A compact mechanical keyboard that includes a numeric keypad.
As a writer, my keyboard is one of my most essential tools. I spend hours a day at my computer, so I got to know the Drevo Joyeuse V2 very well in the week or so I used it. My first impression was that it’s very compact and low-profile for a mechanical keyboard. I like that it has a full numerical keypad and that you can adjust the brightness of the backlighting, but I’ll probably be switching back to my usual keyboard now that I’m finished testing this one.
Acknowledging that keyboard preferences vary wildly from person to person, I wasn’t particularly fond of the Joyeuse V2. The keys are a little too cramped for my taste. The close keys and compact nature go hand in hand, so it’s well-suited for travel and portability. But I found that the keyboard spacing left me more prone to typos than usual, which is annoying.
I like that the Drevo keyboard has tactile feedback when you press a key. That combined with the backlight setting that illuminates each key as you press it pretty satisfying. The keystrokes are also clicky, which I don’t particularly like after about five minutes. All of my usual keyboards are on the quieter side, which I strongly prefer. This probably has something to do with the way I primarily use my keyboard, which is just typing paragraphs upon paragraphs as fast as I can. I do find the keystrokes satisfying when performing other tasks, like hotkey commands or anything that has slower or more intentional keystrokes. It might be better for more casual use or gaming.
The Joyeuse V2 has 16 backlighting modes and five brightness levels. One of the modes only illuminates the WASD and arrow keys, and the one I primarily used lights up each key as it’s pressed. There are also plenty of ripple, gradient and random lighting modes, but I found most of them too distracting. The lighting is simple white, which contrasts nicely with the black keys. The key caps are made of black ABS and are very slightly curved on the sides. One thing I found odd about this keyboard is that the key caps sometimes get misaligned if you hit them off-center. It’s easy to fix this by pressing them back into place, but it’s not something I’ve had to worry about before.
Overall, the Drevo Joyeuse V2 is a good keyboard. Though it’s not my cup of tea when it comes to key spacing or noise level, I do appreciate that it’s simultaneously mechanical, compact and has a numerical keypad.
For more information, visit drevo.net.
Find Drevo on Facebook and Twitter.
