Lighting and Performance

The Epomaker NT68 keyboard supports N-key rollover USB out of the box, which tested successfully using Aqua's test. In wireless mode, it goes down to the expected 6KRO with Bluetooth. Switch Hitter confirmed no chatter with these keys. Also note the base layer above showing which functions have dedicated keys on the keyboard when in Windows mode, which I had to initiate on the sample that shipped in macOS mode by default. Finally, Switch Hitter did not care about the order in which the keys were pressed, but as pointed out before, we still have the bottom row being different from the usual.


Given the different color and material options available for the Epomaker NT68, I didn't want to spend much time on the backlighting options and effects since I have both profile versions here. This time, we look at the regular profile version in the silver trim that uses the silver/white/red keycaps, which make for a brighter overall effect, albeit clearly one for accent lighting only because of opaque keycaps. It will still look different from the other options thus, and seen above is the keyboard lit up in a multi-color static and dynamic effect. Light bleed is slightly above average, with the floating keycaps adding to it and the lighter base not helping things, either. Similarly, testing for color fidelity by switching all LEDs to white resulted in a light pink hue that in itself isn't surprising based on everything we've seen thus far. As with most Skyloong keyboards, the NT68 gets most of the way there for functionality and needs some further tuning for finesse.

Profile switching and the various other functions necessary on this 65% keyboard are pre-programmed and tied to the Fn key layer, which is critical on smaller form factor keyboard. Epomaker/Skyloong has also added some multimedia and volume controls in addition to other program shortcuts. These are denoted by the extra legends on the keycaps, which reduces the learning curve significantly, but layers are your friend here, and key mapping is just as useful in making your time with the keyboard a pleasure rather than a pain. You might ask why you should go through all of this and have fewer keys than a TKL or full-size keyboard. The general answer for all smaller form factor keyboards tends to be ergonomics, with shorter finger travel leading to lower fatigue over longer typing sessions. You can also have the mouse closer to the keyboard and in line with your shoulder. Many companies these days make a 60–65% keyboard for other reasons, the biggest of which is aesthetics. The smaller form factor allows for different materials and designs without the increased cost when scaled up to a full-size keyboard. This also goes for custom keycaps, such as the three keycap sets available with the NT68; keycap sets can at times end up more expensive than the keyboard itself.

One issue I did have was that Epomaker clearly targeted macOS users here, particular those with MacBooks. The regular version also comes with OS-specific keycaps which aim to replicate the MacBook keyboard to a tee, so much so that the default layout of the bottom row may seem weird to Windows users. Using the replacement keycaps and turning Windows mode on helps, and the software aids further with key mapping. The keyboard form factor is based on using the NT68 on top of a MacBook Pro 13, with the magnets themselves positioned to work best with those. Many Windows laptops simply don't have this option, and the more expensive metal-shell laptops tend to have very good keyboards to begin with. I did try to position this on my new laptop which has a magnesium alloy chassis, and the larger chassis and material choice clearly weren't that helpful here. Using the included stand worked until it did not. I am sure the NT68 with or without the stand is a more handy keyboard for MacBook users—don't look at me to say how well it does there, though.

What I can say is that beside the key layout, the NT68 has a secret strength when it comes to trying out non-QWERTY typing layouts. This is courtesy the software that allows key mapping, no doubt, but also the flatter GSA keycap profile for fingers to move between rows far easier. This combined with the smaller form factor allows for an experimental keyboard build you can also try out with different switches as needed. Having Bluetooth connectivity helps expand the use case beyond wired connections where those short cables really force you to use it one particular way. I do wish the battery were larger since 1900 mAh will only go so far if you have backlighting on. When turned off, and there is already a default sleep mode for the keyboard when in wireless mode, you can get a couple of weeks of average typing in. The NT68 can also connect with up to three devices simultaneously, and Bluetooth 5.1 has matured enough and is available on a lot more PCs today. Charging takes a few hours, and it comes down to whether you want to have backlighting turned on or not. There are also onboard controls to change the backlighting brightness and go through several presets stored onboard.


As always, the sound of a keyboard is based on more than just the switch type. So when comparing sound clips, consider the keyboard as a whole. In this case, I have provided above an example sound clip of me typing on the Epomaker NT68 Regular as it comes out of the box with the Chocolate Blue RGB mechanical switches. For context, you can find sound clips from other keyboards here, including those with tactile and clicky switches. The clicky feedback is the dominant sound signature here, even with what is a fairly pingy aluminium frame. The PBT plastic on the keycaps does change things somewhat by dampening some of that pinging, especially as the case is relatively low in profile and there isn't much reverberation going on inside. The Chocolate Blue mechanical switches are rated for an actuation force of 55 +/-5 gf at 2.0 +/-0.6 mm, with total travel the expected 4.0 mm on these full-size switches. It is the lower standard actuation force deviation that Epomaker boasts of with these Chocolate switches, compared to the typical +/-15 gf on the Gateron options also available with the NT68 Regular. Peak force is slightly past 65 gf, so odds of bottoming out are relatively high since the tactile bump takes place before actuation, which makes for a one-way train from feedback to bottoming out with actuation somewhere in between. These are not my favorite clicky switches, with the click bar mechanism used in many recent Kailh switches taking up that favored spot, nor does this combination necessarily sound the most pleasing to me. The space bar key especially is deeper to type on, which ends up being a distraction when touch typing.