The SK620 employs rollover technologies that result in the most efficient, accurate anti-ghosting technology yet. N-key rollover ensures that every single keypress is correctly detected, even during your most heated, button-mashiest moments - or your chaotic crunch-time coding situations. Rest easy knowing no matter how fast and furious it gets, your keyboard can handle it.

The SK620 takes the classic slim, minimal design of the most popular chiclet keyboard and injects it with the signature Cooler Master mix of flair and functionality. This includes a brushed aluminum top plate for durability and contemporary good looks, while a contoured floating key design gives you an extra dimension of cleaning functionality and signature beauty. The result is a keyboard that looks familiar, but feels unlike any other keyboard you've used before. Adding complexity, the SK622 is also compatible with Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS, which means the functions of several critical keys change based on what device the keyboard is paired with. It’s not enough to learn that the key featuring Cooler Master’s logo allows you to take advantage of another key’s secondary functions; you also have to remember in which mode the keyboard is set to take advantage of common keyboard shortcuts across those operating systems. This can be overwhelming at first. Those stately keycaps are lit by per-key RGB lighting that supports 16.8 million colors. The lighting is bright enough, and it looks good reflected off the aluminum top plate, at least on the space gray model. Unfortunately this is where the keycaps end up negatively affecting the experience. They don’t let the light through evenly, and the decision to illuminate each key’s secondary function means the bottom half of most characters is better-lit than the top half. Sep 11th 2023 Cooler Master Reveals Street Fighter 6-Inspired Gaming Hardware Collaboration with CAPCOM (7)

A compact keyboard with good customization.

The Cooler Master SK620 also features ergonomic keycaps adorned with more legends than a Grecian vase. This is partly a consequence of the 60% form factor, which all but requires manufacturers to print the pre-programmed secondary functions performed by each key, but also the result of supporting both Windows and macOS. Shout out to Cooler Master for handling all that complexity without making the SK620’s keycaps a cluttered mess. Cooler Master built two feet into the bottom of the SK622, so people who prefer typing at an angle have a more ergonomic option available to them, but it’s disappointing that the keyboard offers only two angles now that a fair number of its competitors have started to offer two.

The on-the-fly controls allow you to control the Cooler Master SK620’s lighting, record macros, use those macros, and switch between Windows and macOS-specific inputs, among other things. The Fn key also pulls double-duty by enabling the use of common functions such as “Home” and “PGDN” as well as multimedia controls. As I’ve mentioned, these combos can be hard to remember, but at least they make these functions available in this form factor. Low Profile Mechanical Switches - Reduced travel distance and actuation point with the same signature durability, feel, and precision. It’s worth noting the Cooler Master SK622’s polling rate is set to 1,000Hz in wired mode, but switching to wireless drops that polling rate to 125Hz, so it’s not ideal for fast-paced games where input lag matters. This is likely a battery-saving measure, and it works. Cooler Master doesn’t offer an official battery-length estimate, but I used the SK622 wirelessly for a week without any issue. I simply couldn’t remember what each key’s secondary function was, either, so I constantly had to look at the keyboard whenever I wanted to mute a video or take a screenshot (see how to take screenshots in Windows). At least Cooler Master makes it easy to find those functions at a glance. That problem could probably be solved with time, of course, and other people might be able to remember what each key does after studying the keyboard for a few moments. To them I say… I’m jealous.

60% of the Time, It Works Every Time

Enough about the Cooler Master SK622’s form; let’s consider its function. The 60% layout has become more common in the last few years, especially among gaming keyboard makers. It allows people to save room on their desks—which is particularly useful for gamers with gargantuan mouse pads—without requiring them to sacrifice functionality. There is a fairly steep learning curve associated with adopting the form factor, though, especially since manufacturers have yet to agree on a universal standard for the multiple input layers and copious key-combo shortcuts these keyboards rely on. You don't need it, but we have it. Simple, straightforward, and fool-proof. You'll be able to unleash 16.7 million colors to every key, get further customization of lighting modes, and fine-tune macros. Brushed Aluminum Design - Flat brushed aluminum top plate, floating keycaps, and slim, minimalist design built with both functionality and aesthetics in mind.

The complexity is reduced if you use the keyboard with a single operating system (although that means the additional symbols printed on the bottom row are more of a distraction than anything else) or if you only try to learn it on one at a time. This form factor is fundamentally different from full-size or even tenkeyless keyboards; having to wrap your head around the idea of multiple input layers is probably going to take a while. That struggle can pay off, however, as long as you’re willing to approach the Cooler Master SK622 on its own terms. Ergonomic Upgrades - New ergonomic keycaps and adjustable feet allow you the comfortable typing experience you want, your way. The Cooler Master SK620’s settings can be controlled both on-keyboard and within the MasterPlus+ software on Windows. (Mac users are limited to the hardware-based customizations.) Both of these settings types can be saved to the keyboard’s onboard storage, which means one could theoretically forgo Cooler Master’s configuration software entirely, assuming they’re willing to be limited to the firmware that shipped with the device.Every key on the Cooler Master SK622 serves more than one function. The number row is also the Function row, for example, and several of those keys are also tied to multimedia controls. A single key is assigned to the equals, plus-sign, F12, and Volume Up functions by default. Other keys are assigned system functions—the “U” key is also the Print Screen key, for example, and the “P” key is also the Insert key—and still others are used in conjunction with what Cooler Master calls the On-the-fly System. On-the-Fly controls everything from the board’s RGB lighting to recording macros.