Black Canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard evaluation: a more cost-effective entry-level Gasket keyboard

As a well-known domestic keyboard manufacturer, Black Canyon is well known by domestic users for its products' outstanding design, good workmanship and good cost performance. With the deepening of the domestic keyboard circle and the continuous change of selection orientation, Black Canyon has also been constantly adjusting its product positioning, aiming to bring better product choices to users. Black Canyon officially launched its mid-to-high-end Y series three-mode hot-swappable mechanical keyboard this year. The unique design style and rich shaft matching scheme have also been recognized by many users. Recently, Black Canyon has brought a brand new E-series mechanical keyboard, which is still the mainstream three-mode hot-swappable configuration with a Gasket structure solution. Let’s follow the author to take a look.

包装&附件：

The Black Canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard launched two different arrangement schemes for the first time, E2 has 83 keys, and E4 has 99 keys, which respectively correspond to the 75% arrangement and the similar 98 arrangement that have been very popular in the keyboard circle in the past two years. The outer packaging of the product is relatively simple, with a dark-colored packaging paper seal and a black inner box scheme. The side of the outer packaging provides the shaft matching and keyboard color identification in the form of stickers. These two keyboards of the author are equipped with Danxia switches and Cangling switches respectively, which are also customized BOX scenery series switches from Kaihua.

In terms of accessories, it provides a keyboard palm rest, dust cover, key puller, shaft puller, USB Type-C data cable, and manual. The contents are simple and practical, and the workmanship and materials are relatively good.

The keyboard rest is made of plastic material, which is treated with the same color scheme as the body, and it still has a certain feeling of falling in the hand, which can bring better placement stability. The hand rest feels delicate and soft, and with the unique tilt angle, it can provide sufficient support for the user's wrist and improve the comfort of use.

外观&细节：

The Black Canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard provides two color schemes: starlight white and midnight blue. The E2 I got is starlight white, and the E4 is midnight blue. The configurations correspond to 75% and 98-like configurations respectively. According to the different color schemes, the details of the two keyboards are also slightly different. The midnight blue color scheme adopts a grayish-blue color scheme, which is unique in the class 98 series. It is matched with the hand rest of the same color as the body. , also has a high degree of recognition. The midnight blue color scheme adopts a keycap scheme that does not support light transmission, and the difference from the starlight white light transmission keycap is still relatively obvious. Users can freely choose according to their personal preferences. Starlight White still has a high degree of similarity with Y series keyboards in terms of color matching and appearance. The pure white body color matching, the iconic smiley face indicator light, the overall recognition is still good, and the transparent keycap scheme is matched with the pure white body scheme. It can also bring better lighting performance, and it is friendly enough for RGB lovers. Black Canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard body adopts a higher gloss painting process, and the visual texture is more prominent.

Both keyboards adopt a compact arrangement scheme, combined with a moderately thick fuselage frame and rounded corners, which are relatively good in terms of appearance and texture. The key part also adds rich combination key functions, which can realize mouse simulation operation, multimedia control, lighting adjustment, calling system programs and other operations, which can bring higher convenience and practicality to users. The keycaps also add a wealth of combination key function signs, which are convenient for users to identify and use, and further reduce the difficulty of getting started. The overall performance is still very good. Unlike the Y series with independent mode switch buttons, the Black Canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard uses a combination key function to switch modes, and the connection mode icon is also clearly marked, which is convenient for users to switch freely according to their personal usage scenarios and habits.

The left and right positions of the fuselage provide a power switch and a 2.4G wireless receiver storage compartment respectively. The independent power switch combined with the key combination mode switching is also the current mainstream matching solution. It is not difficult to get started, and you can get started with a little adaptation. The wireless receiver adopts a dual-interface design, providing USB-A and USB-C interface types, which are convenient for adapting to different device ports. The depth of the storage compartment is a bit shallow, and the receiver cannot be completely hidden, and a section of the receiver will be exposed. For a user with obsessive-compulsive disorder like the author, it is still a bit uncomfortable. The middle position on the top of the keyboard is the USB Type-C interface, which is convenient for users to charge the keyboard or use it in wired mode. The convenience is still very good. At the bottom of both sides of the fuselage, there are fixed points for the hand rest buckle to avoid the problem that the hand rest is not firmly fixed and easy to slip.

The design of the bottom of the keyboard is also very simple. Starlight White is paired with a pure black bottom case, while Midnight Blue uses a bottom case of the same color as the body. There are still certain differences. Triangular non-slip feet are provided at the four corners of the bottom case to ensure the stability of the keyboard. This keyboard also provides a detachable magnetic support solution, which is convenient for users to adjust the height of the keyboard inclination according to their personal habits to ensure comfortable use. There are also non-slip pads on the magnetic support feet to further enhance the user experience.

