Verdict
The Keychron K3 Max is an ultra - slim , frameless , small - profile mechanical keyboard that ’s ideal for minimalist apparatus and frequent flyers . No matter the electric switch type , though , it ’s hard to recommend to anyone outdoors of the tight niche .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Keychron claim its K3 Max is one of the humankind ’s sparse mechanical keyboard . I ’m inclined to agree , though it is n’t the small-scale keyboard ever .
You could buy collapsable miserable - visibility ones that fold into a thin , hard case decades ago , and some mass still crave the old Blackberry approach on the go .
But when it comes to compact complex mechanically skillful switches into a tight place , you have to reengineer those petite moving parts to fit . The Keychron K3 Max , despite its name make it sound gargantuan , is both less pattern and more function .
This wireless keyboard is one to keep in mind if you ’re after a tactile typing experience you may well take on the go . rattling 2.4GHz radio receiver and extremist - convenient Bluetooth means you’re able to depart the liquidator at house and accost up your tablet at the coffee bean shop at the moving-picture show of a switch . So long as you ’re not looking to conserve a professional gaming life history , it ’s a brilliant space - saving solution no matter where you go .
Design
Being a 60 % keyboard , the Keychron K3 Max is so small it ’s cunning . Not only does it foreshorten out most of what you ’d find on the right side of a received keyboard , it pass further , spill the systema skeletale around most as well .
The result is an edgeless keyboard that ’s impossibly thin in every heed . No millimetre is squander . The board still angles up slightly for that more ergonomic Allium tricoccum - like shape .
Keychron has even still managed to stuff retractable legs into the back to shore it up further when involve . It ’s so tenuous that using a relatively received wrist rest period score the experience uncomfortable . reckon that .
Other than the ESC key , it ’s mostly uniform in its colourway , being a form of light grey / grim spell that looks smart but not completely grief-stricken of character on your desk . Each dispirited - visibility samara is indented , welcome your fingertips while raising just enough along the edges to make gliding between each clean .
On the back , you ’ll find tiny toggle switch to prefer your connectivity option , aUSB - Cport for lodge or cabled use , and even a second telephone dial for take your operating system . As someone who work on Windows at home and iPadOS on the road , it ’s a nice touch Keychron has carried into most of its recent passing .
The composition board box , while likewise slim - line , could still do with dangle the inner froth and voiced pliant accessory back . That ’s hard to recycle .
Performance
Unlike theRoccat Vulcan II Air , the interruption between each key on the Keychron K3 Max is minimum , making this variety of rollover touch - typing a breeze . I had my uncertainty going from the heavyKeychron Q1 Maxand its chunky paint , but I was able to get back up to speed on the included Gateron Red switches and plod through a day of workplace without much result .
While certainly attain the mark as a workhorse – so long as you do n’t need a number pad – it is n’t much of a gamer . There ’s small slant to the key , and the crushed locomotion aloofness can invite inadvertent movements in tense situations . Outside of competitive scenarios , it ’s fine . And at 1000Hz polling with unflawed wireless performance , it should n’t drop your inputs . For something in the eye , front at theCorsair K65 Plus Wireless .
The Keychron K3 Max is best regard as the sum of its part . It ’s small . Tiny . pair with the equally cuteKeychron M4 , you have two lilliputian gimmick you’re able to speedily take from the desk to the cafe .
It ’s scarce large than theiPad Pro Magic Keyboardcase I use in the very same scenario . I could switch to a lawsuit with a great arcdegree of angle adjustment , slue the Keychron K3 Max into the same pouch of my udder , and habituate it in almost the same way . Pair the whole answer with theXReal Air 2 Proglasses , and you have a in full individual mobile workstation . I judge it . It mold .
The acoustic froth even keep each stroking quiet on a hard surface , letting only that pleasing mild chiclet - stylus clack surround you . include a cause to keep the keycaps from litter the bottom of your bagful would have been nice . At least their double - gibe mental synthesis mean they wo n’t wear down over metre if you decide to risk it .
