Keychron launched their Q1 Professional keyboard earlier this yr. It’s a customizable mechanical keyboard designed to work nice with Macs or Home windows PCs. It’s a extremely top quality gadget, and I’ve been utilizing it as my main keyboard for a while now, so listed below are my ideas on the Keychron Q1 Professional and why you need to contemplate it over Apple’s Magic Keyboard.
Chances are you’ll discover the “Professional” on the finish of the gadget identify. That’s as a result of Keychron already has a keyboard referred to as the Q1, so what’s the large distinction? Properly, it’s the wi-fi help. The Keychron Q1 is a superb wired keyboard, however the Q1 Professional has help for both wired or wi-fi connections – and sure, that’s connections, plural. You may join to 3 completely different Bluetooth gadgets concurrently and change between them with the press of a button.
This entire keyboard is constructed round a customizable consumer expertise. Should you favor a wired expertise, simply flip the change on the again to wired and join the included USB-C cable. That USB-C cable additionally features a USB-A adapter, so in case you don’t have USB-C ports to spare in your machine, you don’t want to search around for one. It’s additionally customizable between a Mac and Home windows structure. Proper beside the change for wired or wi-fi mode you may have the change between Mac and Home windows.
Typing expertise
The typing expertise on the Q1 Professional has been nothing wanting wonderful. With it being a customizable keyboard you possibly can select to regulate it to your liking, however the pink switches in mine require little or no stress, and the numerous weight of the steel chassis retains the keyboard securely in place in your desk. When you journey the complete key distance, the PCB is resting on foam gaskets, so that you don’t have a harsh bottoming out of the important thing – the keyboard has a little bit of give for a extremely nice typing expertise. Whereas I’m not an enormous gamer, I did attempt some gaming on the keyboard as properly, and I had no complaints.
The included keycaps have a somewhat concave prime on your fingers to relaxation in, and in case you’re switching from one thing like a MacBook’s keyboard to the Keychron Q1 Professional it’s a very completely different typing expertise that may actually take a while to get used to, but it surely’s one I favor.
Just like the Q1, the Q1 Professional is a 75% keyboard, so you may have the usual letters you’ll anticipate, a perform row up prime, and arrow keys, however you don’t have a quantity pad and you’ve got just a few much less enhancing keys on the correct hand aspect of the keyboard, letting the entire thing be a bit extra compact. It takes up much less area in your desk than a full dimension keyboard, and is far more handy to throw in your backpack if you wish to take it on the go.
Within the prime proper nook you even have a knob, which affords distinct clicks whereas turning. Out of the field, it’s set to manage quantity as you flip it, whereas urgent it mutes or unmutes. Connecting your keyboard to your laptop with the USB-C cable and utilizing the on-line VIA software program opens up a ton of prospects for personalization. You may management lighting, macros, and a lot extra, together with reconfiguring the knob to do what you need in numerous software program.
The keyboard has 4 completely different layers, with two devoted to Mac and two devoted to Home windows, so you possibly can change between a structure you may have enabled for typing and one you may have setup particularly for video enhancing macros or one thing related.
Customization
After I say this factor is customizable, I imply it.
Once you go to order the Q1 Professional, you can begin off with the barebones keyboard in US or European layouts, or a completely assembled keyboard. The keyboard itself is out there in shell white, silver gray, or carbon black, and it’s the carbon black model I’ve. Should you go together with a barebones package, these are your choices, after which you possibly can select your personal switches and keycaps to arrange your keyboard precisely the way you prefer it. Should you as a substitute go for the absolutely assembled package, the colour of the keycap will correspond to the colour of the keyboard you select. Should you go together with the white, it consists of principally white keys, with some gentle gray and pink accents. Going with silver brings principally gray keys with darker and purple accents, and the carbon black I’ve comes with principally greenish grey keys, with black and blue accents. The customization is extra than simply visible although, and with the absolutely assembled model you possibly can select between Keychron’s Purple, Brown, and Banana switches.
