irocks K71R Wireless Mechanical Keyboard Review – A light show for your desk

I still remember my first mechanical keyboard, the Corsair K70 Rapidfire, and how excited I was to finally get my hands on something I'd only heard about. I can tell you that it was a drastic change in how I felt about keyboards. After that, I simply couldn't go back. So when I heard about the irocks K71R Wireless Mechanical Keyboard I was very excited to give it a spin and I'm glad I did because this is easily one of my favorite mechanical keyboards available on the market.

So, what's so special about the irocks K71R keyboard that you won't find anywhere else? Honestly, it doesn't give you anything that stands out, and there's nothing wrong with that. Keyboards can be boring and still be very functional, and if you're looking for something that takes away the cords and lets you make sure your gaming or productivity isn't hindered, it's easy.

The irocks K71R Wireless Mechanical Keyboard offers everything you could want in a keyboard, but has some missing essentials for me

Now irock's K71R makes a strong case for itself as it's a very capable keyboard that can operate on a 2.4GHz wireless connection with the included dongle, or you can just go for a USB Type-C connection. The choice is yours, to be honest. It has full RGB lighting per key and a smart dial, which can use the Windows 10 and above feature that lets you program the wheel on the keyboard. The keyboard I received was equipped with Gateron Brown switches. Unfortunately, there is no indication that the keyboard is available with red and blue switches because nowhere in the store does it show that you can select the switch option.

The box, or the unboxing experience for that matter, is a simple experience. The front and back of the box give you all the information you need to know about irock's K71R, and opening the box reveals the keyboard, some booklets, a USB Type-A to Type-C cable and a 2.4GHz dongle; it's about that. You don't get a wrist rest or a key cap puller.

I really wish the keyboard itself had a cavity where you could put the 2.4GHz dongle, but unfortunately that's not the case. There is no place to store the dongle, so make sure that if you travel and put it somewhere, you won't lose it. I understand this may sound like I'm nitpicking, but considering how such a small detail is available on so many other keyboards and mice, I just think this is an oversight that actually adds up to a better user experience.

Setting up the keyboard is extremely easy. You take it out, plug it in, make sure it's charged, and you're off to the races. Honestly, you don't even need to install the associated software; that's how good the onboard controls are, and I'm happy. But if this is your first time with a wireless mechanical keyboard with built-in controls, you'll want to take some time to learn the basics because it can be confusing.

The typing experience is another area where I absolutely fell in love with this keyboard. I've been using the Razer Huntsman Elite as my daily driver ever since it came out, and I've gotten used to the clicking purple optical switch, so a sudden switch to the brown mechanical switch felt a little different, but after a while, my fingers adjusted and rest was history. irocks K71R also comes with a sound-absorbing pad under the main plate, which ensures that you get a smooth, satisfying and acoustically pleasant typing experience.

Since irock's K71R is a wireless keyboard, I was a bit skeptical, considering how wireless keyboards often suffer from latency issues, but luckily that wasn't the case. Wireless peripheral issues are in the past as this keyboard performed exceptionally well in terms of latency and battery life, as this keyboard was my daily driver throughout this review, easily lasting up to 12 hours with RGB lighting. The company has advertised 27 hours, but I doubt you'll hit that mark. Speaking of RGB lighting, the keyboard is an absolute light show, and well, it looks amazing while doing it.

I'm not particularly sure about the controller used in irock's K71R, but regardless, it's a great one. The lighting effects are among the smoothest I've seen, and the lights are extremely bright. Honestly, I was a little worried that maybe my Razer Huntsman Elite is giving up on the lights and how bright they can be, since this keyboard put on an amazing light show, and the light bar on top is one of my favorites. I only wish there was a wrist rest for added comfort as it would have made the typing experience even better.

Now that I'm done gushing about how good this keyboard is, I want to address one issue where I think this keyboard lags behind, and that's the software. Don't get me wrong, I'm very happy that the onboard controls are there, but I like to have good companion software, but unfortunately that's not the case here. You can take a look at some screenshots below and you will be able to understand what I am talking about.

The software is barebones at best. I understand that may be the case since it is still in the early stages, but if you want to customize the keyboard, I would strongly recommend that you do so with the built-in controls as they are much more extensive. Another thing to note here is that if you are using the irocks K71R in wireless mode, you will not be able to use the software. So there is another issue that I would like to address. I thought this was normal, but this is not a feature that cannot be added.

Simply put, the irocks K71R is a great keyboard. It's not perfect, but it's not bad to the point of breaking the experience. If you're looking to get your hands on a good keyboard that offers an excellent typing experience, one of the best RGB implementations on peripherals and good battery life, then look no further. Oh, did I mention you get one of the best build qualities as the keyboard has some heft, zero flex and uses PBT double shot keys? So you are ready to go. The keyboard is available in white and black, so you have the choice to choose one of them.

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