Keychron offers even more compact alternatives like the K6, but these squash the arrow keys close to the main bulk of the board. Once I got over myself, I grasped that the ten-keyless option is much more practical. This is something I was reluctant about before getting the K8, until I realized the only reason I wanted a numpad was to use the large Enter key at the end, and then only infrequently. That makes it much more compact than its larger brethren and ideal for travel and cluttered desks. version), which means the numpad of a full-sized keyboard has been lopped off ( most laptops are ten-keyless). The K8 is configured in a “ten-key-free” layout (I have the U.K. The two operating systems place their modifier keys (think Alt or Command) in different places, so this switch is perfect for avoiding unexpected keypresses. There is also a control for changing from the Mac to the Windows keyboard layout and vice versa. Now, all I need to do is push a switch on the K8 and a second later I am typing on my second device. Leaning over from one to the other was a pain - literally and figuratively.

Before I got the K8, I was getting by with two full-sized mechanical keyboards on my desk, each connected to a different computer.

For someone like me who frequently flips between a Mac and a Windows PC, that is an absolute godsend. Throw in a very reasonable starting price of $69 (most quality mechanical keyboards are $100-plus) and we are off to a good start.īetter yet, you can connect to three devices at once and change between them at the flick of a switch thanks to its cable and Bluetooth 5.1 combo. There are even dedicated Siri/Cortana and screenshot buttons (great on a Mac). By default, all the keycaps are ready-made for Mac use (there are Windows keycaps in the box if you want to switch). That is because it is a rare breed: A mechanical keyboard that comes with a Mac layout.

Windows vs mac keyboard