I feel that after the Gasket structure mechanical keyboard was launched this year, the non-Gasket structure mechanical keyboard became unpopular.

At first, I knew about the Beijing-made keyboard, and then I saw some bloggers posting the Keychron keyboard on Weibo, and then I knew about this brand. I heard from my friends that this brand first became popular on foreign desks, and then slowly returned to China. . Keychron is the foundry of Beijing-made keyboards, so the appearance of Beijing-made keyboards and Keychron keyboards is very similar. I have been using the mechanical keyboards of Keychron (Chinese name: Kechuang), and I use the Keychron three-mode mechanical keyboard K4 ( Red axis), I have also played with other brands of keyboards in the middle, and I have been using K4 intermittently for nearly a year. The space gray keyboard and the iconic red "esc" key are more suitable for my light-colored small book.

Keychron started to launch several customized mechanical keyboards in the second half of this year, the new series Q.

The Q5 has been sold out since it was launched. It’s been a long time since I finally received this Q5 (knob version-black-Gardalon Gpro red switch, model Q5M1). After playing for more than a month, I finally remembered to write this post.

Because of the all-metal frame, when I received the package, I thought the store had sent me a brick, which was heavier than expected. No wonder this type of keyboard is called aluminum tuotuo.

The unpacking process is not detailed. Compared with the packaging of the K4, the reason why the Q5 may be all metal is that the inside of the packaging box uses a full range of sea-colored sponges for cushioning.

· Keyboard body

· Data cable (with type-c to USB adapter)

· Key puller

· Puller

· Phillips screwdriver

· Hex screwdriver

· manual

· Spare keycaps

· Gaskets

· Spare screws

· Spare keycaps*3

Although the model is black, the keycaps are actually a black, blue, and red contrasting color design. The iconic orange "esc" key of the Keychron K series in the past, the Q series is also standard, and the "ENTER" key is also added. Orange keycaps.

Q5 has a knob version and a normal version. The layout of the knob version and the normal version is slightly different. The function key area of ​​​​the normal version (the row from the F1 key) has no partition, and the function key area of ​​​​the knob area has partitions, so the normal version is better than the knob. The version has two more buttons for page turning function (if the knob is also counted as one button). The knob defaults to the volume adjustment function, and students who are used to the page turning function suggest that they can choose the normal version.

This keyboard is the best workmanship keyboard I have come into contact with so far. It is made of CNC aluminum body. I heard that the mass production of CNC aluminum body is difficult and the cost is also high. In the past, a certain brand made momentum to promote CNC aluminum body. In the end, mass production was not successful.

It is estimated that considering the weight of the all-metal body, there is no multi-level foot support, and the keyboard has a fixed tilt angle, which is listed in the manual as 5.3°.

You can see 8 golden screws on the base, which can be disassembled with the tools in the box.

I have always been interested in linear switches. This time I have chosen my favorite G-pro red switch, and the keyboard also comes with RGB lighting effects. There is no disassembly and DIY plan yet. The RGB lights of Q5 are all south-facing, which is a very special design.

Regardless of single-mode or triple-mode, keychron will be equipped with a win/mac switch key as standard, which is why keychron has been planted by many fans.

Because the K4 has an ultra-narrow bezel, and the Q5 has a wide bezel design, the Q5 will be larger than the K4.

Keyboard layout, these two keyboards belong to the 96% layout, but they are different. As shown in the above picture, the key areas of K4 are not divided into areas, and the Q5 is divided into key areas. I prefer to call this layout of K4 as 100 keys, this layout of Q5 is called 96 arrangement.

Judging from the keypad design of the keyboard, the 96 layouts are well arranged and more aesthetically pleasing.

The difference between keycaps, K4 is a square keycap, Q5 is a spherical keycap.

The all-metal body of the Q5 is more textured than the K4.

The same Jiadalong G-pro red switch, on the gasket structure keyboard, is more silent than the non-gasket structure keyboard.

