Latest news with #TKL
CNET
6 days ago
- CNET
This Nearly Perfect Gaming Keyboard Is Held Back by a Few Big Compromises
Finding the perfect keyboard can often feel like looking for a needle in a haystack. There's no shortage of mechanical keyboards offering a whole range of features and hardware options. While the "perfect keyboard" likely doesn't exist, there are certainly some good ones to be found. Finding a solid balance between hardware, features and price can be daunting. While Cherry's MX 8.2 TKL keyboard delivers fantastic hardware, there are compromises as well. I spent several weeks typing and gaming on it to see if it's worth it. What I like about the Cherry MX 8.2 keyboard CNET/Jason Cockerham There's not much to make this TKL (or "tenkeyless" aka no number pad) keyboard stand out, but that's a good thing here. The design is understated but well-built. It's not a full-metal build, but the plastic doesn't feel cheap and the metal base board allows for a very solid typing surface. In order to keep it compact, Cherry put the power switch and connection indicators on the back, which might get a bit confusing if you change inputs frequently. It's also pretty compact, even for a TKL keyboard. There's not much space around the sides or even between the keys and rows. I like it, but some might prefer things a bit more spread out, especially if you have larger hands. The MX 8.2 comes in white or black with ABS keycaps, which are actually nicer than I thought they'd be. I normally prefer PBT keycaps, but these don't feel as thin as other ABS keycaps I've used so they didn't bother me as much. And, of course, the keycaps are swappable. So if you have a preference or want to try a different type, they're easy to change. CNET/Jason Cockerham No gaming keyboard would be complete without RGB lighting, and that's one place the MX 8.2 shines (pun intended). You can customize the backlight for every key and there are several different lighting effects to choose from. In the Cherry software you can create up to 10 profiles so you can have one for each game (or, you know, for work stuff). Not every gaming keyboard supports wireless connectivity, but thankfully, the MX 8.2 offers both Bluetooth and 2.4 GHz wireless dongle connectivity. If you're worried about latency, stick with the dongle, but in truth, Bluetooth was plenty fine for me during my usage. Great performance CNET / Jason Cockerham As expected from a keyboard sporting Cherry's MX switches, the typing experience on the MX 8.2 is wonderful. I've used dozens of other keyboards in my time, and every time I come back to Cherry switches I remember why I love them so much. They are clicky, tactile and responsive and give just the right amount of audible "thwack" as I type. I felt right at home on these switches as shown by my 100 wpm on MonkeyType, which is my typical speed. It helps that the version of the keyboard I reviewed came with Cherry's Brown switches, which I prefer, but you can get the linear Reds if you prefer. Sadly, they aren't hot-swappable, so you'll have to dance with the one who brung ya. The MX 8.2 is built for gamers and as such, has a few gaming-focused features that are helpful. For starters, if you get the Brown switches you already have a shorter actuation distance. This means you don't have to press as far down to trigger a command as compared to Red switches. This can help when speed and timing in a game really matters. It also supports full n-key rollover, which means every keypress is registered even when pressing multiple keys at once. It also has anti-ghosting to help avoid weird typos and such. In my time with the MX 8.2 it was extremely responsive while gaming. There were never any missed keystrokes, and most importantly, I didn't experience any hand strain during extended gaming sessions. that's not something I can say of every gaming keyboard I've used. What I don't like about the Cherry MX 8.2 keyboard CNET/Jason Cockerham There are a couple of hardware things that are annoying about the MX 8.2, the first being the lack of storage for the wireless dongle. This may not seem like a big deal, but with how small dongles are they're incredibly easy to lose and annoyingly expensive to replace, and that's if you can even find them anywhere. Additionally, you can't connect to more than one device via Bluetooth, so unless you re-pair it every time you switch devices, you'll want to use the dongle more. The other hardware annoyance has to do with the RGB lighting, specifically with the white key version. The LEDs are placed at the top of each switch housing, so the bottom two-thirds of the keys are shadowed by the switches. This means the lighting isn't uniform across the keys. But then again, I don't know how much time you spend looking at your keyboard so this may not bother you. Also, the white keycaps sort of make the lighting look a bit muted and washed out, but that's certainly quite subjective. I ended up leaving the lighting off during the day and turning it on at night and I was gaming. Frustrating software If you've read any of my (or most any other) reviews of Cherry keyboards, you might have seen that the software is one of the biggest frustrations with Cherry keyboards. Not only does Cherry have multiple apps for performing different – and even some of the same – customizations, not every product they have is supported by the software. It's mostly hit or miss as to which products get software support. On top of that, the apps the company does have are just bad. The UI looks like it's from 10 years ago, and the functionality is quite limited and confusing. There's no real guide, so generally you just have to figure it out by messing around with it. The only redeeming qualities about it are that you can customize the lighting effects pretty granularly, and you can program different functions for each key. But again, this process is tedious and frustrating, so I would avoid it if you can. Luckily, most of the basic functionality you should need is bound to a secondary layer behind the function keys, so you shouldn't have to mess with the software too much if you don't want to. Should you buy the Cherry MX 8.2 keyboard? The MX 8.2 has been out for a while now, and Cherry is asking $210 for it, although I've seen it for around $180 on Amazon. While it's certainly not the most expensive gaming keyboard around, that's still quite a lot for a keyboard, no matter how good it is. Especially considering how crowded the field is these days. There are quite a few really solid keyboards that can be had for around $150 or even less and Cherry doesn't really offer much to make it stand out. That being said, Cherry offers superb craftsmanship and a wonderful typing experience with the MX 8.2. The compact layout means it doesn't take up a lot of room on your desk while the per-key RGB lighting offers a lot of customization, as long as you're prepared for an annoying software experience. If you need a dedicated gaming keyboard that goes all-in on features and performance, there are better options. The same is true if you just need a good budget gaming keyboard. But if you're looking for a high-quality keyboard that works hard and plays hard, the MX 8.2 is worth considering.
