I am noticing a trend wherein most themed keyboards end up going all in on cultural elements, perhaps since these keyboards are generally by brands that value culture a lot. It can alienate a lot of the global market if it is too niche a cultural theme, and the attention to detail may be under-appreciated or just lacking with shortcuts taken. Akko and Varmilo have been the two brands I have most experienced in that vein thus far, and both arguably sit in different market segments. Akko aims to get pricing down to where the keyboards cost the same as an average mechanical keyboard, and does so by excluding features, such as backlighting or software support. The same case and PCB are also used across different themes, which saves a lot of money, but means you end up using older components for longer.

Things have taken a turn with Akko keyboards this year, however. There has been an increased focus on the more enthusiast demands, as well as recognizing that a few things in the market are dated, including some older products on Bluetooth 3.0! The 3108v2 platform is getting there, with cost amortization already having paid off no doubt for the base PCB and wiring, but then every single design means a different color scheme throughout. The smaller form factors have slowly been updated over time, including the 60% keyboards that now have RGB lighting and Bluetooth 5.0, as well as the 3098 that now comes with hot-swappable switches and a foam lining on the inside. I can't wait for the 3108 and 3087 to get more of the same, especially since these are the two most popular form factors for keyboards. I do know of something more premium coming from the Akko brand soon, but it targets a slightly different market.

The 3108v2 King Koi has a lot in common with the other Akko 3108 keyboards reviewed so far. This is part of the common base mentioned above that keeps costs low. The available switch options for the King Koi are also the two most extreme cases from an Akko keyboard, with a $30 difference between the two brands a third of the total cost of the keyboard with the first-party switches that I personally think feel and sound better than the Cherry equivalent, at least in the case of the Akko Pink vs. the Cherry MX Red. There is still some extra functionality on top of a barebones keyboard, be it with the extra four keys, pre-programmed extra shortcuts, or even the onboard macro recording. But so far, the switches have been the only difference compared to the other reviewed Akko 3108 keyboards, and that would be doing this a great injustice.

If the colors of the Akko Monet's Pond keyboard were too jarring for you, or the Koi fish keycaps on the turquoise base too juvenile combined with the Hiragana script, this far cleaner-looking King Koi theme may interest you. I am still not sold on the older-style Chinese script, but it at least fits the theme far better and is not everywhere. What we instead get is more of an ink painting put to the keyboard, making you feel like you are taking a stroll along a pond where people frequent for exercise during the mornings and evenings. Having spent almost a year in Taiwan recently, I relate to this far more than I originally thought. The colors are of course subdued on purpose, but the actual elements in play are pretty genuine. I also think it was a good idea to have the four extra keys not contain more Koi fish by default, giving end users the option to do so with included replacement keycaps. It is a shame that the functions of those keys are not depicted, and the multiple languages will still irk some. But for $90 in a day where you can barely get a set of keycaps with similar build quality at the same price, there is very little to complain about if the theme interests you. Don't bother with the Cherry switch options at $120, though. At that price, I'd rather see Akko make updates to the keyboard and sell it with its own switches again.