Nuphy Air V2 review: Low-profile keyboards get elevated

Price When Reviewed

$139.95

Best Prices Today: Nuphy Air96 V2 keyboard

$159.99

Mechanical keyboards are versatile and cozy, however massive and hulking. Low-profile keyboards are smooth and journey nicely, however supply far fewer choices. Is it potential to have the perfect of each worlds? No. Thanks for studying this evaluate, don’t let the door hit you the place the great Lord break up you. 

That’s what I’d have stated a month in the past. But Nuphy’s tackle the low-profile keyboard is the perfect I’ve ever used, particularly as a result of it makes quite a lot of effort to beat the shape issue’s traditional deficiencies. The Air96 V2 isn’t fairly good, however if you’d like a smaller, sleeker keyboard with out giving up a few of the benefits of premium mechanical designs, this could possibly be precisely what you’ve been ready for. 

Further studying: See our roundup of the best mechanical keyboards to find out about competing merchandise.

Nuphy Air96 V2’s design: Stylish

The Nuphy Air96 is a classy and colourful tackle the low-profile keyboard, inheriting quite a lot of design queues from premium Apple and Logitech designs. Two deviations are instantly apparent: the splash of shade within the keycaps, and the total quantity pad squeezed into the horizontal area.

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Let’s deal with that first half. Nuphy makes quite a lot of completely different keyboards, largely standard mechanical designs. So it’s no shock that even right here on a low-profile construct, they’ve added a little bit of distinction within the keycaps. On our grey evaluate unit you get a yellow area bar, salmon Enter key, and a little bit of teal on the Escape and num pad Enter keys, however the field additionally features a few alternates along with Windows- and Mac-flavored command keys. 

These keycaps deserve just a little consideration on their very own. They’re shallow and barely dished, because it traditional for low-profile switches, however they’re additionally double-shot, high-quality PBT plastic. That means the legends won’t ever put on off, and the feel is barely grainy in a lovely method. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

The trendy touches don’t cease there. While the highest fringe of the case is aluminum with a beady texture, the underside of the physique is translucent plastic, decreasing weight for journey and including a little bit of aptitude. And whereas we’re on the subject of aptitude, observe the coloured keyboard toes, connection and energy toggles on the highest, and an engraved metallic plate on the underside the place most producers accept a sticker. Fancy. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

One final little bit of flash within the design is on the left and proper sides of the keys, subsequent to the Escape and Page Down keys respectively: a tiny RGB mild strip. These operate as energy and standing indicators, however you may as well have them going on a regular basis, along with (or unbiased of) the RGB lights underneath the keys. I don’t discover these notably helpful, as their sensible operate might have been stuffed with a few single LEDs. But they do add only one extra little bit of distinction to the design. 

Custom switches and hot-swap sockets

So that’s the skin-deep have a look at this smooth little quantity. But what’s underneath the hood? Just beneath the keycaps you’ll discover Gateron low-profile switches. But not simply any Red, Blue, and Brown alternatives. These switches have been custom-made by Nuphy (or extra exactly, made to the corporate’s particular order by Gateron) with just a little further goodness. 

Nuphy gives four customized alternatives to Gateron’s standard switches, playfully named and coloured Cowberry (linear, no bump), Moss (tactile, slight bump with extra-strong springs), Daisy (linear, barely stronger than Cowberry), Wisteria (tactile, lighter than Moss), and Aloe (linear, very mild). In addition to the customized colours and is derived, these get lubed proper within the manufacturing unit.

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Our evaluate unit got here with Wisteria tactile switches, and some single switches of the opposite flavors simply to check them out. And I used to be shocked at how good they’re, along with a few of the different decisions within the Air’s design. But extra on that later. The cause that the retail bundle additionally consists of alternate switches is that the keyboard’s swap sockets are hot-swap succesful. 

That’s an excellent characteristic to have in a standard mechanical keyboard, nevertheless it’s discovered rather a lot much less typically in low-profile boards. Not solely as a result of it’s a reasonably costly little bit of added engineering, requiring an additional half on each single key, however as a result of there are far fewer swap decisions for low-profile boards since there’s no near-universal normal like Cherry MX. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Nuphy has picked a swap that’s as broad open because it will get for low-profile designs with Gateron (it’s the identical one Keychron’s low-profile boards use), commissioned a number of high-quality swap variations, and is promoting them on to customers. It’s a set of choices that offers their very own prospects tons of latest choices, and makes their very own keyboards higher. You get a gold star, Nuphy. 

