Review on HUO JI E-Yooso Z-88 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard: Brown Switches, Programmable RGB Backlit, 104 Keys, Hot Swappable - Silver and White by Julio Montano

This minimalist mechanical keyboard has most of the features I was looking for. In fact, this is a white and silver clone of Reddragon K556. At such a low price, it's hard to ask for more. If it had standard pinout switches, that would be exactly what I wanted. Unless you change the included blue switches, consider this keyboard a 5 star keyboard for the price. Things not included but also not expected given the price: detachable cable, braided cable, more backlight flexibility (8 fixed colors). compared to higher-end color offerings), USB pass-through port/mouse dongle hub. Pros: 8-color backlight with multiple backlight modes and the ability to assign colors to specific keys, MX-compatible switches (major improvement over the ALPS-compatible switches that came with the E-Element Z-77), CIY switches for flexibility (also a minus - see below), build quality seems solid, surface mount LEDs. Cons: This manufacturer still uses Gaote Outemo switches (this keyboard comes with blue ones) with non-standard pinouts. This means that you can only replace Gaote Outemo switches with that specific pinout and not with other aftermarket switches that you may want to use (such as Verified). This seems like a pretty dumb choice for a keyboard marketed as "Change It Yourself" / highly customizable. I'm glad they at least switched to MX compatible stems to allow for a much wider range of aftermarket keycaps, but adopting a standard PCB pin pattern to allow for standard aftermarket switches from different manufacturers would be fantastic . Also, the included metal tool for pulling the CIY switches must have been designed by a sadist (or, more likely, not designed at all). It has pretty sharp edges and after pressing 208 switches (104 brown from the donor keyboard and 104 blue from this keyboard) my fingers were bruised and blistered. I hope there will be a more ergonomic version of this tool in the future. I replaced a set of brown Gaote Outemo switches from a Redragon K556 because I prefer brown to blue. I also replaced a set of secondary keycaps because I don't really like the font on the supplied keycaps. I personally confirmed that the keyboards come with a non-standard pin layout. Outemo Gaote Switches: E-Element Z-77 (Blue Switches with ALPS Stem) (E Element Mechanical Eagle Z-77 RGB Programmable Mechanical Gaming Keyboard, 104 Anti-Collision Keys, Blue DIY Switches, Palm Rest (White)) Redragon K556 : (Cherry Stem Brown Switch) (Redragon K556 RGB Wired LED Backlit Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Aluminum Base Standard 104 Keys) E-Element X-2000: (This Keyboard, Cherry Stem Blue Switch) Have so far I've only found blue versions of Gaote Outemo switches (both ALPS and Cherry Stems) available for purchase here at Revain in packs of 10 for $9 each (GAOTE OUTEMU blue replacement mechanical keyboard switches, form [ +] (10 pcs.)) . If you want a different type of switch, you'll need to find a donor keyboard that has that one. You may want to just buy a blue switch dispenser keyboard as it is cheaper than buying 10 packs. Photo legends: 1) E-Element X-20000 as received 2) Side view as received 3) Detail showing the back of the removed blue Gaote-Outemo switch and corresponding pinholes in the PCB 4) Replaced the brown Gaote-Outemo switch first ( courtesy of victim Redragon K556) in place5) Keyboard with non-genuine keycaps (silver translucent - https://www.massdrop.com/buy/34313) and brown switches installed6) Workstation looks stylish and ready to use