Reviews

Clickyboard is reader-supported. When you buy through links on this page, we may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. 

Most keyboards don’t come with a screen. The Epomaker RT100 does — a small detachable display tucked into the top corner of a keyboard that otherwise looks like it wandered out of a 1980s office catalog. That combination of retro styling and a genuinely unusual gadget feature is the whole reason people ask about this board specifically, rather than just picking any keyboard from Epomaker’s RT series. This review breaks down whether the display, the layout, and the rest of the hardware add up to something worth buying, or whether the screen is carrying more of the marketing than it should.

What the RT100 Actually Is

Strip away the retro paint job and the RT100 is a 96%-ish layout board — 97 keys on US ANSI, 98 on ISO — with a numpad, a full function row, and a dedicated multimedia knob tucked into the top-right corner. It’s part of Epomaker’s RT series, which we’ve already covered in our broader Epomaker brand review as the line built around wireless reliability and eye-catching design rather than the acoustics-first approach of the TH series. The RT100 is the flagship expression of that idea: same gasket-mounted, hot-swap foundation as the rest of the lineup, wrapped in a case that leans hard into a nostalgic aesthetic most modern boards don’t attempt.

Design and Build Quality

The case comes in a handful of two-tone retro colorways, and the details back up the theme — a slightly rounded silhouette, warm accent colors, and keycap legends that look pulled from an old terminal rather than a gaming peripheral. Underneath the styling, the construction is more conventional: a gasket-mounted plate that isolates the switches from the case for a softer landing on each keystroke, and adjustable two-stage feet wrapped in silicone that add some grip and a couple of typing-angle options without the rattle that cheap flip-feet tend to develop.

PBT keycaps in an MDA profile round out the package — thicker-walled than the ABS caps you’ll find on cheaper boards, with a rounded top that splits the difference between the flatter OEM profile and taller SA-style caps. It’s a comfortable, unfussy profile that doesn’t demand any adjustment if you’re coming from a standard keyboard.

The Smart Display: Gimmick or Genuinely Useful?

The RT100’s signature feature is a small detachable screen built into the case, and it’s worth being direct about what it does and doesn’t do. Through Epomaker’s companion software, you can set it to show the time, basic system stats, a weather readout, or a custom image or short GIF. It’s genuinely fun to set up once, and it’s a reasonable conversation starter on a desk setup.

What it isn’t is essential. You will not miss any core keyboard functionality if you never touch it, and readers who found Epomaker’s other GIF-capable displays more novelty than utility in our brand review will likely feel the same way here. Treat the display as a fun extra bundled into the price, not a reason on its own to choose this board over a cheaper RT-series alternative.

Switches and Typing Feel

The RT100 ships with a choice of stock switches, including Epomaker’s own Sea Salt Silent — a dampened silent linear — or Gateron Pro Yellow, a smoother, slightly heavier linear option. Either way, the 5-pin hot-swap sockets mean the stock switches are a starting point rather than a commitment: standard 3-pin or 5-pin switches from any brand will drop in without soldering, so readers already invested in a favorite switch from our switch guides can swap freely.

Combined with the gasket mount, the typing feel lands somewhere in familiar Epomaker territory — cushioned, a little quieter than a rigid-mounted board, and consistent enough that most typists won’t feel a need to mod anything before they’re comfortable using it daily.

Connectivity and Wireless Performance

Three connection modes cover most use cases: Bluetooth 5.0 for casual multi-device use, a 2.4GHz wireless dongle (with a storage slot built into the case, so it’s not the first thing you lose) for lower-latency wireless, and USB-C for a fully wired connection. Bluetooth mode can pair with up to three devices and switch between them, which is genuinely convenient if you’re bouncing between a work laptop, a personal machine, and a tablet over the course of a day.

Battery capacity is generous enough to go several days between charges under normal use with the backlighting on, longer with it off — in line with what we’d expect from a board in this class rather than a standout in either direction.

Gaming Performance

Full anti-ghosting and N-key rollover mean the RT100 won’t drop inputs even when you’re mashing several keys at once, which covers the baseline requirement for any keyboard marketed toward gamers. That said, this isn’t a competitive-first board: Bluetooth introduces enough latency that fast-paced shooters are better played wired or over the 2.4GHz connection, a pattern consistent with what we found across Epomaker’s wireless boards generally. For casual and mid-intensity gaming, wired or 2.4GHz mode is plenty responsive.

Software

Epomaker’s companion software handles key remapping, macro creation, RGB customization, and configuring the smart display’s content. It gets the job done without being especially polished — consistent with the software critique in our broader Epomaker brand review, where we noted the driver is functional but dated-feeling. Once your lighting, macros, and display settings are saved, though, there’s no need to keep the software running in the background.

Who Should Actually Buy This

The RT100 makes the most sense for readers who want the retro look and the smart display specifically — if that combination doesn’t appeal to you, a plainer RT-series board or the TH80 V2 Pro will get you the same hot-swap, gasket-mounted foundation for less money. Where the RT100 earns its price is in the details that don’t show up on a spec sheet: the tri-device Bluetooth switching, the case-mounted dongle storage, and a typing feel that doesn’t need any modding to feel finished.

