1 week Ago By Gareth Butterfield
Recommended We test two high-end keyboards from Keychron - the K5 Max and the Q6 Max By Gareth Butterfield Published 11th Apr 2025, 07:00 BST Keychron's new keyboards are pricey, but among the best on the market | Keychron This article contains affiliate links. We may earn a small commission on items purchased through this article, but that does not affect our editorial judgement. Consumer technology writer Gareth Butterfield gets his hands on two new flagship keyboards from Keychron Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more.
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Given how much time many of us spend in front of our computers, we often overlook the fundamental parts that make them work just how we want them to. It's all very well prioritising processors, or ramping up RAM, but the main bits we interact with are the monitor, keyboard, and mouse. And the keyboard is the key contact point - the interface with interact with more than anything else on our computer.
There's really nothing wrong with spending £20 or less on a basic wired keyboard, but what happens when you ramp up the budget and spend £100 or even over £200 on one? Read More Get This V10 beast for 17p! (aff) A proper Audi R8 up for grabs! Nintendo Switch 2 (aff) sells out at Amazon and Very – here’s where to find stock Meater SE review: I’ve used one for 5 years – the new £79 version is great (aff) Amazon’s slashed prices on AirPods Pro 2, Apple Watch 10 & AirTags (aff) Consumer writer Gareth Butterfield has been testing two of the best keyboards on the market to find out. Keychron K5 Max Current price £98.99 at Amazon The Keychron K5 Max is a compact keyboard with all the buttons you'll need | Keychron As a journalist, I write literally thousands of words every day and, as a specialist in consumer technology, I'm obviously a bit picky when it comes to my choice of keyboard.
My current weapon of choice is the Logitech MX Mechanical , which was a bit of a personal indulgence at nearly £150. And I was very keen to see whether two new launches from Keychron could compete with it. The first one, the Keychron K5 Max Wireless Custom Mechanical Keyboard costs £104.
99 (but there's a discount on Amazon at the moment) and looks reasonably similar to my Logitech at first glance. They're both mechanical, they both have a slim profile, and they're both predominantly grey and black in colour. Swapping the keys is easy, because it comes with a handy tool to pick them out with | Keychron However, the Keychron has swappable keys, 22 backlight settings, and every key is programmable.
It's also slightly quieter in use than my "Tactile Quiet" version of the Logitech MX Mechanical, and there are three adjustable typing angles, against the Logitech's two angles. It is, then, far more customisable than the Logitech. Many of the customisations are done through a piece of software, which is easy enough to use, but perhaps not as polished as the Logi Options+ app, and battery life is not as strong as the Logitech, especially with the lights ramped up.
But that doesn't matter a great deal, because the Keychron is easy and quick to charge through USB, and the swappable keys are incredibly useful if, for example, you switch from PC to Mac. Overall, the K5 Max is superb value for money, and certainly outperforms my Logitech in terms of customisation and adaptability. NationalWorld Love magazines but hate the cost? With Readly, you can access dozens of top tech titles for one low price – and right now, you can get two months free .
Click here for more information. Keychron Q6 Max Current price £193 at Keychron The Q6 Max takes things to a whole new level | Keychron It's a solid start for Keychron, then. The K5 Max is marginally better than my Logitech in some aspects, despite being cheaper.
So what happens if you double the price? The Keychron Q6 Max is by no means the most expensive keyboard offered by the brand, but it's certainly one of the best all-rounders. It's a very different offering to the K5 Max, much larger, and much heavier with solid aluminium construction , and an absolutely gorgeous keyboard feel. Because of its size and weight (2.
2kg), this is certainly not a keyboard for travellers, but it's a fine choice for typists, and will suit most gamers thanks to its super-fast processor. It has the same hot-swappable keys as the K5 Max, but this time they're hewn from something called double-shot PBT plastic , and this means they not only feel lovely and tactile, but they won't wear down. As with the K5 stablemate, customisation is key for this keyboard, and the swappable buttons and the multitude of backlighting combinations are a welcome touch, even though you're likely to quickly find your perfect setup and just stick with it.
It's a heavy thing, but feels absolutely beautiful to type on | Keychron Less customisable is the resting height. It's not adjustable. The positioning suited me, but it's worth bearing in mind it might not suit everyone.
The ease of switching between connected devices is great though, with a simple switch. The switch is a bit fiddly, but well weighted, and it's hard to knock it accidentally. Fundamentally, the Q6 Max is all about quality, and it absolutely screams high-end device.
Yes, it's very expensive, but it's an absolute dream to type on, and the CNC-machined aluminium base won't lose any of its specialness over time. This is the keyboard you buy if quality is the most important thing. The acoustics are just about perfect, the feel is just about perfect, and the customisation is a very welcome thing to have.
It's got to be one of the best keyboards you can buy right now. Subscribe to our free Top Buys newsletter and start saving straight away. Continue Reading Related topics: Amazon Boost Affiliates Tech first person Reviews Business Gaming.
