Introduction

Our first look at a Das Keyboard was with their flagship Das Keyboard 4 Professional, wherein the main issue I had was that the price point was higher than what I felt the market was willing to pay. As is often the case with product tiers, the bang-for-buck is drastically reduced as you go from mainstream to enthusiast and from enthusiast to luxury in tiers, and Das Keyboard has thus introduced a new keyboard with the sole purpose of taking the same renowned build quality with an aluminum top panel, metal plate, and the subdued aesthetics to a lower price point. Enter the Das Keyboard Prime 13 mechanical keyboard, and thanks again to them for providing the review sample.


The Das Keyboard Prime 13 looks very similar to the rest of their lineup, including the Das Keyboard 4 series, with that defining raised notch at the top-right. However, where this section usually hosts the dedicated media buttons and volume scroll wheel, we now have nothing that is visible by just looking at the photograph above. First impressions can be deceiving, however, so let us wait until the very end to make our conclusions about this keyboard, and we will begin with a look at the specs below.

Specifications

Packaging and Accessories

Given Das Keyboard operates a webshop, we will begin with a look at the shipping packaging. The Das Keyboard Prime 13 was shipped along with another keyboard, and in a good-sized box with lots of bubble wrap around, which makes for a great start so far as it ensures the end user receives it in perfect condition.


Relative to the Das Keyboard 4 Professional we saw earlier, the product packaging is more filled out and has a black and white color scheme. On the front are some salient features of the keyboard, including brand identification, specifications, and marketing features, which continue on the back and sides. There is a single flap with two seals to help keep the contents inside in check.


Open the box and you see the keyboard in a plastic wrap with the included accessories above it. There is a simple manual with useful information on how to toggle NKRO as the keyboard comes with 6KRO by default. Also included is a plastic ring-style keycap puller, which is nice to see and will be of use when it comes time to take off the keycaps for cleaning. No replacement keycaps here, however, so that remains the purpose of the puller unless you get replacement ones yourself. It would have been nice to see a wire-style puller instead, and hopefully, Das Keyboard goes with such a keycap puller for future keyboards as a ring-style puller can scratch the sides and bottom of keycaps, and thin ABS ones are especially vulnerable here.