Review: Keychron Q5 Pro and Keychron Q6 Pro

I’ve spent the last few weeks with the Keychron Q5 Pro and Q6 Pro mechanical keyboards, and I think they're some of the best bang-for-your-buck full-size keyboards you can get today. The Q6 Pro is a traditional full-size keyboard layout with a NumPad and navigation keys, while the Q5 Pro is a slightly more compact 1800-style layout.

Both of them are gasket-mounted, with thick aluminum cases and a knob in the top right corner. You can buy either model with Keychron’s red linear switches, brown tactile switches, or banana tactile switches, and they include hot-swap sockets, RGB lighting, and Bluetooth 5.1 connectivity by default. If you don't mind a cord, you can also connect them via USB-C. (Read my guide, How to Shop for a Mechanical Keyboard, if you want to learn more about some of these terms!)

Why a Full-Size Layout?

Anyone who wants a full-size keyboard layout already knows they want it. In my experience, it’s something you’re already acclimated to, not something you’re going to switch to on a whim. These things are huge and can have a dedicated key for everything, especially if you take advantage of the ability to reprogram keys.

The bare-bones version of the Q6 Pro allows you to add your preferred set of switches and keycaps.

Photograph: Keychron

Yes, the entire keyboard is completely reprogrammable. Keychron’s Q Pro line supports QMK/VIA, an open source third-party software that lets you reprogram every key. QMK is a system for keyboards that allows users to flash new firmware and keymaps, and VIA is a system that makes this reprogramming quick and seamless within a web browser. These keymaps persist across devices and have nearly limitless potential once you’ve learned the software.

Because of the utility of QMK and VIA, I found the number pads useful even though I hardly ever use them to input numbers. They can easily be reprogrammed and used as a dedicated macro pad, or for any other number of uses. (It's worth noting that with both QMK and VIA, you have to plug in the keyboard to reprogram it.) The placement of the reset button underneath the spacebar on the top of the printed circuit board (PCB) makes reprogramming easy, since you don’t have to take the entire keyboard apart (unlike quite a few other keyboards that place the button in a hard-to-reach spot).

Even if you don’t plan to reprogram any keys, the number pad is great for quickly typing long strings of numbers or if you want to utilize Alt Codes so that you don't have to constantly Google “Em dash” and copy and paste the symbol on Windows. (Hot tip: The Alt code for an em dash is Alt + 0151.)

The Typing Feel

Both the Q5 Pro and Q6 Pro use a gasket mount, meaning the main keyboard assembly (plate, switches, PCB) is suspended inside the case using two compressed layers of foam instead of being directly attached to the case. This creates a bouncier typing feel and isolates the internal assembly to create a softer, more crisp typing sound.

Keychron’s gasket-mount system is fairly bouncy, meaning the key presses feel soft and relaxed. This meshes with the switches provided, which have fairly light springs, to create an overall typing experience that’s crisp and bouncy without feeling cheap or flimsy.

The two boards I received have the Red and Banana switches from Keychron’s K Pro switch line. The Reds are simple, effective linear switches that sound poppy and feel fairly smooth. The Banana switches are tactile with a medium-strength bump and a good amount of travel after the bump. I’d recommend either one since both are high-quality examples of their respective switch types that will be acceptable to a large number of users.

Photograph: Keychron

However, if you don’t like these switches, it’s easy to swap them out for something you like. Both keyboards use Gateron hot-swap sockets, which allow you to swap in new MX-style switches without opening the case or desoldering at all. Instead, simply pull one out using the included switch-puller tool and press another switch in.

While the rest of the typing experience works well to reduce fatigue, I found the high-profile keycaps to require a more strenuous typing position than traditional cherry-profile keycaps. They require your hands to be held higher up than usual, and, combined with the taller case of this keyboard, I found my hands and wrists feeling fatigued relatively quickly. However, keycaps are legitimately the easiest part of a keyboard to change, and both of these keyboards have standard layouts that can be filled in by the majority of keycap sets. You can also adjust the height of your seat so that your armrests sit a little higher to accommodate the taller keyboard.

Good Sound

Opening up the Q6 Pro, there are a lot of great design choices that optimize this keyboard’s sound. Primarily, it utilizes the gasket-mount system to reduce resonance through the case and create a more isolated typing sound. Where the top and bottom halves of the case make contact with one other, there are pieces of foam and small strips of tape surrounding the screw holes. These likely serve as a “force break” mod, limiting contact between the top and bottom cases to further prevent case resonance and reduce unpleasant typing sounds.

Photograph: Keychron

The Q5 Pro and Q6 Pro use higher-quality stabilizers than most prebuilt keyboards. Specifically, they use screw-in plate-mount stabilizers, which are the standard for high-end custom keyboards, because of their superior sound and feel to plate-mount stabilizers. The stabilizers are lubed fairly well and sound great out of the box, but one or two in each keyboard still had a bit of rattle to them—something that can easily be fixed with some time, effort, and a syringe of Krytox lube.

The additional components on the keyboard—the side-mounted Bluetooth sliders, USB-C port, and the battery in the underside of the case—are connected to the main PCB using cables, and mounted to the case directly. This ensures that the PCB isn’t making direct contact with the case, ensuring a more consistent sound profile when typing and reducing the strain being put on the internal components, since the gaskets allow the PCB to move up and down slightly.

While these may seem insignificant, I’m highlighting all of these details to emphasize how meticulous Keychron was in designing its Q-Pro line of keyboards. Every decision that went into designing this keyboard is meant to optimize sound or longevity instead of cutting corners, even if the average person might not ever notice these choices.

Few Flaws

Compared to other prebuilt keyboards, I can’t think of major sacrifices here. The Q5 and Q6 Pro feel great to type on, they’re programmable, and they have fantastic build quality that will last. There is some complexity with QMK and VIA compared to something like Razer's Synapse software—that’s not to say the system is hard to learn, it’s just not plug-and-play like a gaming peripheral. The keycaps are an acquired taste, but they aren’t objectively bad either. A basic set of replacement keycaps can cost as little as $20, or even less if you find a good set on clearance.

Most of the other issues are based on what you're looking for in a keyboard. The Q5 Pro and Q6 Pro are large, thick keyboards with a heavy metal case and are not portable at all. Compared to a plastic 60 percent keyboard, you won’t be fitting either of these into your backpack and taking them to work. It's a necessary trade-off for a keyboard of this caliber.

The price is high, but I feel like you’re getting a great keyboard for the money. Compared to gaming keyboards within the same price range, you’re getting something with higher build quality, more customization options, and greatly increased longevity and repairability.