Price When Reviewed

$99.99

Best Prices Today: 8BitDo Retro Mechanical Keyboard

$99.99

$99.99

The very first 8BitDo product I used was its first Bluetooth controller, a trustworthy recreation of the NES brick with a number of additional buttons and Bluetooth. While 8BitDo has expanded its repertoire vastly within the final decade, the Retro Keyboard appears like a return to this unique design, in each aesthetic and sensibility. It’s mainly a mechanical keyboard that’s purported to appear to be it could really feel at dwelling in a 1985 front room, however competently made with some fashionable bells and whistles. 

Make no mistake: This keyboard is all in regards to the nostalgia. While it’s completely able to serving as your major — and even your solely — keyboard, it’s undoubtedly going to look misplaced except your desk is plagued by Mario and Zelda merchandise. (And maybe the considerably older and much much less ergonomically sound N30 mouse to finish the setup.) But whereas it is a nostalgia piece, that doesn’t imply it’s a mere novelty. The Retro Keyboard is competent, shockingly so for such a stylized machine, and that’s excessive reward. 

Further studying: See our roundup of the best mechanical keyboards to find out about competing merchandise.

8BitDo Retro Keyboard design: Longing for the ’80s

The Retro Keyboard is an train in painstaking tribute. Every shade of plastic, each little bit of printing is supposed to evoke the design of the NES, from the two-tone case and keycaps to the splash of pink within the textual content and the large “A” and “B” buttons beneath the precise Shift. Even the printed arrow keys’ barely seen black-on-gray have the identical chunky form because the embossed arrows on the NES controller’s D-pad. Good grief, there’s even an old school bubble LED energy indicator. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

The font printed on the keycaps, the striping on the marginally clear sticker on the high of the case, even the darkish grey base of the physique itself — the entire thing appears prefer it’s the official NES keyboard that Nintendo by no means made. The dedication to retro aesthetic even extends past the elements that would really be related to the NES itself. An analog quantity dial, radial change for energy and wi-fi modes, and the high-profile keycaps all harken again to shopper electronics from 40-odd years in the past. 

(I ought to level out that this assessment unit has the colours of the U.S. and worldwide model of the NES, the “N” model. If your retro sensibilities demand unique Japanese Famicom colours, the “Fami Edition” of this keyboard is what you need.) 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Outside of the retro presentation, this board has a number of belongings you received’t discover on a standard TKL format. The left-most dial on the high helps you to click on between Bluetooth and a pair of.4GHz wi-fi dongle connections, with an Off setting between them. Next to that’s an old-school quantity dial, paying homage to ye-olde growth containers. Next is the Bluetooth pairing button, the programming button (extra on that later), and the profile switcher. 

On the highest finish you’ll discover a magnetic cubby for the wi-fi dongle, the USB-C charging port, and 4 barrel ports labeled A, B, X, and Y. These tie into maybe the keyboard’s most visually hanging function: gigantic add-on buttons. There’s one set of two within the field, labeled A and B, however you’ll be able to buy up to three more wired pairs for a complete of eight programmable buttons. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

These gigantic facsimiles of the NES controller’s major buttons are a little bit of a gimmick, to be sincere. Pop open the plastic tops and you’ll see that they’e simply big covers for 2 extraordinary mechanical switches. That makes these two buttons, and all further ones you would possibly select to attach, mainly simply an elaborate macro row. And one which takes up an infinite quantity of house, particularly for those who’ve acquired 4 wires working out of them…which relatively defeats the aim of a wi-fi board. 

While I respect having further performance by way of macro keys, and a few might discover the outsized aesthetic charming, I’d actually relatively simply have a number of additional buttons on the keyboard itself. After the requisite testing for this assessment, I put away the add-on pad and didn’t miss it. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

And that’s your lot. It’s a really nice-looking board, in that extraordinarily particular manner that may in all probability attraction to anybody who can draw a Super Mario sprite from reminiscence. Note that there are not any RGB LEDs, as a result of rainbow gamer keyboards didn’t exist within the ’80s. But how does it evaluate to extra critical keyboards? 

