Zen Pond

Packaging

I was admittedly more excited about this one, also since it employs the third of the three packaging sizes by Jelly Key. This one, also called Spacebar size, could either hold 5-6 smaller keycaps or, as the name suggests, a single large space bar keycap. The design is otherwise identical to before, just longer to accommodate the longer wooden box inside. As before, this media sample does not contain a serial number or the dog tag medal retail units get. There is still the seal on the side, and the inlay for the keycap box. The box in question is even nicer to hold in hand owing to the longer aspect ratio, and has the seal on the left, which definitely looks different enough to where I can confirm that it is hand applied with a physical seal as Jelly Key mentioned.


Opening the box confirms I have a single, large keycap inside. The largest of keycaps too, with this one being a 6.25u space bar keycap from the recently closed Zen Pond III: Cherry Circle of Life group buy. This one talks about a mystical Koi pond in Eden, with the story starting in the first Zen Pond series and continuing here. What that ultimately means is that the latest group buy not only had newer designs but also a whopping 12 different sizes for each. As before, there is an inner foam lining in the lid and a larger, thicker foam tray to protect the keycap on the way to you.

Closer Look

What I have here is the 6.25u Ghost Asagi design spacebar in the Cherry profile. Every single design uses at least two base colors, with this one going with the black and white base that looks incredible in person. The other designs are more colorful and cheery, but at least you know what to expect from the Ghost Asagi name. The overarching theme is Zen Pond, which in turn makes me think about Monet's Pond again. There are nine individually cast Koi fish models here, which alone are a lot to take in. These are not 3D printed and have separate molds to cast them in three different sizes across differently sized keycaps.

The Koi fish are different in color too, which made life harder for the people behind the keycaps no doubt. Jelly Key says that the molds in the third round are even smaller, but retain the detail expected of the brand. This means that painting the fish models is even harder, which is further compounded by the use of the shorter Cherry profile on the keycaps. The fish models are also chosen such that they contrast well against the base color, meaning no white fish on the right and no black on the left on my sample. Turning the keycap around, we see the base colors continue throughout, and the logo ends up multicolored as a result too.


There is the now-expected not-for-sale etching on the metal badge on the bottom, which would otherwise host a unique serial number for the retail units shipping soon as of the time of this review. Unlike the 8-bit series that had a lot of individual appliques, the cast Koi models are basically it. The molds are quite detailed, so much so that the fins on the fish are easy to make out and the fish bodies are quite rounded to be cartoonish even. The colors are bold, and the fish models are also shaped differently in addition to the different sizes. Somehow, despite all this, the Koi fish models are not the biggest feature for me. That honor goes to the so-called Eden Effect, which is the result of nearly two years of work culminating in the flowing color fusion effect that Jelly Key claims to be the first to develop. This effectively involves the use of a unique alcohol ink combination that is mixed with the resin, with 3-5 paint layers to create the effect of looking through water. This provides for an impression of the fish swimming through roots under water, which the more natural colors in the other designs arguably do a better job of relating to you.


Of course, I had to go back to the same keyboard as before, and I kept the 8-bit backspace on, too. The Cherry profile is not as obvious on the bottom row compared to the OEM profile, but a side view still shows it isn't as tall with minimal contouring. We also see that the lighter base is more of a yellow than a white, with white ink used in the black base for further accenting. I was half-tempted to showcase this on the Akko Monet's Pond keyboard, but it would look out of place there. The Ochiba Emerald design, however, would have been a great swap there.

Microscope Images

This time, the microscope came in more handy since it gives a closer look at the lustrous Koi models. The paint process on the fish is quite involved and brings out details, including the eyes and fins, while giving each individual unit a distinct personality. We also see that the largest mold size was used, with the yellow fish measuring nearly 10 mm compared to the rated 9 mm size for the mold. The Eden Effect is also better seen under a microscope, with the ink and resin mix creating the impression of looking through water thanks to a frosted look with the roots and weeds captured in place. A side view shows the mouth of the fish having detail too, and turning the keyboard around confirms the presence of MX stem compatibility in good build quality. As before, the wall thickness is a massive 2 mm, which is far beyond anything I have seen pre-installed on a keyboard.