Closer Examination

I can't confirm whether this will be published before or after another article featuring an Akko keycap set, so I decided to cover this topic in both of them once and for all. Akko has produced some really nice designs, such as the World Tour Tokyo, Matcha Red Bean, and Monet's Pond that are intricate and truly original. Then there are some keycap sets, and keyboards, that are inspired by some popular crowdfunded keycap sets, including the Neon PBT setthat does bear resemblances to the GMK Laser. The Black & Pink keycap set from Akko will no doubt be compared to the GMK Olivia, as mentioned before, and so here we are. While there are no doubt some similarities, there are more differences. The colors are quite different, especially on the pink here. The legends are thinner and larger, while also centrally placed compared to the thicker, smaller, left-biased legends on the GMK set. More relevant to me is the use of PBT plastic on the Akko set compared to the ABS on the other, meaning you get a less glossy finish but a longer-lasting material. Akko also has some really nice molds that allow for smooth PBT without a rough finish, as well as well-applied and uniform legends throughout. There is no legal case anywhere, and ethically, I think these are different enough to where I am treating this as a product of its own. This is even before we get into the ASA profile of the keyboard, but more on that soon enough.

This is my first Akko 3098 keyboard, which means there are 98 keys on this take on the 96% form factor. What we get thus is a compacted full-size keyboard that pretty much retains everything, and in this take, we only lose Menu, Home, End, Print Screen, Scroll Lock, and Pause Break from the standard 104-key full-size US ANSI layout. The arrow-key cluster is between the alphanumeric section and numpad, with everything ending up as a single bank of keys aside from the smallest of bezels separating the three clusters as seen above. Bezels are smaller than average too, especially with the arrow keys offset downward slightly. This makes the Akko 3098 not only shorter than the 3108v2, but also narrower and slightly thinner.

The keyboard uses a two-piece plastic construction in black, with a three-tone keycap set up top. There are two base colors; black and a weird gray base with a hint of green employed by the majority of the stock keycaps. The legends are all doubleshot injected pink in the same salmon color as on the replacement keycaps, with the injection done in a seamless fashion for cleaner aesthetics. An Akko logo has been put on the bottom-right corner facing the user, which is the only branding in use. There is no backlighting, so legend placement on the keycaps is not as important as with RGB. We still see that the numpad has single legends only, which happen to be placed in the top center of the keycaps. The alphanumeric section has secondary legends above the primary ones on the number row, and everything is placed centrally on top even here. The typeface is quite neat and larger than usual, especially for the single-legend keycaps and considering there is no limitation owing to LED placement underneath.


Flipping the keyboard around, we see the usual certification sticker in the middle, as well as four long rubber pads on the sides for friction against the resting surface and to prevent scratches to the case. Akko included two separate sets of case feet at the top for a total of three elevation steps, and these feet are large enough not to slip. The rubber pads on the bottom of the feet are a nice detail. Also note that the feet are part of an already raised segment of the bottom plastic panel, so even the default elevation is steeper than usual.


There is an extremely inset connector in the middle on the back, with the case including guides on the cable connector housing that will make using aftermarket cables difficult unless they are low profile. This prevents the cable from slipping out easily, keeping it securely in place when installed. There are also three built-in cable-management channels—the default in the middle and two longer channels for the left and right. Nibs in these channels retain the cable, though they might cut into its plastic insulation. A braided cable would have been nice, but let's wait for pricing before deciding whether it should have been included or not. The cable is the standard 6' long and plugs into an available USB Type-A port on your computer. The connectors are gold-plated for oxidation resistance, and USB 2.0 is plenty for power and data alike.


Akko makes several keycap sets and has chosen the ASA profile for the aptly named 3098 Black & Pink ASA. This is Akko's proprietary take on the all-spherical SA profile (hence ASA) in that it adopts a similarly rounded profile and less-aggressive contouring coupled with larger top surfaces for finger support, but isn't as tall or angled from the side. If anything, the ASA profile is closer in height to the popular OEM profile, so much so that you get the better support (for most people) without the massive change in elevation from row to row with SA. This might be my new favorite keycap profile, but I need to spend more time on it to be completely sure.

The provided keycap puller works very well, with adequate spacing between keycaps to fit the wires through. As with the replacement keycaps seen on the previous page, the stock keycaps are made out of thick PBT plastic (average wall thickness 1.41 mm) with doubleshot injected legends and designs, which makes for excellent stock keycaps that will last for the lifetime of the keyboard. Backlighting support isn't much of a thing, but that does not matter since the keyboard does not support backlighting anyway. Third-party keycap compatibility is not the highest owing to the modified layout resulting in some shorter key spacing, but why would you even buy this keyboard if you want to change keycaps?


Ah, and this is the other reason I was excited to try the keyboard out. Akko has two series of first-party switches right now, with the CS (Custom Series) chosen here. There are three Akko CS switches at the moment: the Rose Red and Matcha Green linear switches and Ocean Blue tactile switch. I chose the latter for my review sample, and it definitely looks different from the norm with the housing and top also adopting a matching color, as the blue stem. The switch itself is compatible with backlighting, with a cutout for LEDs (north-facing on most PCBs) and the Akko writing on the bottom facing the right way up in this configuration. The top is also translucent thus, so these can be used if you mod-in LEDs on the keyboard, or other PCBs, of course.

The larger keycaps use plate-mounted stabilizers, and these have been lubricated a ton. The actual switches are unlubed—no lube is applied at the factory after manufacturing, so it's hilarious to see so much lube on the stabilizers. It actually detracts from the typing experience somewhat. I can't tell whether this is a one-off issue or not, but all the stabilizers had the same generous coat to where I quickly ended up with sticky fingers and wiped off some of the excess lube to improve the typing feel for me personally. Akko said that the lube was hand-applied, and the employees have been instructed to be less.. generous.. in the future.


Ah, and this is another distinguishing feature of the newer Akko 3098 keyboard compared to the 3108 keyboards we saw before. Hot-swappable switch sockets are employed on the PCB, which allows for the CS Ocean Blue on my sample to easily be pried out for a closer examination. The socket also reveals compatibility with 3-pin mechanical switches, so you will have to clip off 5-pin switches as with some popular Gateron offerings. The Akko CS Ocean Blue is a 3-pin mechanical switch thus, with an opaque blue housing that matches the stem in color.


Seen above are the logical replacement keycaps on the left, and a bolder move on the right to replace Ins, Del, Pg Up, and Pg Dn with the provided four novelty keycaps. This adds a lot more pink to the Black & Pink (and gray) keyboard, and introduces the third accent color Akko always employs with its keycap sets. I am not sure how the Print Screen, Scroll Lock, and Pause/Break keycaps exactly come into the picture here given there is no key assignment functionality for those functions to be assigned to any key.