Work Hard and Play Hard
The AJAZZ K87OT Bluetooth Dual-Mode Mechanical Keyboard arrived in a 15 5/8 inches long by 6 7/8 inches tall by 1 7/8 inches thick retail package. The main cover panel displayed a large glossy, off-white-colored image of a QWERTY keyboard along the middle of the cover panel. The keyboard image displayed the standard function row, number row, QWERTY layout, and arrow keys but did not show a Numpad. Looking to the top left, you will find the English and Chinese Character AJAZZ’s name. Looking toward the top right, you will find four icons with Chinese-only descriptions). Along the bottom of the panel, you will find a Win/Apple Compatible icon, the K87OT (English and Chinese) model number, and a generic “Bluetooth Dual-Mode Mechanical Keyboard.” Other than the sparse red accents, the panel felt rather one-dimensional and lacked the pizzazz that I expected from the name. I wanted to know what separated this keyboard from the competition and what it could do for me. To try to answer these questions, I turned to the remaining panels.
The white-colored left and right panels showed the AJAZZ name and NACODEX in red/black font, while the black-colored front panel provided the same information in red/white font. The black-colored back panel provided a UPC sticker, the model number, and the same generic verbiage as seen at the bottom of the cover panel. Hungry for more information about the product, I turned to the back panel and found an attractive, glossy, oblique image of the Ajazz keyboard toward the left of the panel. The top edge of the panel displayed the same title and icons as the cover. However, the product specifications were listed along the bottom right of the panel ( K870T model, Type-C charging, USB 3.0, 362x134x34.5mm dimensions, 880g weight, RGB colors, WindowsXP/Windows7/8/10 and Mac). Lastly, the panel had two SKU barcodes, product manufacturing labels, a 12-month warranty icon, and the company’s Shenzhen address.
To access the keyboard, I removed the white lower tab and then lifted the front flap upward. The first thing that I found was a black-colored bilingual AJAZZ X NACODEX User Manual resting atop an opaque plastic-wrapped keyboard. The 1lb 14.7 ounces (~870-880g) keyboard measured 14 3/16 inches wide by 5 1/4 inches tall by 1 5/16 inches thick, within the limits of error detailed on the packaging. Interestingly, this keyboard was one of the heaviest that I have tested thus far. Additionally, as I pulled the keyboard out of the opaque foam shell, the magenta-colored ESC key, the blue-green page key adjacent to the control button, and the lime green function key gave off a rather juvenile feel. I set the keyboard aside, lifted the lower cardboard, and removed the accessories. Within a 1 7/8 inches wide by 5 1/2 inches tall ziplock bag, I found several colorful key replacement tabs: two yellow “Shift” tab replacements, a white “Fn” key replacement, a white “Win” key replacement, two purple “ALT” tab replacements, and a magenta “Control” tab replacement. Additionally, I found a 63 1/2 inches long white-braided USB-A to USB-C cable, a key extraction tool, plus a white “ESC” key and a magenta-colored “Control” key outside of the ziplock bag. I plugged the included power cord into a standard laptop port and the USB-C end into the keyboard. I then allowed the powered-down 2000 mAh keyboard to charge fully.
Before you use the keyboard, you will need to review the instruction manual. Locate the power button on the back of the keyboard and slide it into the “on” position. According to the third section of the manual, you will need to press the “FN+A” button to convert to the MAC system or “FN+S” to convert to Windows. If you look closely at the keyboard, you will notice the Esc key and F1-F12, PrtSc, ScrLK, and Pause along the top row. You will then have a standard QWERTY keyboard layout along the middle section. Toward the right, you will have an INS, Home, PgUp, Del, End, PgDn array of buttons, a Bluetooth/wired mode button, and a light/sound button next to a scroll wheel. Lastly, you will have up/down/left/right arrow keys. To activate the Bluetooth mode, press the Bluetooth button above the arrow keys, and then press and hold the FN and P buttons for 3 seconds. The P key will remain illuminated, and then you can navigate to settings, to Bluetooth, and select AJAZZ from the list. Once connected, the keyboard was incredibly responsive to touch. The mechanical keys were comfortable and responsive but were rather tall. Each of the keys had a strong click feel but seemed to take longer than my standard keyboard. Thus, it felt very responsive, but it felt like it slowed me down a little.