CNET
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CNET
Represent Sauron With This Special Edition TKL Mechanical Keyboard That's 35% Right Now
If you're looking for a new keyboard, but want to get something a little bit special, then maybe a special edition would help. There are lots of options out there, but there's only a handful that'll let you show off your love for The Lord of the Rings. Amazon has a deal on the Drop + The Lord of the Rings Black Speech TKL mechanical keyboard right now that knocks it down to $130. That's a 35% discount, and it's a great price for a stunning keyboard that most LOTR fans will adore. This gorgeous keyboard has all the normal symbols in tiny font next to the amazing Black Speech spoken by Sauron and his collective of Uruk-Hai and other powerful allies. The TKL keyboard fits better on smaller desks, and it's got an LED backlight for a really menacing feel. It comes in a sturdy aluminum case, Holy Panda X mechanical switches for an incredible feel and sound and the whole package just looks amazing. Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money. All of this means that this is easily one of the best keyboard deals going on right now. The quality is solid, it looks fantastic and the discount is great. Why this deal matters Getting your hands on a nice keyboard can cost a lot of money, especially if you're looking at a special edition. The Lord of the Rings is a timeless classic, and new fans are constantly finding it, which makes this a cool keyboard for any age. With this discount, it's a no-brainer.
WIRED
02-07-2025
- WIRED
Wooting's 80HE Feels Like the Pinnacle of Hall Effect Keyboards
Wooting was one of the first analog keyboard brands to break into the mainstream. When the original Wooting One TKL launched, it was a big deal—optical switch technology was still new to most people, and the idea of a keyboard with hyper-fast, adjustable key actuations was both novel and revolutionary at the time. Later, when it debuted its Lekker Hall effect switch in the Wooting Two, it was one of the first companies to utilize the technology for gaming. Things ramped up in 2020 with the release of the Wooting 60HE: Wooting was taking preorders months in advance, the keyboard was reselling with massive markups, and Hall effect completely overshadowed optical switches as the next big thing. Now, Hall effect keyboards are a dime a dozen. It kicked off an arms race, and Wooting's 60HE fell behind. But with the new Wooting 80HE, the company returned to the tenkeyless (TKL) layout of its first keyboard and made a keyboard that's not only competitive but impressive. The 80HE has every feature I want in a Hall effect keyboard, without any of the mistakes I commonly see. It's robust, reliable, and easy to repair. The 80HE has two versions, one with a plastic case and the other with a zinc alloy. The plastic version retails for $200 and comes in opaque black or transparent gray. The zinc alloy model costs $290 and includes a carrying case. It comes in black or white. You can also get the keyboard in ANSI, ISO, and JIS layouts. I tested the zinc alloy case in black with a standard ANSI layout. Fantastic Functionality Photograph: Henri Robbins For nearly every Hall effect keyboard I've reviewed, software has been a sore spot. They've been buggy, awkward, poorly designed, filled with advertisements, or just plain unintuitive. Even the best software I've tested, from Keychron, has minor issues with connectivity and setting functions. This is where Wooting stands out. Its in-house app, Wootility, is great. It's a simple, lightweight utility that provides extensive adjustments and customizations. It's available both in-browser and as a downloadable executable, meaning you can access it anywhere and use it offline. More than that, every part of its design makes sense: The application is organized, easy to use, intuitive, and explains every setting. Plus, during my entire time using the browser version, I never ran into connectivity issues—the minute I hit 'enter' for the URL, it recognized the keyboard. This isn't the case for most in-browser keyboard utilities, which don't always want to connect. Even niche features like gamepad emulation worked flawlessly. I replicated the analog inputs of an Xbox controller's stick and triggers without any hiccups or confusion, adjusting the settings on the fly and still maintaining keyboard inputs for unmapped keys. I even put down a half-decent lap time in Art of Rally after a bit of practice (and a few crashes).
