Backlit keyboards are for sissies right ;-) Well, here a quick review of the backlit Keycool from a sissy"
I just picked up a backlit tenkeyless with browns from qtan (E-Sports). It seems pretty solid so far. I also have a Leopold tenkeyless with browns and physically they are very similar, almost identical in appearance. Here is a short list of differences and how they compare:
Backlighting: Obviously the Leopold has none. The Keycool backlighting is done very well. The brightness is adjustable in three levels. The brightest is too bright for me even in the day. I find I use the dimmest both day and night. There is some peculiarity to when the backlight turns off. It seems to stay on when my computer sleeps and turn off on shutdown. This makes sense as the computer is keeping the keyboard alive for wake up, but its a bit odd.
Keycaps: Keycool has slightly cheaper feeling keycaps. The font is much larger, I suppose due to the backlighting. Again, due to the led being above the switch, they have to put the shift character next to instead of above the unshifted character. For example, the 3 key would have "3#" on the key, side by side, as opposed to the # being above the 3. I am not personally very fond of that.
Typing feel: Here the Leopold wins IMHO. The Leopold feels crisp with just a bit of resistance and a just a hint of detent. The Keycool is noticeably stiffer, almost as if it drags a little. The keystroke almost feels a little mushy when compared to that of the Leopold. The Keycool has less noise at bottom out.
Overall, I am happy with they Keycool, but I will probably stick with the Leopold for my heavy lifting and use the Keycool for my dark periods.
BTW, I am a competent touch typist, but even after 30 years of typing, I still occasionally find myself having to look for a key or just look down for...., I dont know, reassurance maybe? Not sure why, buts that how it is for me. In those situations, its nice to have the backlight at night.
Here is a photo for comparison:
