DROPALT Mechanical Keyboard — 65% (67 Key) Gaming Keyboard, Hot-Swap Switches, Programmable Macros, RGB LED Backlighting, USB-C, Doubleshot PBT, Aluminum Frame (Halo True, Black)

Before I get into this, I have to mention that the first ALT I received had a broken stabilizer. I've seen this mentioned a few times, so it seems like a common problem. I have dampener rings, so I removed all the keycaps and one of the stabilizer stems came off with the spacebar, but I contacted customer service and had a new ALT less than 24 hours later. Anyway, now for the review:I've used quite a few mechanical keyboards, but this is only the second one that I've owned. My first was a Cooler Master MasterKeys Pro S RGB. I love that keyboard. I went with blue switches, and my year with it has convinced me to never use a non-mechanical keyboard ever again. I began looking for a new one. Not that the Cooler Master needs to be replaced (honestly, I have had zero issues with it, and I'm sure I'll have it around for many years), I just wanted a better-looking keyboard.I spent a lot of time researching DIY boards, trying to find something that looked great, had solid construction, and had the potential for customization. I kept coming across this keyboard as a good balance between hobby and consumer. I knew I wanted blue switches again, so the typing experience itself wasn't something I was worried about, as I already know I love these switches.What sold me on this keyboard is the aesthetic, construction, and customization. Low-profile, RGB backlight and border, aluminum (I bought the black) case, hot-swappable switches (if I ever decide I'm being too noisy with the blues), and FULLY programmable via QMK.I've been using this keyboard for less than a full day and it's basically the perfect mechanical keyboard (probably way too early to say this, but I can also edit this review later). I flashed my customizations. LED colors, added a few key changes (like swapping esc with fn+esc, for easier access to ` and ~). I really like the textured keycaps, which I've read that some people consider "cheap feeling". I disagree.A few more things:Anyone hesitating because of the duplicate keystroke issue should stay away from the cheaper switches. This issue is almost certainly caused by the switches, not the board. I haven't read of anyone having this issue with the MX switches. That's what I wanted anyway, so, yeah, it hasn't been an issue for me. I believe the Halo switches are the ones that this is happening with. If you already own this board and you're having this issue, CHANGE YOUR SWITCHES.Anyone worried about any of the scary information online about having to learn to code to use QMK for this board, ignore it. I am a programmer, so I kept seeing those comments in reviews and forums and didn't think anything of it, just figuring I'd have to read some documentation to do what I wanted. Not at all. It's very simple. If you can follow about 4 instructions, you'll be fine. You use the configurator on Drop's website to customize, you download the configuration file, you download the 2 or 3 other files the site tells you to, and then you have to type a command or two in a terminal or CMD, but there is no actual programming required. This might be a small challenge for people that have absolutely NO experience with computers, but I'm confident that basically anyone capable of reading and copying/pasting can figure it out.That's it. If it's not the aesthetic, construction, or customization you're looking for, you probably don't need this keyboard. If you're just looking for a decent mechanical keyboard, you can get some great boards under $100 (or a Cooler Master for a little over $100) with the same switches, and some with RGB. For me, this purchase is more than worth it for what it offers.

Switches need replaced, aftermarket PE foam added, stabilizers replaced, RGB a tad weak and needs a powered USB port and QMK to be used to its full potential.The stock switches I got were Halo Trues which have a terrible ping sound that reverberates throughout the entire board. Since they'll need to be lubed or replaced, the reason to get this instead of the barebones is for the included keycaps that are very nice.After all of these modifications, I'm finally in a place where I can say the board is perfect for me and I'm extremely happy with it.

I think that it is a wonderful and amazing keyboard to play on and to type with!

I have owned several mechanical keyboards over the years, and this is by far the best I have ever used.Here's why:- EXCELLENT LAYOUT: Most 65% keyboards do not include any separation between the arrow keys and the alt/function keys. THIS IS A BIG DEAL and was one of my main reasons for purchasing the Drop ALT. That little bit of separation makes it so easy to "feel" your way over to the arrow keys without having to look at them. I cannot understate how important this is. Also, I prefer NOT having a row of dedicated function keys above the number keys. I have used other "65%-ish" keyboards with this layout, but the problem was that the extra row of keys all packed together make it harder to find the key you need.- GREAT LOOKS: To me, this is what a modern mechanical keyboard should look like. The LED strip around the outside is a nice look, but if you don't want that, you can turn it off and leave the keys illuminated (or vice versa). I didn't know that before purchasing but it was a pleasant surprise.- EASY PROGRAMMING: Drop has a configurator on their website that you can use to reprogram your keys or LED colors. Then you download the file they provide you and follow the instructions to upload the new firmware to the board. It worked great for me and they even support macOS, which I wasn't expecting. This is a MUCH better experience than what I've had with other keyboards, which required downloading their janky software onto a Windows PC and then trying to figure out how to work it. Drop's site was easy and intuitive. The Drop software also makes it easy to program volume, play/pause, and skip buttons wherever you want them, even on macOS.- FEELS GREAT: I got the "kaihua box white" (these are also known as "kaihl box white", it's the same thing) switches and they are incredible. They make the old Cherry (and Gateron) Brown switches I used previously feel so dead and mushy, and they are not as loud and "rickety" as my older Cherry Blues. I encourage you to research these switches more to see why people like them so much. I feel like a more accurate typist, and I find myself going out of my way to type stuff just to use these switches and this keyboard (like this review).