This Keychron Q5 is the second gasket structure mechanical keyboard I have experienced. It may be because of the plastic body of the previous one. Under the heavy metal body of the Keychron Q5, when typing on the keyboard, it is quieter and less silent. Hollow feedback tone. My keyboard is Jiadalong G-Pro switch body. Many domestic keyboard manufacturers use Jiadalong switch body of this type. It has already experienced the test of the market. If you have a friend like me who pursues a keyboard with a quiet effect, it is recommended Blindly select the linear axis (red axis, silver axis), the trigger key stroke is 2 mm, and the trigger pressure is 45g. What is the concept, that is, you can type with a light click on the keyboard, unlike the green axis, which requires a larger Press down with strength and fingers. I have a deep understanding, and I feel that the all-metal body and the gasket structure are a perfect match!

The advantage of the single-mode keyboard is that it has zero delay and no charging. Occasionally use Photoshop to retouch pictures, and I have a little experience. Every time I retouch, I will habitually copy the painting with crtl+j. Using Q5 to operate, I will feel that it is faster than using a bluetooth keyboard to copy the painting. I don’t know if it is Psychological effect.

The game party stays up late to play games. If you don’t want to disturb your family and need low latency, this keyboard is highly recommended.

Q5 supports hot-swapping of the shaft body. This function is not usually used. If it is missing, it feels like something is missing. At present, many mechanical keyboards support this function.

Q5 的键盘支持持QMK&VIA开源改键。可以通过Keychron官网下载这两个驱动，QMK软件用于恢复出厂设置，VIA用于自定义改键。喜欢拓展改键的同学可以自由发挥，对我来说，最没用的按键就是“ins”键了，一不小心还会误触，还好K4和Q5 都没有这个按键，暂时没有改键需求。

At first, I thought this data cable converter was superfluous. Why don’t other brands also have a standard data cable with a type-A interface, until I suddenly plugged it into the ipad and used it, it’s really delicious.

Plug the Type-C cable directly into the ipad, and when the keyboard lights up, you know there is something going on.

After testing it, I plugged in the ipad keyboard to code, and it was as smooth as silk. For simple typing, an ipad+keyboard can be used as a substitute for a computer.

2022 is an extraordinary year for me. The success or failure of the key ring is particularly obvious in this year. It was also this year that I began to transform from a consumer to a creator, met more people, and thought about more problems that I didn't think about before. Let me talk about my thoughts and feelings this year, as well as some plans for the future. Although they are all superficial understandings, sharing them can be regarded as an experience. Thank you very much for your viewing and opinions. Friendly discussions in the comment area are welcome.

The communication between people in modern society is no longer limited to the forms of discourse and letters in the past, but more inclined to fast network input and communication. Fast and frequent information exchange makes input tools become daily necessities for long-term and high-frequency contact in life and work. The epidemic in 2020 has brought online office into people's lives on a large scale in advance, and people have also begun to re-examine their desks. The mechanical keyboard market has not declined but increased under the epidemic.

The rising popularity of mechanical keyboards can be demonstrated to a certain extent whether it is from the increasing discussion on the topic of mechanical keyboards in daily life or from the sharp increase in the number of mechanical keyboard brands in recent years.

Data Source: What's Worth Buying

In recent years, what I can clearly perceive in the field of mechanical keyboards is that there are more and more choices, whether it is mass production or customization, whether it is shafts, keycaps, or kits. Domestic mechanical keyboards have undoubtedly grown at the "material" level.

In the field of shafts, domestic shafts have sprouted since 2010-2012, and gained fame at this key node in 2019. The domestic shaft market has also evolved from Cherry's one-man show to the current contention of a hundred schools of thought.

Jiadalong's product timeline 2012—2020

In the field of keycaps, most of the past customized players could only choose overseas brands such as GMK and SP. Now there are old domestic customized keycaps JTK, Domikey that will appear in 2019, PBTfans that will enter the market in 2022, and various other keycaps. There are also many different options in the field of keycap foundries, including mass production.