8BitDo Retro Keyboard efficiency

Surprisingly effectively, really. Let’s begin with these retro-inspired keycaps. The format is customary TKL, so you would swap them out with virtually any customized set. But for those who’re desirous about shopping for this board, you’re by no means going to do this. Which is simply as effectively, as a result of the high-quality PBT caps are additionally dye-sublimated. That’s a flowery manner of claiming the legends won’t ever put on off, irrespective of what number of retrospective opinions of the unique Metroid you write. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Underneath the tall however comfortable caps are Kailh Box White V2 switches. These are relatively loud and clicky, which I wasn’t anticipating — you’d assume that 8BitDo would go for quick linear switches in a board aimed ostensibly at players. My second guess is that they’re making an attempt to emulate the loud click-clack of the famous IBM keyboards of the ’80s. Either manner, know that whereas these are high quality switches with very easy, steady motion, they’re loud, significantly louder than even customary mechanical boards. 

If that’s not your factor, then don’t fear, you’ll be able to swap them out. 8BitDo has included hot-swap change sockets on this board, a premium function that I’m a little bit stunned to see, however nonetheless comfortable for. So for those who desire one thing quicker you’ll be able to swap in customary Red switches, and even go for any variety of “silent” choices. (And sure, the clicky inexperienced switches on the add-on buttons are hot-swappable too.) 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Typing on the Retro Keyboard is satisfying, with the plastic deck and case providing a little bit of give. The stabilizers rattle a little bit, so keyboard snobs like me would possibly bemoan the shortage of lubing, but it surely’s greater than acceptable for normal customers. Again, it’s very loud and clicky, which received’t be everybody’s cup of tea. Ditto for the old school high-profile keycaps — for those who’re used to one thing like Logitech’s MX line, or only a strong laptop computer keyboard, it will require some critical adjustment. 

Gaming is a little bit of a blended bag. While the keyboard gives a wired connection and a 2.4GHz dongle for velocity (don’t strive gaming on Bluetooth, it’s too sluggish), plus N-key rollover, the included Box White switches aren’t ultimate for twitchy shooters and even fast-paced technique or MOBA video games. It simply takes too lengthy to depress the keys to a register level and look forward to them to bounce again. If you need to construct this keyboard right into a desktop gaming setup, I’d suggest springing for quicker linear switches and swapping them out. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

There’s one final omission that I seen: The keyboard has no adjustable toes, which is kind of customary on any plastic case. So you’d higher be pleased with the comparatively excessive profile of the chunky physique, as a result of it could actually’t be adjusted. 

8BitDo Retro Keyboard programming choices

Programming is accessible by way of a stand-alone Windows-only executable. It’s fairly good as these items go, and I respect that it could actually program the board (customary format, alternate profiles, and macros) and replace firmware while not having a full set up. But if all you actually need to do is assign some keys or macros to these huge add-on buttons, you don’t even want the software program, you are able to do all of it with button combos. Overall, very effectively thought out. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Is the 8BitDo Retro Keyboard price it?

Generally, novelty retro {hardware} comes with a little bit of a value hike, however 8BitDo can also be recognized for strong worth. And at $99.99, the Retro Mechanical Keyboard is certainly an excellent worth. You’d be hard-pressed to discover a board with PBT keycaps, hot-swap switches, and twin wi-fi choices for that value, to say nothing of the add-on buttons and growth functionality. (Heck, there are retailers that may make you pay that a lot only for the keycaps!) 

Michael Crider/Foundry

The styling of this board goes to be the make-or-break name for many customers, however for those who just like the appears, relaxation assured it’s a strong alternative in its personal proper, and effectively definitely worth the price ticket. While I want it had extra change decisions and was rather less noisy, it’s laborious to recollect the final time I had this a lot enjoyable simply taking a look at a keyboard.