Latest news with #Kailh
WIRED
23-04-2025
- WIRED
WobKey's Rainy 75 Mechanical Keyboard Punches Above Its Weight
The Rainy 75 is a common sight on the r/MechanicalKeyboards subreddit, a community that nerds out about the thock of a keyboard and, naturally, fun keycaps. It seems like every week or so, someone posts about their new purchase from WobKey, and every time, the consensus revolves around how good of a budget option it is. That's because, for under $150, the Rainy 75 has every feature you could want in a mechanical keyboard today. There are a few strange design choices, but I finally got my hands on one, and I'm impressed by this keyboard. The Rainy 75 is available in three flavors: Lite, Standard, and Pro. The Lite retails for $129 and includes HMX Violet linear switches, a polypropylene plate, and a 3,500-mAh battery. The Pro—the model I tested—includes Kailh Cocoa linear switches, an FR4 plate, RGB lighting, and two batteries totaling 7,000 mAh for $159. The Standard is in between and costs $139. Poppy, Crisp, and Smooth Photograph: Henri Robbins Typing on the Rainy 75 feels and sounds fantastic. It has that poppy, crisp typing sound you see in videos online, and typing feels every bit as energetic and enjoyable. I assume the 'Rainy 75' name comes from the typing sound, since its softer and rounded sound profile sounds like rain falling. The linear 'Cocoa' switches are manufactured by Kailh for the Rainy 75. These switches have a relatively light operating force of 45 grams, which is comparable to a Cherry MX Red, and use a polyoxymethylene stem (POM) and Nylon housing, which helps to create a marbly typing sound and a smooth typing feel. The switches are responsive, popping back up quickly after being pressed, and have hardly any scratch, even when pressed down slowly. The stems of these switches have little wobble from side to side or front to back, making keypresses feel sturdy. The stabilizers on this keyboard come pre-lubed and, despite being plate-mounted instead of printed-circuit-board–mounted, they feel fantastic. While I could talk about how smooth and quiet they are, it's easier to say that I didn't even notice they were there when typing. These stabilizers are tuned perfectly and don't require any work out of the box. That said, I imagine that, like most plate-mounted stabilizers, they will require a reapplication of lube after a while. Photograph: Henri Robbins The gasket-mount system holding the keyboard together is really impressive. It feels bouncy and soft without seeming too muted or mushy. The dampening from the gaskets is consistent across all of the keys, only becoming somewhat stiffer around the edges. Finicky Functionality This keyboard has some quirks that, while not huge, can be annoying. Sometimes, when pressing Alt+Tab on this keyboard, or any other key combinations involving the Tab key, I have to press the combination twice for it to work. I've resolved these oddities by turning the keyboard off and on. Typically, one of my favorite features on a mechanical keyboard is support for QMK and VIA. QMK, short for Quantum Mechanical Keyboard, is an open source firmware that allows for almost limitless customization of a keyboard's layout. VIA is a system for customizing specific QMK-compatible keyboards using an in-browser interface. These allow for simple and efficient customization of mechanical keyboards, meaning a QMK-enabled keyboard will have long-term support without reliance on proprietary software that may stop being updated after a few years.
Forbes
01-04-2025
- Forbes
GravaStar Launches Mercury K1 Pro CyberPunk-Style Keyboard
The new GravaStar Mercury K1 Pro CyberPunck edition looks so unusual and there's an optional ... More matching mouse for those who want to complete the look. The GravaStar Mercury K1 Pro Special Edition Cyberpunk is a premium 75% mechanical keyboard with 79 keys and a customizable control knob which is a volume and mute control by default. The whole keyboard is constructed from a lightweight aluminum alloy providing a balance between durability and portability. Supported by a striking skeletal, tree-like frame, the keyboard has a definite symmetry and a styling that's unique including perimeter lighting. The metal frame of the keyboard flows up and around the keys, surrounding them with quicksilver branches. There are two claw-like and adjustable stabilizers at the top left and right corners of the keyboard which anchor the K1 Pro to the desk surface. The construction of the keyboard with its outrigger stabilizers create a stable platform while also providing an adjustable height and rake to the keys. The claw-like outrigger stabilizers on the keyboard aim to provide a more solid typing experience. GravaStar has used Kailh Linear Mint switches which are hot-swappable and can be replaced with MX switches with three- or five-pins. The switches have a quick rebound for rapid input. POK stems to create a clear and crisp sound while the keys deliver a smooth feel that GravaStar claims gets even smoother over time without the need for additional lubing. The Kailh switches are rated at 70,000,000 keystrokes which means they should endure many years of heavy use. The K1 Pro is constructed from five layers which are sandwiched between the aluminum top frame and bottom plate. Inside there are layers of silicone foam, PORON button foam, a printed circuit board, IPXE foam layer, PORON sandwich foam, FR4 plate and then the switches on top. The result is a relatively solid feed and sound thanks to the layers of insulation. As you might expect with a keyboard aimed at gamers, the GravaStar Mercury K1 Pro has extensive RGB lighting with a choice of 16.8 million colors. The south-facing keys have backlights that provide 13 different lighting modes, with custom options for setting the lighting speed, brightness and color changes. The keys and the skirting of the Mercury K1 Pro CyberPunck provide a customisable RGB light show. Backlights on mechanical keyboards are notorious energy hogs and so to reduce the time between charging, GravaStar has fitted the Mercury K1 Pro with a large 8000mAh rechargeable battery which is between two and four times larger than the batteries in most mechanical keyboards on the market. The keycaps supplied with the Mercury K1 Pro are pudding-style PBT construction with dye-sublimation printed art. The look of the keycaps is certainly cyberpunk and unusual. To connect the Mercury K1 Pro to its host devices there is a choice between trusty USB-C as well as Bluetooth wireless with three pairings at once and a 2.4GHz wireless dongle. Both the wired and 2.4GHz connections offer low latency performance and will be preferred by gamers who need top responsiveness and performance. As with most mechanical keyboards on sale these days, the GravaStar Mercury K1 Pro has the switchable option of a Windows and macOS layout so there is no need to remap the keys. However, for those who do want to customize the layout of the keyboard, there is downloadable Windows software for that purpose as well as for updating the keyboard's firmware as and when GravaStar issues any new versions. The GravaStart Mercury K1 Pro CyberPunk is available now from GravaStar and is priced at $179.95 / £141.06 / €168,75.
