If you stay up-to-date on the newest mechanical keyboard releases, then should already be excited about the Keychron K6.
If not, we’re going to go over all the features and explain our thoughts on the newest keyboard from Keychron. We have purchased and reviewed all of the other Keychron models as well, so make sure to check out that post too.
What is the Keychron K6?
The Keychron K6 is a 65% sized keyboard, which means it does not come with a numberpad or the very top row that comes on standard keyboards.
The overall design is very similar to the Keychron K2, but instead of being a 75% layout (meaning no number pad), the K6 it is scaled down to smaller, more bit-sized 65% layout.
You can find the Keychron K6 on Amazon for a super affordable price.
You can check out our full photo album of the Keychron K6 here, with all of the detailed photos.
Exciting Features
The K6 is absolutely packed with features and Keychron has made it possible to customize many parts of the keyboard including the base, backlighting, and switch type.
The keyboard has both Bluetooth wireless and wired options. In addition, you can also choose if you want a keyboard with a hotswappable PCB, which means you can swap out the switch to whatever type you want.
We’ll breakdown each feature a bit more below.
Base Material
Loaded with features, the K6 and allows you to customize whether you want a lighter, cheaper plastic base or a more sturdy, pricey aluminum base. The aluminum base will give the keyboard a more solid feel and may be better if you plan on primary keeping the keyboard in one place.
The plastic base is a few ounces lighter and is better if you plan on using the wireless capability more or want to take it on the go. The lighter weight makes the keyboard easier to carry and more portable. Overall, the aluminum base costs slightly more.
RGB/White Backlight
Are you a fan of RGB lighting? This seems to be a friction point amongst many keyboard enthusiasts. Some tend to love different color backlighting options, while others tend to find the extra lights distracting and feel as though it cheapens the look of the keyboard.
Well, with the Keychron K6, you will have the option to choose between RGB or white backlight options. Whether you want more sleek, “Apple store” type-look with white backlighting or a more exciting light-show style of keyboard, the choice is up to you.
It’s worth noting the RGB backlight comes with 18 different backlight effects, so there is something there for everyone. We tried out all of the different options, and overall the lighting seems to be pretty good. Nothing too crazy, but we would put it on par with other keyboards with RGB lighting. The keycaps are made from a doubleshot ABS plastic design, so the RGB lighting illuminates the legends so they are easily visible.
Apple/Windows Compatibility
Mac users, this is your time to rejoice. Like the K2, this keyboard will have full compatibility with Apple products. There is a sliding button located on the side of the keyboard to activate whether the keyboard will be used with an Apple or Windows computer.
There are also Mac multimedia keys available for purchase as well. This will make the keyboard run smoother with both operating systems and give the user a better experience, regardless which one they use.
It also allows you to switch flawlessy between operating systems. We found you could easily hook up the keyboard to a normal PC and than swap to an Apple Ipad with easy while using the Bluetooth functionality.
Bluetooth Wireless
The Keychron K6 comes with Bluetooth 5.1 functionality, which makes connecting to multiple devices a breeze. Being able to connect to, and toggle between 3 devices makes the wireless capability of this keyboard quite powerful.
An equally impressive feature is the 4000 mAh battery. The battery can last up to 4 weeks without a charge, if you’re not using the backlighting, making it one of the longest lasting wireless keyboards on the market.
If you are constantly on the go, or just find constantly plugging in your keyboard to be a hassle, imagine only having to plug your keyboard in once or twice a month. That’s what the K6 is capable of. I’ve used the Keychron K6 for the last month for work and for personal use, and being able to swap between my work laptop and home desktop computer in seconds has been clutch. In the entire month, I’ve only had to plug in the keyboard once.
Optical/Hotswappable Switches
If you’ve bought a mechanical keyboard before and picked out a switch you could not stand, to swap them out you would need to disassemble the entire keyboard, then de-solder and remove the old switches.
After that, you would have to install and re-solder the new switches. This can be an extremely time-consuming project for someone relatively new to soldering.
My favorite feature of the K6 is the choice of getting hotswappable switches. It’s easier than ever to swap out keyboard switches. Without having to solder a single switch, all you need to do is pull out the old switches with a switch puller, and press the new ones into the PCB.
The K6 comes with a variety of switch types, including LK optical, Gateron hotswappable, and standard Gateron switches; coming in brown, blue and red colors.
The variety of switches really let you choose what sort of feel you want to go for, whether that be linear, clicky, or tactile.
If you want a full break-down of Gateron switches, make sure to check out this comprehensive guide.
Other features
The power cable is a detachable USB-C, which is always nice to see. The USB-C is smaller than the other power cable types and is reversible so it’s easier to install. No need to constantly flip the head around, trying to figure out which side faces up.