A circumstances of what this keyboard can offer will boil down to your desires . At £ 94 for a simple blank backlight variant , it ’s no more or less expensive than Keychron ’s other not - so - slender compact keyboard like the V1 Max . If customization is a fundamental part of the par , you ’re in all probability looking at £ 114 . It is n’t a bargain , but the Keychron K3 Max offers mighty impressive versatility .
If you have low-pitched - profile switches or keycaps you want to marry on top , you ’ll have a great time . And if you’re able to make head programming it through QMK , or do n’t mind using the VIA web app to make it your own , the keyboard world is your huitre .
When it comes to barrage runtime , it ’s going to bet on the frame-up . Keychron does n’t give estimates for this one , but it ’s lasted a good workweek of solid use without issue with full - on lighting . I seldom spend a full eight hours at my desk these days , so thing will alter , but the default standby set works well .
There ’s no prosperous way to know how the battery is coping , so you ’ll in all likelihood want to get into the substance abuse of hooking it up for a bit at least once a week . It should shoot down fast enough to not be of any major concern .
Using Bluetooth on the go will always economize the battery , and toning down the backlight during the day will only aid that further . You ’ll just see the polling rate drop from the common 1000Hz to a paltry 90hz . So long as you ’re not back on Bluetooth – which is never a good idea – you should be fine to bank on it when out and about , leaving the 2.4Ghz receiver in your main political machine .
Lighting and software
RGB lighting comes as standard on the hot - swappable example of the Keychron K3 Max . you could save £ 20 by going for simple snowy per - central backlighting . With either pick , you may cycle through presets and line up brightness with dedicated key combinations . Anything more and you ’ll require to use the VIA web app you might want to mark as a customs crosscut for comfort of access .
Lighting is n’t as complex as on their full - size offerings . In a path , though , that ’s a fillip . By obviate the southward - front LED of their other boards , the slim innovation provide the lighting to push through the right way . Because the deck and paint are n’t as sharply angled as the other circuit card , it ’s a better tantrum .
Cramming some in around the sharpness to give the head game of a frame would have been the icing on the cake . rather , it end up looking a little like a phantom keyboard on your desk . Which , pay the lowly law of proximity to the surface , can seem quite cool in the right scenario .
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Should you buy it?
Though you ’ll have to expend extra for a carry fount , this keyboard can slue into your common backpack with repose , offering a reliable , wireless , mechanic board anywhere you need one .
Slim shift and keycaps make the Keychron K3 Max a dream traveling keyboard , but it also limits customisation options and limits its appeal to gamers .
Final Thoughts
The Keychron K3 Max is an all - out productivity king for the on - the - go professional . Easy to slide into a travelling bag and much always ready to take on the daytime on any equipment , its low - profile mechanical keys mean you do n’t have to settle for second - best away from your home frame-up .
Learn to love it , and it ’ll become a walkover to take your whole apparatus on the go at a moment ’s notification . If you do n’t mind tug something bigger around , you’re able to get much of the same experience from theKeychron V1 Max .
Do n’t require the customizability ? TheVissles V84orLogitech Pebble Keys 2 K380scan save you a little extra . you’re able to also swap out the advanced restroom for theLogitech MX Keys S , but you ’ll turn a loss the tactile and hyper - mobile typing experience also found in theLogitech MX Mechanical Mini . Check our lean of thebest wireless keyboardsfor some more alternative .
Trusted Score
How we test
We use every keyboard we test for at least a week . During that time , we ’ll tick off it for ease of use and put it through its paces by playing a mixed bag of unlike genres , including FPS , scheme and MOBAs .
We also check each keyboard ’s software to see how easy it is to customise and coiffure up .
FAQs
you could buy the Keychron K3 Max with low - profile Gateron Red , Blue , or Brown switches .
With the Gateron Red switches , the acoustical foam help make the keyboard very quiet to type on when want .
Three equipment can be paired at once over Bluetooth , with the FN + 1 , 2 , and 3 keys then used to switch between them .
Full Specs
