We might all love Liberty Stroll’s F40 bodykit for the Autozam AZ-1, however the firm provides a equipment for the real article Ferrari F40 too — a equipment that Liberty Stroll has now determined to honor with a mechanical keyboard collab. I do know, that sounds absurd, however it’s truly extra becoming than you may suppose.
There’s an enormous crossover between automotive fans and keyboard fans. Certain, to many the thought of a “keyboard fanatic” sounds comical, however the identical may be stated for automotive people within the larger world. All of us like intricate engineering initiatives which can be dismissed by others as mere home equipment. I’m not simply saying this to justify my roughly 5 keyboards. That’s an inexpensive variety of keyboards to personal, I swear.
The keyboard is a collab between Liberty Stroll and Authentic Konbini, a model that doesn’t seem to exist exterior the collab. Its Instagram account has no posts earlier than the Liberty Stroll keyboard, and its web site requires a password for something greater than submitting your e mail for keyboard updates. “Konbini” comes from the Japanese comfort retailer, however transliterating the Authentic Konbini title into hiragana returns no outcomes. The Drive, nevertheless, has some extra information:
“This can be a piece of JDM heritage that lives in your desk,” stated Caleb Chandra, co-founder of Authentic Konbini. “We need to carry the eagerness and delightful modifications of those machines to your area, an extension of affection for some of the iconic builds in current JDM historical past.”
As for the keyboard itself, its case is constructed from two milled blocks of aluminum that have been then coated in an off-white shade much like the tuner’s F40. It makes use of low-profile mechanical switches and keycaps, however there’s no phrase on who makes them or their specs. The one swap element offered is that they’re tactile switches, that means they’ve a noticeable engagement level that you may really feel within the keystroke. Nevertheless, we do comprehend it’s a wired USB-C keyboard with RGB backlighting and a 75%-ish profile. For non-keyboard nerds, the latter signifies that it has perform and arrow keys however no quantity pad or page-up and page-down buttons. The Liberty Stroll livery appears nice, too, with its easy black-over-white predominant keys, black area bar with “Slammed” on it, and the Japanese flag on the enter key.
That title, Caleb Chandra, offers us a bit extra data to go on. Chandra can be the founding father of glossy keyboard outfit Monokei, however none of that firm’s PCBs appear to match up with the brand new Authentic Konbini format. The Kei appears closest, however it’s lacking a button within the first row — the Liberty Stroll board appears unique.
Most attention-grabbing is the declare of low-profile tactile switches and RGB lighting. That might imply the board makes use of Gateron low-profile SMD-compatible switches, both in brown or banana taste. My each day driver board — a customized handwired Alice-style cut up 60 % — makes use of full-profile Gateron Milky Browns, and so they’re a wonderful swap. This Liberty Stroll collab might find yourself feeling pretty much as good because it appears.
The worlds of automobiles and keyboards aren’t so totally different, and if this Liberty Stroll collab bridges that hole then it may imply extra followers of each communities. I, for one, suppose that’s a plus.
