Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro review: A budget-friendly productivity beast

The Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro packs a punch, and is one of the best mechanical keyboards money can buy. And not a lot of money either — this keyboard costs just $68! For the price, you get a ‘board that’s built really well and looks lovely, and comes with a TFT screen that displays useful information (like battery levels). Typing on this keyboard is a joy, thanks to the double-shot PBT keycaps and super responsive switches. For a budget keyboard, that’s not too shabby at all.

Not much is wrong with this keyboard either. Its only flaw is that its TFT screen doesn’t work as I’d like it to. So, is this the right keyboard for you? Read my full Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro review to find out.

Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro review: Cheat sheet

• What is it? A 75% layout wireless mechanical keyboard
• Who is it for? For typists on a budget
• How much does it cost? The Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro has a retail price of $68 / £68
• What do we like? The great design and build quality, smooth typing experience, easy-to-use companion software and the fact that it’s fantastic value for money
• What don’t we like? The screen doesn't work as I'd like it to — but that’s all

Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro review: Specs

Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro review: The ups

From its fantastic looks and build quality to the smooth typing experience and companion software, the Epomaker Ajazz AK280 Pro is an all-rounder.

Fantastic looks

The Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro is a sight for sore eyes. Available in two colorways, you can join either the light (white purple) or dark (grey) side. I tested the jazzy white purple variant which looks lovely. Its white body hosts white, lilac and light blue keycaps with no garish branding. All the letters on the OEM profile keycaps are printed well and clear with no misalignment of any kind.

Pricier keyboards like the Gamakay LK75 ($129), the Hexgears Immersion A3 TKL ($129) and the Corsair K65 Plus for Mac ($179) feature screens that display useful information like battery percentage, connection mode and time. Even though the Ajazz AK820 Pro is a cheap keyboard, it features a screen, too! This screen can be customized via the companion software (more on that soon) to display GIFs or static images. Also located in the top-right corner is a metallic rotary knob to adjust volume, and it has a nice tactile feel to it.

Overall, the Ajazz AK820 Pro is designed so well that you wouldn’t think it costs less than the average person’s weekly grocery shop.

Great build quality

Much like the Epomaker TH80 Pro ($99), the Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro is robust and sturdy. Although its body is made entirely of hard plastic, I couldn’t see any signs of poor construction. However, there’s very slight flex in the body and a little creaking, but remember that you’re paying less than $60, so this is expected.

Another great thing about the Ajazz AK820 Pro is that it’s fitted with double-shot PBT keycaps (either OEM or MOA profile). PBT keycaps are more oil-resistant and durable than ABS keycaps. Some expensive boards, like the Corsair K65 Plus for Mac or the Razer Pro Type Ultra ($159), utilize ABS ones instead, so it’s nice to see Epomaker bring a premium feature at an accessible price.

The keyboard measures 12.8 x 5.3 x 1.5 inches and weighs 1.76lbs, so it’s compact and light enough to fit into a backpack but heavy enough to stay put on a desk. On its back, you’ll find two switches: one for connection modes and the other for operating system layouts. The latter is extremely useful if you work across both macOS and Windows (like I do).

Lovely typing experience

The Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro comes with one of two linear switches: Gift or Flying Fish. I tested the Flying Fish switches, which require 42g of force to activate, and they have a total travel distance of 3.5mm. In comparison, the Gift switches are slightly heavier with a total travel distance of 3.6mm and require 45g to activate. The Flying Fish switches are great to type on as they’re highly responsive and you don’t need to press them in too much for a command to register. This helps you not get fatigued when typing for long hours.

They sound great, too, close to the TH80 Pro’s Budgerigar tactile switches, with that gorgeous thock that I love. If you aren’t a fan of the stock switches, don’t worry. The Ajazz AK820 Pro is hot-swappable and is compatible with 3- and 5-pin switches, so you can easily swap them without de- and re-soldering them to the PCB.

I took a typing test at 10fastfingers.com to put the Ajazz AK820 Pro through its paces, and you can see the results above. I’m very pleased with this keyboard — it’s an absolute delight to type on. The keycaps also feel soft under my fingertips, which is an added bonus.

Easy-to-use companion software

Epomaker Driver serves as the Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro’s companion software, and it’s your one-stop shop for remapping keys, customizing the south-facing RGB lighting to your heart’s content, recording macros and updating the keyboard’s firmware. The software is easy to use and doesn’t take long to get to grips with. While the keyboard isn’t QMK-enabled like the Keychron V1 ($94) or the NuPhy Air75 V2 ($119), at least it has its own companion software, unlike the expensive Lofree Flow84 ($159).

Value for money

The Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro has a retail price of $68 at Amazon U.S. / £68 at Amazon U.K. and we’ve seen it drop to $55, too. For the price, this keyboard is absolutely fantastic. We’ve tested other cheap mechanical keyboards, like the Lemokey X1 ($36), the Redragon K673 Pro ($64) and the Cherry K4V2 TKL ($79), and some of these have been great but they’ve still had a few issues. The Ajazz AK820 Pro, on the other hand, doesn’t cut corners (barring one issue which I’ll discuss soon).

Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro review: The downs

There isn’t a lot wrong with the Epomaker Ajazz AK820. The only flaw I could find was its screen not working as intended — but that’s about it.

Screen doesn’t work as I’d like it to

In theory, the Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro’s TFT screen near the navigation keys can display static images or GIFs. In theory, being the keyphrase here. That’s because it never worked for me. I spent a good deal of time tinkering with the companion software and tried to upload multiple GIFs and images to the ‘board’s internal memory, but nothing worked. The TFT screen, as I write this review, is just white — no battery indicator or any other information, nothing. This isn’t a dealbreaker, but it’s a warning that it doesn’t do what it says on the tin. I have reached out to an Epomaker representative and will update the review when I hear back. The keyboard is otherwise great as this is a minor flaw, and warranted publishing.

Keyboards like the Gamakay LK75 or the Hexgears Immersion A3 TKL have far more responsive and easily programmable screens, but you’ll need to spend nearly double for that.

Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro review: Verdict

I don’t know about you, but the Epomaker Ajazz AK820 Pro is a winner in my eyes. Not only does this keyboard look awesome, but it also performs extremely well, and that’s down to its super responsive switches, stellar build quality and double-shot PBT keycaps. It’s comfortable to type on for long periods of time, and its handy TFT screen lets you know when it needs to be plugged in for charging. Plus, RGB lighting is fully customizable via the user-friendly software.

My only gripe — and it’s not that major — with the Ajazz AK820 Pro is that its TFT screen doesn’t work exactly as I wanted it to. I was unable to upload a GIF or static image to it, which frustrated me.

Regardless, the Ajazz AK820 Pro is one keyboard I wouldn’t mind spending money on — $68 is a small price to pay for excellence.