Ducky One 3 Fuji

Ducky has one helluva popularity within the mechanical gaming keyboard world. Even in an age of dazzling keyboards plastered in flashing lights, it is stored up its no nonsense design philosophy (which it calls “Quack Mechanics”—no joke). But even expensive ol’ Ducky can be leaning into the extraordinary a little bit extra; the Ducky One 3 Fuji is prime instance of a extra stylised and vibrant Ducky at its finest.

Look no additional than the One 3’s splendidly vibrant design for proof. This is Ducky’s newest flagship keyboard and it is available in many alternative colors and types, however this one is named Fuji. Every key you see in my pictures of the One 3 is included in the usual Fuji design, which makes it really feel like I’ve acquired a keyboard with a customized keycap set pre-installed for $124/£143.

Doesn’t it simply look implausible? The legend on each key’s matched to the color of the important thing itself and to 1 one other. Take for instance the big ISO Enter key. It matches the legends on the letter and quantity keys, whereas its smaller Enter legend matches the encompassing blue particular keys. If you do not like that precise colourway, Ducky additionally contains 11 spare keys in another end.

Every keycap on the Ducky is created from robust PBT plastic. Unlike ABS plastic, PBT tends to final a little bit longer, reject stains, and maintain its colour-matched legends from rubbing away. These are double-shot so there truly should not be a lot of a threat of rubbing the legends off in any respect. They additionally really feel nice to kind on, in order that’s a plus.

If you are a very heavy typer you should not discover it fairly really easy to smash these keycaps to items, both. No guarantees, although. I’ve seen somebody do the skilled author equal of Hulk smash a PBT keycap in two. Just attempt to care for your issues and so they’ll care for you.

From the very good high quality keycaps to the remainder of the board the Ducky continues to impress. The surrounding plastic case is a match for the color of the keycaps with a smooth two-tone end in pink and blue, and that focus to element continues all the way down to the adjustable toes. Yes, even the toes are an identical hue, not that you will see a lot of them. They actually do their job properly, anyhow; there’s completely no wobble to this board on a flat floor.

The blue underbelly of the Ducky accommodates cable runs for the included (and detachable) braided USB Type-C to Type-A cable. The cable on the One 3 Fuji is a wonderfully matched shade of pink to the remainder of it, after all. There are additionally 4 DIP switches that supply a few hard-coded shortcuts for numerous keyboard modes, nevertheless, I could not get them to work. I attempted unplugging and ready a short while earlier than making an attempt once more, however could not get them to do something in any respect.

You will not discover full media controls on the Ducky One 3, both, however there are quantity up, quantity down, and mute keys within the higher row. There’s additionally the all-important calculator shortcut, which does what it says on the tin and opens the calculator in Windows when pressed. 

What can I say concerning the calculator change: I did not suppose I wanted it, however I’ll miss it after I move on to the subsequent keyboard for evaluation.

The One 3 is primarily made out of plastic, though I’ve by no means seen that as a lot of a draw back with a Ducky. It’s construct like a tank and there is completely no flex to it in anyway. Perhaps it would not love a drop from a excessive place, however I do not dare to attempt it with this beautiful evaluation unit.

I’ll, nevertheless, paw below the keycaps on the switches under. I opted for Cherry MX Speed Silver switches, that are a few of Cherry’s most interesting for gaming. They provide a easy press with only one.2mm of journey earlier than actuation and a complete distance of three.4mm. The swift actuation helps with the kind of snappy response I would like whereas gaming, whereas the linear press and not using a tactile bump or click on makes for reasonably low-noise operation. I’ll admit they don’t seem to be the quietest switches however they removed from the loudest (clicky blues with rattly stabilisers).

The Ducky barely rattles in anyway as I’m tapping away at its positively pink caps. The spacebar and enter keys have a sure tell-tale thud to them, however past that the switches, together with these with stabilisers, are impressively uniform in sound. There’s a complete lot of sound dampening happening with the Ducky below the floor, and that satisfying mechanical thud consequently is amicable to my ears for a day’s price of fixed typing, or gaming with a microphone close by. That won’t be the case with each key change you possibly can have put in on the One 3, however it’s probably the case with all of the linear choices.

The One 3 is on the market with Cherry MX switches of varied color and tactility so you’ve gotten a number of to select from. I imagine you too can discover boards with Cherry MX Silent switches if noise is a trigger for concern.

But I have never talked about one of the best bit but: the Ducky One 3 is hot-swappable. A key change breaks? Swap it out for an additional. You purchased some new key switches on-line as a result of they regarded good even thought you will by no means actually see them as soon as they’re put in? Just pull the previous ones out and slot the brand new ones in. The keyboard comes with a steel keycap plucker included, so that you’re sorted for all of the instruments you want. It actually is an easy process.

Plenty of gaming keyboards are hot-swappable these days, however this explicit inclusion with the Ducky One 3 actually looks like icing on an already extraordinarily tasty cake.

There’s a assured simplicity to the Ducky One 3. Ducky has made small however calculated changes with the One 3 over the Ducky One 2 as a substitute of reinventing the wheel. Nor did it have to. I adored the Ducky One 2 as my go-to workplace board in my earlier hang-out—I could not identify all that a lot incorrect with it. The newer One 3 largely retains what labored and improves on a small variety of issues, particularly the hot-swappable keys and a few new vibrant types. It’s a neater trying bundle, too.

Importantly the basic tell-tale Ducky options have been left as is with the One 3, and that is actually mirrored within the high quality of the construct right here. I’m satisfied this new Ducky would nonetheless be intact and exquisite as ever if you happen to discovered it scrabbling via the filth exterior New Vegas. That’s “Quack Mechanics” for you, I suppose.

You might have to depart RGB lighting on the desk with this explicit mannequin, however I’m not torn up about it. There is a Ducky One 3 with RGB LEDs, positive, however you’ll forgo the extra attention-grabbing designs on provide to have them. For me, it is that mix of seems and brawn that basically make this Ducky One 3 the entire bundle.