Clicky clacking in a slick low profile
| Pros | Cons |
| Premium feel Slim profile Great typing experience | Tough enough for traveling? Limited angles Not hugely customizable |
The kids might be hooked on touchscreen typing, but for the rest of us, Keychron offers a pretty wide variety of typing solutions. If the rest of their lineup is as solid as the K3, then it looks to me like you can’t go wrong.
Unboxing
The Keychron K3 arrived in some clean and unassuming package but the product was nuzzled in some foam packing material with a plastic shield over the keys that promised the product was good and safe during shipping. In the box along with the keyboard is a braided USB-A to USB-C cable, alternative keycaps for Windows or Mac configurations, keycap removal tools, and a piece of card with some basic printed instructions on it. Nothing mind-blowing, but everything I needed to get going.
My immediate thoughts lifting the keyboard out of the box and disposing of the packaging was that it feels great. It’s got a nice sturdy weight to it but not to the point where I wouldn’t want to take it on the go. The aluminum body has a premium feel that made an immediate impression.
Set Up
Setting the keyboard up was really straightforward. Wired, it is just as simple as you’d expect, plug and play, nice and simple. Alongside the USB-C slot at the rear of the body are two switches allowing for simple switching between Bluetooth/OFF/Cable on one and Windows/Android or Mac/iOS on the other. I like a bit of an angle as I type and there are two plastic feet with rubber bases to give a couple of options. It doesn’t angle quite as high as I might like, but I got used to it pretty quickly. Honestly, the only thing that might have thrown me would have been the pairing process via Bluetooth and the instructions for the backlighting on the keys, but this was all made crystal clear on the instructions included.
Keychron did recommend trying their browser-based Keychron Launcher for deeper customizations and preference management. Throughout my review period, I struggled to get this working. The Keychron Launcher never detected a device, try as I might. I tested this with Safari and Chrome, still to no avail. We reached out to Keychron for comment on this but, as of writing, have not received a response.
Typing Experience
I’ve been flipping between chunkier mechanical keyboards and the lower-profile, super-thin options for a while, and it’s been a struggle getting the feel just right. The Keychron K3 has resolved this frustration on every front. It has all the clicks and punchy energy of typing on bigger mechanical keys while retaining that low-profile glide I like from thinner keyboards. It feels great to type on. I haven’t experienced any technical issues with the keys or connectivity throughout my use. The Keyboard drifts into sleep mode when not in use and is quick to wake up when it’s go time again.
I suppose if I were to nitpick, thenI’d say that if you use the number pads on keyboards, then it isn’t present on the K3, so that’s something to be aware of. My review unit has a 75% layout, which I personally prefer, but Keychron offers a variety of full keyboards with number pads if you’re so inclined.
Hardware
The hardware overall has impressed. The aluminum body is sleek and feels premium, but there is a trade-off for this super-slim factor. The keys almost float above the metal body of the keyboard, and while I really like the way it feels, this is a keyboard with hotswappable keys. If you’re someone who is looking for a keyboard to carry around on the go, then make sure you have a sleeve or case for it, or else run the risk of getting to your destination with your keycaps missing.
Another important note is that if you’re someone who is interested in swapping out keycaps, then these are particularly slim caps. My instinct was that a lot of your custom keycaps might not fit, but when I tried it myself, they slotted in just fine, though they did bulk up the keyboard substantially.
Conclusion
All in all, I’m a big fan of the Keychron K3. Its combo of mechanical keys, good travel, minimal design, and low-profile covers pretty much every base for me. I’ve had a great time using it and, in truth, don’t see a world where I’d need much more than this. However Keychron’s successes with this product have me wondering what else they could bring to the table?
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