Magicforce 68 review

[stratokaster]

About a week ago I finally received my Magicforce 68 keyboard and I'd like to offer my take on that thing.

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First of all, the keyboard is very solidly made. The plate is made of thick aluminum and the bottom of the case is plastic. The keyboard doesn't flex or creak at all.

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There are anti-slip rubber pads both on the bottom of the case and on the spring-loaded feet, as well as a built-in cable management / strain gauge.

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I ordered it with no LEDs, but I didn't think there would be no LEDs at all, including no Caps Lock indicator.

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The keyboard uses Cherry-style stabilizers.

One of the reasons I ordered this keyboard was that I wanted to evaluate Gateron Blue switches. I must say I'm not too impressed with them. They're smoother and somewhat heavier than Cherry MX Blue. Their activation point is also way higher, which makes it easy to type without bottoming out. However, they have a somewhat "bouncy" feeling to them which I find unpleasant. Also it seems Gateron's QC sucks, because some (but not all) of the switches have their activation point a bit lower than others.

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The keycaps are the biggest downside of this keyboard. They are God-awful. They are quite thin, made of translucent ABS and either coated and then lasered or doubleshot, I'm not quite sure. Either way they look ugly and they feel awful. Secondary legends are pad-printed and I already managed to wear them down somewhat — in just a week. For the sake of comparison, my Filco Majestouch Minila Air also uses ABS keycaps, but they feel 10 times better, and PBT keycaps on my Unicomp are better still.

I don't think I will keep this keyboard, because I have my Unicomp and various Alps boards for my desktop setup, and I use Minila Air on the go. Still, it was an interesting experience and I still think that this keyboard has a very good layout. In the end, it's not bad for the price, just not remarkable in any way. Oh, and I definitely expected better from Gateron, but oh well.

A couple more pics:

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[Muirium]

300 mA!?!

Ah, backlights. They ruin everything. Starting with the caps.

So how are those TOPER SWITXHES in this MAGIC REALFORCE, Amirite?

[Matt_]

Can't see how 300 mA could be a problem (and with no LEDs this one will probably draw no more than 30 mA). Those caps, however...

I was tempted to get one when they appeared on MD, but I can't say I regret not buying. Thanks for the review stratokaster!

[HzFaq]

Just found these for £30 on amazon.co.uk if anyone wants to give it a bash. I think these have some random clone switches, not Gaterons, but for £30 you can't really complain.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Qisan-Mechanica ... giforce+68

[ohaimark]

I agree with almost everything strato said.

If one were to change the caps out and cover the Magicforce logo with a sticker this keyboard offers a lot of bang for the buck. Perhaps it isn't remarkable in and of itself, but I think when compared to the rest of the "cheap" keyboard market it is a standout choice.

The fit and finish is far beyond what I expected in a $65 keyboard. What other company do you know of that uses actual machined aluminum and anti-slip feet on a KB that cheap? And with no creak? And with a good layout and Fn layer?

Seriously. Find one. Show it to me.

It might not be exceptional when compared to expensive or vintage boards, but in modern terms? For the average gamer or consumer? I think it's a steal.

Look at the QuickFire series -- this thing beats the TK board with its hands tied behind its back.

[stratokaster]

Actually, my previous "compact desktop" solution was CM Storm QFR with MX Blues. I liked the switches more than Gateron Blues, but in terms of build quality Magicforce runs circles around the QFR, that's for sure.

BTW, as far as I know, the Magicforce is made by Tai-Hao.

[courtesi]

What I like most about this keyboard is the cable method used. Unlike most if not all 60% boards out there by having the hub tucked under there is less of a chance of accidentally breaking it off.

Maybe you got a bad batch of Gaterons; I haven't heard of these types of QC issues before. It will be interesting to see how they maintain QC going forward as their product becomes more popular.

[toidbb]

What I like most about this keyboard is the cable method used. Unlike most if not all 60% boards out there by having the hub tucked under there is less of a chance of accidentally breaking it off.

Maybe you got a bad batch of Gaterons; I haven't heard of these types of QC issues before. It will be interesting to see how they maintain QC going forward as their product becomes more popular.

