It feels pretty appropriate that my last deal post for RPS is for my favourite PC peripheral: the humble mechanical keyboard. This mechanical keyboard is more humble than its peers too, with a $30 asking price that is absolutely exceptional for a name-brand keyboard that gets rave reviews: the Keychron C3 Pro.
For the money, this is a stunningly well-equipped keyboard, with a pleasant and surprisingly mature black and red colour scheme, gasket-mounted mechanical switches of the red variety (for soft and linear mechanical action), and QMK/VIA support for reprogramming.
One thing you won’t find is backlighting, with the keyboard not including it – no doubt to hit that crazy-low price point. For me, that’s not a bad thing – I much prefer no backlighting to bad backlighting – but you may prefer a different alternative if you largely use your computer in low light conditions.
This is a TKL or tenkeyless keyboard, meaning it lacks a numpad but is otherwise identical to your standard full-size ANSI US layout, complete with F keys, arrow keys, navigation cluster and alphanumerics. A function layer allows for quick access to media controls – and quick swapping between Mac and Windows modes – while double-shot ABS keycaps are better than expected for a keyboard at this price and should be resistant to wear. Of course, given the standard layout, you’d be free to put in your own custom keycaps without any trouble if wanted an upgrade down the line.
Overall, this is a cracking little keyboard and hugely worth it for $30 – even as an intro to mechanical keyboards or as a second, more portable option I’d say that you’d struggle to find anything better at this low of a price. And as it’s mechanical, the overall feeling is going to be miles better than membrane keyboards at two, three or four times the price!
Well, that’s all about the keyboard then – and that’s me done for RPS deals after 939 articles! Thanks for the many kind comments and inquisitive questions over the years, I read every one and valued the feedback immensely. I’ll miss writing deals for RPS, but I hope that if you enjoyed my writing you’ll check out my day job over at Eurogamer and Digital Foundry – or hit me up on Twitter @wsjudd. Much love and see you on the other side!