With the increase in the number of studios and brands, domestic customization and mass production of mechanical keyboards seem to have entered a "thriving" stage. There is no doubt that more and more players will join the circle of mechanical keyboards in the future. Does the increase in the number of people mean that this circle can grow bigger and bigger?

If one word were used to describe the current keyboard market, it would be "chaotic".

Since the keyboard industry has no specific legal provisions and production standards in terms of production, the market has become chaotic, and even "fake" products have appeared (piracy and plagiarism are two concepts), and various switches have appeared at the production level. There is no consistent standard for the tolerance, which leads to the situation that the axis of the shaft is too large and the shaft of the keycap is enlarged or even cracked, and the axis is too small to stabilize the keycap. The above examples are just the tip of the iceberg of problems in the entire production process.

In mid-July this year, I went to Jiadalong in Huizhou City, Guangdong Province. When I talked with the person in charge of Jiadalong, they were also very worried and concerned about it.

In fact, there have been a lot of things lately about keycaps not fitting well with switches.

catapult start

At present, it is almost impossible to regulate production through legal means in a short period of time. The only thing these manufacturers can do is to produce products according to the size of the traditional Cherry shaft body and the standard of GMK keycaps, so as to Make sure to adapt as many keyboard accessories as possible to the user.

The lack of supervision in the market and the inability of consumers and manufacturers to communicate effectively have led to a "chaotic" state of the keyboard market today.

If this circle wants to become bigger and stronger in the future, it must be regulated and standardized in terms of production, otherwise there will be more and more similar problems.

This can be said to be common in the customization circle. When delays become the norm, product after-sales is not guaranteed, and capital flows in the style of "interest-free loans" in the customization market.

The reason to find an excuse for these hidden dangers is simple, delay-it is normal for small-volume factories not to pay attention. No after-sales service——customized products have "customized" attributes, so it is normal not to provide after-sales service. Interest-free loan - small business, high risk is normal.

But I think these so-called "difficulties" should gradually disappear as the circle continues to grow. It is gratifying that some teams have begun to try to protect the rights and interests of consumers and merchants through third-party guarantees such as Taobao, ZF1 and some agents going to the platform.

If the "material" level of domestic mechanical keyboards is progressing by leaps and bounds, then it can be said that the level of community culture is standing still, or even regressing.

In the past, I saw many websites and forums such as chiphell, Baidu Tieba, Peripheral World, Peripheral Hall, etc. These websites are still in use today, but either their popularity has dropped sharply, or they are similar to Baidu Tieba. It did not continue, and the rising star self-media platform and some new communities did not become a friendly, open, and in-depth platform as imagined.

I always hope that there will be a community comparable to Geekhack in China, or a Reddit keyboard section, which can provide players with effective information and methods to better understand mechanical keyboards or how to play with customized platforms. Maybe the forum is a little outdated, but even the major streaming media platforms such as Douyin, Xiaohongshu, and Bilibili on the mobile phone have not formed positive guidance. From "Raindrop Sound" to "Mahjong Sound", and even "Hokkaido Gravel Sound", which judges the quality of a keyboard by sound, it became popular on Xiaohongshu and Douyin, and is known as the ruler of Mahjong Sound. "Crystal wine red axis 2" becomes a leek harvester for "keyboard bloggers".

It is "normal" that there are some video content in the circle that are used to gain attention. This year, I have contacted many players who have become keyboard bloggers. They more or less feel that the current keyboard community lacks an upward direction. . The good thing is that there are still some people who are willing to think and share some valuable content to help the whole circle build a better community culture, and more and more people are joining it.

The trend of mechanical keyboards has come too fast, whether it is "old gun" or "new", it is more or less uncomfortable.

In May and June of this year, with the help of my friends in the circle and my own efforts, I obtained the results of an immature questionnaire. Although the number of samples is only 800+, I think this questionnaire still has some points worthy of reference.

