RK ROYAL KLUDGE 70% Mechanical Keyboard - RK71 Wireless Gaming Keyboard with Hot-Swappable Brown Switches, Double-Shot Creamy Keycaps, RGB Backlit, and Triple-Mode Connectivity

The keyboard I really wanted was double the price, couldn't justify the cost. So I thought how bad could this be? It can't be worse than the cheap wireless bargain-basement one I was using. At least it's rechargeable instead of AA batteries like the crap I was using. I sit about 8 ft away from my older gaming rig in the living room so wired was out. So tried this and so far I am impressed. Like the feel, a bit softer than my two wired Corsairs with Cherry Reds, but not much. Size is perfect, has those arrow keys and pgup/pgdn, end, del... but not the number keys that aren't important to me. So just about right. I use the 2.4ghz wireless and have had no issues with it. Maybe some people see the reason to 'mod' it but it works just fine right out of the box. It's a good value. And it doesn't hurt that it feels solid and has those extra magnetic feet that just plain work. And the RGB looks really good if you are into that...Update- love this keyboard- just ordered a second one for the kitchen computer and I am thinking of another model, maybe a standard layout, in another room...UPDATE: still love this thing. Now have one in the kitchen, and one in the back bedroom... And two RK98s for two desktops. All these RK keyboards and not one complaint... Even used one in MAC mode with my MAC.Update, 2 years after purchase. Both 71s still going strong, as are the two RK98s I bought after this keyboard. I use a 71 in the living room on 2.4ghz on my bigscreen tv with gaming PC. It's light and easy to carry around, and I game and surf with it. They work, they are reasonably priced, and the battery lasts.

The media could not be loaded. This is the red switch model. It is used for typing only, no gaming. I bought it to use when I in my wife’s office one day per week to avoid disconnecting her stuff. Build is sturdy. You can see the small size in comparison to my regular full size mechanical keyboard in the photo. I’m using it wirelessly via the USB dongle. No connection issues. Have not tried the Bluetooth. Lights are cool, but the keycaps are not illuminated, just the board below. There are multiple patterns to choose as well as the ability to adjust the speed, brightness and color. Lettering is nice and bright. The Fn shortcuts for Windows are not configured properly even though I have it in Windows mode. I may need to just reset it. The shortcuts on my other board work fine. Key feel is fine. My other board is brown switch. No issues with the change to the reds on here. Type about the same speed. I included a video so you can hear the key sound. It’s no lower than my other board; however, the space bar and backspace key are quite clunky. You can clearly hear the space bar in the video. I have no issue with it since this is used in a home office. I do like the clicking of the mechanical boards. No comment on battery life as I haven’t had it long. For the price, I think it’s great. Hope this helps.

I ordered this with the brown switch keys. I love the feel - it's just right for fast typing with a nice balance between tactile feedback and minimal sound. The quality feels good, heavy, sturdy. It takes minimal space on your desk, while simultaneously providing the typing feel of a full size keyboard.Pairing with my mac and my iphone was also easy.There are two issues for me:1) It's too hard to use the volume control because the function keys are combined with the number keys. You can use fn+cntrl+f10 to change the volume, but then you have to remember to use fn+cntrl to set the mode back to normal in order to use the number keys. I returned this one and bought the RKM75 which has a built-in volume dial and a separate row of function keys.2) The software to customize keys isn't available on a Mac. The keyboard works fine on a Mac, but you can't use the software to customize the keys. If I could have, I would have kept this keyboard and mapped volume controls to some of the keys I don't use.

Great keyboard, very fast, tactile. Worth every penny!

This RK71 keyboard was my first introduction to Royal Kludge. I've since purchased several other RK boards, as they offer great cost/feature value. In fact, while writing this review I just dropped an RK R65 into my shopping cart and pulled the trigger. But I digress - back to this review.The RK71 comes complete with a key cap/switch puller, some extra switches, a pair of magnetic feet, a USB dongle (which docks into the underside of the base), and a USB cable.Commenting on the visual appearance, the keycap colors are striking enough to use in the office without shouting, "This is a gaming keyboard"! You can enjoy 10 side RGB light modes and 21 key backlight modes. However, they can be all be turned off for a more subtle presentation. The LED's are north-facing; just keep that in mind if you plan to swap out keycaps.The keyboard is available with either red or brown switches, which roughly translates to a preference between gaming (red) or typing (brown) applications. This is a matter of personal preference, however, so you may want to try out a variety of switches to find what you like the most. The keyboard I evaluated had red switches; which didn't feel mushy to me when typing and I was easily able to maintain my regular typing speed when tested.The keycaps have a comfortable profile and feel like they are made of double-shot PBT. I measured the single-shot thickness at the outer edge between 1.23 - 1.34 mm. Anything over 1 mm thick is considered good and solid. The keys are not shine-through, but the markings are crisp and clean. I also like that keys with alternate functions are marked on the sides (ex. media keys). This makes it easy to recognize when I switch between alternate keyboards.The base is made entirely of plastic, but it has a solid feel to it. It's not up to par with an aluminum base, but it doesn't feel like a cheap hollow base either - it's somewhere in between. There are rubber anti-skid pads in the corners to hold the board in place, and there are a pair of magnetic height blocks that can be added to alter the keyboard angle slightly.One of the most appealing aspects of this keyboard is the 71 key layout, which provides a smaller footprint than a 104 key layout, while still accommodating some of the navigation keys on the right-most key columns. The board size is also kept to a minimum by doubling up the number and F-keys. The only thing that some might miss is a separate number pad; which again is a personal preference and will vary by use mode.I used the keyboard in both wired and 2.4 GHz wireless modes with no issues. I noted another review comment stating that it was strange that the keyboard needed to be switched to the "off" mode for wired use. This is the typical setting for wired keyboard use and refers to the onboard battery being switched off when using the cable; thus it makes perfect sense.Summing up, Royal Kludge makes quality keyboards and the RK71 is no exception to their lineup. If you're looking for a smart looking 71 key layout, I can highly recommend this keyboard.