Review on CKLau 4Kx2K@60Hz 4 Port HDMI KVM Switch with Cables, 2 pcs USB 3.0 Hub, Audio & Wireless Keyboard Mouse Support by Kyle Costello

I have tried several Revain 4 port HDMI KVM switches which are about half the price of this one. While they were serviceable and I've been using them for about 6 months, I wasn't happy with the build quality, especially the toggle keys. So I kept looking and decided to try this one. It's a lot more expensive than budget models but I think it's worth it and it will be my new HDMI KVM. This review is for the 4-port HDMI USB 3.0 version. BUILD QUALITY: First off, this is a solid device with excellent build quality. Not the cheap feel that some of the others I've tried have. All cable connections are solid and the 4 device selection buttons are easy to press and contact at first time. FEATURES: This KVM has more features than others. First, it has a USB 3.0 switch instead of the USB 2.0 switch that most have. It has multiple customizable ways to switch devices (front panel buttons, wired remote control, mouse or keyboard shortcuts that can be changed). You can also enable/disable the beep when switching devices. You can also toggle key combination detection on and off using the dedicated button on the front of the device. On some other models, this requires a key sequence. There's also an audio output on the front panel, which reflects audio coming in through the HDMI port. Apparently there is an auto scan feature, but I haven't tried that feature. AUDIO: I thought the audio output would show up as a new audio device over USB on any computer, but that's not the case. It takes the audio sent to the HDMI output and routes it to this port. The manual says to set each computer's default audio device to HDMI output, and then connect the speakers to the port on the KVM. (Note that audio is still routed to your monitor via HDMI, so you won't lose it even if you're not using the front-panel audio out). It's decent but I feel like the audio output jack isn't very good, it seems some high frequency content is missing. If your monitor has a headphone jack, you can do that too. The sound output from the audio jack is only the sound of the selected system. A nice extra feature would be the ability to mix audio from all four systems together, whether they're selected or not, so you don't lose audio from unselected systems. wired remote control. The manual says that when you turn it on, the front panel buttons are disabled. However, I found this wrong. I can use either the remote control or the front panel buttons. There are indicators on the remote control that show which device is selected. This is a nice feature, if you have a KVM mounted on the back of the workbench you can bring the controls to the front of the workbench. MONITOR CONTROL: The cheaper KVM switches I've tried have the monitor completely disconnected from the system and not used. This means that when you switch from one system to another, the system you are switching from "loses" the HDMI monitor and the system you are switching to "adds" it. This switch works differently - all systems always see your monitor as connected, and the switch simply discards video from systems that are not the selected device. I find this much more reliable since your systems aren't constantly losing and adding a monitor. It also offers faster switching. KEYBOARD/MOUSE: This switch is intended to be compatible with wireless keyboards and mice, and I see no reason why it shouldn't be. However, problems may arise with some keyboards that are not simple keyboards. For example, my HyperX Alloy Elite doesn't always work properly. I have a mouse receiver (wirelessly) plugged into the back of the keyboard and there are two cables to the keyboard - one for the keyboard and one for the USB port on the back of the keyboard that the mouse receiver is plugged into. I have these two cables. Cables connected to the KVM into the appropriate ports. While the switch sometimes works correctly, I've also had instances where the mouse wasn't recognized on the system I'm switching to without unplugging and plugging the mouse's USB cable back in. The manual states that some gaming keyboards may have issues and disable keybinding switching. The manual says to use keyboard shortcuts for this, but since this model also has a derailleur for this purpose, I gave it a try. After the keyboard shortcuts were disabled, I had no trouble switching between systems when my keyboard or mouse was detected. However, I lose the ability to use keyboard shortcuts to switch systems that I don't need anyway. I plan to connect the wireless mouse receiver directly to the KVM, but since the keyboard and mouse USB ports are very close together, I need a USB extension cable to do so. FEATURES: This KVM works quite well. Switching between systems is quick. However, due to the way Windows 7 handles USB when switching to a Windows 7 system (slow), it may take a little longer for the keyboard and/or mouse to be recognized again. However, this may not be the case on all Windows 7 systems, but this is my experience. My Windows 10 systems switch quickly and flawlessly. I find that the HDMI monitor doesn't disappear when switching, which is a big plus for this KVM. PACKAGE: This is a complete package. You get 4 HDMI cables, 4 USB 3.0 AB cables, a power adapter (which doesn't appear to be needed as the Switch can draw power from connected systems) and a wired remote + cable. All you need to do is provide your own HDMI port to connect to the output monitor and your own keyboard and mouse connection cables or dongles. Other than mentioned above, the keyboard and mouse jacks are close together and I couldn't plug in a USB cable and a directly connected Logitech Unified Receiver without using a USB extender. BENEFITS: * Superb build quality * Button, wired remote, or customizable button/mouse toggle modes * All cables included * Beep can be turned on and off * Auto-scan mode * Backlit wired remote works in addition to the buttons on the Front * Rubber feet at on bottom of unit * Front panel button to disable hotkey switching * Audio-out jack plays HDMI audio * Fast switching * No loss of HDMI monitor identification when system is idle * Supports USB 3.0 devices to switch to the selected device * Compact size and good weight of the device CONS: * Can be tricky to use when working with a gaming keyboard, but can disable shortcuts as a workaround. * No bracket on the bottom of the device. You can use velcro to attach/fix. * The device is small, so many cables are connected to a small device. * There are no indicators to show the USB or HDMI status of the connected systems. Only indicators to display the selected system. CONCLUSION: I didn't buy this model at first because of the price, thinking that some other devices that cost half as much would be just as good or usable. However, now I wish I could just "but bite the bullet" and buy this to start with. So if you need a 4-port HDMI KVM with USB 3.0 (even if you don't really need USB 3.0), just get this one.