Population Age Report for Questionnaires

Regardless of the results of the questionnaire survey or observations in daily life, the keyboard players are still very young as a whole, and the proportion of young people will increase in the future, and it will take several years or even ten years to maintain it. a stable ratio. Young people, including students, account for a relatively high proportion of keyboard circles, which is also related to the applicable population of mechanical keyboards.

When a player steps into this circle, "confusion" follows.

Take shaft manufacturers as an example. In 2022, the types of shafts manufactured by shaft manufacturers have changed from the four basic types of green, black, tea and black in the past to hundreds of shafts of various colors. The types of shafts and shafts of this book are still increasing.

For such a market environment, players gradually feel tired, and as players grow, they also make some voices of their own.

Self-filling suggestions from questionnaires Extraction of keywords

At the same time, due to the impact of community development, players often cannot find an effective and correct way to solve their own problems. Still taking the shaft as an example, there are different opinions on the matter of "how to lubricate the shaft".

As for how to choose a keyboard that suits them, many players will fall into "confusion". In such a big environment, it is easy to lose their direction. Many players don't know what they really need, so that "Take a detour" and "pay tuition".

Many people may think that the mechanical keyboard circle is still in a bonus period, and both sales and profits are rising all the way. But this is not the case. After I visited several factories and brands, and communicated with large and small foundries, this year is a "cold winter" for them. For many manufacturers, there is no longer a new product that is sold out immediately after it is put on the shelves, and it is no longer a time when you can make a lot of money by relying on a few single products.

On the one hand, the economic impact of the epidemic is gradually taking effect. Although the epidemic was severe in the past two years, most people still have a certain amount of funds in reserve, and the downward pressure on the economy did not take effect immediately. However, after two years of the epidemic, consumers' consumption power and consumption habits have changed, and careful planning and consumption downgrades have further cooled the madness of the market.

On the other hand, as a consumer, I can clearly perceive that this year’s product update frequency is particularly high, and so-called “roll king” products have appeared one after another, and this is also related to the competition in the entire keyboard market.

It is very difficult to make a good keyboard, but it is not difficult to make a keyboard, or even a "roll king" keyboard.

In the keyboard industry, for ordinary people, there may be various thresholds. But for the employer, these are nothing more than a matter of money, because the keyboard industry does not have the so-called "technical barriers" at the basic end. With funds and channels, it is almost possible to establish a brand in situ, and the foundry is there. Not going anywhere.

But it is very difficult to make a good keyboard, which is why there are so many small brands in the keyboard industry, but it is rare to see a brand with absolute dominance. Without its own brand value, it can only become an OEM brand.

In the past few years, a large number of brands have poured into the market, and the fierce price war has caused the profit margin of the entire industry to decline, while the technical level has stagnated.

New products continue to appear. These "new products" are often not flagships in the actual sense. Many of them are just skin replacements and stockpiling. The rapid update and iteration of these products has led to the continuous increase in production and storage costs of manufacturers. At the same time, profit margins Once entering this competition, there is no possibility of stopping. This is also a major challenge for the low-end market.

In the short term, this may be a good thing for players, as they can buy low-priced "high-end" products as much as possible, but I am not optimistic about this. Just like the "milk" in the industry, it wastes the production capacity of the entire circle. On the other hand, it is constantly overdrawing its vitality. Some small brands with ideas will easily disappear in this melee. "Competing for share, starving others to death" , This is the iron law of the market, and it is also an unchangeable fact. On the supply chain side, they are far less powerful than those big factories.

In the field of customization, there are a lot of new products this year. At one time, there were more than 10 group opening messages a day, which is several times that of a few years ago. At the same time, there are also some pure male models, or products that pile up elements meaninglessly. It is very normal for one or two of these products to appear. The circle also needs some introductory and dessert kits to pave the way for newcomers, but when the homogeneity becomes more and more serious, this requires vigilance.

Although the general environment is like this, there are still many studios and brands insisting on some "persistence".

In the field of mass production this year, the keyboard that impressed me the most is the CL98 from Click Lab. In the eyes of many people, the appearance of this keyboard is mediocre, but as long as they have disassembled this keyboard, they can see that they have researched and understood mechanical keyboards. Due to the space, I will not discuss it here. I will write a detailed review about this keyboard when I have a chance later.

