Peripheral Sharing Part 40: Double Shell F96 Three-mode Wireless Keyboard

Reasons to buy

首先是利益相关跟感谢，这把Double Shell F96 三模无线键盘得自于外设天下论坛去年12月的活动，官方售价799元，价格不菲。当下一把流行的键盘，大家能想到的无非就是功能上的热拔插、有线&蓝牙&无线2.4G三模连接、RGB背光、支持win&mac双系统；外观上的主题外观、98等紧凑配列等，但在键盘越来越同质化的当下，你有他有大家有，别人卖599,499，甚至399，Double Shell F96凭什么卖799？下面就到手体会跟大家随便聊聊。

Look at the appearance from a distance

▲When the keyboard was first taken out, it did not give me a particularly shocking feeling. The main reason is that my eyes, which are spoiled by various theme schemes and patterns, can't adapt to this superficial simplicity for a while.

▲The 96% compact layout was absolutely eye-catching when it was replaced a year ago, but for me, it is already a habit.

But after a closer look, there are still a few things that surprise me about the keyboard

▲Keycaps

The keyboard looked dark when it was first taken out, but the keycaps are not conventional PBT keycaps, but a set of more alternative keycaps --- high-transparency PC brown keycaps.

I collected a set of this fully transparent keycap when I first came into contact with mechanical keyboards a long time ago. It seems that it has not been popular in the market for so many years, and it was not until last year that I gradually saw it on some finished keyboards. The keycaps I had before were colorless and transparent, unlike this one which is brown and transparent, coupled with better materials, this one is more advanced.

▲The contrasting orange-red font on the keycap allows users to see it more clearly.

▲The front of the keycap is slightly concave, which is convenient for the fingertips to fit better.

▲The brown PC material makes the keycaps transparent, but adds a touch of hazy feeling. The shaft can be seen directly from the side.

▲The light-transmitting keycap is the biggest bonus to the backlight of the keyboard. For this reason, the ribs on the back of the keycap are also removed.

▲Light pollution is the right environment at night.

▲ Looking closely from the side, the grape wine luminous cup and the keycap even have an amber texture.

▲Carbon fiber texture panel

This is another highlight in the appearance of the keyboard. In the past, when peripheral enthusiasts modified the keyboard, a popular solution was to paste the keyboard with carbon fiber stickers, similar to the beauty decoration of a car, and the Double Shell F96 directly spray-painted the top cover panel of the keyboard into a glossy carbon fiber texture.

Let's talk about the appearance

96 layouts

▲The keyboard has a total of 99 keys, which is the popular 96% compact layout. The advantage is that the keyboard will not take up too much space on the desktop while keeping most of the keys used. Different from the 104/87 standard, 96% of the layout keyboards on the market will have some minor changes, while the Double Shell F96 is closer to most of the mainstream 96%. Players who are used to this type of layout can get started directly, while 87/ 104 users will need to get used to it.

▲For me, the adaptation point is mainly in the position of the DEL button.

▲ There are also Alt, Fn, and Ctrl on the right side of the space. The width of the three keys becomes smaller, and it is easy to press the wrong key during touch typing. As for the more far-reaching keycap replacement, don’t worry, many third-party keycaps now have these additional keys.

▲For other users, it is estimated that the spacing of the top row of buttons should also be adapted.

hot plug shaft

▲The keyboard comes with Jiadalong tea switch, which supports hot swapping. There is nothing to say about this, and it is the current mainstream. The axis plate conforms to the times and is compatible with tripod and pentapod axes.

Three-mode function

▲The keyboard supports three modes: wired, 2.4g wireless, and Bluetooth. It has a wide range of applications, including desktop computers, notebooks, tablets, and even mobile phones.

▲The keyboard has a built-in 1000mAh lithium battery. Compared with the wireless keyboard I have used before, this capacity is not too large. I have used a built-in 1000mAh one. As far as the current use is concerned, with the backlight turned off, it should be no problem to use it for a month or two. According to the world of peripherals, it can provide up to 45 weeks of battery life, so this is a bit exaggerated, maybe the manufacturer has used a relatively good energy-saving solution.

▲The switch of the keyboard is located on the back, which is a bit inconvenient to use.

▲Switch between the three modes through Fn plus numbers 1 to 5, which are clearly marked on the keycaps.

▲I think the "Quick Operation Guide" behind the keyboard is very good, especially for people like me who have more keyboards.

▲There is also this scale, which is very creatively designed.

Dual system

▲系统支持win&mac双系统。通过Fn加A，进入到苹果系统模式；Fn加M进入win模式。配件中还有独立的键帽可供替换。

Brilliant RGB backlight

▲The keyboard’s RGB backlight and various backlight schemes are really boring to me, so let’s just go to the picture directly.

Rich. . . kindness. . . and unusual accessories

▲Many keyboard accessories, double-headed key puller, replacement keycaps, receivers, cables and adapters

▲The connection cable uses a double-ended type C port, and then select the adapter according to the device to be connected

important but missing figure

▲On the official promotional image, there are fun dolls in the accessories. Users can DIY creative 3D keycaps. I think this is the most attractive part of the keyboard. The result may be because of the evaluation product. The keyboard I received did not have these things, which greatly reduced the score, the maximum added value and soul, and the biggest difference from other keyboards.

brand

▲The nameplate on the back reads "Dark Deck". That's right, it is the Dark Deck of the deck I knew a long time ago. Now it is called double shell.

Some scattered feelings and suggestions

1. Do not make the carbon fiber textured panel a bright surface, which lacks a deep texture.

2. The keycap is made of PC material, which makes the hand feel not good. There is a kind of slippery and greasy feeling on the hand, which is not as good as the hand feeling brought by pbt.

3. It is not easy to find the driver of the keyboard on the Internet.

4. The keyboard dust cover is missing in the accessories

5. The keyboard does not have a storage compartment

Appreciation of the rest of the keyboard

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