Introduction
HYTE is the sister brand of iBUYPOWER, a US-based system integrator which has been around for over 25 years. HYTE can be considered as a PC component and lifestyle brand thus, and has itself been around for over three years now. We’ve covered several of its products here before, including cases, a CPU cooler, and a gaming headset, with the likes of the Y70 Touch still occupying free real estate in my head since I first saw it in person. A few months into its existence, HYTE got my attention with the announcement of the keeb SR65—a $400 limited edition keyboard which never ended up being sold. I do not know why, and there is no point in speculating. HYTE went back to the drawing board, albeit with several ideas that were in the keeb SR65, and came up with the Keeb TKL at Computex 2023, which was then released at CES 2024 and shown again at Computex 2024 to where people were clearly wanting to know more about how the keyboard performs. That wait ends today, as HYTE has been kind enough to provide a review sample to TechPowerUp.
With the Keeb TKL, HYTE aims to bring enthusiast keyboard features to the mainstream. This is a bold claim, albeit we do see a unique design employed here with a clear polycarbonate enclosure that the keyboard is fit into, and LEDs firing sideways and through the bottom to make for a highly lit typing experience in more ways than one. The keyboard uses two magnetic rollers and extra media keys for added functionality, aiming to appease the hardcore mechanical keyboard community with the use of Krytox 205g0-lubed switches and Durock V2 screw-in stabilizers in addition to a proper gasket mount with plenty of damping. HYTE also tells me to expect something cool with the lighting and software control here and, seeing as how my HYTE contact was the previous TechPowerUp keyboard reviewer, I am inclined to believe it too. Let’s put the HYTE Keeb TKL to the test in our review today which begins with a look at the product specifications in the table below.
Specifications
| HYTE Keeb TKL Mechanical Keyboard | |
|---|---|
| Layout: | 93-key, TKL form factor in a modified US ANSI layout |
| Material: | Polycarbonate enclosure, aluminium top/bottom case panels, PBT plastic keycaps, foam and silicone sheets |
| Macro Support: | Yes |
| Dimensions: | 380 (L) x 180 (W) x 53 (H) mm |
| Weight: | 1.24 kg / 2.73 lbs |
| Wrist Rest: | No |
| Anti-ghosting: | Full N-Key rollover USB |
| Media Keys: | Available as a dedicated function |
| Cable Length: | 6 ft / 1.8 m |
| Software: | Yes, HYTE Nexus |
| Switch Type: | HYTE Fluffy Lavender Linear mechanical switches |
| Lighting: | 155 pixel qRGB lighting array |
| Interface: | USB |
| Warranty: | Three years |