Taken from killo

In the field of customization, there are also many excellent works this year, such as Capsule 65% (Capsule 65) from Pixelspace Studio.

humanoid bird shooting

R67 (Valentine's Day) from JOJO.STUDIO.

Filmed by .LL., photographed by Maizichao

It is these products with interesting and unique designs that contribute to the construction of the customized circle.

The key circle is growing in chaos.

When I started writing my first column, I had no idea that this was the kind of question that would one day haunt me. At the beginning, the creative motivation was just to write for fun. As I wrote more and more articles, I gradually discovered that some players and friends needed such articles to "solve problems" for them. The key circle is a circle with very limited traffic, at least for those bloggers who focus on keyboards and content. This is a group of people who listen to the public, but the actual core audience is really only a group of people, only a group of people who are really interested in keyboards and want to study.

But I am optimistic about the future. After communicating with these outstanding creators, brands, and foundries, I am more convinced that the keyboard circle will gradually become popular in the future, and more and more people will join this circle. many. And my desire to do something for the circle is getting stronger and stronger. There are countless things I can't change in this circle, but what I can do is very clear, that is, to create some content, to do something that I think is useful. Valuable content, I hope that these contents can help more people have fun, and I also hope that these contents can contribute to the keyboard circle.

The following points can prolong the normal service life of the mechanical keyboard as much as possible without spending too much money and energy:

1. Simple maintenance: Most of the mass-produced mechanical keyboards now have the function of hot-swapping, and as long as the keyboard is hot-swappable, it can be directly pulled out for repair or replacement when the shaft body is damaged, which can be very convenient. Extend the service life of the mechanical keyboard to the greatest extent. Replacing the shaft body requires two tools, a key puller and a shaft puller, and it should be noted that mechanical keyboards must not make miracles with great force (it is easy to cause damage to the shaft body or poor contact), and it does not take much effort to find a good angle and position . (It is not recommended to repair by yourself if it is not hot-swappable)

2. Cleaning: Prolonged use will inevitably lead to a lot of dust or other strange things on the keyboard, which will accelerate the aging of the mechanical structure of the keyboard (especially in humid environments), so it is a good choice to equip a hand-held portable vacuum cleaner (It’s okay to suck it, and frequent cleaning can greatly increase the service life of the mechanical keyboard).

3. Dust-proof cover: The dust-proof cover can effectively reduce the probability of contamination when the keyboard is idle. Make it a habit to cover the dust-proof cover after each use, and the speed of dust falling on the keyboard will be greatly slowed down.

4. Emergency treatment: In case of water splashing, remember to power off the keyboard as soon as possible, then turn the keyboard upside down with the keycap facing down or remove it, and put it in a dry, cool and ventilated place for more than 24 hours. You can continue to use it. If you still have problems, it is recommended to find a professional for maintenance.

In traditional keyboards, if we distinguish them according to the number of keys, there are two common types of keyboards, one is a 104-key keyboard suitable for daily office use, which is what we often call a full-key keyboard, and the other is a relatively It is suitable for the 87-key keyboard with codeword and portable needs, that is, the keyboard that cancels the number keys. But now, the keyboard has evolved into a keyboard with 84 keys and a smaller volume; a keyboard and a mouse with 100 keys have more functions and a smaller volume. Lofree Luo Fei's new Galaxy is a more representative 100-key keyboard.

This time Galaxy was built together with the designer and the artist Tian Danlu to design a keyboard with the color of Tian Danlu. The overall color of the keyboard has very bright colors and embossed color blocks, which can add more art to life the taste of.

Lofree culture, which comes from design aesthetics, has always been excellent in product design. Xinghe uses the classic small warp design, which is also Lofree’s own understanding of peripheral aesthetics. The entire keyboard presents a sleek design style.

