Cosmic Byte CB-GK-13 Neon Rainbow Backlit Mechanical Keyboard with Brown Outemu Switch (Black)

This is my first mechanical keyboard and I am loving it! I was explicitly looking for "Brown" equivalent switches as I was not sure about the sound factor of the "Blue" equivalent switches, having come from the common membrane keyboards and the usual laptop "Chicklet" keyboards in my college and professional life so far, but I was sure that I wanted to experience the "mechanical switch" based keyboard, having worked with them in my school days. Thank you Cosmic Byte for making this extremely value option available for people like me, especially with the "brown switch", which is an absolute rarity in India at this price point. And it is an extremely well made keyboard! Remember the movie fight scenes where a keyboard is used as a weapon? Well, this keyboard can actually be used there, it is so well made! And the finishing touches and details are great too, nothing to complain about. I work in IT and I have been using this as my primary keyboard for the past 2 months, and there have been no complaints. I have also been trying to improve my typing speed and this keyboard has helped me get over my past membrane keyboard based average of 38 wpm, I am at around 45 wpm right now, and I can clearly see a lot of room for improvements, I am sure that word count is going to grow significantly in near future. I bought this from Amazon, and it was delivered quickly as promised to my address, and was even replaced once at my request within the replacement window. I had requested a replacement as there was something loose within the keyboard that was making a clinking noise when the keyboard was moved, though there was no isue with the keybpard functioning. The relacement was done without any hassle from Amazon. At around 2k INR, this is a clincher. In fact, having used it for a couple of months, I wouldn't mind buying it at the stated MRP of 2.5k if I ever have to buy it again. I would obviously advise everyone to go for it, if you want to try the mechanical keyboard as an option to see if you really enjoy the feeling of one, and if it improves your productivity significantly, this is one of the best options to begin your journey - it is a very well made keyboard, but it does not cost a bomb and if it does not go to your liking, you can still find a use for it as it does not make an unhealthy amount of noise (think office environment or late night work from home, or even as a gift to someone deserving, like a student in your family who scored really well in the exams). However, if it does go well (the most likely scenario), you will glean many pleasurable hours (hopefully years) of usage, not to mention the admirable glances and vocal compliments of all who witness it! It sure is a treat for the eyes, if nothing else, in all its back lit, effect filled presence on your table. I have worked with membrane keyboards that cost in similar figures (1k+ INR), and I would say this one is definitely more value than those (relatively) expensive membrane keyboards, solely in terms of the typing experience and expected longevity. You have to allow for a few days to let the "feel" settle in to really understand and appreciate the difference a mechanical keyboard makes. Though I have not worked with the more expensive ones marketed as "semi-mechanical", but I would say try out a mechanical keyboard before spending a bomb on a "semi-mechanical", especially this one with Outemu switches, which are one of the best, if not the best, value Kailh alternatives out there. I saw a lot of Youtube video comparisons to come to that understanding, as I am sure you would too before opting for this. The only reason to go for a membrane keyboard if you are willing to spend in the vicinity of 1.5k INR would be if you are planning to carry it around a lot (even then, I would say save your money and buy something cheaper, they are not worth more than 800 INR at the most IMHO, and even then, get a back lit chicklet one, they are the most sensible portable alternative), as this one is not meant for being carried around - it is heavy (as all mechanical keyboards are) and is best used at a stationary work station, not lugged around in a back pack. You can do it, if you really want to, but I wouldn't recommend it, considering the weight, and also considering what a beauty this is, I would say it doesn't deserve that "treatment" of being smothered in a backpack. If that is not making sense to you, just wait till you set your eyes on this beauty, and it will!

The keyboard is amazing for this price point, You know the good part, ill tell you about the bad part of this keyboard I am updating this after 4 month of heavy usage and gaming! (28/11/2019) 1-some people might find lack of stabilizer in keys as a issue 2-Only top plate is aluminum, BUT KEYBOARD IS STILL 0.98KG 3-Jixian switches are soldered to the pcb, but at this price its ok 4-Lacks in built memory , so you have to reset lighting again and again once you turn it off. 5-Aluminium plate can pick some scratches if not handled carefully 6- MOST IMPORTANT the cable being not braided can be issue for some 7-The user manual has a lot of mistakes and has wrong features written , i mailed cosmic byte to confirm , they denied any such features mentioned. 8- Ok,after usage i realized, that the key puller is real flimsy, please take good care to avoid any such damages. I got this keyboard for under 1900/- so, wait for the right time and buy it at cheaper rates, because if you are willing to spend above 2k rupees, the Zebronics max pro would be a better option. However at this price point. the keyboards build quality is amazing, I am using it right now to type this review! So buy it when you get a good price or buy a combo if possible.