Skip it if competitive gaming is the priority — the wireless latency profile isn’t built for that — or if the retro aesthetic isn’t your style, since it’s central to the board’s identity rather than incidental to it.

Check current Epomaker RT100 pricing on Amazon →

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Epomaker RT100 hot-swappable?

Yes — 5-pin hot-swap sockets accept both 3-pin and 5-pin switches without soldering.

What is the smart display on the Epomaker RT100?

A small detachable screen that shows the time, system stats, weather, or a custom image/GIF via Epomaker’s software. It’s a fun extra, not a core feature.

Does the Epomaker RT100 work well for gaming?

It’s fine for casual and mid-intensity gaming wired or over 2.4GHz. Bluetooth’s added latency makes it a weaker choice for competitive, fast-paced titles.

How does the RT100 compare to the rest of Epomaker’s lineup?

It’s the design-forward flagship of the RT series, prioritizing retro styling and the smart display over the acoustics-first TH series or the tinkerer-focused F series.

Disclosure: This review contains affiliate links. If you buy through them we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

What it is

The MOD 007 V2 is Akko’s enthusiast-leaning 75% board, sold as a DIY kit. You get the case, plates, PCB, stabilizers, and foam, and you add your own switches and keycaps (Akko also sells prebuilt versions). The headline is the value: a machined aluminium case and gasket mount at a price where most boards still use plastic. It is aimed at people who want that premium, flexy custom feel without sourcing every part themselves.

Build and design

Out of the box the MOD 007 V2 feels the part. The CNC aluminium case is dense and solid, with none of the hollow flex you get from cheaper boards, and at around 1.4 kg it stays planted on the desk. The gasket mount softens each keystroke and, paired with the pre-installed Poron case foam and switch pads, gives a controlled sound with little of the hollow ping older boards suffer from.

The V2 refinements are what make it worth attention. The PCB is slimmed from 1.6 mm to 1.2 mm for more flex, it ships with both an aluminium plate (firmer, sharper) and a polycarbonate plate (softer, deeper), and the silicone gaskets can be swapped for spare Poron ones. In practice that means you can tune the feel and sound to your taste without buying a second board.

Specifications

Assembly: what to expect

The DIY kit is not a solder-and-sweat project, but it is not plug-and-play either. You pick a plate, seat the stabilizers (worth lubing first), clip in your switches, fit your keycaps, and screw the case together. From opening the box to typing is about 30 to 45 minutes for a first-timer, less once you have done one. Nothing needs a soldering iron thanks to the hot-swap PCB.

The one job worth not skipping is tuning the stabilizers. They are decent out of the box but a quick lube and a clip removes the last of the spacebar rattle and is the difference between good and great sound on this board. If you would rather skip assembly entirely, buy the prebuilt version instead.

Typing experience

Assembled with a decent linear or tactile switch, the MOD 007 V2 punches well above its price. The gasket mount and thin PCB give a gentle, cushioned flex that takes the harshness out of bottoming out, and the foam keeps the sound tight and clean. It genuinely feels like a board costing more than it does.

The screw-in stabilizers are good, though like almost any kit they benefit from a quick lube and tune to fully silence the larger keys. That is normal at this level and part of the fun for many builders.

Aluminium vs polycarbonate plate

Getting both plates in the box is the MOD 007 V2’s cleverest feature, because the plate changes the board’s character more than most people expect. The aluminium plate keeps typing crisp and firm with a higher-pitched, sharper sound, which suits linears and fast typing. The polycarbonate plate flexes more and drops the pitch, giving a softer, deeper, more cushioned feel that pairs beautifully with tactiles. Swapping them is a five-minute job, so you can try both and settle on the one you like rather than guessing at checkout.

Pros and cons

Who should buy it

Buy it if you want your first taste of a premium, gasket-mounted aluminium board without building fully from scratch, and you are happy to drop in switches and keycaps. It is outstanding value for the feel you get.

Skip it if you need wireless, want something that works the moment it arrives with zero assembly or tuning, or you dislike ABS keycaps and do not want to buy a PBT set. For a fully assembled Akko option, see our Akko 3098B review, and browse more in our best Akko keyboards guide.

The bottom line

The Akko MOD 007 V2 delivers a genuinely premium typing feel, machined aluminium, gasket flex, and swappable plates, for a price that keeps embarrassing pricier boards. As long as you are comfortable assembling a kit and do not need wireless, it is one of the best value entries into the custom-feel world, and an easy board to recommend.

Frequently asked questions

Ducky has an unusual position in mechanical keyboards. The Taiwanese brand has been making the same kind of product for well over a decade, largely ignoring trends, and it is still the default recommendation whenever somebody asks for a prebuilt that will not fall apart.

That reputation is real, but it is not the whole picture, and a lot of the advice online is still describing boards from 2019. This covers what the brand actually gets right, what genuinely annoys people about it, and which model in the current lineup makes sense for you.

What Ducky actually does differently

Four things account for almost the entire reputation.

