RK61

If you feel up to installing new firmware or at least wiping the layout with a new JSON file, I've been using the Royal Kludge RK61 as a platform for firmware hacking. The stock layout is terrible but since the source code is posted it's easy to modify and with 16 layers in VIA there's plenty of roo

The only RK keyboard I would recommend is the wired RK61 and only with custom firmware. The stock firmware has awful layout. No keyboard comes with really good silent switches. You will need to swap them out anyway. For a wireless board, either the Nuphy Air60 v2 (the previous generation) with Gater

Can't disagree with this. These are both decent board options. The default layout on the GK61, with the mod-tap arrows, is better, but the GK61's gasket mount is a bit more premium. I don't think the prebuilt switch options are that much of a big deal, especially on a 60% board where a 70-pack of sw

I would buy a new rk61, the new qmk/via based model is much much nicer than the old firmware. And you can completely reprogram the screwed up layout that Royal Kludge came up with with something sane. Also, XVX has some great keycap options.

Ok, here's some boards I personally have tried and liked under 80USD: CIDOO QK61 * ($60) Skyloong GK61 QMK/VIA * ($54) Royal Kludge RK61 QMK/VIA * ($40) Womier WK61 Pro * ($26) KBDcraft Adam 60% * ($70 lego case) Womier VK66 Pro * ($42) Womier Q61 v2 * ($42) XVX M67 Jadestone * ($47) Redragon K715 * ($30) K

The Royal Kludge RK61 is in the main QMK repo and cheap. The standard layout is kind of screwed up but since it's qmk it can be fixed, and the firmware builds reliably... if you have a look in my GitHub I've got a vial port for it. It's a 60% of course but with mod-tap arrows you shouldn't have any

My favorite backlight pattern is "typing heatmap" which keeps surprising me when I look down and I'm like "really, I've been hitting the "J" that much?" or whatever. I need a replacement of something roughly the same size. There's a lot of great 60% options, then. The last year or so has been kind o

The wired QMK versions of the RK65 and RK75 seem OK. The QMK RK61 is very good once you reconfigure the awful default layout. I've seen complaints about the wireless QMK RK65, RK75, and RK87. The legacy software is awful so the non-QMK boards including the M75 are to be avoided.

Unless you get a Keychron any tri-mode board you buy will be violating the QMK GPL because everyone else uses the Westberry hardware, and Westberry refuses to comply. Oddly enough the Royal Kludge RK61 is in the QMK repo. https://github.com/qmk/qmk_firmware/tree/master/keyboards/royal_kludge/rk61 I ha

Those are Outemu-style sockets, very old-school and evil like something that's really evil. Not only are they literally too tight for most modern switches, I got a couple where they had obviously been sitting in an un-airconditioned warehouse somewhere for years before I got them... and the sockets