When it comes to keyboards, there’s a lot of personal preference. What size do you want? What about the switches? Do you need wireless or just something to plug in and go? As someone who has fallen down the keyboard rabbit hole a few times, I know that the endless customization is both a benefit and a detriment to my mind and wallet. So when Fantech offered to send me over its Maxfit Air 83, I said “Why not?”. A low-profile, budget, 75%, wireless keyboard. What’s not to love?
Well. Why don’t we talk about it?
Maxfit Air 83 Specs
As always I want to get the specs and price out of the way first so your expectations can be put in place. The Maxfit Air 83 comes in 2 sizes. A 75%, which is a squished Ten-Keyless, and a 96%, or a squished full-sized board. Both of these are priced at $61 and $69 on their website (nice). The rest of your specs are down below.
- Size: 75%/88 keys, and 96%/99 keys
- Switches: MINI Red (Linear), and MINI Brown (Tactile). Not Hot-Swappable.
- Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0/2.4ghz/Wired
- Battery: 2500mAh
- Battery Life: 400 Hours (RGB Off)/90 Hours (RGB On)
- Dimensions: 317.5 x 127 x 23mm
- Weight: 488 grams
Size and Ergo
When it comes to sizes and dimensions the Maxfit Air 83, it’s one of my smallest keyboards. Yes, I’m a monster with 40% boards, but they’re all thicker than this. But compared to my TKL (Ten-Keyless) keyboards, this thing is tiny by comparison. Added to the fact you keep your entire F-row, along with some nice function keys like Delete, Print Screen, and, well, Home? Maybe? You still get a lot of what you need.
As for thickness, I ran without a wrist rest and found it to be pretty nice. I’m a heathen who wrests my wrists on the desk, and the very first height setting for the kick-up feet worked well for me. Just be wary of pushing back on it, cause the feet can fall over pretty easily.
Overall, the compact size makes this a really good space saver for a crowded desk.
Typing Experience
When it comes to the typing experience I have some good and I have some bad.
The Good
The keyboard itself is very quiet, the stabilizers are all tuned nicely and there is minimal rattle in things like the spacebar. Bluetooth and 2.4 GHz connectivity worked out of the box across a number of different profiles and devices. Once I got used to the low-profile switches, I found myself typing with minimal errors. Albeit at a slower speed than before. Overall, after getting used to it, I can see myself really enjoying the Maxfit Air going forward. This might be the thing that has me switch over to low-profile keyboards.
The Bad
Not Hotswap. I wish more keyboards would carry this feature. When I asked, Fantech mentioned it wasn’t, and the assumption is because of the switch manufacturer you use. So hope you select the right switches from the get-go. I have the Reds, which are really smooth, but I found them to be a bit light for my fat-fingering mentality.
Connectivity when low on battery is not great. I could tell that I needed to recharge my keyboard as the first time it got really low I started dropping keys. This is really not my favorite thing, but considering I’ve only had to recharge once since getting it, I don’t imagine this will be a frequent issue.
Software
On board, you can flip your RGB on and off, as well as change between a few modes from the get-go. If you want to do more with the board you do have to plug it in to use Fantech’s, well-themed, software.
The Red, Green, Yellow, Blue, and Gray software lets you set both the RGB as well as record macros. While it is all functional, the yellow specifically can make some of the text hard to read. In my opinion, the software is nice, but not necessary. Personally, I’ll stick to using the onboard hotkeys as well as the 3 switches on the back for choosing the connectivity mode, and the OS I’m on.
Final Thoughts
For $60 I think the Maxfit Air offers some pretty solid value. It comes in at a lower price than some of the competitors on the market. Nuphy is over $100, and Keychron lands closer to $80-$90 depending on the form factor. For $60 if you’re okay giving up some customizability, I think you’re getting a solid, retro-themed keyboard.
If you want to give low-profile a go and aren’t too fussed with changing things up all the time. Or if you’re someone who doesn’t have hundreds of dollars to burn in keycaps, switches, and group buys. This is really the simplest way you can go. You can find wireless mechanical keyboards for less, or you can spend a lot more. But for what the Maxfit Air 83 is, I think it’s shockingly good.
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