OnePlus does not just make smartphones anymore and over the years, it has experimented and expanded its range of products. It now has a fairly wide ecosystem of devices, which recently also saw the addition of a tablet. From an ecosystem point of view, it is only missing a computer. Adding to this long lineup of smartphones, TVs, monitors, smartwatches, audio gear, clothing accessories (which also includes a fanny pack), is a mechanical keyboard called the OnePlus Keyboard 81 Pro. OnePlus tied up with the mechanical keyboard specialists at Keychron to design it.
While I will explain in detail as to why this keyboard is a bit different, like many others I also assumed that it was a rebadged Keychron Q1 Pro. The Q1 Pro is a unique offering as it offers the best of two product lineups — a premium full metal keyboard merged with the ease and convenience of wireless connectivity — giving one the best of both worlds. All of Keychron’s Q-series premium lineup was only offered with a cable until then, which meant that buyers had to choose between a premium-looking and great sounding customisable keyboard, versus a plastic-bodied keyboard that’s focussed more on connectivity and customisation.
After using the OnePlus Keyboard 81 Pro for more than a month, here’s what I think of it.
The OnePlus Keyboard 81 Pro is available in two options which basically comes down to the type of what switch you prefer. There’s the Winter Bonfire option which comes with PBT keycaps and tactile switches that oddly have red-coloured stems and is priced at Rs. 17,999. The Summer Breeze option is priced a bit higher at Rs. 19,999 and comes with a rather unique Marble Mallow keycaps (which are supposed to be flexible) and linear switches with stems that are strangely blue in colour. The option you choose is basically the name of the switch, which is a result of OnePlus’ collaboration with Keychron.
The colours chosen for the switches are a bit odd as the red colour of the Winter Bonfire switch is usually used to signify silent linear switches, while blue colour of the Summer Breeze switch is normally used to signify linear but clicky (read: noisy) switches. Switch makers usually go with brown for tactile switches. So, be careful what you select when you pick one as the colours are very misleading and are different from the standard colour coding for basic mechanical switches.
Apart from the usual keycap and switch puller, OnePlus has a quality braided USB Type-C to Type-C cable which can be used to connect the keyboard to your system for a much higher 1,000Hz polling rate (compared 90Hz with wireless) and a USB Type-A to Type-C adapter as well. Also included with the Keyboard 81 Pro is a hex key which matches the screws used on the case. OnePlus also throws in a few extra screws for the stabilisers and 4 extra gasket foam strips as well, in case they happen to wear out.
There is no real difference between the two keyboard options when it comes to cosmetic design. The only visual cues are the darker grey keycaps used on the alphanumeric keys, directional keys and some function keys on the Winter Bonfire option, which I received for review. The Summer Breeze option inverts the whole theme and uses light grey keys for the majority of the layout, leaving the dark grey keys for the remainder.
Yes, I will agree that grey, white, and red are typically OnePlus colours and there’s the bright red coloured keycaps on the escape key (with a OnePlus logo) and the enter key will remind many of OnePlus smartphones. But that’s pretty much where the OnePlus branding fizzles out as Keychron too sells its Q1 Pro in a very similar-looking Shell White finish complete with red keycaps for the escape and enter keys.
While many may comment that OnePlus could have toned down its branding a bit, those who will end up buying the Keyboard 81 Pro might end up customising it with custom keycaps anyways and the basic aluminium (grey) case seems like a decent starting point for the same. But yes, I feel OnePlus could have gone with more contrasting colour options out of the box.
To me, the colours of the keycaps lend the keyboard a bit of a retro-modern feel. The customisable acrylic knob at the top right corner stands out a bit but thankfully, it does not have RGB. There’s a chrome casing which surrounds it and the navigation keys makes it look very unique from anything that’s currently out there when it comes to pre-built keyboards.
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