Practical test and sound check
In the practical test, the Akko 5075B had to undergo the usual procedure. Besides the obligatory round of CS:GO, this complete review was written with the test model and, of course, the keyboard was in use for a few more hours as part of the battery test. Since Akko was also kind enough to send us the alternatively available switches, we naturally tested both variants.
Gaming, typing feel and switch comparison
First the gaming test, because I also want to briefly discuss the difference in the connection here. Because wireless (via 2.4 GHz dongle – Bluetooth was only tested on the smartphone) a slight delay was noticeable. At least during my bumbling “peeking” in CS:GO I noticed that. I had first installed the linear switches (wireless) and then changed to the blue switches. At first I thought that the blue switches triggered much more directly, but in fact it was due to the connection. The Creamy Yellow Switches are excellent switches, very comfortable for both gaming and typing. Due to their wide “plunger”, quasi identical to the well-known Box Switches, they offer a high stability. Due to the relatively short overall stroke, the release could even happen a touch earlier for my taste, but overall a very very good switch that seems to me like a fusion of the red Kailh Box Switches and the Glorious Fox Switches. You can also use the Creamy Yellow very well for typing, because it offers a slightly greater resistance than the standard fare (MX red), and goes more in the direction of MX black – with a significantly shorter stroke, however.
The tactile effect of the Creamy Blue switches is not overly pronounced and definitely weaker than the Cherry MX blue. In terms of behavior, they are relatively similar to the white Kailh Box switches, of course without the clicky sound, which I actually find very unfortunate. For me, the tactile bump should be a bit more pronounced and accompanied by an acoustic click. The precision when typing is higher with the tactile switch, at least the Creamy Blue still rather corresponds to my preferences when typing.
I can again come to the same conclusion here that I come to with every comparison between tactile and linear switches: The linear switch for gaming, the tactile switch for typing. Basically, both the typing feel and the muffled sound due to the gasket mounting are very pleasant. The small Akko is quite appealing with its decent haptics.
Sound check
As usual, the recordings were made with the Elgato Wave XLR and its XLR interface. I like the muffled and completely “ping”-free sound of the keyboard very much, but it could be a bit more muffled/bassier.
Normal Writing Cream Yellow Linear:
5 x Space, 5 x Backspace and 5 x Enter Cream Yellow Linear:
Normal Writing Creamy Blue Tactile:
5 x Space, 5 x Backspace, and 5 x Enter Creamy Blue Tactile:
Operation of the volume control
Power consumption
Of course, the obligatory measurement of the power consumption should not be missing.
The AKKO keyboard is frugal and never exceeded the USB specifications at any time.
Connectivity
Naturally, all connectivity options were tested during the review. Besides the regular wired connection via USB, the keyboard also supports the Bluetooth 5.0 standard and comes with a proprietary 2.4GHz dongle. All connections are possible immediately and without driver installation, switching between the three modes is quick and easy, and up to 3 Bluetooth connections can be “saved”. Access is only ever possible via the selected connection, so there is no input chaos. All connections were possible without problems and without connection interruptions.
Problems and weak points
Because I noticed a few weak points during testing, I don’t want to leave them unmentioned. Sorry Akko, but as “newbies” you just have to go through it and the more constructive feedback you get, the better you can do it in the future. There are also not so many things that I want to address. Promised.
Battery life
This is only about 7 hours with the 2.4GHz wireless connection and RGB lighting (Rainbow) in maximum brightness, which is relatively little. The K70 Mini lasted almost three times as long under the same conditions.
Delay
Even with the fastest wireless connection (2.4 GHz dongle), I noticed a slight input lag in CS:GO. It’s probably hard to show without the appropriate measuring devices, but with the wired connection, the key releases actually felt noticeably more direct.
Software and handling
There is definitely still room for improvement here. The software lacks many comfort functions, especially in terms of lighting control. Some translations are questionable and some key combinations are apparently not even executable with the ISO-DE layout or at least not findable because the listed key doesn’t even exist.
Palm rest
Unfortunately, the palm rest is missing here as well – an accessory that I simply expect to be included in a 120€ keyboard. But well, it’s not included with an 80€ more expensive K70 Mini.
Falsified illumination
And while we’re on the subject of illumination: The cold white when using the Creamy Yellow switches is definitely not a real blue. I wouldn’t have recognized any connection if I hadn’t done a functional test halfway through the conversion of the switches. Here I noticed that the illumination, initially thought to be faulty, was due to the housing color of the switch. You can see well in the following picture that the backlight of the letters (Creamy Blue) glows a strong blue, while the illumination of the number row (Creamy Yellow) is more like a cold white. Conversely, when using the Creamy Blue switches with their slightly bluish housings, yellow tones are naturally “distorted”, which then clearly drift into “green”. Akko should consider giving their switches completely transparent housings to avoid this.
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