The following is a quote from my September 2019 review of the Ducky One 2 SF:

There are no software drivers for the Ducky One 2 SF, with all functionality hardware based. However, Ducky informed me that they are developing a unifying software driver for most of their keyboard models on the market, and the One 2 SF will get priority in feature development as well.

It has now been nearly 2.5 years since that review went live, and the One 3 SF has been here for a couple of months, too. Guess what never showed up at all? Back then, the likes of Ducky and others had the benefit of good build quality keyboards mainstream companies had to compete against by offering a good software experience for customization. In 2022, the lines have never been more blurred. It does seem the larger brands have figured out how to get around the build quality complaints by directly addressing it in multiple ways, including with stock PBT keycaps, adopting a standard keycap spacing for increased keycap compatibility, and even adding noise-absorbing foam inside the case. Some other established mainstream brands have also provided hot-swappable switches on their keyboards, whereas many have added in-house switch designs and/or re-branded switches to their portfolio. While all this was going on, their software continually improved most of the time.

Ducky has faced this stiff competition by diversifying into different product lines, including mice, desk mats, and even gaming chairs. I have no real experience with any of those, so I can't tell you whether that was a good use of resources. But selfishly, I would have rather seen a first-party software experience with the One 3 SF. There were times I just wanted to pull up a program to make the shade of blue exactly match the keycaps of this One 3 SF DayBreak edition, and others, when testing onboard profiles and macros, came off as something that may have been a nice feature a few years ago, but now isn't something most customers would use. It's a combination of different standards set by others as well as laziness/inefficient use of time, but had to be put out there for those in the same boat.

Luckily for Ducky, there remain many others who abhor having to install different drivers and programs that could be a security risk or any sorts. The convenience of having everything onboard also means there is no need to worry about which software profile need the drivers to always be running in the background and which are hardware profiles that can be taken from one PC to another. It's the latter case every single time here, and the smaller form factor coupled with the detachable cable adds to the portability. What helps further are the extensive quality-of-life improvements introduced with the One 3 series, many of which may seem minor but contribute positively to the user experience. Indeed, there are many firsts for Ducky, some of which are first across even the industry itself. I am glad Ducky is coming out with some much needed improvements to keep up with the fast pace of mechanical keyboards, and the brand has done plenty with the One 3 SF to merit a recommendation at the $129 price point. Now if only there were a One 3 SF kit with keycaps but no switches for under $100.