The cable routing is nice, if using the stock cable, but if you have a custom cable where the winding starts close to the connection point it can be a hassle. Probably not an issue for the majority of users, but something to note.

I have the silver version with the LEDs and although I do agree with the statements from the OP, the overall experience is not bad for the price and sadly I have used far worse keyboards than this which cost more.

It will stay in my rotation.

[flabbergast]

Maybe you got a bad batch of Gaterons; I haven't heard of these types of QC issues before. It will be interesting to see how they maintain QC going forward as their product becomes more popular.

Gateron QC is terrible. In every batch of gateron reds that I've seen, about 20% of springs are different from the rest. They have similar weight but the force profile is different - it does not matter that much on linears, but I imagine it would make more of a difference on tactile switches where it does matter a lot where exactly the actuation point is.

EDIT: Another thing I tried is to put genuine Cherry Clear stems into gaterons - about 70% worked as expected, whereas the rest didn't actuate at the point where they should have, but much higher. This is telling me that the metal leaves inside the switches do not have exactly the same shape.

EDIT2: I still do like gateron smoothness (in fact I prefer them to cherries), but they do need tuning, e.g. swapping the springs.

[Matt_]

There was also the issue with the Gateron housing catching the stem of some keycaps (mostly Cherry), don't know if they fixed that. The Blacks I got from Shadovved's GB had this issue, which went away with a bit of filing, but still.

[ohaimark]

I think that Gateron's switch to transparent housings from translucent "milky" ones indicates a change in materials/tooling. It looks like they're using the Zealios design as a standard now...

I'd still expect different actuation points and springs, but I think that the housing QC issues were solved in the newer batches. Correct me if I'm wrong -- this is speculation.

[Muirium]

Good to hear they're smart enough to rip off Zealio's design outright. Gotta love China!

I do agree this seems to be a whole lot of tight little keyboard for the money. I just dislike the scammy, patently misleading name, and the caps…

[ohaimark]

Gateron is the OEM for Zealios, Mu.

The rest is true. But I don't care if the product is good. Especially when the only real issue is the easiest part of a keyboard to replace.

[Muirium]

Yes, I know. And I'm glad they are using the improvements the Zealio design made over their own. Quite whether the Zeal guys allowed them to or not!

Imagine for a moment if Cherry had done the same back when they made Nixies. What a better MX world it could have been!

[ohaimark]

Very true. Cherry has had so few real competitors since the early 90s that they've been complacent. Stagnation happens when you have such a huge market share.

It'll be interesting to see how Cherry responds to all the clones (some of which are genuinely competitive) that flooded the market last year.

Maybe they'll refresh their tooling for the first time in 20 years!

[stratokaster]

I wanted to dress up this keyboard a bit, but I have discovered that I don't have a full ANSI set for it! All my Cherry-compatible boards are either ISO or have that stupid big ass Enter and split backspace. So it's only partially dressed, but it feels much improved.

BTW, old Tai-Hao made ABS doubleshots are exactly the same shape and thickness as the stock keycaps.

[ohaimark]

Just as an FYI, the stock caps are doubleshots with pad printed sublegends. Not coat + laser.

[Redmaus]

That font

[gogusrl]

Kinda offtopic but I've been thinking of grabbing the hot swappable switches one from banggood. Regular TLK layout but that hot swap feature sounds great.

With one of these you can try out a new switch for 30 eur and an hour of your time instead of buying / building a whole keyboard.

http://www.banggood.com/CIY-Mechanical- ... 15964.html

[t!ng]

Not all switches compatible though.

[gogusrl]

Compatible with the smd backlighting maybe, people have tried both cherry and gaterons without problems.

[stratokaster]

I hate to report that one of the switches has stopped clicking today. It still activates fine, it just doesn't click anymore. Between that and out-of-the-box unevenness, I think I'm done with Gateron for the foreseeable future.

[ohaimark]

TL;DR -- don't buy clicky Gaterons. Stick with tactiles and linears.

[Muirium]

I'll suggest as I do for all MX: avoid everything but the linears.

Because linear is harder to fuck up!