While in MAC mode (my preferred testing mode), the function buttons allowed me to increase (F1)/decrease (F2) the screen brightness, call out desktops (F3), open launchpad (F4), return to the previous song (F7), Play/Pause a song (F8), Move to the next song (F9), Mute (f10), and decrease (F11) or increase (F12) the volume. The instruction manual also detailed several combination key features (see picture below). Many of these features alter the color of the backlighting or the mode that the lights follow. One of my favorite modes created a ripple effect, similar to dropping a stone in the water. To activate the mode, press the FN+DEL keys until the chosen mode is found. If you press function and page up, you can see a random color show. You can use the FN up or fn down with any of the modes to increase or decrease the intensity of the effect. Each of the Home, page up, del, end, and page down buttons will provide one of three preprogrammed lighting features. You can press FN+3 to default backlight the standard QWERTY keyboard keys. Additionally, the system provided a default FPS gaming mode with illuminated AWSD keys and arrow keys (FN+1), a default LOL mode (Fn+2) with 1-6 keys, QWERDFGVB, tab, ctrl, alt, space buttons illuminated. It also provided the FN 3 option for the QWERTY keyboard/arrows, as noted above. You can adjust the speed of the lights by pressing the FN + or FN – buttons.
To test the keyboard speed, I navigated to several keyboard test sites and ran numerous tests. I found anywhere from approximately 90 words per minute through 106 words per minute with accuracy ranging from 95% through 100%. I was able to type faster on this keyboard than the standard MacBook Pro keyboard, but I found my Aukey RGB mechanical Keyboard and the Vulcan 120 AIMO RGB was more responsive and speedy. I liked that the keyboard was able to charge in about an hour out of the box and that it had an auto-off feature if there was no use over a thirty-minute period. Additionally, the keyboard had an auto-awake feature, which was quite useful. It is important to note that the backlight features drain the battery much faster than the base functions of the keyboard. I did not test time limits specifically as the keyboard without backlight promised 100 hours of use and up to 8 hours with lighting features. This review wass not designed to be a full capability breakdown or a detailed how-to. Instead, my goal wa to discuss the main features of the keyboard and my overall feel for the product.
The robust, heavy keyboard was well built and will survive gaming sessions, paper deadlines, and work-related needs. I liked that you could use the scroll wheel to turn up/down the lights, FN keys to adjust the modes/brightness/speed, etc. The keyboard did not come with Apple/command buttons to replace the preinstalled keys. Instead, you will need to use the alt key in place of the command button. The option keys are also not listed on this keyboard. For those interested in ergonomic typing, the bottom of the keyboard had rubberized feet to prevent slippage and height elevator adjustments. The included power cable could be used while typing, but the choice for USB-A to USB-C was not ideal. I really enjoyed using the keyboard with my MacBook Pro but was unable to power/charge the Keyboard without an adaptor/HUB. If I were to rate my overall experience, I would give it a 9/10. The keyboard has some amazing features but some that could have been better thought out. I liked the packaging but felt it lacked a “WOW” factor. I liked the colorful keys but would have liked some more masculine options. I had the same feelings regarding the backlight illumination. I loved the ripple effect but felt it was a little too pastel and nowhere near close enough to base colors.
PROS:
– Longer Battery (2000mAh)
– Shine through Key Caps
– USB-C connectivity or Bluetooth mode
– Hefty to prevent sliding around
– Available in Black and White (Reviewed).
– No need to download driverss.
Cons:
-Weight not convenient to portability.
– 4 Hours is on the long end to charge.
– Tall Keys
For more information, visit a-jazz.com and Facebook.
