Varmilo

[Novus]

Saw this Varmilo VA87M on massdrop.
Pretty decent price, got dem nice thick pbt key-caps.
Looks like some kind of chinese leopold OEM copy.
So who are these guys?

[scubaste]

I'm not sure about the company, but they are offering every Cherry MX switch type which is pretty awesome.

[paicrai]

never ever heard of them :/

[Fnzzy]

Also comes with the best font!

[SpAmRaY]

I'm not sure about the company, but they are offering every Cherry MX switch type which is pretty awesome.

^^ This. Impressive and makes me wonder why more mainstream brands always want to say they can't get cherry switches. Now if they'd just make more bluetooth boards.

[jameslr]

I wonder if they could do some custom cap stuff for group buys? I really like them if they're the same as the Leopold PBT caps. They have a bluetooth FC660M called the VB660M that was posted here a while back (August'ish). It looks really nice too. I wonder if they're going to start producing more styles of boards. I would definitely be interested in a cheaper Lightsaver style board from them if I can get a bluetooth version of it.

[JackMills]

You've got to love their logo font. I joined the massdrop for the leopold FC660M, it had the option to have keycaps by Varmilo in mint green. I chose to have these caps despite their name on the space bar. I can't say anything about quality yet as it hasn't shipped yet, but Massdrop seemed to be ok with the caps.

[hwood34]

It looks pretty cool, I especially like the color of those mint caps, but that font is hideous

[JackMills]

It looks pretty cool, I especially like the color of those mint caps, but that font is hideous

I know, but I hope to find a way to carefully grind the logo off. It was a choice for the love for color over the disgust for the font

[Firebolt1914]

Honestly, it would be alright except for the legends. Although it can be fixed by getting new caps, I'd rather have somewhat ok legends.

EDIT: I didn't see the non comic sans one. Nevermind, doesn't look _too_ bad.

[Muzi]

never ever heard of them :/

[Data]

I joined the GB. Black caps on MX clears. Will do a review if they ever deliver -- estimated shipping isn't until after Christmas.

[nikron]

Looks to me like all the front printed key caps are printed in Comic Sans or *all* the keys.  I could not stand that.  The top printed set looks okay tho.

[scubaste]

Looks to me like all the front printed key caps are printed in Comic Sans or *all* the keys.  I could not stand that.  The top printed set looks okay tho.

The only thing in comic sans is their logo on the spacebar.

[connorelsea]

Looks to me like all the front printed key caps are printed in Comic Sans or *all* the keys.  I could not stand that.  The top printed set looks okay tho.

The only thing in comic sans is their logo on the spacebar.

That pushes me away from purchasing the board, though I have been really intrigued by trying clears or greens. Kind of off topic, but I wonder if there are key cap testing things that have clears. I'll have to Google it later.

[Premonition]

So would you rather have a keycap set that's thick PBT, double-shot in your choice of color, but with Comic Sans, or thin lasered ABS with your font of choice?

[connorelsea]

So would you rather have a keycap set that's thick PBT, double-shot in your choice of color, but with Comic Sans, or thin lasered ABS with your font of choice?

Definitely the thick PBT. But when the market is not just those two options, it's pretty silly to put a commonly-disliked font on the very front of something you are trying to sell. Especially when the market has plenty of alternatives. Maybe not for PBT caps, but for cherry mx TKLS yeah.

[radio_killah]

Talked with Lekashman from MD and Varmilo is the brand that the factory that makes Leopolds is selling their stuff as. That is why the Varmilos look so much like Leopolds. They just rehashed some designs and threw an amazing font on their keys. Personally I like low profile look, I got to see one of these in person and the build quality is very good, just as good as you expect with any leopold. I think people should buy this board knowing that they are going to replace the keycaps since they are so bad.

[Premonition]

So would you rather have a keycap set that's thick PBT, double-shot in your choice of color, but with Comic Sans, or thin lasered ABS with your font of choice?

Definitely the thick PBT. But when the market is not just those two options, it's pretty silly to put a commonly-disliked font on the very front of something you are trying to sell. Especially when the market has plenty of alternatives. Maybe not for PBT caps, but for cherry mx TKLS yeah.

I disagree, which is why I'll never buy those godawful Deck keyboards.

