Keychron K4 HE

I've long been of the personal belief that technology companies - specifically gaming hardware peripheral makers - have been pulling the wool over our eyes. More often that not, the "top of the line" gadgets coming from Razer, SteelSeries, ASUS ROG, and so forth, while quality tend to be so astronomically expensive for what they fundamentally achieve that it can feel like a bit of a trick. However, most of these gadgets tend to hit similar price points, so it's easy to shrug off any concerns and simply move on. But then there's Keychron, a company that proves that keyboards in particular can be premium in appearance and design, crammed with a broad slate of features, highly customisable, and all at a more reasonable price point. Yep, clearly consumers are losing out somewhere...

The latest innovation from Keychron comes in the form of the K4 HE, which is a keyboard that looks to merge the benefits of a traditional mechanical keyboard with Hall Effect magnetic switches. What this means in effect is you get a gadget with incredibly fulfilling and tactile keys that do not lack in their responsiveness nor speed and actually are much quieter and suppressed when compared to a purely mechanical alternative. This is because the magnetic element of the Nebula Linear Gateron Magnetic Switches (as they're known...) means that instead of registering physical contact, it uses magnetic sensors to track actuation depth, therefore enabling the user to have greater control and precision over each keystroke while also requiring less force placed on each key to activate it. From my time testing the Keychron K4 HE, this is a pretty revolutionary idea, especially for someone like myself who while appreciating the benefits of a mechanical keyboard, absolutely despises the typical noise that they make. This keyboard sits somewhere between a mechanical device and a more run-of-the-mill productivity option that barely makes any sound at all due to having wafer thin and almost lifeless keys - and yes this is part due to the acoustic foam used in the K4 HE to further soak up noise.

I should mention here too that the keys use double-shot PBT keycaps to make them better suit the shape and grooving of your fingertips, and that each key is hot-swappable with other keycaps, enabling vast customisation options.

Another area that impressed me about this gadget was its size and dimensions. It's a 96% keyboard, which basically means you get every key that you could traditionally need from a regular keyboard, including a number pad, except in a tighter package. There's no fancy scroll wheel or volume dial, or an LCD display to provide additional information, what you get is a compact batch of keys that fulfil each need you could have and without taking up a large amount of space. I'd go as far as saying that the Keychron K4 HE is the perfect size for keyboard, and if I was being picky, I'd say the one change they could make would be to include caps, number, and scroll lock LED indicators somewhere, perhaps on the front frame facing the user, as sometimes it can be a challenge to know if you've activated either by a mistake.

Moving onto the connectivity, you get everything you could really want from a keyboard here too. There's a traditional wired connection that works through a USB-C port, and also 2.4 GHz wireless that can be activated by sticking a small USB dongle into your PC. Both are super easy to use and setup and can be flicked between using a little slider on the left side of the keyboard, with wireless even boasting a battery life of up to 110 hours, according to Keychron, something we have had no reason to doubt. There are technically two sliders on the left side of the keyboard too, with the second enabling the ability to switch between Windows and Mac modes, making this a multi-purpose device too.

The appearance of this version of the Keychron K4 is also a highlight in my books, because it stands out yet not in the typical 'gamerified' way. It has either a low-profile black or white main colour scheme, removable and customisable wooden side panels (that for this review unit included the lovely lighter rosewood option), and then backlit RGB, which you can easily customise in a multitude of ways, even turning it off entirely should you want. Keychron has made a device here that can fit into most, if not all scenarios and do so in an eye-catching and comfortable manner.

The build quality also reflects this further. The plastics that the device is made from may not have the same heft and premium feel of say HyperX's Alloy Origins line, but it feels well-crafted and strong, with a decent weight to it and quality structuring. It has a few different leg stand options, reliable rubber feet, and even the USB-C cable it comes with is braided, further showing that even though this keyboard "only" costs $145, it easily goes toe-to-toe with more expensive options from competitors. At the end of the day, the Razer Huntsman V3 Pro Mini (a mini keyboard with less keys!) will set you back $180...

Yes, it works right out of the box without ever needing any additional software but if that's your jam, Keychron does offer the free Launcher App where even vaster customisation options are available.

The reason why the Keychron K4 HE (like most other Keychron devices) is such a compelling and recommendable gadget is down to the fact that you get everything you could ever want from a keyboard, in a high-quality and well-built frame, at a price point that most competitors don't get close to. It's versatile, striking, precise, reliable, and does everything that a mechanical keyboard or a productivity-first alternative offers, except in one body. Sure, some LED indicators or something similar would be useful, but overall our complaints with this gadget for what it is looking to achieve are minimal. All we have left to say is next time you're in the market for a keyboard, make sure it's a Keychron. You won't regret it.