deskthority

I just received my Keycool 87 from QTan's store. I'm rather impressed that I ordered it on the 9th and received it on the 12th. From Guangzhou, China to Wisconsin in three days is pretty cool. I've created a Flickr gallery with some visual comparisons between the Ducky & the Keycool. Both are white LED models since I'm not a fan of colored LED keyboards. The Ducky has brown switches and the Keycool has blacks. I've never had a black board before, and I wasn't sure I'd like it. So far, I actually prefer typing on the blacks, although I'm getting used to not having any tactility other than bottoming out, which I'm actually finding I do less (probably due to the heavier weighting).


Both - Min Bright by adfrost81, on Flickr

Some differences to note between the two:

• The Keycool actually remembers the LED setting on wake, which I really like. Its a minor thing, but the Ducky forgets the setting, and it's kind of annoying. I understand this was fixed in the Shine 2
• The White LED color temp is more neutral on the Ducky, and more blueish on the Keycool
• On the Ducky, all keys are white backlit. On the Keycool, everything is white except Caps Lock & Scroll Lock, which are orange. I understand this varies based on the primary LED color
• On the Ducky, the LEDs have a round lens. On the keycool, it's square
• There are no special modes on the Keycool. Just brightness adjustment.
• 5 Brightness levels on the Ducky vs 3 on the Keycool. The Ducky gets brighter, and I typically use it on setting 2. On the keycool, it looks like I'll be using it on maximum.
• The legends are much more attractive on the Ducky. The sans-serif font on the Keycool is rather ugly and there's some variance on height and width of the font. PrtSc and ScrLk are especially ugly.
• On the Ducky, all modifier legends are under the primary legend. On the Keycool, they are next to the numbers on the number keys. It looks a little odd, but ensures both legends are fully backlit.
• Fit & finish is better on the Ducky, but the Keycool isn't far behind. The biggest difference so far is the quality of the keycaps, in favor of the Ducky.
• The case is squared-off on the Ducky, and angled-off the on the Keycool. I prefer the Keycool.

I've wanted a backit tenkeyless for a while now. I use this PC for gaming 80% of the time, and I do take my rig on the road on occasion. It will be nice to have a smaller footprint keyboard. Ducky Channel is now advertising the DK9087 Shine 2 as "coming soon", but who knows when it will show up for purchase outside of Taiwan. For now, I think this board will suffice.

Take a look at the gallery, and let me know what you think. Save the comments about backit keyboards. Some of us like them...deal with it.

Ditto on the legends. I have a white non-backlit Keycool 87 and was quick to replace the caps with black Leopolds because Keycool's choice of font is not really impressive. But the Keycool looks nice in its backlit state.

Yeah...unfortunately, replacing the keycaps isn't really an option on a backlit board, at least if you want to still use the backlighting feature. Especially with custom legends

One more thing I will add to this "mini-review". Whatever paint they used on the keycaps isn't as nice as the Ducky either. It has a slightly more pleasant texture, but it shows fingerprints & oil much more than whatever Ducky uses. I have a hunch this will lead to them wearing faster overall. More than likely, I'll end up getting a DK9087 Shine2 when they become available in the next few weeks, since I'm really liking the TKL setup and the MX Black switches.

Could you compare the bottoming out feel? My Keycool had a very sharp hit on the bottom of keystrokes when I bottomed out, was much softer on my Filco/CM Storm