WEBVTT 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:09.120 So, it used to be that if you wanted a retrostyled like uh typewritery 00:00:05.359 --> 00:00:12.160 keyboard, the only real options were to 00:00:09.120 --> 00:00:15.759 convert an old typewriter, which we have 00:00:12.160 --> 00:00:17.279 done, or buy custom key caps and replace 00:00:15.759 --> 00:00:22.240 all the ones on your current keyboard. But now, there are actually a fair 00:00:19.840 --> 00:00:26.850 number of offtheshelf options for these typewritery keyboards. So, let's try 00:00:24.000 --> 00:00:34.880 some of them out today, shall we? 00:00:34.880 --> 00:00:42.640 So, we actually don't quite have as many options today as it might at first 00:00:39.840 --> 00:00:50.480 appear because some of them are just different variants of the retro classic 00:00:46.079 --> 00:00:54.719 from Azio. So, they've got the Artisan, 00:00:50.480 --> 00:00:56.399 the Posh, the Onyx, and the Lwood. And 00:00:54.719 --> 00:01:02.000 the first thing that comes to mind for me looking at this is, are there really 00:01:00.239 --> 00:01:06.960 so many people out there that are looking for these style of keyboards 00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:11.200 that they need four different colors? So, let's go ahead and get these 00:01:08.320 --> 00:01:18.560 unpacked. Cable feels nice. So, they Ooh, how to impress Lionus. That is a 00:01:15.600 --> 00:01:26.000 type-C connector, which I actually found out recently is only a cost difference 00:01:21.840 --> 00:01:28.479 of about 15 over a highquality microB 00:01:26.000 --> 00:01:32.320 connector, but for some reason, many new products still haven't switched over to 00:01:30.479 --> 00:01:36.079 it. Couple other things back here. So, there's Bluetooth mode, there's USB 00:01:34.159 --> 00:01:41.840 mode, and you can switch between Mac and PC. All right. Well, part of the video 00:01:38.640 --> 00:01:44.079 today is definitely going to be rolling 00:01:41.840 --> 00:01:48.560 through all the different color options here because if you're the kind of 00:01:45.439 --> 00:01:50.399 person who buys a stylish keyboard, then 00:01:48.560 --> 00:01:57.280 surely you do care about the color scheme a fair whack. So, not only can 00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:59.520 you switch between Apple and Windows 00:01:57.280 --> 00:02:03.520 mode, they've actually included a bunch of 00:02:01.520 --> 00:02:07.200 additional key caps. This must be the Mac version of the F keys. All right, 00:02:05.759 --> 00:02:13.599 now let's have a look at what the Artisan has to show for itself. This is actually 00:02:11.280 --> 00:02:19.360 a perfect example of a company leveraging what little tooling work 00:02:16.239 --> 00:02:21.599 they've done to uh turn that into as 00:02:19.360 --> 00:02:27.440 many models as possible. So, you can actually see here that the Artisan is 00:02:25.280 --> 00:02:33.760 just a cross between the Onyx and the Posh. So, it's got exactly the same kind 00:02:30.160 --> 00:02:37.120 of rose gold metal accents and then it's 00:02:33.760 --> 00:02:39.920 just using the uh faux leather backing 00:02:37.120 --> 00:02:45.280 and then the matte black uh infill for the key caps. Bringing us finally to the 00:02:43.519 --> 00:02:50.160 Lwood, which is different from every other 00:02:47.680 --> 00:02:57.040 model that we have in pretty much every way actually. So, for one, this thing h 00:02:53.519 --> 00:02:59.760 this has what appears to be a genuine 00:02:57.040 --> 00:03:04.480 wood backing. Is it really? No way. 00:03:01.760 --> 00:03:07.800 Feels like it. Hey, James. 00:03:08.720 --> 00:03:14.080 James. I think he's out for lunch. That's okay. 00:03:12.560 --> 00:03:19.760 There's another finishing touch on this one, though. That's pretty cool. So, you 00:03:16.159 --> 00:03:22.800 actually have the ability if you want to 00:03:19.760 --> 00:03:24.720 replace the plate here. So, you can undo 00:03:22.800 --> 00:03:28.640 the screws. And I wonder if you could flip it around and engrave it yourself. 00:03:26.560 --> 00:03:35.200 Either way, they sent a custom one with their impressive established 2009 retro 00:03:31.760 --> 00:03:37.680 classic. And check that out. They silk 00:03:35.200 --> 00:03:42.080 screen line as media on there. That's That's cute. I I mean, my last name's 00:03:39.599 --> 00:03:47.040 Sebastian, not media, but you know, hey, A+ forever. 00:03:44.159 --> 00:03:51.360 All right, these are really freaking heavy 00:03:49.200 --> 00:03:55.840 keyboards. How much are these things? These are not cheap. I think they're 00:03:54.000 --> 00:04:01.040 going to have to do a lot more than look cool, but let's get to that in a minute. 