[Scarpia]

I think that Gateron's switch to transparent housings from translucent "milky" ones indicates a change in materials/tooling. It looks like they're using the Zealios design as a standard now...

Has this been confirmed? I have a set of milky Gaterons in my small-but-growing switch collection, and I was considering getting a set of Zealio switches as well, but maybe I should just find a newer set of Gaterons? Or maybe both?

[KRKS]

And with a good layout and Fn layer?

IMO this is one of the worst possible layouts ever.

1. It's pretty much as portable as a TKL. 1u smaller in width and length don't make as huge of a difference as fullsize to TKL or TKL to 60%. And if you're really going for portability, you'll want a 60% or maybe even something smaller, and not a discount TKL with a considerable battery drain.

2. Since we crossed out portability, then maybe desk space saving? Then why doesn't it have F-keys? Length doesn't hurt desk space nearly as much as width, so that would've been a nice addition. But I guess the Home and End keys gone from the main layer would be more obvious then. And most people use those to more often that the right Control, which still made the cut.

3. I know someone's gonna pull out the "muh 6.25 space muh keysets" argument, but 5.5u spacebars are objectively superior.

1) It doesn't turn non-standard compact boards into a mess. Be it 40%, 66% or 65/75%, it "just werks".
2) It works with other spacebars that are made making increasing the numbers of layouts easier. Add 1.5u, you get 7u, remove 1.5u, you get 4u.
3) It splits nicely for people who like small spacebars. You either get 1.25u-1.5u-1.5u-1.25u, two 2.75u's or two 2.25u's with a space for a trackpoint in the middle(forgot which custom board did the last one but it exists).
4) It's available for Alps and doesn't have the stabilizer problem with 6.25u Alps spacebars. And it exists for MX mount too(Noppoo Choc Mini, I think some Roccat uses it too).
5) Hardly anybody presses the spacebar on it's edges, so most people won't miss the 6.25u when using 5.5u

4. I know that some people are happy to see Fn closer to the thumb, but for me that's right Alt gone from it's proper position, and access to third of the letters in my language hindered.

5. Segwaying nicely into the Fn layer: two binds for Home and End and neither on the arrows? Media controls requiring two-handed use or ridiculous stretching? And what's that under Fn+Q anyway?

So honestly just get a good 75% or 60%.

Look at the QuickFire series -- this thing beats the TK board with its hands tied behind its back.

See, the previous one at least had some makings of a serious argument, but this just gets a laugh from me.

[ohaimark]

Has this been confirmed? I have a set of milky Gaterons in my small-but-growing switch collection, and I was considering getting a set of Zealio switches as well, but maybe I should just find a newer set of Gaterons? Or maybe both?

I don't have Zealios to compare with, unfortunately. I was making an educated guess that other forum members should definitely investigate.

See, the previous one at least had some makings of a serious argument, but this just gets a laugh from me.

Well that isn't patronizing or anything. I was speaking more about build quality than layout... And pricing, for that matter. The TK has a nicely painted plate, but the plastic case seems chintzy in comparison to the alu top on the Magicforce 68.

I rarely use the Fn key for anything other than hitting the actual F keys in the top row, so layout wasn't as much of a concern for me. It's legitimately superior for my usage habits. For someone else, especially foreign users, that may not be true at all.

[t!ng]

Am I the only one who doesn't think those keycaps are shit? They are doubleshot ... the font is ugly, ok, but they aren't that bad.

[cookie]

Looks like a good board for 29 Quid.
Good for starters or people who would like to check out a compact keyboard but nothing serious.

They could have just NOT put cheesy backlit on it and do some "normal" caps and cut the cost even more...

[TuxKey]

thx for the share...

i think the layout is a winner no surprise there as i consider the FC660C/M to be the ideal layout..
And this board has standard key size so adding sum pbt caps should be no problem..

But if the switches aren't that good ..that's the only problem i can see with this board..
it would be perfect if it had sum indicator led's near the magicForce branding for CapsLock.

I'm not a big fan of CapsLock indicator led on most keyboards except Filco

i remember bulk prices on china where around $30 hahahhaa..nice competition i would say..