Software

With all functionality hardware based, there are no software drivers for the Varmilo Minilo Eucalyptus. As such, I have chosen to combine this section with the performance section below. This remains one of the points against Varmilo keyboards for a more mainstream audience, but also means every customization option is available on the keyboard itself and works regardless of your OS.

Performance

The Varmilo Minilo Eucalyptus supports NKRO out of the box in wired mode, which tested successfully using Aqua's test. You can toggle between NKRO and 6KRO in wired mode if desired. Using the keyboard in Bluetooth mode defaults to standard 6KRO as expected. No key chatter was detected on all the keys using Switch Hitter. The image above also shows what the base layer on the keyboard is programmed to as far as dedicated keys go. As with most keyboard these days, there is no right Windows key, as it has been substituted by an Fn key here.


Given this is a 65% layout keyboard with 67 keys in total, Varmilo has to go with layers to get added functionality here in the form of missing functions when compared to a tenkeyless keyboard. This usually comes in the form of the Fn layer whereby you simply press Fn and a key to now get another function entirely. These are what the front-facing legends on the keycaps are for, which helps cut down the entry barrier tremendously. The Fn layer is logically placed, such as with the Fn keys themselves associated with the number key row. In addition, we get media playback and volume control also, and shortcuts to pull up some default programs as seen above. The one thing I'd have changed here was to get Home and End on maybe Pg Up and Pg Dn where I usually expect them to show up—if at all—on 65% keyboards. There being no key mapping or macro recording means what you see here is what you get.


Given this dual mode version only comes with white LEDs and the keycaps are opaque, there isn't much to talk about when it comes to the lighting on offer. These work as accent lights shining between and around keycaps, although the new lit-up logo was cool to see. Varmilo provides extensive control over all these LEDs with 11 brightness steps and multiple static, dynamic, and reactive lighting effects to choose from, some of which are seen above. The LEDs handling the logo can be separately controlled too, and all of them light up at 60% brightness by default to conserve battery life when in Bluetooth mode.

Speaking of which, I once again urge you to go through the user manual as I did to understand how to turn off the Bluetooth mode after I accidentally turned it on before. This is one of several things it talks about, including the use of different indicator LEDs and pairing with up to three simultaneous devices. There are also several battery saving measures built-in, which can be overridden should you wish to use the keyboard primarily in wired mode. Pairing for the first time requires a password/key combination, following which it is saved in order of the connection done. Then you can simply toggle between them to use the keyboard with the device of your choice, which I tested successfully with a desktop PC, a laptop, and my Android phone too. Plugging/removing the cable turns off/on Bluetooth mode automatically too, which otherwise would be a potential issue. The LEDs turn off after a few seconds on non-activity and then you can set the keyboard to enter battery savings mode and go to sleep after either 5 or 30 minutes, or not at all. Battery life is exceptional—think weeks, and certainly well beyond my testing period—in a typical use case thus. Charging the keyboard can take a while given the max of 1 A current draw over 5 V DC, but that's still twice as much as USB 2.0 specs. There are battery life indicators on the keyboard too, but not as user friendly as I would like given it is mostly a yes/no indicator as opposed to offering more granular feedback on the current battery status.


If you have read my keyboard reviews here, you will have noted that the vast majority use mechanical switches. These typically use metal stem contacts for actuation and reset, wherein metal pieces physically touch each other. Switch makers have improved on the reliability of these switches throughout, including the metal stems by using gold cross-point contacts to reduce oxidation-related issues. In recent years, we have had other means of actuation, including optical switches and electrostatic capacitive switches. It is in the latter that Varmilo is showcasing their EC V2 switches, the second iteration of their EC switches from before. These switches, as the name suggests, rely on a contact-less electrostatic capacitance generated by electric field induction. This means switch lifetime is theoretically much higher, and you can decouple actuation from actuation feedback. The EC V2 switches can thus be taken as a hybrid of a traditional mechanical switch and a traditional electrostatic capacitive switch since you still have a cross-point stem design for keycap compatibility.


My sample of the Varmilo Minilo Eucalyptus came with the EC Iris V2 switch, which is the latest offering in Varmilo's EC V2 series. This is a tactile switch—the first in the EC V2 lineup that comprises four linear switches and a clicky switch—and quite possibly the best one to date. Varmilo was telling me last year how it was taking time to get the tactile experience to best that of the Holy Panda, which is one of the most popular mechanical switches used by keyboard enthusiasts. It arguably heralded the start of several early tactile bump switches that have come out since, and the EC Iris V2 does the same in offering a prolonged tactile bump that begins almost instantly as you press down on the switch and lasts for nearly 1 mm before the spring kicks in to provide a smooth linear travel up to 4 mm. Switch actuation is completely separate from the tactile feedback here thus, which I am not a fan of personally, and happens at the usual 2.0 mm at ~45 gf force. But what makes this standout in the crowd of such switches is that the tactile bump is not overpowering as with some of Gazzew's or Akko's switches, and is exceptionally crisp feeling to where this made a fan out of me simply for how nice it is to type on if you bottom out—something you will be very likely to do given the minimal difference between peak force at bottoming out and the tactile bump itself. The reset point is also pretty much at actuation itself, making this a reliable switch for double tapping too. It's better for deliberate key strokes rather than fast gaming though, and perhaps the EC Jasmine V2 or EC Daisy V2 are more suited for that.


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 Varmilo Minilo Eucalyptus keyboard sample at ~80 WPM as it comes out of the box with the EC Iris V2 switches. For context, you can find sound clips from other keyboards here, including those with tactile switches. I did bottom out constantly as pointed out above, but really there is a single sound signature here coming from the switches alone. No reverberations, no pinging off the plate, nothing that distracts you from what is a highly satisfactory sound if you agree with my findings. The combination of the thick ABS keycaps and case along with the silicone pad and foam sheet play a big role here, but the EC Iris V2 is a dark horse that I suspect many others would want to try out if they don't mind the soldered aspect of these switches.