The keyboard I’ve has the pink switches, which require little or no stress and supply constant suggestions all through the keypress because of being a linear change. They’re additionally very quiet switches, so not like another choices, they’re unlikely to harass others working close to you in an workplace setting.
Should you go together with the brown or banana switches, they’ll be a bit louder, however not as clicky as blue switches. The brown switches require a bit extra pressure than the reds and supply a tactile really feel, whereas Keychron’s banana change requires much more pressure, however has much less journey distance, and affords a little bit of a tactile really feel on the very prime of the keypress. As of now these three Keychron key sorts are the one ones supplied for the preassembled model, however you should use Keychron’s different keyswitches, or change over to Cherry MX or Gateron switches, or some other appropriate switches, relying on the particular typing really feel you’re going for. You may undergo Keychron’s customization web page to place collectively all of the completely different items you need collectively on your best keyboard that you just get to assemble your self.
It’s also possible to combine and match switches on the keyboard so you may have typing expertise, however you regulate your WASD keys to the switches you favor for gaming. The switches are additionally simply scorching swappable, and the instruments wanted to take action are all included within the field. Talking of, let’s speak about what’s within the field.
For the absolutely assembled keyboard, you get the keyboard itself, with the important thing switches and keycaps in place, a handbook, and a fast begin information that goes over every little thing that you must find out about pairing the keyboard, controlling the backlight, and extra. There are further keycaps so you possibly can change the Mac-specific keycaps with these meant for Home windows, further foam gaskets and screws in case you lose one whereas taking aside they keyboard, and additional grippy ft to exchange the pre-installed ones if one thing occurs to them. Lastly, beneath the keyboard within the field you may have 4 instruments. You could have the keycap puller, the important thing change puller, an Allen key, and a Philips head screwdriver. Apple will not be a fan of its prospects taking aside their merchandise, however Keychron undoubtedly is. They embrace instruments that you must do it and even supply upgrades just like the acoustic improve package so you possibly can management your typing expertise precisely to your liking.
Look inside Keychron’s Q1 Professional
Since they included the instruments to do it, lets have a look contained in the keyboard. To start out, I eliminated all the important thing caps and key switches. With these out of the way in which, I flipped the keyboard over, and began eradicating the eight brass screws. Should you’re doing this, make sure to maintain good monitor of them (although in case you do lose one, you at all times have the extras!). Disconnecting the daughterboard cables, the PCB is linked with Philips head screws to key stabilizers and a plate.
With the keyboard taken aside, there are a number of layers. There’s the underside case with the battery inside it, then you may have a layer of case foam over that. Then you may have the PCB, which is held in with Philips head screws. Above that, there’s sound absorbing foam, the plate, after which the highest case.
Should you have been doing that acoustic improve package, you’d be changing all the froth, however I noticed no purpose that improve was vital for me. And whereas Keychron is more than pleased for patrons to improve their very own keyboards, they’re clear about how warranties work. They are going to proceed to supply free guarantee service for any manufacturing points, offering prospects with the replacements components for their very own keyboard so it may be fastened. Should you trigger the harm by taking it aside or misuse of the keyboard, although, they nonetheless supply replacements, however it’s important to pay for the price of the components and the delivery. I feel that’s a extremely nice coverage general.
Placing the keyboard again collectively is as simple as taking it aside was: connecting the PCB with the Philips head screws, reconnecting daughterboard cables, and reattaching the underside case. Moderately than reattaching the unique keycaps, I gave this translucent set a attempt to discover the lighting choices.
RGB lighting
Switching via all the colour choices on the Keychron Q1 Professional is very easy with just some shortcuts.
- Enhance Brightness: Fn, W
- Lower Brightness: Fn, S
- Disable Backlight: FN, Tab
- Subsequent impact: Fn, Q
- Earlier impact: Fn, A
- Change Hue: Fn, E
- Change Hue: Fn, D
- Enhance impact pace: Fn, T
- Lower impact pace: Fn, G
There are a ton of various results, from strong colours and slowly fading rainbow results to lights radiating outward from the important thing you press. My favourite lights up all of the keys in virtually pastel colours, the place the keys then slowly begin altering between colours. It’s not too vibrant to get annoying, but it surely’s far more attention-grabbing then a plain white backlight.