Adjustable rubber feet angles are also included, so you can incline the keyboard by 6 degrees if you enjoy your keyboard at a slight incline.There is also 12 multimedia keys included in this keyboard that are available for use. A keycap puller is also included, which makes removing keycaps much easier.
We Had Some Fun with the K6
We ordered our K6 with a hotswappable PCB and Gateron Red switches. As a fun project, we lubed the switches and modded the stabilizers to improve the typing experience by a ton. You can check out how to do both of these modifications by checking out the menu drop-down at the top of the site. The hotswappable PCB makes modding this keyboard a breeze.
We also swapped out the Gateron Reds and took a set of Halo Clears for a ride as well. Both switches performed excellently. We would recommend either one depending on if you prefer linear or tactile switches.
In addition, we took the time to swap out the thin ABS keycaps for some PBT Cherry Profile keycaps, and we found that boosted the feel and acoustics of the K6 by a ton.
Sound Tests!
You can’t truly decide if you want a keyboard unless you hear how the bad boy sounds. We have a few different typing tests that we uploaded on our Youtube channel, one with the stock K6 and another after some basic modifications.
Scaling Price Options
Since there are so many different customization options, the K6 has several different price points. The general price range for this keyboard is $69-90 at the time of writing this article. There are also options to bundle and purchase more than one keyboard for a better deal.
The K6 is a mid-range priced keyboard, and is great for those looking for a good pound for pound deal.
We bought the priciest option, with full RGB, aluminum case, and hot-swap sockets so we could see how the fully-loaded keyboard performed. If you don’t really need all the extra features, you could opt for a plastic case with white backlight and normal PCB for a significantly cheaper price.
For a more detailed price breakdown, check out the K6 on Amazon for a super affordable price.
Possible Complaints
Keyboard Height
The main complaint about Keychron keyboards in general is the overall height of keyboard is too high. We experienced this slightly with the K2 model, the keys were a bit too high up and caused some discomfort in the wrist area. To alleviate this, many people said they needed to use a wrist pad. The K6 case is significantly shorter which helps a lot with this issue
Upon using the keyboard for a while, we’ve found most people are a little overdramatic with their criticism of the keyboard height. While it is slightly taller than most keyboards, we actually found the difference wasn’t as much as people make it out to be.
To get more accurate data to backup our claims, we measured a few different keyboard heights we had laying around and compiled it in the table below to compare the front height.
| Keyboard Model | Front Keyboard Height | Back Keyboard Height |
| Keychron K6 | 2.8 cm | 3.4 cm |
| Keychron K2/K4 | 3.4 cm | 3.6 cm |
| GMMK Compact | 3.0 cm | 3.9 cm |
| HyperX Alloy Origins Core | 2.6 cm | 3.2 cm |
As you can see by the table above, the K6 is shorter than the K2 by about 0.6 centimeters and is shorter than the GMMK compact as well. The K6 is slightly taller than the HyperX Alloy Origins Core. The main takeaway is, the K6 is in the mid-range for height, not super tall.
The Keycaps
The keycaps were slightly disappointing. They are made from a thin ABS plastic and are quite low-contrast as well. We found that by swapping them out for a cheap PBT keycap set really improved the performance and enjoyment of using the keyboard.
Keychron is also offering their own PBT keycap set now, which could be a perfect fit for the K6. We found that due to the unique layout of the K6, non-uniform keycap profiles didn’t have the heights line-up properly on the Page Up and Page Down keys.
Your best bet would be to either get the Keychron keycaps or go for a uniform profile where the keycaps are all the same height.
The keyboards are also made in China, so due to the current world events, we experienced some shipping delays. The keyboard was originally projected to arrive in March, but it didn’t show up until the end of April. If you’re concerned about late shipping, I would recommend contacting Keychron to get more information.
Where can I buy the Keychron K6?
The Keychron K6 is currently available on Keychron’s website. I personally purchased the K6 off of Kickstarter because I was very excited and wanted to get my hands on it first. The project surpassed the pledge goal of $50,000 and hit over $400,0000, which means many other people were very excited about the keyboard as well.
The K6 is available on Amazon through this link, or you can find it on the Keychron website.
Wrapping Up
The K6 is loaded with features, and is a nice addition to our collection of keyboards. Similar in a lot of ways to the K2, the K6 is a more compact, lighter, and exciting 65% keyboard.
We highly recommend the K6 for anyone needing a mechanical keyboard that works great wirelessly, for Mac, and with hot-swappable features. You really can’t argue with the quality and features at such an affordable price point, the K6 is pound for pound one of the best 65% keyboards on the market right now.
Happy typing!