REALFORCE R2 PFU Limited Edition Keyboard (Mid, Ivory, 45G)

Love the topre keys in this, and the keyboard itself definitely feels quality. I’m not really a keyboard snob, but have been using mech keyboards for several years now. Wanted something quieter that still had good feedback. The RF R2 PFU fits the billl perfectly in that regard. The only downsides for me are that I wish it had a volume wheel instead of buttons, there are very limited options for Keycaps (the black on black is very hard to see even in light), would be nice if it was backlit, and it is definitely over priced. I ended up buying a white key cap set for the alphanums.

the quality of this board is overall is fantastic, you can tell that it’s really well made. you should know what you’re getting into with these 45g silent topres and they feel very good to type on if that’s what you were going for.however, the main issue that some other people who have commented on is that the keyboard somehow does not lay flat (with or without the stands propped up) for some reason. there must be something causing a slight warp on the frame after the manufacturing process.the fix for this is rather simple, though i’m disappointed such an expensive board still has weird issues like this:a) apply some thick double sided tape to one of the rubber feet so all four corners are able to rest on the surfaceb) using some careful strength, you can ‘bend’ the frame by pressing both sides down very hard until it becomes even again. please be careful when doing this and don’t go overboard and be patient. you don’t need to do this very much for it to become completely flat

I think this is coming pretty close to my endgame. I did get the 55g version before returning and getting this special edition 45g silenced. At first I thought the silenced would not be my thing as I love the ‘thock’ sound to be loud, but this sounds just as pleasurable and feels even better. Personally I found the 55g too heavy and the 45g is just about right for me. The feel is a smooth reverberation at your finger tips that doesn’t travel up your finger as much as some clicky MX style switches do (that I am previously used to). Seeing as I bottom out my keys a lot, I do feel that it will be advantageous in the future when I am in a busier office environment (currently in a family business the keyboard ‘clack’noise is no problem).Regarding the APC, I did have fun trying the different settings. Eventually I found the middle default setting (2.2mm) the best, but I did notice my typing improve with the lowest setting (1.5mm) whilst not being as fun to type on, with the opposite true for the 3mm. I know people said they don’t find much difference with the APC, but I did notice these subtle variations.Overally I am really happy. I am still getting used to the topre style and I am still not as fast or comfortable typing as I am on my cherry style tactile and click switches that I use, but I feel I will get as good as them soon. Even if I don’t, it doesn’t matter. This keyboard just feels amazing. I will probably switch back and forth between some of my favourite cherry style switches (Zealios, Kailh box), but this does truly feel like it is almost my kb endgame.

