Closer Examination

The keyboard comes in a soft foam wrap with two pieces of tape keeping it covered and thus providing further protection to the unit as a whole. Once removed, we get our first good look at the keyboard, and it is a hefty thing with thick ABS plastic top and bottom case panel pieces. There is some flex when I twist the keyboard, but nowhere to the point where it should dissuade you from a purchase - I had to apply more force than any practical application of the keyboard would subject it to. Interestingly, Cooler Master has adopted a semi-matte finish to the top piece here that lends it a feel similar to a soft-rubber-touch finish, but it is quite subtle to where it will not catch dust or grime easily. We see here a black frame with gunmetal gray keycaps for a subdued color scheme that will lend itself very well to a professional environment.

The MasterKeys L PBT being a full size 104-key keyboard, we have a dedicated num pad which in turn has the usual Windows OS secondary functionality built-in, and the keycaps reflect that as well with their secondary legends being placed on the top of the keycaps and below the primary legends.

Speaking of which, the primary legends on the alphanumeric keys are on the top-center of the keycaps, and the font used is again neat and professional. Cooler Master is targeting these keyboards mostly at the office workers and typists here. The secondary legends on the number keys are located above the primary legends, which does trigger OCD, but is not a deal breaker. In the absence of backlighting, I would have rather seen larger font sizes here. The other thing to note is the custom CM logo keycap used in lieu of the Win and Menu keys, but this is for a practical reason in addition to the branding itself, and I am more than okay with the branding here given the lack of any other logo or branding anywhere else on the front or sides.


Not a whole lot is going on at the back here, with a label in the middle that contains more information about the product, a warranty void sticker above that leaves a mark if tampered with, and four large rubber pads on the four corners to prevent the keyboard from sliding around. There are two large case feet at the top in case you desire an elevated position, and the feet have rubber pads all around the bottom as well. Given the keyboard uses a detachable cable, we see a female micro USB receptacle on the side by the num pad. The MasterKeys S PBT actually has three cable-routing channels with a central, inwards located receptacle, so I am a bit disappointed to see they have not done so here with the L.


Taking a look at the side, we see an OEM profile here on the keycaps, with the usual sculpted top surface of the keycaps in the usual rows most Cherry MX switch (or similar) mechanical keyboards go with. The keycaps are the main selling point of this new keyboard SKU, and we see thick PBT plastic keycaps used here, as the name suggests. Their average wall thickness measured in at 1.47 mm, which is close enough to the advertised 1.5 mm number, and these feel great to type on. Thicker keycaps are not everyone's cup of tea, however, but I dare say most will prefer it over thinner ABS keycaps. Use of PBT also means higher resistance to wear and tear from finger oils when typing, so that is an additional plus point here. The legends are laser-etched, and Cooler Master calls the process a "double etch", saying they will last longer, but it is a shame they did not go with doubleshot legends here to actually make the keycaps a proper selling point. As it is, this is a rare in-between combination they find themselves in, and the legends' print wearing out will be this product's weakness over the long run. The keyboard does have a "standard" keycap-size layout, so it will be compatible with the hundreds of replacement keycap sets out there, but when you have a keyboard SKU just for its stock keycaps, you should rather look at the non-PBT MasterKeys keyboards if doing a replacement.


Cooler Master offers the MasterKeys L PBT in a choice of four different switches from Cherry, and they sent the rare Cherry MX Green switch version my way. Cooler Master has been the only mainstream keyboard maker to use these switches, so it is the easiest way one can get a keyboard with these switches anywhere in the world. Cooler Master is also using costar stabilizers on the larger keycaps here, so there is no wobbly or mushy feeling to be found on these.


Here is a look at the keyboard with the replacement keycaps installed. Do be aware that it took a hard press to get the stems into the keycap, and removal was also not easy, with a careful sideways wiggle motion needed. The thin ABS keycaps do feel weirdly different, so if Cooler Master wanted to provide a physical means to differentiate these, they have done so - just not in the way intended.