Play customization for less than 300, hands-on experience with Heijue AK992 three-mode gasket side-engraved keyboard

Over the past few years, customized keyboards have gradually entered the public's field of vision. Originally, it cost at least 2,000 yuan to play a customized keyboard. Now some mass-produced brands allow you to experience custom keyboards for only a few hundred yuan The excellent feel and rich playability of the customized keyboard can be chosen by friends who want to get started lightly. As a game lover, I recently paid attention to a wireless three-mode mechanical keyboard with a price of less than 300 yuan, 98 columns + volume knob, gasket structure, full-key hot-swappable...etc. Features, it is The AK992 side-engraved three-mode mechanical keyboard from Heijue.

Let’s do a simple unpacking first. As a mechanical keyboard that can be hot-swappable for all keys, Heijue AK992 comes with a key puller and shaft puller in the package, which is convenient for you to replace the keycap and shaft body. There are also 4 replacement shafts, as well as a data cable for wired connection, complete accessories.

Exterior

Heijue AK992 has 5 versions to choose from. Among them, the side-engraved version is pure black color matching. The classic and simple color matching is more suitable for a variety of table-top scenes. Quiet aesthetic, cool. This is the first time I have used the side engraved keyboard, try something new.

Heijue AK992 adopts a 98-column layout design, which removes the function buttons that are not commonly used by gamers, and retains the arrow keys and small keyboard area, which reduces the size without affecting the normal playing experience of various games, and is also very suitable for Users with small computer desktops or many things start with it.

A volume metal knob is added to the upper right corner of the keyboard, twist left and right to adjust the volume, press it to mute/play, it is very simple and quick to use.

As for the keycap, it is made of PBT material and processed by two-color injection molding process. The surface has a fine frosted feeling. In addition to the rich touch, this material can also avoid oiling or fading after long-term use, and the top of the keycap is slightly concave. The design makes the fingertips more fit and comfortable when typing on the keyboard.

In terms of the shaft body, Heijue’s new AS shaft is used, and there are two types of AS red shaft and AS brown shaft. According to the official statement, the customized AS shaft can effectively eliminate the sound of spring shrapnel, and the sound is more crisp. Run the shaft, and the design of the extended shaft core has improved the stability of the shaft core a lot.

In addition, this keyboard supports full-key hot-swapping, that is to say, we can replace any switch body according to our own preferences. 99% of the tripod switches and five-leg switches on the market can be used for experience. You will encounter the embarrassment of incompatibility.

On the left side of the keyboard is the mode switching switch, which can be switched to 2.4G, Bluetooth, and wired connection methods according to the needs. The concave design is also very convenient to slide. This design is very exciting. Compared with the design of placing the mode switch at the bottom of the keyboard, it is really not too convenient!

On the right side of the keyboard is the wireless receiver storage compartment, which is very convenient to take and store.

The back of the Black Jazz AK992 keyboard is designed with 5 non-slip pads and 2 2-stage pads, which are very stable on the desktop.

to experience

In terms of connection, as mentioned above, Heijue AK992 supports three connection methods, the connection speed is very fast, and it can be connected instantly after finding it. It is worth mentioning that the Black Jue AK992 can not only be used on the Windows platform, but also supports the Mac platform, and can be switched to the Mac system mode by pressing FN+A.

In terms of feel, I am used to using the red switch personally, and I think I am familiar with the red switch. The percussion feel of the red switch of the Heijue AK992 is quite good, the feel is very uniform, and the pressing feedback is just right. In terms of percussion sound, it is crisper than the red-axis keyboards I have used. This should be due to the Gasket gasket structure, which reduces the cavity sound and improves the feel and sound to a higher level.

This keyboard supports the design of full-key without punching, and there will be no key conflict no matter how fast the key is pressed. Of course, it is not uncommon to have a full key with no impact, and it is almost universal on all mechanical keyboards.

The side engraved AK992 I bought also supports RGB lighting effects. There are 18 different lighting effects built into the keyboard, which can be switched through FN+. The diverse lighting effects can be adjusted according to everyone’s preferences. Of course, I don’t like lighting effects. Otherwise, you can also directly press FN+X to turn off the backlight. If you want to set more possibilities, or complete the custom setting of individual buttons, you can download the corresponding driver from the official website for adjustment.

As for the battery life, the RGB version has a built-in 4000mAh battery. The official data is: it can be used for 40 hours with the light on, and the battery life is longer when the backlight is turned off. According to conventional use, one charge per week is enough, and the effect of not using the backlight can be close to one charge per month, and the battery life is very good.

Summarize

From the perspective of a cheap entry-level wireless tri-mode keyboard, the Heijue AK992 side engraving is a very good product, with free connection of wireless tri-mode, highly practical volume knob, and distinctive PBT side engraving Keycaps, AS factory run shaft body, full-key hot-swappable and Gasket gasket structure, three-layer sound-absorbing cotton, RGB lighting effects, etc., are a good choice for a 98-match three-mode keyboard within 300 yuan.

In terms of shortcomings, the overall shell of the keyboard is made of ABS material, so the plastic feeling is relatively strong. In addition, there is no corresponding combination function marked on the side-engraved keycaps. You can only find the FN function through the manual. I want to experience the feeling of side-engraved keys. That's why I chose this version. If you want the original one, you can also look at the other 4 themes of the AK992 series. The highest price does not exceed 300, and the lowest price is 199. You can start with the matte version of this series.

Generally speaking, within the price of 300 yuan, the Heijue AK992 three-mode gasket structure RGB side-engraved mechanical keyboard is worth buying.