Viewed from the side of the keyboard, the bottom plate and frame are designed in an arc shape, and the frame on the right has a logo of 100 keys, and "CONNECT YOUR MIND WITH EVERY TOUCH", the combination of small characters and icons, has a strong sense of design, The visuals are great.

There is a Lofree brand LOGO on the side of the keyboard, which is a design feature of Lofree Xiaoqiao. The bottom is supported by foot pads, and there is a floating visual effect from the front.

Xiaoqiao's design abandons the traditional foot support design, and the unique circular battery compartment replaces the design of the foot support. There is no folding foot support, although there will be certain limitations in the freedom of angle, but just experience From the point of view, it can still meet my keyboard usage habits.

The small warped keycap is very distinctive, with an arc-shaped design, high on the four sides and low in the middle, showing a concave state, while the outside is convex, and the height design is not the same as the ordinary keycap. The cap is higher, which is actually very obvious on the keyboard.

The galaxy of the keyboard name is reflected in the color matching of the keycaps, and the keycaps are not simple solid colors or double color matching. The color matching of Galaxy is very interesting. There are gradients and contrasting colors, including purple, blue, orange, etc. Just like Galaxy, it is regular and beautiful. Whether it is a boy or a girl, there is no way to refuse this design. At the same time, the keycap adopts the PBT five-sided thermal sublimation process, which also avoids the occurrence of slippage on the keyboard surface.

The appearance of Xinghe is very high, and the experience of using it is also very good. The mechanical switch uses Jiadalong's G red Pro switch body, which is currently a very good domestic mechanical switch, and it is also a relatively large number of bearings used in domestic mid-to-high-end keyboards.

Judging from the feel of use, the percussion feel of the G Red Pro is relatively comfortable, with a total stroke of about 4mm, a trigger stroke of about 2mm, and an operating force of 45G. Regardless of the strength or height of the percussion, it is more comfortable. At the same time, as a linear switch, it does not have the sense of paragraph like the green switch, but it also has the feedback of spring sound.

In terms of game experience, it may not be as perfect as the green axis. But the red switch gives me the feeling that the experience is more comprehensive, not only has the experience of high-quality mechanical switches, but also is very suitable for daily home office use. The percussion sound of the red switch is relatively light among mechanical switches, and it is more suitable for use in bedrooms and offices. In the use of code words and game entertainment, the experience is still very good.

Lofree's products have always been very playable, and this time Xinghe also has this feature. The full key continues to support hot-swapping, which is a very good choice for players who like the small warp design but have more needs for the key shaft. The overall material is sufficient, and the design of the four-layer bottom plate includes Without the main body of the keyboard, PCB board, silicone sandwich pad, and positioning plate, after switching the bearings, it can still maintain very good stability.

Galaxy, as a 100-key keyboard jointly created by Lofree and artists, not only has a good keyboard experience, but also realizes the slogan of adding an artistic atmosphere to the office. The design of Tian Danlu artist, the style of Lofree Luofei, the bearing of Jiadalong, the characteristic keycap, and support three-mode connection at the same time, whether it is a performance user or a party of beauty, the design and function of Lofree Luofei Galaxy can well satisfy I have a demand for a good-looking performance keyboard.

Today I would like to share with you a cheap mechanical keyboard, which is suitable for friends who love to play games. Because it has 87 keys, it is relatively small overall, and girls will not feel pressured to use it! The main reason why I like this keyboard is because of its appearance. The lighting effect is very cool, and you can customize 20 kinds of lighting you like!

Imagine coming home from get off work at night, playing games in the bedroom after a day of exhaustion, playing games with the cool bottom light on the keyboard is really cool! Its non-shock keycaps are not stuck, there will be no delay when playing games, and it will not affect your master operation! Each keycap is waterproof and easy to clean. The sound of this keyboard is really crisp!

This mechanical keyboard is really cheap. My starting price is less than 100 yuan, and the quality produced by HP is guaranteed. It is OK for the student party to start. You can take a look at the effect after turning on the light, it is really amazing, any friend who has a dream of gaming should not refuse this one! The appearance is really nothing to say!