Glorious GMMK TKL mechanical gaming keyboard review / Overclockers.ua

The name of the keyboard we will be looking at in this review is an acronym and stands for Glorious Modular Mechanical Keyboard. This new family looks quite diverse and includes three formats at once: full-size, shortened TKL and a 60% compact keyboard. And all this in black and white. There is also a version for special connoisseurs called GMMK Pro, but this is already a separate topic for conversation. The modularity of these devices consists in the presence of special connectors for quick replacement of switches without the need for fiddling. Not only that, the manufacturer even offers a barebone version, which comes at a price of about half the price, but without keycaps and switches, thereby allowing the buyer to choose them at his own discretion. By the way, you can also choose the layout type — ANSI or ISO. In general, there are alternatives for every taste and color. And now let’s talk about everything in detail on the example of the Glorious GMMK TKL keyboard in black and with an ANSI layout.

Specifications

Supply set

The keyboard box is decorated in black and white with splashes of silver lettering. Although the product is depicted quite schematically, the back and sides of the box have all the necessary information. Even if it is not very accurate in places.

Inside, the box is painted in a nice and contrasting orange color. Among the elements of protection against damage are cardboard inserts, a soft bag and a transparent plastic overlay on the keys.

In addition to the keyboard, the delivery includes a cardboard business card with an offer to visit the official website for information, software and instructions, a sticker, a USB type C to USB type A cable, a set of four spare grooved feet, a red plastic key for removing the keycaps, a metal key to remove the switches and two additional caps to replace the Esc and Fn buttons.

Appearance

In terms of design, Glorious GMMK TKL is good. This is a classic “skeleton”. The minimalist and flat top panel is made of matte black painted metal. In combination with solid side faces, the device has very high strength and is completely resistant to diagonal twisting. Rounded corners and a silver edging around the perimeter of the top face complete the overall aesthetic of the keyboard. GMMK TKL feels heavy, although in fact its weight together with the cable does not exceed 840 grams.

The key layout is made according to the ANSI standard with long single-row Shift and Enter keys. The F1 button is located above the number [2]. The Latin alphabet is written in the upper center of the button in a thick dashed font. Since the keycaps are double-moulded from ABS plastic, they are quite wear-resistant, and the Latin characters definitely don’t wear off over time and should shine well. Everything is not so rosy with the Cyrillic alphabet. It is laser-etched on the surface, but due to double molding, the plastic swells on the symbols and forms tactile, thin, pale-white lettering, through which the backlight is not visible. The symbols are located in the lower right corner of the keycaps. As a result, everything looks good in daylight, but very bad in dim light. The profile of the keys has a cylindrical recess in the middle. The Fn button occupies the position of the right Win button.

As with any other TKL keyboard, there is no number pad. Arrows and navigation buttons are located as standard. Just above the arrows are two dot indicators of red color. Left means Caps Lock is on. And the right one indicates the enabled game mode, in particular the locked Win button.

This custom keyboard variant features Gateron Brown RGB quiet tactile switches in a transparent case. They have quite standard characteristics — 55 grams of force for pressing, 2 mm of travel before triggering, 50 million cycles of working before failure. When pressed, the user feels a slight recoil without sound, after which the button is activated. Although sometimes you can achieve returns without activation, especially if you try to do it on purpose. In general, the sensations from them are interesting, albeit specific. Long hidden button stabilizers with separate latches are well lubricated, and press quietly and smoothly, without rattling. There is a noticeable backlash only on the space bar, the rest of the long keys work within the limits of decency.

The main feature of the GMMK series is a connector for quick replacement of switches. It is enough to remove the mechanism with the help of a special clamp and replace it with any other one that is suitable for the location of the contacts. Officially declared compatible with products from Cherry, Kailh, Gateron, as well as branded mechanisms Lynx and Panda from Gloriuos. This opens up the widest possibilities for convenient modification of the keyboard. Any configuration can be assembled on it. The backlight LED is soldered directly on the printed circuit board, on the upper side of the switch. By the way, each key socket is signed directly on the board, so that after installing the button, you can immediately put on it a cap corresponding to the legend. And through the opening of the central leg, a layer of noise insulation can be seen between the bottom of the keyboard and the printed circuit board.

The height of the keyboard in profile along the back row of keys with folded legs is 38 mm. With the legs unfolded, the height of the rear row increases to 48 mm. The OEM key profile is used here.

The USB Type C port for connecting the detachable cable is located on the back of the keyboard approximately in the middle and with a slight offset to the left. It is built flush with the body, which slightly reduces its resistance to possible damage in the event of a cable break. There are no other external ports.

The braided USB Type-C to USB Type-A cable is 1.8 meters long. It is medium in thickness and quite flexible. The connectors are completely standard in shape, it is not difficult for them to choose a replacement cord if necessary. There is a reusable adhesive tape on the cable to adjust the excess length.

