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While scrolling through Instagram a couple of months ago, I came across an ad with a deal that was too good to be true, a Magege Star61 Mechanical Keyboard for just 2,99€ from TEMU. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t even consider purchasing it but I was looking to buy a new keyboard since I started my new job.
I work for a company with strict security policies and one of them forces any Bluetooth device to turn off after 5 minutes of idleness. So, as much as I love my Microsoft Desingner Compact, it was getting infuriating having to connect it every time I got up from my chair for more than 5 minutes…
So, for 2,99€ I decided to fix this issue. However, things are misleading as always. While it’s true that the keyboard itself only costs the advertised price you’ll still need to make at least 10€ in purchases to order. So, I added a couple more ‘useful’ items to the cart and paid a tad over 11€ for everything.
After 11 days of waiting, I finally got my hands on the cheapest mechanical keyboard I could find I’ve been using it daily for the past month and a half. So, I think I’m qualified to give you my review on the Mechanical Keyboard Star 61 and find out if it’s worth it.
Just a small disclaimer before starting, I’m not a keyboard expert, I’m a casual guy who likes having a minimalist and comfortable keyboard to write efficiently and make my setup look clean.
Specifications:
Number of Keys | 61 |
Color & Switch Options | White color, red switch; Black white color, brown switch; Black gray color, blue switch; Gray black color, red switch; White gray color, brown switch; Gray white color, red switch |
Lighting | Yes, single color (light blue) |
Connection Type | Wired (detachable Type-C) |
Connection Interface | USB A-C |
Cable Length | Approx.1.5m |
Hot-swappable | Yes, 3-pin |
Size | 290*100*38mm |
Weight | 515g±3g |
Build Quality and Design
I’m not going to lie, my first impressions were pleasant. Despite being entirely made of plastic this keyboard is heavy. It has so much weight that my 2-year-old daughter had trouble lifting it.
If you’re a ferocious writer or gamer rest assured that this keyboard will barely budge with the combination of its weight and rubber pads at the bottom.
When you connect it you are greeted with this soft light blue RBG light that exudes calmness. Although you can’t change its color you can change how it displays it by pressing FN + Light.
You can make the light pulsate, travel across your keyboard, make them completely still, and other options. My favorite is the option that reminds me of the ocean waves coming and going since it’s very soothing.
However, as I started to type I noticed two glaring issues I couldn’t overlook, the size of the keycaps and their sound.
Typing Experience
As I said in my introduction I’m used to my Microsoft Designer Compact keyboard whose keys barely have any height and are very quiet.
Switching to the Magege Star61 Mechanical Keyboard made me write with my hands and wrists lifted over 1cm, which I’m not used to. Ergonomically this isn’t ideal, especially for someone whose job and hobby require him to stay over 8 hours in front of a keyboard daily.
Then there’s always the issue there’s the noise. If you’ve read any of my controller reviews you know how finicky I am with this, and with a keyboard I need to be even more careful because I work in the same space as my girlfriend, and the moment I started typing the complaints came almost immediately.
Despite this, the switches themselves feel fine and responsive, but I might replace them with some that require less force in the future. And since they are hot-swappable they should be easy to replace for anyone (right?).
However, these were issues that I was already anticipating and I knew there were ways to circumvent through modding which I’ll talk about later on.
Modding Potential
About two years ago I started looking up keyboard-building and modding guides with the intent of building a custom keyboard of my own. But when I saw the amount of money and effort it would require I gave up on the idea since I had other priorities at the time, like a bay on the way.
The idea always stuck with me though and at this price point, I feel the MK Star61 from Magee is a great entry point to this hobby.
I started with the easiest mod you could do, replacing the keycaps. I wanted some keycaps that looked good, shorter than the default ones if possible, and were nice to the touch. So I ended up purchasing Sunzit Coral Keycaps.
With the help of the keycap remover it came with I replaced every key in less than 10 mins and I loved the result. It looks beautiful on my setup, the quality of the plastic is great, and feels nice to the touch, and to my surprise, it slightly dampens the clicky sound, probably because they are thicker.
I was planning on lubing the switches but I still need to inform myself more on the subject… Also, for some reason, I can’t remove them. I kept trying with the switch puller and even saw guides and ultimately I gave up…
One other mod I tried was placing a bit of paper foam inside of the keycaps to dampen the noise further, but the one I have is a tad thicker than it should so it messes with the input force ruining the typing experience.
Still, there’s a ton of potential for modding here and if you want to purchase it for this purpose go for it!
Conclusion
Magege MK Star 61 is a decent keyboard and it’s more than worth it if you purchase it for the low price of 2,99€ like I did.
However, as mentioned it’s not a keyboard that will feel good to use out of the box and you’ll need to mod it to get a premium typing experience.
In my case, I only replaced the keycaps, and my enjoyment with this keyboard shot up the roof. There’s something about having a good-looking keyboard that makes me write more often… My favorite setup for writing right now is plugging my iPad into a monitor and plugging in the Star61.
The soft blue lights from the RGB the soft feel of the plastic keys and hearing the light clicky sound of my keystrokes while I sip some coffee have made my mornings a bit more enjoyable.
For this price, The MageGee Star 61 stands out as a top contender in the budget mechanical keyboard market. Its solid construction, modding potential, and hot-swap feature make it an excellent choice for both beginners and even veterans. While it has its quirks, the overall value it offers is hard to beat.
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Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Affordable price
- Hotswap switch capability
- Sturdy build with minimal flex
Cons:
Loud and inconsistent default switches
Thick default keycaps
Limited backlight color options
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