I was looking for a mechanical keyboard. I researched and found about blue, red , brown switches. They all are different. I was looking for tactile and not sounding, because it's not ideal to make others disturb or grab unnecessarily grab other's attention with my keyboard. So I finally decided to purchase to buy a keyboard with brown switches. At this price range this is the only one with brown switches. Pros 1. This looks and feels very sturdy and premium. 2. All the goodness of a mechanical keyboard. 3. Those brown switches are very good. They are little tactile and doesn't make unnecessary noise. 4. Typing on it feels professional. 5. Packaging was very good. Cons Not as such, but if I really try to find : 1. Doesn't remember the lighting settings from last time. 2. Gaming person's issues like all the keys are not RGB, so color of each row is fixed. But those things really don't bother me, it looks beautiful. It's for typing for me, not to create smart lighting in my room. So if you are a gamer and have your personal hifi color customisation needs then go with other models. So, for a mature person with serious work, coding, practice, general typing, even for gaming (go with blue switches option), this is a fantastic option in this price bracket. Like if you found it helpful.

I chose the Blue Switch Mechanical Keyboard. It has the Outemu switches instead of Jixian switches and the product has a complete repackaging. I've been using the keyboard for 2 days and telling my experience after shifting from Dell kb216, which is a chiclet-style keyboard. Pros: Typing is a joy. It requires much less pressure than I thought. The clicks are moderately loud and the bumps are mild. So, if you are thinking about choosing the Brown version, I assume the clicky sound would be gone but you may not even feel the bump. Very good keyboard for writers who have to do a lot of typing. Sturdy built quality. I like the sound which I was a little worried about. My wpm didn't improve much cause I'm still getting used to the feel and layout of the keyboard. But I can type for longer and without any fatigue because It feels nice to type. I assume it would feel even better to type once I master touch typing. The lights are bright if you care. It can also be turned off completely by pressing the Fn + down arrow key 4 times from maximum brightness. Cons The light pattern resets after every shutdown. You can press Fn + Esc for 10 secs to save the setting but it only works for 1 restart. But even this is not that annoying once you get in the habit, lol. The font is terrible. I really don't like it. If you have never used a keyboard before, you might have a hard time locating a few characters that you don't use frequently. I may update my review if I encounter any problem.

Don't be taken back by the reference images which make the keyboard look orders of magnitude uglier than it is. The keyboard looks okay and the typeface could definitely be improved. After all, keyboards are made to be touched, not looked at. Speaking of touches, the Outemu Browns aren't that crispy-tactile and the keys are a bit wobbly, though that doesn't deter a programmer from using this. At this price, the keyboard is worth every penny, given I'm migrating from a Logitech K380 membrane keyboard which was more expensive, had interference issues, key failures and sometimes typed by itself like it was posessed (and no, I never brought so much as a drop of water close to it). The keycaps are decent and I opened up the machine to see a beautiful circuit with very good soldering. The lack of non-volatile lighting memory is kinda annoying. After all, you need about five bits of storage and any decent microcontroller has a non-volatile store these days - meaning the manufacturer deliberately downgraded the software here to sell a pricier keyboard. I might desolder the backlight LEDs and forget that one. All to say, it'd be a fool's act to go for much pricier keyboards when they offer only slight improvements over this. The journey's only begun and I'll update in case anything relevant happens. Update: Been a while since I bought this machine. The lack of tactility causes fingers to bottom out, which over time inflicts severe damage, making it extremely painful to type. Additionally the keyboard died. Dropping rating from 4 to 1 star.

Update: As of August 23, 2022, the "A" key is starting to have issues (it does not register sometimes), and the middle row backlighting starts blinking even with backlighting turned off. This was just a year after purchase, but I've asked customer support if something can be done about it. No longer recommended. Get a higher model like their Vanth and Alturas, or something from a reputable brand like Redgear or Redragon or even HP (which offers 3 years of warranty). I bought it for ₹1,860, which is maybe the cheapest you can buy a mechanical keyboard for. It's very good for its price, the keys are nice and bright. "Gaming" style legend might be a little confusing for some, the "O" and "0" keys look more like [] for example. It's very nice in its feel, body is well built. It also has media control in the Function keys which is nice, I like being able to control the volume without using the Windows volume slider. There's also a Windows lock, which disables the Windows key so you don't accidentally open the Start menu when it's pressed. I have just 2 complaints, one is very minor and the other is maybe a little serious (I'm not sure how big the issue can be): 1. The keyboard is always in a "rotating" LED mode when it's on. It's nice for the first boot and for a show-off, but it's not practical. It's a minor issue because I can always change it to all keys on immediately, but it's still an inconvenience. I wish the all keys lit was the default mode. 2. When you turn the backlight off, you can see it still twinkling slightly if you really look. You can also see it in the Num/Caps/Scroll/Windows lock. Even when they're turned off, they're clearly lit (and more visible because they're not covered by keys). I'm not sure if that's a really big deal because it works fine. It just makes me a little worried about the quality of the LEDs. Those are my 2 small complaints. Otherwise it's a very good keyboard, especially for its price if you just want a mechanical keyboard without any fancy bells and whistles like some other gaming keyboards. Update: As of November 4, 2021, the backlight behind the Windows key has stopped working.

Best keyboard around this price. Writing this review after 2 months. I don't do gaming(can't say anything about it) but i used it for programming and making documents. Build quality:5/5 at this price point they are giving aluminium build and it is very sturdy no flex at all. Ofcourse, you get plastic bottom pannel but it is sturdy as well. Keys 4/5: keys used are outemu blue/brown switches and they are almost close to cherry mx and give a very good for typing. Wire 4/5: Wire is NOT BRAIDED. Even though Amazon's description has a mention but it is not braided but cable is of good quality and coverings are good as well. Keycaps 2/5: keycaps are decent because they get loose if you remove it once or twice and text is not visible without backlight. It is really difficult to see without backlight. Backlight 3/5: backlight is kind of cheap looking but it is managable. However, everytime you disconnect the keyboard or shutdown it looses the backlight memory and is reset so everytime you connect you have to switch the mode and brightness. I would also like to mention that stabilizer are present on this keyboard for long keys only like spacebar, plus key, enter key, shift key etc. Which is really great as mechanical keys have a bad history of wobbling and stabilizer reduces it very well. Also, you would see people mentioning about jixian switches but they all reviews are before half of 2020 and it seems seeing the issues cosmic byte started providing this keyboard with outemu switches which are a lot more better. However, This is totally my prediction and i cannot confirm about this information. Overall, typing experience on this keyboard is great for the price. It is a value for money keyboard and worth considering if you don't have problems with above keypoints.

I have regularly used HP/Dell Wireless keyboards and wanted to switch to mechanical keyboard. I do casual gaming and lot of coding. This keyboard is compact and may take some time to get used to, but the typing speed is great for me with good tactile feedback. I have taken the brown switch version- I have checked by removing some keys, and it uses Outemu Brown switches. The sound is not as loud as blue switches (I am comparing with some videos I saw on Outemu blues). But if you smash the keys hard, they do make good sound. The keyboard panel is made of aluminium, cold to touch and the build quality seems excellent. Far better from all the plastic keyboard I have used. There is gold plated USB connector which seems will last long without rusting. I have checked all the keys and it is working fine. I will update the review after few weeks on my experience. The led lightings and effects are ok. I do not prefer the effects and keep all LEDs on. Though there are around 10 patterns if you prefer. ALSO, this I discovered late, there are more patterns if you press Fn+1, Fn+2 upto 6. Fn+1 lights up WASD, Esc and arrow keys so it is lights for minimalist gaming buttons. 2 through 6 lights up few more keys. The keyboard misses on few areas, but it should be no bother at this price point, but here they are: 1. The lightning effect gets resetted each time you power cycle your system/ unplug and replug the keyboard. It starts with the annoying snake pattern mode. The brightness setting is also lost. So you have to set it up with Fn+Ins for effects and Fn+arrows for brightness again. 2. The markings on keycaps are not too visible when leds are off. This should not be a concern for touch typists, but for me who hover their fingers on the keys, I have to keep the leds on permanently. Though on the lowest brightness.