There are a few different options price highlighting right here, too. The Air V2 sequence gives the same old triple-device Bluetooth connection, plus a 2.4GHz direct dongle within the field. Again, that is one thing that’s turning into extra widespread on high-end wi-fi mechanical boards (plus it’s normal for firms like Logitech), nevertheless it’s much less widespread within the low-profile area of interest. Since this makes the keyboard viable for many players along with its 1,000Hz polling, it’s very welcome. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

The final massive characteristic on the checklist is programming. Like Keychron, Nuphy has gone with VIA and QMK, open requirements that followers of high-end designs will know and recognize. Considering how most home-grown keyboard programming software program ranges from “okay” to “head-smashingly terrible,” I believe that’s one of the simplest ways to go for something that isn’t devoted to gaming. It’s one more stable selection. 

Typing and gaming 

How does all this come collectively for truly utilizing the Nuphy Air? Shockingly nicely. Typing on the Air96 V2 has that deep, satisfying really feel that you simply get from a premium mechanical keyboard, with the apparent exception of the deep key journey. Even the stabilizers for lengthy keys, a frequent weak level, really feel nice. 

This comes from a mix of high quality switches (see above) and a number of layers of insulation for sound and vibration dampening. It’s a formidable feat, for the reason that keyboard is clearly extraordinarily skinny. According to the corporate’s promotional materials, there are three skinny layers of plastic and foam between the bottom circuit board and the highest of the case. While it isn’t designed to be taken aside, you possibly can see the highest layer of froth while you take away the switches.  

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

For the sake of comparability (and for enjoyable, as a result of that is my pastime too) I purchased a set of Nuphy Moss switches and put in them in a Keychron Okay-series board, one of many solely different keyboards that each makes use of Gateron low-profile switches and gives a hot-swap possibility. And whereas they’re a particular enchancment over the usual Red low-profile switches, Nuphy’s Air keyboard physique nonetheless has an undeniably superior really feel and sound. 

I don’t notably wish to sport on low-profile switches, since I’ve spent many years taking part in with longer journey. And the Wisteria tactile switches within the evaluate unit aren’t nice for video games, both. But with a speedy dongle connection, a wired possibility if you happen to demand much more velocity, and a selection of a number of linear switches, there are not any explicit crimson flags if you wish to use the Air96 V2 for video games. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

There’s just one factor that tripped me up whereas utilizing it: the structure. Squishing the quantity pad (which I don’t notably want) proper subsequent to the Enter key and arrow keys gave me greater than the same old variety of typos when adjusting to a brand new keyboard. Nuphy gives the identical design in 75 % and 60 % layouts, the Air75 V2 and Air60 V2, respectively. I’d go for the mid-sized possibility myself, for the reason that Air60 has a tiny proper Shift key, however that’s me and my horrible typing habits speaking. 

Is the Nuphy Air96 V2 price it?

Nuphy asks for $130 for the Air96 V2, although the flowery customized switches in our evaluate unit carry the worth as much as $140. The smaller sizes get a $10 and $20 low cost. That feels nearly proper contemplating each the premium supplies and the dearth of competitors on this area of interest. 

Consider that Logitech wants $110 for the MX Keys S and Apple asks $129 for the Magic Keyboard, each at full dimension, neither of which provide true mechanical switches, to say nothing of RGB or hot-swap performance. Keychron’s K17 Pro is the closest analog to the Air96 V2, and it’s $119 for a similar RGB and hot-swap choices. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

But the Okay17 Pro and its siblings are Bluetooth-only, and don’t supply the higher switches and sound dampening that Nuphy does as simply $20 much less. While Keychron has the identical glorious VIA and QMK programming choices, I’d give Nuphy the sting on pure high quality of typing expertise alone. The solely factor Nuphy is missing is an possibility for many who choose a break up/ergonomic structure.

And in additional subjective phrases, I similar to the Nuphy’s poppy shade choices higher. All three colorways for the Air sequence are interesting, and so they supply further keycap units for a very reasonable $34 every. 

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

Michael Crider/Foundry

The Air96 V2 is just the perfect low-profile mechanical keyboard I’ve examined. It crams tons of options and glorious typing right into a tiny bundle, even when I’m not a fan of the squished full-sized structure. Then it covers that bundle with a splash of fashion, at a very reasonable value. If you need mechanical flexibility in a tiny, moveable bundle, the Air V2 sequence is sort of good.