Closer Examination

The KnewKey Rocksete, at least in this pre-retail version, comes with a plastic shrink-wrap over it as with some of the accessories we saw before. It does cheapen the unboxing experience of what is meant to be a high-end premium device, but taking the film off takes a mere few seconds, and it does the job of keeping the keyboard pristine and free of dust out of the box. Once done, we get our first good look at the Rocksete, and there is just so much to see here, too. It comes off as if someone had placed a stand on top of a 75% form factor with typewriter-style keycaps similar to the AZIO RCK we recently saw, but this is where the JBL surround sound speaker system is located as well. It makes for a keyboard that doubles up as an audio output peripheral, and the overall shape is a lot more 3-dimensional, too. The design comes off fairly unique, with four knobs jutting out of the audio section, which itself is extending inward from the top. There is no real way to describe bezels in this case, and the KnewKey and JBL logos have been placed on the sides as seen above, in addition to the glossy Rocksete writing in the gap between the stand and the keyboard.

Also on the sides is the I/O consisting of a 3.5 mm aux in, micro-USB port, DC power in, and audio indicator LED to accompany more of the speaker grills we see here. I will also mention that the Rocksete is currently available in three color options—this one with a gray body and gray keycaps, another version with a gray body and black keycaps, and a third with a red body and red keycaps. The composition is all plastic and has been given a metallic finish via a special copper electroforming paint, with the flying stand accessory matching the color and finish. Despite the use of plastic, the entire unit is heavy at nearly 2.4 Kg and quite solid too. There are some imperfections in the finish, especially where pieces fit together, but I will give the company some slack considering this is a pre-retail version.

The keyboard is on the smaller side of things given the 75% form factor, with fewer discrete keys and the obvious omission of the numpad compared to a full-size keyboard, as well as a truncated arrow-key column relative to even a TKL keyboard. Secondary legends on the keycaps are placed above the primary ones with the exception of the arrow keys, where it is the other way around. All the legends are smaller and placed near the center of the keycaps, which hints towards where any switch lighting will be most prominent. Note also that the default keycap set seems configured for Apple products, with CMD and ALT keys shown rather than the Windows and Alt keys placed the other way around. I would have definitely liked the inclusion of replacement keycaps for Windows users, and encourage KnewKey to do so sooner rather than later.


The Rocksete is tall enough to where it merits a look from the back, where we see more speaker grills and get a close-up of the grill fabric in use. On the underside is the certification sticker with power metrics and the serial number, as well as a mention of the keyboard presumably sharing common DNA with their older Rymek. Five flat and long rubber pads along the top and bottom sides jut past the case just far enough to prevent the body from being scratched, and also provide grip in conjunction with the hefty nature of the keyboard itself.


The stand housing at the top includes slots for phones and tablets, including devices as large and substantial as a recent-generation Apple iPad Pro with a fold-out hinge that helps support these devices at a comfortable viewing angle. While it may be tempting to use this hinge as a handle to move the keyboard around, it is not recommended, and the underside of the housing provides a comfortable location for movement.


The flying stand accessory is easy to set up, but requires that you have a Phillips head screwdriver on hand. Simply pair the holes in the feet with those in the base and use the provided screws and nuts as shown above. The stand is then meant to prop up a laptop or similar device that is otherwise too large for the built-in stand, and is an extension at the same height of the integrated housing as seen above. Another use KnewKey perhaps hasn't considered yet is its ability to raise the height of the actual Rocksete unit for those with a standing desk, which worked surprisingly well in my experience.


The cables all come out the right side, and the included cables work well enough with the spaced-out ports. I would have much rather seen USB Type-C instead of micro-USB, however, especially given the emphasis with mobile devices. The provided cables are on the shorter side of average, which is fine as they terminate in USB Type-A connectors and most devices this will be used with will have spare ports close by. USB 3.0 is recommended for faster charging of the batteries, but otherwise, you do not need to use either cable for functionality when in Bluetooth mode.


As with most such typewriter-style keyboards, the Rocksete uses a flatter profile with its individual keycaps instead of the usual contoured rows of the OEM profile. The body is angled to provide a positive tilt, but that is really the only option for a tilt outside of using the stand to lift up the entire keyboard. The keycaps are made out of ABS plastic, but composed of multiple parts, and for this version, the base is gray—the legends are then laser etched and the glossy outer trim attached in place. KnewKey says the retail keycaps will undergo a special violet laser treatment for increased longevity of the colors. The trim itself has some minor processing marks from the coloring on the bottom of all the keycaps, but none of it is visible from the top. The keycaps retain Cherry MX stem compatibility, and as seen above, there is no backlighting compatibility here. Any lighting associated with individual switches would thus be side lighting only.


There is only one switch option with the KnewKey Rocksete in the form of the Outemu Blue tactile and clicky mechanical switch, and the top cover hides most of the switch body from the top even with the keycaps removed. These are the non-RGB type with a black housing and an external LED above each switch for lighting. The cover, even thought translucent, blocks the LEDs directly regardless, so there would have only been mediocre backlighting through the keycaps even if the keycaps were backlighting compatible. The larger keycaps employ Cherry-style stabilizers, but there is unfortunately a lot of slack here to where the space bar key especially moves a lot when used. This makes for a less than satisfactory typing experience on top of the same old complaints with these flatter-profile, typewriter-style keycaps I had talked about before.