This special edition of the Topre Realforce R2 line of keyboards does not possess NKRO. Instead, it has both a MINIMUM and MAXIMUM of 6 key rollover! This is better than the typical 2 key rollover that most keyboards has, for example, the legendary IBM Model M also had a minimum of 2 key rollover.However, this is the only real OBJECTIVE criticism I can give this board. As much as I’d like to dock another star (currently 4 as of this initial review), the rest of the board is so well done that I cannot in good faith be petty here!Lets start of with the whole “special edition” title going on. What makes this specific model of the Topre Realforce T2 line “special”? Two things,one of which is the Actuation Point Changer. Basically, you can decide between 3 main settings on how deep you want the actuation point to be. For gaming, you can set it super high, or for typing to avoid errors, you can set it super low. Personally I have it set to super high all the time.Secondly, Topre switches normally come out of the box with a very loud upstroke (when you finish pressing the key and it comes back up). Normally, you’d have to buy external silencing parts like Hypersphere Rings, or KBDfan rings, etc. All of which are expensive in their own right. Not to mention the personal work required to put them into the keyboard yourself. This special edition keyboard is basically $100 (USD) more than the “regular” R2 line of Topre Realforces. For that additional $100, you get high quality silencing so that the sound is more consistent across the board, and the aforementioned Actuation Point Changer to fit their user’s specific typing styles.As for the Topre switches themselves. They carry the pros of both “traditional” “mechanical” keyboard switches, and the normal rubber-dome over membrane keyboards you’d find from Dell. The pros of the “mechanical” side of things being “part-way-actuation”. Meaning, you don’t have to bottom out to get the keys to function. Likewise, unlike most traditional “mechanical” keyboard switches, Topre switches have the quiet bottoming out and dust resistance of those regular rubber dome (over membrane) keyboards that are absolutely everywhere.Another advantage of Topre switches over the ladder is their life expectancy. In the sense that there is no real “major point of failure” so to speak. Topre switches to not use a physical sensing mechanism like traditional mechanical keyboards or membrane sensing (or both in the case of Buckling Springs over membranes AKA the IBM Model M). Because of this, there’s hypothetically “no switch lifetime” to speak of to measure. That is because Topre switches are “non-contact” based.Basically, there’s springs underneath the rubber domes in Topre keyboards. These springs conduct capacitance as they’re pressed downward. Once the spring(s) gain enough capacitance, the keyboard senses for a set amount of capacitance. Once that set amount is “sensed”, it actuates. This makes Topre switches a VERY reliable switch design for all sorts of purposes. From intense gaming, typing that late essay due in 30 minutes, etc.Now with that general introduction out of the way, what about the rest of the keyboard?Let’s start off with the build quality. Its excellent. I’ve heard reports of people bending this particular model out of shape. Please note, while this keyboard borderline doesn’t flex at all, it can bend with enough force like anything else involving steel. Do remember that this is a keyboard, not a sword.As for the chassis/outer-casing, it has one to begin with unlike most other modern keyboards that use a “floating switch” design. The problem with the floating switch design is that it makes key switches more vulnerable to damaging knocks. This particular model of keyboard DOES have a chassis to speak of. So no worries on that end!The cable that plugs into the keyboard is non-detachable. That sort of feature is best on portable keyboards. Being how this particular one I got is a full sized and is planted firmly to my desk with no intentions of leaving, I do not mind that lack of a feature. Bare in mind that this cable isn’t braided either. Again, no worries if you don’t do some crazy things to it. If a cable isn’t braided, that doesn’t mean it will fall apart just from breathing at it so don’t worry about this one. Also it is fairly thick as well.There’s a three way cable gutter so that you can route the wire underneath the keyboard in three directions,up, left, and right. This is one of those things that are just nice to have but lots of people underestimate the convenience of.Speaking of convenience, unlike first generation Topre Realforce keyboards, these second gen. Realforces (AKA the R2 line) have lots of more rubber on the bottom of the keyboard to prevent slipping. The flip out feet are also rubberized. All of which does a great job at keeping everything nice and stable and where it should be.There have been reports of Topre stabilizers being “rattly”. My particular one does not have that. They do sound slightly more “hollow” than the regular keys though. But that is mainly due to the keycap material being a thin but high quality dye-sublimated PBT keycaps. These are one of Topre’s most famous features as they feel great, with a subtle but still present texture, high durability, very clean legends, etc. But due to their thin nature, and being PBT, they most certainly do make for the switches to make a “higher pitched” sound profile verses say, ABS, which most keyboards use as their keycap material of choice. The sound is subjective though.As for add ons that come with this special edition. It comes with two rubber mats for the alphanumeric cluster/block (where most of the letters are located on the keyboard). A moderately thick rubber mat, and a VERY thick rubber mat. The thicker the mat, the even quieter the bottoming out of the Topre switch will be. A bit gimicky however, as this special edition, and being Topre already, it is already very quiet. But its there if you want to use it.The other item it comes with is a keycap puller. I do not recommend pulling the keycaps off unless you know what you’re doing however, as Topre stems (the piece the keycap “attaches to”) are notoriously easy to bend out of shape or outright break from messing with them. If you want to clean this keyboard, use compressed air. Being as it is a rubber dome keyboard, compressed air does its job without damaging anything.Note that this keyboard is not spill resistant.This particular edition/model has dedicated volume keys. They also have Function Commands for things like opening the Internet Browser. Keep the instruction manual(s) that come with this keyboard as they all have all the combinations of keys for all those function shortcuts.Note that the Context Menu key is now a Function Sub-legend of the Right Windows key. So unlike most keyboards that would just get rid of that key entirely, Topre kept both of them. Not sure why other keyboard makers don’t do that. Both of those keys are awfully useful!The cherry on top of this keyboard is that, like other Topre keyboards, IF you know what you’re doing, you can replace the rubber domes to fit your specific needs. Such as replacing the stock rubber domes with something lighter, or heavier. Personally I use BKE Extremes. They’re very heavy, but EXTREMELY tactile rubber domes. Even though they require a large amount of force to use, they’re still quiet within this special edition Topre Realforce R2 keyboard.All in all, I do like this keyboard very much. But the disappointment of the NKRO not being present on this special edition keyboard is very off putting.NOTE THAT, the RGB line of R2 keyboards DO have NKRO according to reports. So this isn’t a universal problem with R2 keyboards it seems. Other reports do confirm that these special edition models all have a MAXIMUM/MINIMUM of 6 key rollover.So long as you don’t have a rhythm game that uses more than 6 keys at a time, most users should be fine with the 6 key rollover this keyboard possess. I however, occasionally (used to) play a rhythm game that used 9-keys. Bit of a shame as it would’ve been pretty neat to use this keyboard with BKE Extremes for that particular game. On the bright side, it can be used for virtually everything else.As long as the NKRO isn’t your main objective, everything else is very stellar!PS: Yes the Actuation Point Changer works on Mac. Yes the dedicated Volume Control keys work on Mac. Most of the Function combinations also work on Mac like pause and play media as a example.If Topre ever had this exact model of keyboard, but just made it actually have NKRO, it would be perfect! But as it stands, four stars is what I will give it. One less due to the lack of NKRO as allegedly advertised, but 4 stars overall due to the extremely stellar quality of this keyboard!

Pros:The build quality is 2nd to none. The PBT keycaps felt amazing and there were no squeaks or rattles or anything. Also, the text on the keycaps was extremely sharp. The board felt heavy (in a good way) and the keypress was buttery smooth.Cons:This is personal obviously but It’s super expensive and while the build quality felt fantastic, the actual key press felt mushy. There was no tactility to me (I had the uniform 45g factory silent switch). The only difference between this and a membrane keyboard is that you do not have to bottom this keyboard out. But other than that, I wasn’t in love with the topre switch at all.But then again, I favor super tactile clicky switches like buckling springs or BOX Jades. For me, even the MX Clear switches “feel” linear.I am only sharing my own thoughts and experiences so that I can save you some time before purchasing this keyboard in case your personal preferences are like mine.I mainly rated it 3 / 5 stars because let’s be honest, it is a terrible value. There are some FANTASTIC mechanical keyboards you can get for $150 or less. That’s a $200 savings at the time of writing this.