00:03:57.519 --> 00:04:03.120 First, let's have a look at the 00:04:01.040 --> 00:04:08.720 Challenger. This is the No. 00:04:06.000 --> 00:04:14.000 So, is that like the opposite of okay? Like 00:04:10.319 --> 00:04:16.320 the This is the No K Rych with blue 00:04:14.000 --> 00:04:21.600 switch, gorgeous light effect, retro style, and Bluetooth/wire 00:04:18.959 --> 00:04:26.880 dual mode. Now, the packaging isn't as good. I don't know what the deal is with 00:04:23.680 --> 00:04:29.680 this like gradient brown. Whenever I 00:04:26.880 --> 00:04:33.840 find tape on packaging, I have to know what's under it. Oh well, that's fine. 00:04:31.680 --> 00:04:38.880 If Cher's OEMing your keyboard, that's not embarrassing. 00:04:36.240 --> 00:04:44.240 Maybe some of our clever Chinese viewers can give me some idea of what that's 00:04:42.400 --> 00:04:48.800 about. Without the tape on it, I actually would have had a lot more 00:04:45.759 --> 00:04:51.520 confidence going into Okay, this is 00:04:48.800 --> 00:04:57.680 looking not too bad to start. So, they've got a little aluminum 00:04:54.639 --> 00:04:59.360 something. They've got a little other 00:04:57.680 --> 00:05:03.199 more different aluminum. Oh, this is like your uh like your stopper thing for 00:05:01.360 --> 00:05:09.039 the Yeah. Okay. That's not going to have much of a function on a keyboard, but 00:05:06.479 --> 00:05:17.840 might look kind of neat. And then we've got the keyboard itself. 00:05:13.120 --> 00:05:21.120 I will say this, the uh 00:05:17.840 --> 00:05:23.120 the the feel of the plastics here 00:05:21.120 --> 00:05:27.199 doesn't hold a candle to the retro classic. 00:05:24.880 --> 00:05:30.800 Oh, I was going to say though, what's good is that they've got these 00:05:28.639 --> 00:05:35.680 reinforcing ridges here so that when you slide them into the slot, you can't put 00:05:32.800 --> 00:05:38.680 strain on the can. And they don't do anything. 00:05:38.800 --> 00:05:48.320 They just borrowed someone else's tooling for the USB connector. Wait, 00:05:43.440 --> 00:05:51.919 there's two. Why does it have two? 00:05:48.320 --> 00:05:54.560 So, this seems to go in here. 00:05:51.919 --> 00:05:58.560 Oops. Okay. Does this come off? It's like a 00:05:57.120 --> 00:06:03.759 little handle here, but it doesn't seem to come off. And don't even get after me 00:06:00.960 --> 00:06:10.800 about Padk because there's no manual. Does it go in this way? 00:06:06.560 --> 00:06:13.800 And it what? It just sits there. 00:06:10.800 --> 00:06:13.800 No, 00:06:14.000 --> 00:06:23.479 that's it. That's the whole mechanism. Why do they even have these holes on it? 00:06:20.479 --> 00:06:23.479 Okay. 00:06:27.600 --> 00:06:34.039 That too. It doesn't secure in any way. It just sits there. 00:06:34.960 --> 00:06:44.919 Oh, Indiegogo. Did they Did this thing Is this thing even Holy crap. This thing 00:06:41.120 --> 00:06:44.919 raised $360,000. 00:06:45.759 --> 00:06:53.280 What the It's almost $200. This costs 00:06:50.400 --> 00:06:57.199 almost as much as the Azio one. You retro keyboard people. Not only are 00:06:55.759 --> 00:07:01.280 there more of you than I thought, you guys are You guys are nuts. How many 00:06:59.440 --> 00:07:05.280 switches are these? They're covered by the back plane here. I can't tell what 00:07:02.960 --> 00:07:09.919 they are. Also, these lighting effects are really annoying. There we go. Now 00:07:07.919 --> 00:07:14.319 they're breathing. Now they're just scattered around. Now they're breathing. 00:07:12.479 --> 00:07:20.120 Well, they're not cherry. You know how I know that? You hear how different the 00:07:16.160 --> 00:07:20.120 sound is between those two? 00:07:23.759 --> 00:07:32.039 Okay. So, what the big Oh, you have got 00:07:28.160 --> 00:07:32.039 to be kidding me. 00:07:39.199 --> 00:07:44.400 So, there's a pad. Look. So, there's a 00:07:42.319 --> 00:07:51.720 little rubberized pad here presumably to keep whatever you put on there safe, 00:07:47.680 --> 00:07:51.720 but it doesn't touch it. 00:07:52.479 --> 00:07:56.280 It just sits on. 00:07:57.280 --> 00:08:06.000 Okay, I guess we'll use a phone. So, I guess this is part of its jam is you can 00:08:02.319 --> 00:08:09.479 be sitting at your computer and you can 00:08:06.000 --> 00:08:09.479 have your phone. 