Keyboard evolutions have drastically changed in the past several years, many unique and exceptional keyboards are being produced by the manufacturers.
From Membrane, Mechanical to Custom layout keyboards is rapidly being evolved with a set of many new and advanced technology to make user’s typing experiences better and feasible.
WKL, HHKB Layout keyboards, and Vintage keyboards are always hot favorites for the keyboard enthusiast who loves the design and concept of custom keyboards.
Apart from these designs, you probably heard about the Split keyboards that generally split down the middle and allow more flexibility in position and comfort to your wrist during typing.
In Split keyboards, Ultimate Hacking Keyboards are immensely popular among keyboard lovers.
To know why? We’ve come up with a detailed article about Ultimate Hacking Keyboard which will provide each and every precise detail about this keyboard including Pros, Cons, and an in-depth review with practical applications.
Let’s get dive into the details to explore Ultimate Hacking Keyboard!
Table of Contents
What is Ultimate Hacking Keyboard?
The Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is a split mechanical keyboard that comes with Cherry Mx and Kalih switches for actuation and provides great comfortability and wider wrist movement while typing due to its split design.
The mechanical keys can be programmed like many mechanical keyboards with the company’s software.
This ultimate hacking keyboard comes with many unique functionalities such as add-on modules like TrackPoint, Trackball, Touchpad, and key cluster.
Whereas it can significantly improve the wrist posture during typing, and provide more ergonomic operations by allowing to type on two different keyboard halves.
You can easily understand the Ultimate Hacking Keyboard concept by looking at the following significant highlighting points below:
- Cherry Mx and Kailh Switches
- The bridge cable that connects halves.
- Both ABS and PBT Double-shot Keycaps
UHK is produced by the manufacturers to offer every bit of customization according to the user’s wrist which can give a wider edge in typing experience.
Consisting of Cherry Mx and Kailh switches for actuation makes this keyboard sturdier and more durable as Cherry is the king of switches whereas Kailh switches offer Crunchy and Crispy clicks.
This keyboard is definitely looking the best keyboard at the first glance for the keyboard lover who prefers wrist comfort over everything, but reviewing this keyboard on all technical benchmarks will clear all the doubts.
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard Specifications
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is equipped with some exceptional specifications that no other mechanical keyboards have.
This put the UH keyboard in a very special category, especially since its trackball and touchpad functionalities are very rare to see in conventional mechanical keyboards.
I’m sharing a specification table for the Ultimate Hacking keyboard which gives you a brief overview of this keyboard.
Name | Ultimate Hacking Keyboard |
Switches | Cherry Mx Green, Clear, Kailh Blue, Brown, Red, Black |
Keycaps | ABS Plastic, and PBT for premium variant. |
Layout | 60% |
Dimensions (WxDxH) | 11.38 x 5.2 x 1.14 inches (289 x 132 x 29mm) |
Inside the Box | Braided USB Cable, Plastic Keycap Puller, a bag of rubber o-rings, and User's manual. |
Media Keys | Yes, can be accessed with Fn keys. |
Weight | 2.2 pounds (1kg) |
Warranty | 2 Years |
Price | $275, the price can go up with additional components. |
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard Review
Reviewing this UHK on all technical benchmarks will give a clear conclusion on whether you should invest your money on it or not.
Sometimes there is intense hype created by the promoters about any product so it’s become over priority to uncover all these things and come up with a clear perspective.
Here are all the vital factors that need to be discussed practically along with some positive upsides and downsides.
1. Design and Layout
The layout for Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is derived from a 60% keyboard as there is no function keys row as well as no numeric pad on the right side of the keyboard.
Arrow keys are also missing due to achieving a very compact design.
That’s the reason when a user takes a first glance on the UHK, they can easily notice that the keyboard is absolutely compact with a minimalistic design.
UHK occupied the dimension of 11.4 x 5.2 x 1.1 inches (289 x 132 x 29mm) without a wrist pad, apart from the build quality looks solid due to its premium high-quality manufacturing components.
Talking about its Split design structure, This Ultimate Hacking keyboard can be split in the middle, as a result of more flexibility in wrist movement and can be set as the user’s preferred position.
The well-installed split design mechanism is certainly a vital property of this UHK that not only enhances its overall typing experience but put this keyboard stand apart from the crowd.
2. Keycaps and Keyswitches
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is made with both ABS and PBT keycaps (for premium variant) which are considered very premium plastic material that doesn’t get shinier texture with time.
