So, it used to be that if you wanted a retrostyled like uh typewritery
keyboard, the only real options were to
convert an old typewriter, which we have
done, or buy custom key caps and replace
all the ones on your current keyboard. But now, there are actually a fair
number of offtheshelf options for these typewritery keyboards. So, let's try
some of them out today, shall we?
So, we actually don't quite have as many options today as it might at first
appear because some of them are just different variants of the retro classic
from Azio. So, they've got the Artisan,
the Posh, the Onyx, and the Lwood. And
the first thing that comes to mind for me looking at this is, are there really
so many people out there that are looking for these style of keyboards
that they need four different colors? So, let's go ahead and get these
unpacked. Cable feels nice. So, they Ooh, how to impress Lionus. That is a
type-C connector, which I actually found out recently is only a cost difference
of about 15 over a highquality microB
connector, but for some reason, many new products still haven't switched over to
it. Couple other things back here. So, there's Bluetooth mode, there's USB
mode, and you can switch between Mac and PC. All right. Well, part of the video
today is definitely going to be rolling
through all the different color options here because if you're the kind of
person who buys a stylish keyboard, then
surely you do care about the color scheme a fair whack. So, not only can
you switch between Apple and Windows
mode, they've actually included a bunch of
additional key caps. This must be the Mac version of the F keys. All right,
now let's have a look at what the Artisan has to show for itself. This is actually
a perfect example of a company leveraging what little tooling work
they've done to uh turn that into as
many models as possible. So, you can actually see here that the Artisan is
just a cross between the Onyx and the Posh. So, it's got exactly the same kind
of rose gold metal accents and then it's
just using the uh faux leather backing
and then the matte black uh infill for the key caps. Bringing us finally to the
Lwood, which is different from every other
model that we have in pretty much every way actually. So, for one, this thing h
this has what appears to be a genuine
wood backing. Is it really? No way.
Feels like it. Hey, James.
James. I think he's out for lunch. That's okay.
There's another finishing touch on this one, though. That's pretty cool. So, you
actually have the ability if you want to
replace the plate here. So, you can undo
the screws. And I wonder if you could flip it around and engrave it yourself.
Either way, they sent a custom one with their impressive established 2009 retro
classic. And check that out. They silk
screen line as media on there. That's That's cute. I I mean, my last name's
Sebastian, not media, but you know, hey, A+ forever.
All right, these are really freaking heavy
keyboards. How much are these things? These are not cheap. I think they're
going to have to do a lot more than look cool, but let's get to that in a minute.
First, let's have a look at the
Challenger. This is the No.
So, is that like the opposite of okay? Like
the This is the No K Rych with blue
switch, gorgeous light effect, retro style, and Bluetooth/wire
dual mode. Now, the packaging isn't as good. I don't know what the deal is with
this like gradient brown. Whenever I
find tape on packaging, I have to know what's under it. Oh well, that's fine.
If Cher's OEMing your keyboard, that's not embarrassing.
Maybe some of our clever Chinese viewers can give me some idea of what that's
about. Without the tape on it, I actually would have had a lot more
confidence going into Okay, this is
looking not too bad to start. So, they've got a little aluminum
something. They've got a little other
more different aluminum. Oh, this is like your uh like your stopper thing for
the Yeah. Okay. That's not going to have much of a function on a keyboard, but
might look kind of neat. And then we've got the keyboard itself.
I will say this, the uh
the the feel of the plastics here
doesn't hold a candle to the retro classic.
Oh, I was going to say though, what's good is that they've got these
reinforcing ridges here so that when you slide them into the slot, you can't put
strain on the can. And they don't do anything.
They just borrowed someone else's tooling for the USB connector. Wait,
there's two. Why does it have two?
So, this seems to go in here.
Oops. Okay. Does this come off? It's like a
little handle here, but it doesn't seem to come off. And don't even get after me
about Padk because there's no manual. Does it go in this way?
And it what? It just sits there.
No,
that's it. That's the whole mechanism. Why do they even have these holes on it?
Okay.
That too. It doesn't secure in any way. It just sits there.
Oh, Indiegogo. Did they Did this thing Is this thing even Holy crap. This thing
raised $360,000.
What the It's almost $200. This costs
almost as much as the Azio one. You retro keyboard people. Not only are
there more of you than I thought, you guys are You guys are nuts. How many
switches are these? They're covered by the back plane here. I can't tell what
they are. Also, these lighting effects are really annoying. There we go. Now
they're breathing. Now they're just scattered around. Now they're breathing.
Well, they're not cherry. You know how I know that? You hear how different the
sound is between those two?
Okay. So, what the big Oh, you have got
to be kidding me.
So, there's a pad. Look. So, there's a
little rubberized pad here presumably to keep whatever you put on there safe,
but it doesn't touch it.
It just sits on.
Okay, I guess we'll use a phone. So, I guess this is part of its jam is you can
be sitting at your computer and you can
have your phone.
I mean, it says it has Bluetooth, but how do you even
You know what? Forget it for now. How great it's Bluetooth is is not important
unless it's actually decent for typing. So, let's find ourselves a typing test.
Holy crap, that does not bode well. Look
at the wobble on these key caps. I'm barely touching them.
You know what? Let's start with a baseline. So, this is a Razer Black
Widow something or other with uh their orange switches, which are
basically Chinese clones of Cherry MX Browns.
Okay. 73 adjusted words per minute. Now, it
should be borne in mind that these ones get every advantage now because I'm more
familiar with the text.
Oh boy. Ah, I can't get momentum.
Is that the same score? Yeah.
Dang. I'm consistent. Let's try one more
time.
Okay, this one is more representative of probably what I can do, but we're going
to go back to the razor in a moment. Critiques of this guy. These key caps
are wobbly. The shape of them is absolutely
awful. Pardon my French, because it's very easy to accidentally mash two keys
at a time. This one, on the other hand, actually not a terrible amount of
wobble. a little bit more than I'd like, but the spacing between the keys means I
wasn't accidentally hitting multiple keys at once. But I did have a hard time
registering keystrokes from time to time because the switches they're using,
which I'm actually not sure what they are. Uh, we'll have to find that out.
But the switches they're using are a little bit on the heavy side for me.
Okay, so they're kale, some kind of kale blues. Let's go back to the first
keyboard.
All right, 97. Actually, let's try out
the Bluetooth functionality first. So, I just flipped this over to Bluetooth
mode, and what I'm hoping is it's going to be significantly simpler to pair.
Okay, I'm holding function, and it starts flashing. That's weird. There we
go. That's intuitive. So, function and the Bluetooth key.
Has it come up?
Okay. It's kind of a drag though that uh the
switch is located in such an inconvenient spot. What's cool though is
apparently it has a 6,000 mAh battery,
so you can continue to use it in Bluetooth mode
even when it's not plugged in.
So, it's wireless, too.
and back lit. Not bad. That helps a lot
with the cost. Now, this guy, on the other hand,
not impressed. So, I wouldn't go as far as to say that either of these is a
replacement for a more standard keyboard for me. But I was surprised and
impressed by how close I was able to get on the Azio Retro Classic, especially in
light of how apparently
desperate the keyboard community is to
get their hands on some kind of retrostyled keyboard because this is how
much this product managed to raise on
Indiegogo. So, I'm not strongly recommending
either, but I will say that if you need to buy one, I would definitely go with
this one. So, thanks for watching, guys. If you
disliked this video, then uh maybe you work for uh what's their company called
again. Maybe you work for UK. But if you uh did like this video, oh, right, you
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