[hwood34]

Talked with Lekashman from MD and Varmilo is the brand that the factory that makes Leopolds is selling their stuff as. That is why the Varmilos look so much like Leopolds. They just rehashed some designs and threw an amazing font on their keys. Personally I like low profile look, I got to see one of these in person and the build quality is very good, just as good as you expect with any leopold. I think people should buy this board knowing that they are going to replace the keycaps since they are so bad.

Go Var
If these keyboards look awfully familiar, it’s because they were constructed in the same factory as the ever-popular Leopolds. Featuring nearly identical construction to the FC660M while adding in a navigation cluster and optional backlighting, the Varmilo Mechanical Keyboard lets you get close to the King without paying too hefty a tax.

[IvanIvanovich]

Since it's made at same place that makes Leopold, did they pull the nonstandard spaced spacebar stabs nonsense on this one? If so that would make replacing the caps to the same options available to Leopolds. I do think the board itself looks nice, but dealing with a silly spacebar issue would definitely make it a no go for me.

[radio_killah]

Since it's made at same place that makes Leopold, did they pull the nonstandard spaced spacebar stabs nonsense on this one? If so that would make replacing the caps to the same options available to Leopolds. I do think the board itself looks nice, but dealing with a silly spacebar issue would definitely make it a no go for me.

I think on the MD forum they were talking about that same issue and their conclusion was that the space bar was the standard 100mm spacing rather than the weird leopold spacing.

[pbtforever]

What is the MD forum?  A doctor community?   ) ) )

And the main font looks OK.  What font is that?

[Flyersfan1]

What is the MD forum?  A doctor community?   ) ) )

And the main font looks OK.  What font is that?

Not quite sure which it is exactly, just glad it isn't all comic sans.

[radio_killah]

What is the MD forum?  A doctor community?   ) ) )

And the main font looks OK.  What font is that?

Sorry MD is massdrop.

[Data]

Better pics of the black on this site:

http://www.chiphell.com/thread-1152260-1-1.html




So the black, at least, uses a "normal" font.  I don't even see the company logo on these.  Maybe the Massdrop photos are old?

Either way, glad I joined this one.

[appleonama]

Better pics of the black on this site:

http://www.chiphell.com/thread-1152260-1-1.html

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So the black, at least, uses a "normal" font.  I don't even see the company logo on these.  Maybe the Massdrop photos are old?

Either way, glad I joined this one.

 :eek:that thing is actually pretty nice

im stilll trying to find a vb660m

[Data]

Looks like these could be shipping this week.  Did anyone else join in the drop?

[Puddsy]

Leopold clones

interested but unimpressed

[Data]

Not just clones; made in the same factory by the same people.  Essentially unbranded (but still legit/authorized) Leopolds.

If all that's missing is the name, is it still a clone?  What's important in a keyboard?

[Puddsy]

Not just clones; made in the same factory by the same people.  Essentially unbranded (but still legit/authorized) Leopolds.

If all that's missing is the name, is it still a clone?  What's important in a keyboard?

oh they're rebrands

did not know, am now OK with these existing

i thought they were crappy chinese clones

[ideus]

I have seem Varmilo's in exactly the same layout as the Fc660 at a Chinese site. I think that is illegal due to the fact that the designer is Leopold. I dunno but this seems like a ripoff.

[Data]

Did you read the thread? It seems like maybe you didn't.

[Liar]

According to UPS my Varmillo with Clears in Mint will be here tomorrow. 

Am pleasantly surprised they beat the estimated shipping date by more than 3 weeks 

[Novus]

According to UPS my Varmillo with Clears in Mint will be here tomorrow. 

Am pleasantly surprised they beat the estimated shipping date by more than 3 weeks 

That's neat! At least the company behind Varmilo is good to work with ... unless of course you're a *looks at username*

[dante]

There are over 200 votes on MD for a restock on the Varmilo - so it should be back soon.

[JackMills]

According to UPS my Varmillo with Clears in Mint will be here tomorrow. 

Am pleasantly surprised they beat the estimated shipping date by more than 3 weeks 

I have the mint caps on my leopold, they look great.

[Data]

Received mine today.  Typing on it now.  So far very good impression.  I'll upload some photos in a few minutes.

[Data]

Sorry if the quality is a little low.  These are just from my phone.

The backlighting came out a little blue.  It's more like a "cool white" to the naked eye.  I don't know if you can tell from these but the spacebar is a slightly darker shade (probably ABS) than the rest of the key caps.  It still looks good.