Compared to ABS vs PBT, PBT keycaps are always ahead in terms of better holding, and durability and provide a sturdier build to the keyboard.
By using PBT Keycaps in UHK, printing legends never get faded as well as the RGB lights are more luminous and better shine through in Ultimate Hacking Keyboard.
Although PBT keycaps are generally more expensive in terms of price but it definitely pays off.
The Ultimate Hacking Keyboard comes with the most popular mechanical switches Cherry Mx and Kailh switches so it is certain you won’t need to compromise on switches performance.
Many high-quality mechanical keyboards come with Cherry as there is no match for Cherry switches especially their durability and guarantee of actuation.
In terms of Keycaps and Keyswitches, I can say it can’t be much better beyond this combination.
3. Typing Experience
This is the most dominating technical benchmark a keyboard lover goes through before opting out of a mechanical keyboard.
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is considered the first UHK’s split 60% keyboard layout, the main purpose of implementing this mechanism is to achieve excellent productivity and to protect wrist and fingers fatigue during typing.
This keyboard truly served the purpose it has launched for, well you can adjust your wrist position accordingly by setting up the halves.
The halves are connected with the replaceable bridge cable which can be stretched and narrowed as needed.
The Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is equipped with Cherry Green and Clear, Kailh Blue and Black switches providing a heavier actuation, strong tactile feedback with a loud clicking sound.
Due to having a high actuation force, the probability of error generation is relatively less as required high pressure to actuate the switches. You can easily rest your fingers on these switches as well.
You won’t be encountered with accidental keypresses, thanks to its heavy switch profile.
IF you’re used to typing on a light switch, Ultimate Hacking Keyboard will not disappoint you as it has Linear Red switch options in its lineup too.
For gaming and silent environment, UHK with Red switches is the ideal choice for people.
4. Software Configurability
UHK AGENT SOFTWARE
All features associated with Ultimate Hacking Keyboard can be customized with the help of software called ‘UHK AGENT’.
UHK AGENT software is very powerful open source software that allows deep configuration of your UHK as well as you can ramp any key, and customize the sensitivity, mouse speed, and LED brightness according to your preference.
The software can be complex for some users who don’t know much about the customizations of mechanical keyboards as it is equipped with lots of functionalities.
Apart from these customizations, there is an option called ‘Keymaps’ which can be helpful in establishing Colemak for Mac, Colemak for PC, and for all different platforms.
UHK AGENT software can simply be downloaded from the Official website of UHK website after reading the complete manual carefully.
Gradually you will be used to this software and know all the functionalities by using it for your Ultimate Hacking Keyboard.
5. Extreme Customizability
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard features lots of switch variants in its family lineup.
The variety of switch options helps users to decide to pick switches according to their needs and requirements such as some users are habitual of typing on lighter keyboards whereas some users feel comfortable on havier switches.
For heavy variants, UHK features Cherry Green and Kailh Blue switches which usually have higher actuation (80g, 50g consecutively) points for registering a keystroke.
Whereas UHK has Kailh Red and Black switches that are linear switches and fall in the light switch category due to their low actuation and no tactility.
As far as case colors are concerned, UHK offers 5 different case colors which are Brown, Blue, Orange, and White, so user can pick their favorite UHK color set accordingly.
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard offers 4 different custom layout keyboards, again it’s a nice thing for a user to pick their perfect custom layout keyboard, I would go with 60% layout as it is more satisfying than others.
Switch Variants | Green Switch | Clear Switch | Black Switch | Blue Switch | Brown Switch | Red Switch |
Actuation Force | 80 cN | 65 cN | 60 cN | 50 cN | 45 cN | 45 cN |
Switch Profile | Highly Clicky | Tactile | Linear | Clicky | Tactile | Linear |
Tactility | Highly Tactile | Tactile | No tactile feedback | Strong Tactile | Tactile | No tactile Feedback |
Noise Level | Very Loud | Moderate | Quiet | Very Loud | Moderate | Very Quiet |
6. Idiosyncratic Modules
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard features 4 significant modules which make this keyboard very special and Idiosyncratic compared to other conventional split keyboards.
These 4 modules enhance the overall efficiency and functionality of UHK, these modules are:
- Key Cluster Module
- Trackball Module
- Trackpoint Module
- Touchpoint Module
Keycluster Module: Keycluster Module is the most useful module that can be embedded on the left keyboard half.
It has 3 regular keys, 1 mini trackball, and 2 mini buttons that can be pressed and give an additional edge during typing.
Trackball Module: This trackball module is placed on the right side of the keyboard half that can be accessed by the right thumb to obtain better precision while typing.
Trackpoint Module: This module of the UHK is installed on the right side of the keyboard half.
The Trackpoint module will certainly remind you IBM ThinkPad laptop. If you used IBM Thinkpad previously you will get more connected to this module.
Touchpad Module: Again this module is designed to place on the right side of the keyboard half which can be very useful if you have a habit of clicking with the right fingers.
A user can trigger a click by tapping on it.
7. LED Display
Display LED screen is mounted on the top left of the UHK that offers users to get essential information about the active functionalities of the keyboard.
First of all, on the left side, there is a locked icon that shows the status of CapsLock whether it is on or off.
The second icon lies in the middle that tells you whether the UHK AGENT software is connected to the keyboard.
The last icon shaped as a triangle shows whether the adaptive mode is enabled to auto-switch keymaps or not.
The wider three letters indicated in red colors tell the abbreviation of the Keymaps.
Is Ultimate Hacking Keyboard Good For Gaming?
From a gaming point of view, Ultimate Hacking Keyboard features linear switches (Red and Black) which are excellent considerations for gaming.
As linear switches are the most prominent switches for gaming due to their express fast response time, Fast typing speed with a very quiet sound profile which makes these switches ideal for Hardcore gaming.
But some points need to be clear if you are planning to buy Ultimate Hacking Keyboard for gaming.
First of all, If you are coming from a conventional layout, this UHK might look strange at initial while typing as it has complex functionalities within a compact design. So it needs lots of time to get used to it.
As far as the performance and functionalities are concerned, this UHK has everything which a gaming keyboard needs to have. A joystick and a mouse pointer make it more gaming oriented.
But the question may sustain surrounds the layout, if you have experienced using this layout then you can buy Ultimate Hacking Keyboard for gaming.
What Devices is the UHK Compatible With?
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard (UHK) is compatible with most of the latest operating systems. It works seamlessly with Windows, macOS, and Linux.
So for Computer and Laptop systems, you don’t need to be concerned about UHK’s compatibility.
If you want to use UHK with your phones, you can simply use it as it can run smoothly with OTG-supported devices.
You can use UHK AGENT software to get more clarity about its compatibility, features, and applications.
Is Ultimate Hacking Keyboard Expensive?
The Ultimate Hacking Keyboard comes at a higher price point of 300$ on various platforms, On UHK’s official website its price is $318 for a regular Blue switches UHK.
In addition, if you add extra components the price becomes more expensive so considering this price point I would say Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is very expensive.
There are some other options as well available on the market which are similar to UHK and give tough competition to this keyboard. Metadot’s Das Keyboard 5Q is a great alternative for UHK.
You can buy UHK on some popular platforms as well as on its official site:
Conclusion
The Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is definitely an excellent keyboard with lots of idiosyncratic features and functionalities.
Its split design, mouse pointer, UHK AGENT software, and additional modules not just beatifies the typing experience but get adapted to the typing environments.
With many positive aspects, I have observed some downsides as well because the price for this Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is very much expensive, and adding some extra components will bring its price too costly.
A fresher who came from a conventional keyboard has to face some difficulties in typing on this UHK due to its complex layout and needs time to get used to it with its modules.
One thing is very forward that UHK is for dedicated and specific keyboard enthusiasts, this is not the product that everyone prefers to buy.
If you fall in this category then no one can stop you to buy your favorite Ultimate Hacking Keyboard, and believe me it’s dominant in all benchmarks for what it is made.
For average users, this keyboard may look strange and nail-biting.
I hope this post was helpful to you.
Thanks for reading.
Cheers!!
Ultimate Hacking Keyboard FAQs
What is ultimate hacking keyboard v2?
The Ultimate Hacking Keyboard v2 is an upgraded version of UHK v1 which has some significant improvements over the v1 like the keycaps materials, Software Enhancements, and more extreme productive and ergonomic.
Does UHK support hot-swappable functionality?
Yes, the ultimate Hacking Keyboard supports the hot-socket functionality which simply means you can change mechanical switches without the stress of soldering and desoldering.
Does UHK is programmable?
UHK offers fully programmable features so that a user can program switches with the help of its open-source AGENT software.