The back of the keyboard is plastic with a thickening in the rear part. Four specific grooved rubber feet are affixed to the corners, and the serial number is affixed to the bottom center. A simple red plastic key for disassembling the keycaps is hidden in a shaped recess near the left leg.

The folding legs have anti-slip rubber stickers.

The backlight on the keyboard looks nice and lively. But only with regard to the Latin font, since the Cyrillic alphabet does not shine through. All colors are displayed correctly and even white looks exactly white. The two Lock indicators are illuminated by bright red LEDs. Their light does not blind the eyes when viewed from an angle.

Functional capabilities

The Glorious GMMK TKL keyboard has a number of functions that can be performed by combining certain keys with the Fn button. Information about the combination can be found on the official website in the support section, or intuitively determined based on the symbols on certain keys. The table lists the features we were able to reproduce.

Software

Glorious GMMK TKL uses its own software (the current version at the time of writing is 1.0) for backlight control and key remapping. You need to download it from the official website and install it. Can be forced to start manually or automatically. All controls are collected on one screen. In the upper right corner, under the triangle symbol, the commands for importing and exporting configurations and information about the program are hidden. Further down on the right is a three profile switch. Below in the center is the backlight control bar. There you can enable or disable the backlight editor. About 20 options of light effects are available in it with the possibility of full adjustment of all parameters, color and brightness, including each key individually. On the right there is a button to access the macro editor. At the bottom, you can select the polling frequency of the keyboard within 125, 250, 500 and 1000 Hz, and reset the parameters according to the settings.

All buttons except Fn are available for overriding commands. You can bind any combination of commands, a macro command, or one of 18 multimedia commands to choose from. In the macro editor, you can create separate chains of keystrokes, assign each of them an individual name, make a recording with or without a delay, and set the number of cycles of repeating the chain of commands. After finishing the recording, you can edit everything. The only downside is that everything is stored in the keyboard’s memory and there is no counter showing the level of its filling. Therefore, it is never known in advance exactly how many and for what duration macros can be recorded.

Ergonomics and testing

The special beauty of Glorious GMMK TKL is that it is extremely concise in terms of design and functionality. There are no tricky curves, many additional buttons, hidden and often unnecessary functions. Everything is very simple. Very strong metal case without a hint of deflection, standard folding, beautiful lighting. The main advantage is the modular design of the switch connectors, which allows you to install any compatible mechanisms with tactile feedback and in any combination. Plus — stabilizers lubricated from the factory. Is the switch broken? No problem, you can remove it and try to clean or repair it without contacting service. Didn’t work out? You can replace it with another, less necessary, while you are looking for a place to buy a new one. Otherwise, everything is extremely standard and comfortable. You don’t need to get used to the layout, the hands are comfortable even without a palm rest (although it is even better with it), the backlight can be adjusted without software, which will be needed only to reassign the keys. There is built-in memory, and the settings will work on any connected computer. And the removable cable hints at the suitability of the device for transportation.

There is no need to talk about the feeling of the Gateron Brown RGB installed here, as they are standard for their type. Tactile activation with little recoil and no unnecessary overtones has its camp of supporters, but, as a rule, the cohort of those who like a linear stroke or vice versa – a loud click, is much larger. And in general, this is a modular device, you can put any switches to your taste and in any combination. Average out of the box, the Gateron Browns are comfortable for both gaming and large text printing. Stabilizers are decently lubricated and do not cause rejection by the nature of their work, there is no excessive rattling or distortion of long keys either. The keyboard is perfectly adapted for “blind typing”. Against this background, it is not even necessary to mention the strange engraving of the Cyrillic alphabet without illumination, which was clearly not done at the factory. It’s a pity that the keycaps are not made of PBT plastic, but of ABS, even if they are double-cast.

We can separately mention the software of the product. It seems that it was made simply because it was needed. And ideally, it needs refinement and expansion of functionality.

Glorious GMMK TKL supports full NKRO anti-hosting, which allows you to activate all buttons simultaneously and in any combination. There is also an option to switch to 6KRO for those systems that won’t start or can’t work otherwise.

Results

The fashion for modular mechanical keyboards is just beginning to gain popularity in our latitudes and the Glorious GMMK TKL, like the entire GMMK series as a whole, is one of the few retail options available today with similar functionality. In addition, in the best versions of performance for those who value minimalism. The advantages here are self-evident — a strong metal case, the possibility of easy replacement of switches without raging, tolerable Gateron Brown mechanisms installed from the factory, good lighting, relatively good keycaps. In addition, the “skeleton” design with removable switches is very easy to clean from dirt, which usually becomes a problem for the normal operation of the keyboard after two years (and in some cases, much faster).

Among the shortcomings, it should be noted that the software is very simple and weakly functional. And also — the lack of illumination of the Cyrillic engraving.

If you look at the Glorious GMMK TKL as a stand-alone keyboard, it might seem a bit overrated. On the other hand, it can be perceived as a long-term investment. Either from the point of view of simplicity and maintainability, or as a basis for future upgrades, which allow you to easily assemble at the first request something completely new in terms of tactile sensation.