Page 2 - A Closer Look - Hardware and Software
The initial appearance of the Epomaker TH108 Pro may not catch many people's attention. It looks ordinary, especially in this black-and-gray color scheme. The standard looking keycaps are highlighted with a bit of color on various keys, including Escape, both Enter keys, and the arrow cluster. The black framing elements also add to this conservative design. In some ways, Epomaker has started to get a bit comfortable with their designs, as all their keyboards look similar in both shape and color scheme. To be fair, the TH108 Pro also comes in a lighter white-blue version, but I would like to see other options for fun. At least this design should fit into most desktop setups. The rest of the elements, from the frame to the keys, are squared off. A small Epomaker logo is printed on the bottom right side, but the rest of the keyboard is clean of additional logos.
In terms of dimensions, the Epomaker TH108 Pro is 445mm wide, 140mm deep, and a maximum 42mm at the back. This height increases even more if you raise the kickstands underneath. This is an average size for a full-size keyboard. The keyboard is sturdy, but its plastic frame does flex. Whether you are twisting the keyboard or pressing it down hard on any part of the keyboard, you will see the TH108 Pro give way. There is also a notable amount of deck flex, especially in the middle. This is not too surprising, given we have a gasket-mounted polycarbonate plate. The front edge of the frame is approximately 20mm tall, which means you can add a palm rest here, but one is not included.
We received the standard North American QWERTY ANSI layout of the Epomaker TH108 Pro. This means there are 104 keys. The bottom row is standard spacing with 1.25U keys on both sides of the space bar. We also have a full number pad on the right side of the TH108 Pro. All keys are standard in spacing. In fact, the only addition is found on the top right side of the keyboard, as there is a small screen and volume knob. The indicator lights are found between the Escape and F1 keys.
There are many secondary functions on the Epomaker TH108 Pro, but they are not printed on the keycaps. Instead, you can look at the user manual. To access these functions, start by pressing the Fn key on the bottom right side before pressing the specified key. All the top function row keys have secondary functions. F1 and F2 are used for decreasing and increasing screen brightness. F3 to F6 execute system commands, including launching task view, file explorer, search, and screenshot. F7 to F9 are for media functions including Previous track, Play/Pause, and Next track. Finally, F10 to F12 are used to Mute, Volume Down, and Volume Up. Given there is a volume knob, you will not need these shortcuts.
Function and Windows key let you lock or unlock this key, which is handy for gaming. When locked, the indicator light with a "W" beside it will light up. Epomaker also supports Mac functions, and they are placed where you might expect on a Mac keyboard. You can change between modes with a switch at the back. There are some secondary functions for pairing devices over Bluetooth, as Q, W, and E are used for pairing for three different devices. If you make any changes you want to reset, you can hold down Fn + Escape for three seconds, which will revert to factory settings. There are secondary keys for lighting controls, but we will explore these later in the review.
The bottom of the Epomaker TH108 Pro is barebones. On the sides, there is a diffusing bar, which sits over lighting on both sides. This adds a bit more bling and underglow to the TH108 Pro when it is turned on. There is a shiny label in the middle with information regarding the keyboard. This includes a small description, certifications, and a Made in China label. A serial number is also here if you end up needing support from Epomaker. The corners have rubber pads to keep the keyboard in place. There is a pair of different height kickstands. As such, there are three different incline angles of the TH108 Pro. The kickstands have rubber padding on them to prevent movement when it is propped up. The only other thing of interest is located on the back edge in the middle. This includes a USB Type-C port for connecting the keyboard to your computer. On one side is a switch to change between Windows and Mac layouts. The other switch has three positions for choosing the operation mode with the wireless dongle, over USB, or Bluetooth. The included USB dongle can be found under one of the kickstands, as there is a resting position for when it is not in use.
As we have stated a handful of times, the Epomaker TH108 Pro can be used wireless or wired. Inside, there is a 10000mAh battery to keep the keyboard going. In our testing, we found some exceptional battery life results. Epomaker provides an estimate of up to 42 hours of continuous use with the lights and screen on, and over 200 hours with them off. In our testing, I was able to go over three weeks without needing to recharge the TH108 Pro, even with the lights and screen on. To be clear, it is not as if I was using it full time during these three weeks, but this is still considerably longer than other keyboards I have tested. Unfortunately, I was unable to fully test it without lights on as I did not have enough hours in the day, but I think Epomaker's claims are true based on our initial testing. When it functions over the wireless dongle or wired, the TH108 Pro reports at 1000Hz. This reduces to 125Hz when using the keyboard over Bluetooth. To keep this longevity, the keyboard automatically sleeps when it is not in use. Once you press any key, it automatically wakes back up from sleep. This process was quite smooth, and it barely took any time to wake up.