The product looks really well with all the lights and great for kids gaming. The frame is solid and feels like it will last forever. Key caps can be changed at a cost. I can see why the product is so expensive. However, by the time it actually arrived I paid double the price for it because of the revenue charge.This must be damaging to amazon as I won't be purchasing product again due to the extra revenue charge. Really disappointing as it's not amazon's fault.As the keyboard itself goes, my son loves it.

It works pretty well until I found out that the L button isn’t working

I just received my Drop-Alt and it's a well put together keyboard, as most of the reviewers have said.There is however one major negative that I can't get over so I will be returning it.There isn't a dedicated back-quote/tilde key (`/~). To generate the tilde, you must press Fn+Esc. In practical terms this requires the right hand to hold down the Fn key that is to the right of the keyboard, while pressing the shift and escape keys. This is a two-handed awkwardness. On a Mac or on my Keychron K2, this is a single handed operation thanks to the dedicated key `/~ key.Also not including Bluetooth at this price level is also a big miss.In comparison, the Keychron K2 is a quality mechanical keyboard that sports a very nice keyboard layout, nice keys and keycaps and offers Bluetooth+USB-C connectivity at a lower price. Yes, it does not feature replaceable key switches, but the keys that come with it are good quality.

I was looking for a new keyboard to replace an old chinese mechanical that I bought several years ago. This time I wanted something that would last me a very long time, so I went deep into the Mechanical Keyboard internet black hole, researching DIY keyboards, different switches, keycap types, etc...I shrugged off the ALT although it met all my needs because of some bad reviews from more experienced people in the community and because it shipped from the US (We all know how much our customs friends love to double-check packages coming in from the south), and the duties would make it too expensive.And then suddenly I realized Amazon had it in stock so I pulled the trigger, and I'm really happy so far.The build quality is really solid, zero flex and a very nice looking (in my opinion) low profile aluminium case that makes the keyboard sturdy and heavy. It has two removable magnetic feet that can be set up to have either positive or negative tilt, and although I heard in some reviews the feet fell off easily, this must've been fixed on this revision because the magnets stick VERY well.The keyboard is fully programmable via either Massdrop's own configurator (That includes a rather limited array of RGB effects), or you can flash a QMK configuration and get WAY more RGB effects and a configuration as deep as you want to make it.The Halo Clear switches feel very similar to Cherry MX Clears, a bit less scratchy and they have less travel until the tactile bump (The bump is basically on the top of the switch). It's a pretty nice switch but I'll likely be swapping them soon for some Zealios V2. Which brings me to the fact that this keyboard is hot-swappable! That means if you feel like trying some new switches, you don't need to desolder or buy a whole new keyboard, you can just swap them in a few minutes.The keyboard also includes a keycap puller/screwdriver and a switch puller, which is a nice plus.Very happy with the purchase, will update if anything goes south from here but it looks like a solid purchase.

As a newbie, i've seen online reviews and tech influencers video's recommendations to purchase this board.However, I've come to realize that this was a really bad purchase during the time I have bought it which was overpriced and had many problems despite being a hotswap and the videos definitely did not review this product subjectively and I felt very cheated.The main problems to this board are:-> north facing switches->weird buzzing sounds from my speakers when I have the pink rgb-> i only discovered about the buzzing issue after flashing the qmk which was past the return period-> 3 pins meant that you have to clip the 2 pins from majority of the switches in the current marketthis also meant that upon clipping the pins of your switches, they become less attractive to resale to other hotswappable boards which are 5pins.-->This also means that breaking in of certain swithces (creams/hyperglides) would not serve its purpose on such a hotswap boardI definitely wouldn't recommend any budding enthusiast who are trying to dip their toes into the hobby to buy this board, nor is there any resale value of this board due to the apparent flaws it has.Time has changed and as the hobby advances, there are way more better boards with similar price points that simply just offer more.