00:08:09.680 --> 00:08:15.919 I mean, it says it has Bluetooth, but how do you even 00:08:13.520 --> 00:08:20.720 You know what? Forget it for now. How great it's Bluetooth is is not important 00:08:18.479 --> 00:08:26.160 unless it's actually decent for typing. So, let's find ourselves a typing test. 00:08:23.039 --> 00:08:29.039 Holy crap, that does not bode well. Look 00:08:26.160 --> 00:08:32.880 at the wobble on these key caps. I'm barely touching them. 00:08:31.520 --> 00:08:38.880 You know what? Let's start with a baseline. So, this is a Razer Black 00:08:36.399 --> 00:08:44.399 Widow something or other with uh their orange switches, which are 00:08:41.680 --> 00:08:47.399 basically Chinese clones of Cherry MX Browns. 00:08:50.080 --> 00:08:58.880 Okay. 73 adjusted words per minute. Now, it 00:08:56.240 --> 00:09:04.519 should be borne in mind that these ones get every advantage now because I'm more 00:09:00.800 --> 00:09:04.519 familiar with the text. 00:09:05.600 --> 00:09:14.520 Oh boy. Ah, I can't get momentum. 00:09:15.120 --> 00:09:21.600 Is that the same score? Yeah. 00:09:18.320 --> 00:09:24.600 Dang. I'm consistent. Let's try one more 00:09:21.600 --> 00:09:24.600 time. 00:09:25.760 --> 00:09:33.839 Okay, this one is more representative of probably what I can do, but we're going 00:09:31.120 --> 00:09:38.240 to go back to the razor in a moment. Critiques of this guy. These key caps 00:09:36.000 --> 00:09:42.320 are wobbly. The shape of them is absolutely 00:09:40.000 --> 00:09:47.440 awful. Pardon my French, because it's very easy to accidentally mash two keys 00:09:44.560 --> 00:09:51.600 at a time. This one, on the other hand, actually not a terrible amount of 00:09:49.600 --> 00:09:55.040 wobble. a little bit more than I'd like, but the spacing between the keys means I 00:09:53.360 --> 00:09:59.040 wasn't accidentally hitting multiple keys at once. But I did have a hard time 00:09:57.279 --> 00:10:02.640 registering keystrokes from time to time because the switches they're using, 00:10:00.880 --> 00:10:06.800 which I'm actually not sure what they are. Uh, we'll have to find that out. 00:10:04.959 --> 00:10:11.920 But the switches they're using are a little bit on the heavy side for me. 00:10:09.519 --> 00:10:18.279 Okay, so they're kale, some kind of kale blues. Let's go back to the first 00:10:15.279 --> 00:10:18.279 keyboard. 00:10:23.440 --> 00:10:28.720 All right, 97. Actually, let's try out 00:10:26.640 --> 00:10:31.600 the Bluetooth functionality first. So, I just flipped this over to Bluetooth 00:10:30.079 --> 00:10:35.519 mode, and what I'm hoping is it's going to be significantly simpler to pair. 00:10:33.839 --> 00:10:40.160 Okay, I'm holding function, and it starts flashing. That's weird. There we 00:10:37.760 --> 00:10:45.880 go. That's intuitive. So, function and the Bluetooth key. 00:10:42.320 --> 00:10:45.880 Has it come up? 00:10:49.200 --> 00:10:55.360 Okay. It's kind of a drag though that uh the 00:10:53.920 --> 00:11:01.120 switch is located in such an inconvenient spot. What's cool though is 00:10:58.000 --> 00:11:02.880 apparently it has a 6,000 mAh battery, 00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:09.079 so you can continue to use it in Bluetooth mode 00:11:05.120 --> 00:11:09.079 even when it's not plugged in. 00:11:10.000 --> 00:11:16.800 So, it's wireless, too. 00:11:16.800 --> 00:11:22.800 and back lit. Not bad. That helps a lot 00:11:20.640 --> 00:11:25.959 with the cost. Now, this guy, on the other hand, 00:11:26.959 --> 00:11:33.920 not impressed. So, I wouldn't go as far as to say that either of these is a 00:11:31.360 --> 00:11:39.839 replacement for a more standard keyboard for me. But I was surprised and 00:11:37.519 --> 00:11:45.920 impressed by how close I was able to get on the Azio Retro Classic, especially in 00:11:42.800 --> 00:11:49.279 light of how apparently 00:11:45.920 --> 00:11:52.240 desperate the keyboard community is to 00:11:49.279 --> 00:11:58.959 get their hands on some kind of retrostyled keyboard because this is how 00:11:55.920 --> 00:12:00.640 much this product managed to raise on 00:11:58.959 --> 00:12:04.320 Indiegogo. So, I'm not strongly recommending 00:12:02.640 --> 00:12:08.399 either, but I will say that if you need to buy one, I would definitely go with 00:12:06.639 --> 00:12:12.399 this one. So, thanks for watching, guys. If you 00:12:09.680 --> 00:12:18.079 disliked this video, then uh maybe you work for uh what's their company called 00:12:15.279 --> 00:12:20.480 again. Maybe you work for UK. But if you uh did like this video, oh, right, you 00:12:19.360 --> 00:12:24.240 can hit that button. But if you liked it, hit like, get subscribed. Maybe consider checking out where to buy the 00:12:22.800 --> 00:12:27.920 stuff we featured at the link below. Also, down there is our merch store, which has cool shirts like this one, and 00:12:26.800 --> 00:12:30.880 our community forum, which you should definitely join.