8BitDo first made a splash on the scene with its retro controllers. Which took the format and style of classic controllers and added modern touches to them. Bluetooth, vibration, analog sticks and extra shoulder buttons. Over time 8BitDo has expanded its offerings to include keyboards. First with the Retro Mechanical Keyboard inspired by the NES and Famicom systems and now with a transparent Xbox-inspired keyboard.
As announced on 8BitDo’s website, the new Xbox Edition keyboard takes its design queues from the original transparent Xbox.
For those of you who have not already fallen down the mechanical keyboard rabbit hole… A mechanical keyboard makes use of mechanical switches that have moving parts that physically make contact inside of the switch. This is in contrast to the typical membrane-style keyboard. Which makes use of a contact pad and two contacts to complete a circuit. Why? Well, because the mechanical switches offer better tactile feedback, improved modularity, increased longevity and greater customizability. Mechanical switches are easily replaceable, and allow users to change the feel of the keyboard or replace broken or unresponsive keys.
The Xbox edition offers several features: including an Xbox button to bring up the Game bar, RGB backlighting, multiple connection modes (wired, 2.4Ghz, Bluetooth), an aluminium plate, N-Key rollover, double-layered ABS keycaps, and a hot-swappable PCB (meaning you can easily swap out your switches).
This keyboard will pair very well with the transparent 8BitDo Retro R8 Mouse Xbox Edition. Which features a cool charging dock, programmable buttons, three connection modes and DPI adjustment. 8BitDo releases custom software allowing users to tweak the keyboard and mouse functions. This allows users to set custom Macros and change the functions of keys or RGB behaviour.
The 8BitDo keyboards have been the subject of rave reviews and are well worth checking out. It’s available for pre-order now. You can find more info on the Xbox Edition here. If you’re looking for a new PC controller, then look no further.