键帽&轴体：

The Black Canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard is still equipped with the BOX scenery series switch body customized by Kaihua. The two keyboards I got are Danxia switch and Cangling switch, corresponding to both linear feel and paragraph feel. different schemes. Both shafts adopt the Kaihua BOX three-zone scheme, which has an independent trigger mechanism and is sealed with a cover to improve the dustproof and life of the shaft. The large buckle shaft cover cooperates with the shaft center scheme of the closed wall structure to improve the stability and consistency of the handle. Among them, the Cangling axis adopts BOX's unique torsion spring sounding scheme, which can bring clear paragraph feel and extremely crisp pressing sound. Both switches adopt a 3.6mm total stroke scheme. The Danxia switch has a trigger stroke of 1.3mm and a trigger force of 45gf, while the Cangling switch has a trigger pressure of 50gf and a trigger stroke of 1.8mm. The former feels light and smooth, and the force is even and linear, while the latter feels clear and natural, and the sound is crisp and clean, which can bring good feedback to the user and further enhance the user's tapping experience.

The large key position adopts the satellite axis scheme, the feel adjustment is neat and simple, and the overall shaking and noise control is also relatively proper, which further improves the overall feel performance of the large key position. At the same time, the black canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard adopts the full-key hot-swappable scheme of Kaihua shaft seat, and the hole position is compatible with mainstream tripod shafts and five-pod shafts, which is convenient for users to replace the shaft body to experience different feel. At the same time, the E series keyboard adopts a customized Gasket structure, and the inner tank part is composed of a non-slotted semi-permeable PC positioning plate and a multi-layer silicone structure. With the soft fixed structure around the inner tank, the soft and elastic feel In terms of performance, it is still slightly inferior to the Y series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard. At the same time, the multi-layer silicone structure also brings good sound absorption performance, which can filter out most of the noise and cavity sound generated during knocking, and bring users a better experience in terms of hand feeling and hearing.

The keycap part is different according to the color of the fuselage. The height is the improved version of the SA height keycap. It is made of two-color molding process and the PBT material scheme. The midnight blue version is opaque, while the starlight white is transparent. Light keycaps. Compared with the traditional SA height keycaps, the height of these two sets of keycaps will be slightly lower and the arc will be larger, which can bring a more obvious sense of wrapping to the user's fingertips. The font lines are moderate in thickness, clean and clear, and the light transmission effect is still good. However, due to the blue background color scheme, there will still be some interference problems with the light color. These two sets of keycaps are dry and delicate to the touch, and there is no need to worry about character wear and oiling after long-term use. They have good durability and overall performance is still very good.

RGB backlight:

In terms of lighting, Black Canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboards all support full-key RGB backlighting, and the keyboard is also preset with a variety of different lighting effect modes, which can be quickly switched through FN combination keys, and support dynamic lighting. Lighting effect adjustment schemes such as effect speed, brightness and color, etc., the lighting gameplay is quite rich. The starlight white version supports character translucence, and its look and feel is slightly stronger than that of the midnight blue version. The brightness of the light is moderate, and the look is soft and natural. The positioning plate made of semi-transparent material also brings a better uniform light effect, and the moderate keycap interval is completely filled by the light, and the visual effect is still very good. Both keyboards have good lighting performance, and can also create a good lighting atmosphere for the user's desktop.

Use test:

The Black Canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard also adopts the mainstream three-mode connection method, providing wired, 2.4G and three sets of Bluetooth channels, allowing users to switch between different platforms and devices. Convenience is enough. At the same time, it supports the current mainstream Windows/Mac OS/IOS/Android operating platforms, and has carried out key adaptation for the Max OS system, which also makes this series of keyboards have excellent device compatibility. Under the common PC platform, the three connection methods all support full-key no punching, which can easily cope with daily use or game scenarios. In the common 2.4G and Bluetooth wireless modes, whether it is switching the connection mode or waking up after sleep, it can quickly reconnect, and there is no disconnection or failure. The experience in the wireless state is still very good.

Both keyboards use a built-in lithium battery solution. The 4600mAh lithium battery can bring about 220 hours of battery life in 2.4G non-light mode, and the battery life will be longer in Bluetooth mode. The modes are slightly different, and such endurance performance is sufficient for daily use. The independent power switch and the solution of charging while using, together with the extremely popular USB Type-C interface, can also allow users to completely get rid of battery life anxiety, and do not need to worry about the lack of power of the keyboard affecting daily use. The rich combination key functions also have high practicability and convenience, which can further enhance the user experience.

Summarize:

Black Canyon E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboards are priced at 439 yuan for the first release of E2 and 499 yuan for the first release of E4. The overall price is still very cost-effective. At this price, the mainstream three-mode hot-swappable solution, the Gasket structure that is not too soft, the SA-like height keycaps, and the Kaihua BOX scenery series shafts still have no obvious shortcomings in the overall configuration. The new paint scheme will also be optimized and improved when the official product is released, which is worth looking forward to. The E series three-mode hot-swappable keyboard will officially start pre-sale on the 24th of this month. Interested users may wish to pay attention to major e-commerce platforms.

The author declares that there is interest in this article, please respect the author and the content shared, communicate friendly, and make rational decisions~