you're also having trouble

12:00 deciding between the two and you're leaving it to price,

12:03 well, good luck because it's only about a $10 difference.

12:06 And that's why I'm such a big fan

12:07 of these even if they're not really the keyboard for me.

12:10 The 8 kHz one is $110.

12:13 The HE one is 120.

12:17 I think that's pretty reasonable.

12:18 Like yeah, they're plastic and they're not metal, they're not aluminum frames,

12:22 but like realistically, you know, if you're traveling,

12:24 I would prefer something light anyway.

12:26 You can find a similar wireless mechanical keyboard for about $100, maybe 110.

12:30 And so I'm just happy to see those prices come down because several years ago,

12:35 we would not be talking about $110 for a keyboard like this.

12:39 Overall, I'm quite pleased.

12:40 I think one of the only improvements they could make is

12:43 maybe try to hide the screws on the ends that seem

12:45 to be securing the wooden accents on, but I don't

12:48 know how else they'd really get those on there without them.

12:51 Especially without it being something that you

12:53 could easily take apart and tinker with.

12:55 But overall, I think I like them quite a bit.

12:58 I'm not going to buy either of them.

13:00 They're not for me.

13:02 I don't travel very much, at least not with a keyboard.

13:05 The only other thing that you should

13:07 maybe consider when looking at buying either

13:09 of these keyboards is there is a little bit more latency with the HE.

13:14 When we measured it,

13:15 that's what we got both on the Bluetooth and on the wireless.

13:19 Ultimately, the HE is just going to be a little more latency for you,

13:23 but we're not talking about a lot here.

13:25 So take that for what you will, make up your own minds,

13:29 and uh maybe check out the Kickstarter if this video goes up fast enough.

13:32 If it doesn't, maybe you can buy them from Keychron's website directly.

13:36 I'm not 100% sure.

13:38 The only thing I do know for sure is that this is ShortCircuit.

13:41 My name's Plouffe.

13:42 These are keyboards from Keychron.

13:46 If you want to watch another video like this, check out the Nix Hesper 64.

13:50 That was weird.

13:51 It's got these dual action keys.

13:52 It was another like Kickstarter kind of group buy thing,

13:55 and it's not for me, but it's an interesting design.