Lighting and Performance

The Monstargear NINJA87BT keyboard supports N-key rollover USB, which tested successfully using Aqua's test. This drops down to 6KRO with Bluetooth, which is as expected and not a dealbreaker by any means. Switch Hitter confirmed no chatter with these keys and showed that Fn is indeed next to R. Alt.


Right! We knew that the NINJA87BT has a white LED associated with each switch, and that the chosen keycaps are opaque. So any lighting was going to be accent white lighting, which is indeed the case with this combination. There are also only two lighting effects, steady on and breathing mode, which explains the lack of any software-based lighting control. You can change the LED brightness in five steps, as well as the speed of the breathing effect, but that's about it. The third lighting option is just to turn it on/off, so don't expect much. If you do get backlit-compatible keycaps, the white LEDs are bright enough to function well.


In addition to the lighting controls, there are a couple of other pre-programmed functions, including pulling up some program shortcuts as well as volume control and media playback. These are associated with the Fn key row, and you can also swap Caps Lock with L. Ctrl in addition to locking the Win button altogether. The other shortcuts involve Bluetooth pairing, and the NINJA87BT can be paired with up to five devices simultaneously—more than the usual three. Bluetooth 5.0 is natively supported, and it also helps that battery life is absolutely massive with even your bog-standard AA batteries. In fact, with this particular combination, I had backlighting turned off most of the time and never had to even consider charging my NiMH batteries. You can't charge the batteries in wired mode, so treat the two as effectively exclusive connectivity options. There were zero issues when it came to the actual wireless connectivity itself, including with a phone, laptop, PC, and even smart TV.



The key-assignment options in the software program also allow users to go with layouts other than QWERTY, and here, I used the source code from an older keyboard review in a layout tester (courtesy of Patrick Gillespie). The results above indicate that QWERTY is not even close to the most efficient layout for me, and very likely you as well. If you are willing, try out Colemak or Dvorak as they will result in lower finger travel and fatigue overall. As such, the software drivers offer a significant functional tool if you are willing to devote some time to adopting either Colemak or Dvorak. Here is the link to the full results if you are interested, including a detailed analysis on key presses and distances moved.


The Gateron Yellow is a linear switch rated to be slightly heavier than the Cherry MX Red, but with the same actuation and total travel distances of 2.0/4.0 mm respectively. Actuation force is thus expected to be near the rated 50 gf with a bottoming-out force of ~60 gf. These are among the most consistent switches I have tried in terms of the rated numbers from the factory. Even using the switches was a pleasure because of the smoother travel, and this is coming from a guy who prefers tactile switches. The spring near-perfectly appeals to all Cherry MX Red gamers without feeling too different, while having enough resistance to keep general typists happy as well. Keeping to 2.0/4.0 mm travel is also good overall, so while this is not going to be a fast gaming switch, it will be a very good general switch, and these switches are selling well too. I am happy to see more keyboards offer the Gateron Yellow switches, and it adds to the appeal of the NINJA87BT.


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 Monstargear NINJA87BT sample at ~90 WPM as it comes out of the box with the Gateron Yellow switches and the chosen PBT dye sub black-on-white keycaps. For context, you can find sound clips from other keyboards here, including those with linear switches. The lubed stabilizers do mitigate the downstroke ping, but the biggest effect comes from the foam sheet lowering reverberation to where you get a bassier response than with most such plastic case/steel place/linear switch implementations. This is a good keyboard to listen to by itself, and it has the potential to be made even more appealing to your tastes with different switches.