Introduction

Akko is a keyboard brand we have covered extensively before, and we were impressed by its custom-designed keyboards at a very reasonable price. These at times included simpler takes on popular keycap sets, but also highly involved full keyboards going the artistic route. One reason these keyboards remained fairly accessible is that their feature set stayed fairly basic at the end of the day. There wasn't much in the way of wireless connectivity, and no backlighting, software drivers, or even foam padding in the case. Akko has since been taking feedback to heart by slowly and steadily introducing these features, as well as releasing a whole new product lineup dedicated to DIY keyboards and keyboard kits alike.


All this was done alongside maintaining the uncommon form factors, which I applaud Akko for. Take this 3098B, for example, which is the subject of today's review. It's a 95% keyboard, if you will, by providing the functionality of a full-size keyboard with a dedicated numpad in a smaller footprint. We saw the previous generation of it, simply named 3098 along with the specific model color and design, which impressed us with its execution. But the "B" in "3098B" is how we know it's a different beast entirely, as the it stands for "Beken"—the manufacturer of the wireless transceiver that adds hybrid wireless connectivity on top of several other new features. Akko also offers the 3098N using the Nordic chip version at a slightly higher price with a different set of switches. However, this review of the Black&Gold 3098B should otherwise be representative of both sets. The Black&Gold is simply the employed color scheme, which we will cover in more detail after thanking Akko, via Epomaker, for providing TechPowerUp a review sample.

Specifications