Apple’s Magic Keyboard
Now, I discussed proper off the bat that this keyboard is sort of costly, and at $200, it actually is. However in case you examine it to Apple’s Magic Keyboard, it comes out leagues forward. Apple’s Magic Keyboard begins off at $100 and ranges as much as $200 for the complete dimension model. Just like the keyboards in Apple’s laptops, the keys are very flat and don’t have that a lot journey distance. I wouldn’t name it a foul keyboard by any means – those constructed into the laptop computer are are spectacular for his or her dimension and loads of folks love them – however for an exterior keyboard it actually leaves rather a lot wanting. The Q1 Professional has the journey distance and key customization for a superb really feel that you just simply don’t get with the Magic Keyboard.
Whereas the development of the Magic Keyboard is sweet, it isn’t constructed like a tank in the identical approach the Keychron’s providing is. You additionally get an RGB backlight with a wide range of settings on the Q1 Professional, whereas the Magic Keyboard simply affords a easy white backlight.
There may be, nonetheless, one purpose that loads of folks will go for the Magic Keyboard over the Keychron Q1 Professional, or the truth is some other keyboard – the in-built Contact ID sensor. Apple is making use of its ecosystem to implement safety in ways in which aren’t accessible to 3rd get together firms. The Contact ID is an extremely simple approach to unlock your machine and enter passwords. I get why persons are so hooked up to it. Even when utilizing the Q1 Professional, I’ve my MacBook open on my desk, so I can attain up and authenticate with Contact ID at any time when wanted. Carrying an Apple Watch provides again a few of that comfort, but it surely nonetheless doesn’t examine to the comfort of a fingerprint sensor. For me, nonetheless, the Q1 Professional is definitely definitely worth the tradeoffs for the a lot better typing expertise and replaceable components.
9to5Mac’s Take
Should you’re solely after a good mechanical typing expertise you possibly can most likely get 85 or 90% of the typing expertise for half the worth, and I can’t fault you for desirous to go together with one thing that’s a bit simpler on the pockets. However this keyboard actually is an end-all, be-all kind keyboard. If a change ever breaks, you may get a brand new set to exchange each key on the keyboard for lower than $20. In case your keycaps begin to really feel a bit worn out after some time, you may get a complete new set for round $30. And if the froth inside have been ever to begin to wear down, you may get the acoustic improve package with all new foam for simply $10. There’s no denying that it’s $200 price ticket is a little bit of a barrier for a keyboard, however the high quality and customization actually helps it to earn that price ticket.
Should you’re in search of extra of an entry stage mechanical keyboard, you possibly can try Keychron’s K2 keyboard. It begins out at a much more palatable $79 absolutely assembled with Gateron switches, with an RGB backlight somewhat than white being a $10 improve, and scorching swappable switches being one other $10 improve. So for $100 you possibly can have a wired and wi-fi scorching swappable, RGB mechanical keyboard to supply loads of the identical typing really feel you’ll get from the Q1 Professional in a equally compact kind issue. There’s a distinction in construct high quality, with the Q1 Professional being a really heavy steel unit, whereas the usual K2 is plastic, however the K2 continues to be an incredible place to begin.
Keychron additionally affords numerous kinds of customizable mechanical keyboards to suit anybody wants, such because the K1 for individuals who favor to stay with low-profile keys or the K4 in case you favor to have a quantity pad.
Should you’ve by no means used a real mechanical keyboard earlier than, I can’t suggest it sufficient. Give one a attempt to work out what key switches work greatest for you. And if you need a excessive finish keyboard that’s constructed like a tank and works at residence or on the go, try the Keychron’s Q1 Professional. Regardless of utilizing first rate mechanical keyboards earlier than, nothing I’ve had reached the extent of Keychron’s providing.
Get Keychron’s Q1 Professional for $199
Extra price range K2 keyboard for $79 ($100 w/ RGB and scorching swap keys)
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