I was surprised by the weight of it.  It's heavy for a TKL, especially considering the low profile case.  This is my first board with stock clears (coming from browns) so I'll have to use it for a while before I can comment on feel.  Good first impression, however.

Hopefully the Pulse keyset will ship soon so I can try them on this board.   

[radio_killah]

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Sorry if the quality is a little low.  These are just from my phone.

The backlighting came out a little blue.  It's more like a "cool white" to the naked eye.  I don't know if you can tell from these but the spacebar is a slightly darker shade (probably ABS) than the rest of the key caps.  It still looks good.

I was surprised by the weight of it.  It's heavy for a TKL, especially considering the low profile case.  This is my first board with stock clears (coming from browns) so I'll have to use it for a while before I can comment on feel.  Good first impression, however.

Hopefully the Pulse keyset will ship soon so I can try them on this board.   

Nice. I am a big fan of that low profile case. I got to see one early on and was impressed and was rightly so. May have to get one next time around. I wonder if they would lower the price if they shipped them without keycaps.

[sdiearly]

That's why Leopold changes OEM back to Taiwan (Costar) now 

[Novus]

That's why Leopold changes OEM back to Taiwan (Costar) now 

That explains why the 750 is better xD ...  Well partially

[Data]

More photos with Hot Keys Warmaster and Raven novelties here.

[Data]

*BUMP*

These are available again on Massdrop with 4 days left in the sale.  https://www.massdrop.com/buy/varmilo-mechanical-keyboard

I had a couple people PM me about acquiring one.  Here's your chance.

I'm also happy to report that Varmilo went with standard spacebar stabilizer placement on this board, making it fully compatible with custom key caps.  Will put up my pics with Pulse key set soon. 

[dante]

It's very hard to believe that in a few short years we went from a Leopold FC200R to this...

[Liar]

I received a Varmilo for Christmas this year, and I would also high recommend it for anyone in search of a new mechanical keyboard.
Backlighting is optional, and they offer rare switch types.

Coming from a Noppoo Choc Mini with POMs, these stock PBTs are amazing in their own right.
I like resting my thumb on the textured Varmilo logo on the space bar, and the polished orbs on the winkeys helps protect me from accidental presses.

Beautiful keyboard; typing pleasure.

[linziyi]

I got one with tactile greys from the last massdrop. The board is well-built, very solid quality.

Tactile greys are surprisingly heavy even with the thick PBT caps; the tactile bump is a little less pronounced than the stock clears from my friend's KMAC, maybe the weight of the spring overshadowed the bump of the switch. It is about 20% heavier than the greens I have (also with thick PBT caps), but I managed to acquire a higher WPM on this beauty (95) than on my greens (83).

Also it's the only board that I don't bottom out on every stroke! (oh yes I bottom out on greens)

[duzeyao]

I have seem Varmilo's in exactly the same layout as the Fc660 at a Chinese site. I think that is illegal due to the fact that the designer is Leopold. I dunno but this seems like a ripoff.

The Varmilo branded is VB660m, which is bluetooth version of fc660m.
I don't know if it's illegal though lol so you're probably right.

[divito]

I got one with tactile greys from the last massdrop. The board is well-built, very solid quality.

Tactile greys are surprisingly heavy even with the thick PBT caps; the tactile bump is a little less pronounced than the stock clears from my friend's KMAC, maybe the weight of the spring overshadowed the bump of the switch. It is about 20% heavier than the greens I have (also with thick PBT caps), but I managed to acquire a higher WPM on this beauty (95) than on my greens (83).

Also it's the only board that I don't bottom out on every stroke! (oh yes I bottom out on greens)

I got one with tactile greys also; I was a little disappointed that the bump isn't as pronounced as I might prefer, as it seems sort of like a really heavy brown. I was really curious how the weight would be, but I'm still bottoming out over 95% of the time depending on how I strike the keys.

I don't find them too heavy, but the resistance is a nice overall experience. I'll probably keep it as my main...the only real problem is that their rareness is going to present a problem when having to switch back to lighter springs/switches. I'm already getting quite used to these nice heavier switches.

[digi]

Are they pcb/plate mount stabs or wire stabs? pretty hard to beat that price with led's & pbt caps with a nice switch selection.