Genuine Cherry MX switches. While most of the market moved to cheaper clones, Ducky kept shipping real Cherry across the range. Clones have improved enormously and some now beat Cherry outright, so this matters less than it did, but it does mean you know exactly what you are getting.

Thick doubleshot PBT keycaps as standard. This is the one that still separates Ducky from most competitors at the price. The legends are moulded rather than printed, so they cannot wear off, and the caps resist the greasy shine that ABS develops within months. Plenty of keyboards costing more ship thin ABS.

No software. Ducky boards are programmed with key combinations on the board itself, and settings live in onboard memory. There is nothing to install, nothing running in your system tray, and the board behaves identically on any machine you plug it into. Some people consider this the best thing about the brand and others find it maddening, which is covered below.

QUACK Mechanics. Ducky’s name for the layered foam and silicone dampening introduced with the One 3. It is the change that took the brand from hollow-sounding to genuinely good out of the box, and it is the main reason older reviews undersell current models.

The current lineup compared

Ducky One 3: the one to buy

The One 3 is the model the brand’s current reputation rests on, and unless you have a specific reason to want something else, it is the answer.

It brought two changes that mattered. The first is the hot-swap sockets, which finally let you change switches on a Ducky without soldering, turning it from a fixed product into something you can keep tuning. The second is QUACK Mechanics, the internal foam and silicone layers that kill the hollow resonance older Ducky boards were criticised for. Together they moved the One 3 from a well-built but plain board to one that sounds good with no modification at all.

Everything else is the usual Ducky package: doubleshot PBT, N-key rollover, onboard memory, and a case that does not flex when you pick it up by a corner.

It comes in four sizes, which is the main decision you have to make:

• Mini (60%) if desk space matters more than arrow keys, and you are happy using layers. See our 65% guide for the closest alternative if that sounds like too much.
• SF (65%) is the sweet spot for most people, keeping arrow keys in a compact body.
• TKL (80%) if you want the function row and full navigation cluster.
• Full size if you need the number pad.

Ducky One X: the inductive one

The One X is the most interesting keyboard Ducky has made in years, and it is worth understanding why even if you do not buy it.

Most adjustable-actuation keyboards use Hall effect switches, which put a magnet in each switch and a sensor under it. The One X uses inductive sensing instead, with coils built into the PCB reading the switches collectively rather than needing a dedicated sensor per key. Ducky’s argument for the approach is consistency: there is no magnet whose field strength can vary between units or weaken over time.

In practice that gives you the features people buy analogue boards for. Actuation is adjustable in 0.1 mm steps across the full travel, rapid trigger is supported, and the board polls at 1000 Hz. It is also gasket mounted with an extended version of Ducky’s dampening, and it is the brand’s proper answer on wireless, with wired, 2.4 GHz and Bluetooth all supported.

Notably, it is also where Ducky finally relented on software, using a web-based configurator rather than the onboard hotkeys the brand is known for. If adjustable actuation is what you are after, this is a serious option. If it is not, the One 3 will serve you better for less. Our Hall effect explainer covers what adjustable actuation actually does and whether you need it.

Ducky Origin: the straightforward one

The Origin is Ducky stripped back. Full size, wired, Cherry MX switches, doubleshot PBT caps, south-facing LEDs and not much else. Hot-swap is limited rather than across the whole board, so treat it as a keyboard you buy in the configuration you want rather than a platform to modify.

It exists for people who want the build quality without paying for features they will not use, and the Vintage colourway is the closest the brand comes to being good looking. If you want a keyboard you will plug in once and use for five years without thinking about it, this is the one.

What Ducky does badly

An honest review has to spend time here, because the brand’s weaknesses are consistent and predictable.

The no-software philosophy cuts both ways. It is genuinely excellent if you set a board up once and leave it. It is genuinely awful if you want to remap keys often, because you are reading a manual to find the right key combination instead of dragging a key in a visual editor. There is no VIA or QMK support either, which is what enthusiasts increasingly expect at this price.

Most of the range is still wired. Outside the One X, wireless is not really part of the lineup, which is a real gap now that tri-mode is standard on much cheaper boards.

The aesthetics are divisive. Ducky’s colourways and its habit of putting bright accent keys and logos on the board are the most common complaint in reviews. This is fixable, since the caps are standard sized and easy to replace, but you are paying for good keycaps and then replacing them.

The value argument has weakened. Ducky used to be clearly better built than anything near its price. Chinese brands have closed much of that gap and often ship gasket mounts, wireless and VIA support for less. Ducky still wins on keycaps and long-term reliability, but the margin is narrower than its reputation suggests.

Are Ducky keyboards still worth it?

Yes, with a clear condition attached.

Buy Ducky if you value a board that is built properly and then leaves you alone. Nothing needs installing, nothing updates itself, the keycaps will look the same in three years, and the case will not develop a rattle. For a lot of people that is exactly what a keyboard should be, and it is why the brand keeps getting recommended.

Buy something else if you want wireless across the range, per-key remapping through a visual editor, or the lowest possible price for a given spec sheet. Those are all real requirements, and Ducky does not serve any of them well.

Frequently asked questions