On the table, the Epomaker TH108 Pro fits in over a gray XTracGear Carbonic XXL. The gray and black keycaps are accented with the few colorful keycaps. In terms of layout, everything is standard and where it should be. I am not the biggest fan of the number pad in general, but it is something you get with a full-size keyboard. The volume knob is nice to have for quick adjustments. One thing I did not talk about is that the screen has multiple uses. The primary screen setting shows the battery life and other status messages. However, if you press Function and the Volume knob, the knob is now used to navigate between multiple screens. Here, you can adjust the backlighting, volume, language of the menu, or move to a splash screen. When you change the volume knob between modes, the TH108 Pro will flash multiple times, so it is obvious to the user something has changed.
As for the typing experience, this is the biggest highlight of the Epomaker TH108 Pro, at least in my opinion. Our TH108 Pro ships with Epomaker's Creamy Jade switches, which we will inspect on the next page, but I think they do live up to this name. From the recording above, you can hear the sound on each keypress. Keystroke travel is smooth without any squeaking or scratching feeling. The sound on each press is deep and thocky. All these aspects help with the "creamy" sound. When you bottom out the switch, it feels sturdy but any further press results in flexing of the backplate. Longer keys like the space bar and Enter key have a different pitch, but they feel quite the same. Overall, I really appreciated the typing experience. Those who want a quieter keyboard may obtain the TH108 Pro with their Sea Silent switches instead.
As we have seen from many double-shot PBT keycaps, the lighting solution on the Epomaker TH108 Pro is like an undergrow, as the light does not shine through. However, the lighter colored keycaps, especially around the alphanumeric keys, help with reflecting the light a bit more. The backplate under the keys is also white, which spreads the lighting. Even still, in the dark, you will not see the legends of the keys. The south-facing lights shine around the keycap and are a bit more visible than the alternative north-facing orientation. At maximum brightness, the lights are nice to see and bleed through between the keycaps, even if our photos do not capture it well. Other areas of illumination include a pair of the diffusing bars on the sides of the TH108 Pro for some more color, as well as two more rings flanking the sides of the internal display.
Lighting controls can be adjusted via either secondary functions or through the screen. In the screen menus, you can change the effect, brightness, speed, and color. However, you can also adjust this with secondary functions. Once again, you need to press Fn first before the specific key. To change the effect, you can press Insert. Delete is used to change the color. The Up and Down arrows increase and decrease the backlighting brightness, while the Left and Right arrows decrease and increase the speed of the effects. Finally, Home is used to cycle through the side light colors, while End is used to cycle the colors for the circles near the display. All these toggling effects can also be set to off, although it would be nice to have a single button to turn all the lights off at once.
Instead of an application on your computer, the Epomaker TH108 Pro can be configured through a webpage, which requires permission to alter your connected peripherals. This only works with Chromium-based browsers, such as Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge. You can configure the keyboard over wired or wireless, but if you want to change any of the screen settings, you will need to plug the keyboard into your computer.
As for details, the menus are located on the left side menu. The Custom Keys is where you can reassign what each key does. This includes regular, lighting, media, and macros. Next, the Lighting Settings are used to change all the lighting effects, including static, dynamic, and reactive options. Under Macro Manager, users can create and save their own series of actions.
Under TFT Screen, users can configure a screensaver that loops about on the TH108 Pro's screen. You can upload your own GIF and configure each frame to add effects, text, or more. Once you are done editing, you will need to upload it to your keyboard. In addition, this is where you can force a time synchronization for the keyboard, as there is no other way to set the clock on the TH108 Pro.
Finally, the Settings opens on a new page where you can change the interface theme and language, change how quick it takes for the keyboard to sleep, update the firmware, and factory reset the unit. Overall, this driver webpage is the same as I have seen with other recent Epomaker products. There are some user experience things that could be refined, including removing a lot of empty space. I wish Epomaker would instead better scale these graphical elements, especially on larger screens, to take advantage of the real estate. Otherwise, I did not notice any bugs while using the driver, which is good to see.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. A Closer Look - Hardware and Software
3. A Closer Look - Disassembly and Internals
4. Conclusion
