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Introduction
Ducky keyboards used to be a lot more popular in professional gaming circles than they are now. With the rise of Hall Effect (HE) keyboards, the brand has fallen to the side in some ways, and with this new One X launch the brand is trying to convince analog keyboard users to come over to their side. It has Rapid Trigger, tons of foams and other enthusiast-grade ‘mods’ to improve the typing experience, can connect wirelessly (through Bluetooth or a dongle) and Ducky has even developed its own switches for this board. Is all of that enough, or is it too little, too late? Read all about it in our full Ducky One X review.
At A Glance
Ducky One X
In all honesty, the Ducky One X feels like a product that’s still in the testing phase. The potential is definitely there, but it’s not executed properly.
Pros
- Great typing sound
- Inductive switches feel and sound nice
- Sturdy build quality
- Good keycaps
Cons
- Functionality of the inductive switches is subpar compared to top HE keyboards
- Coil whine sound when RGB lighting is on
- No profiles, which makes switching between productivity and gaming settings a pain
- Web-based software is buggy and feels incomplete
- Battery life (~12 hours with RGB on) isn’t anything to write home about
Specs
| Form Factor | Full Size |
|---|---|
| PCB | Hotswappable |
| RGB | Yes |
| Height | 4.1cm |
| Width | 45.2cm |
| Length | 15.0cm |
| Weight | 1585g |
First Impressions
Packaging
Inside the box, you get:
- A USB-C to USB-C cable
- A USB-C to USB-A dongle
- A wireless receiver (stored in the keyboard)
- User documentation
- A keycap puller
- A keyboard brush (in the form of a duck)
- A set of extra colored keycaps
- An additional space bar with a dragon on it
You get in a ton of little extras in the packaging, and I love that. However, seeing as Ducky is using proprietary switches in this board, I would’ve loved for there to be some extras in the packaging. This has now become something that a lot of brands include, and it would be nice to see Ducky following suit here.
The extras that are there are nice, though. The extra keycaps (which are of the same quality as the original caps) are a nice touch in particular, and I also like the inclusion of a brush.
Keyboard
The One X is available in two different sizes. There’s a full size version (which I reviewed) and a 60% version, called the ‘Mini’. Both are available in either black or white.
Important to note here is that the white version is a little off-white, at least to my eyes. I like that, as it gives an extra touch of class to the board, but of course this is completely subjective.
In any case: it’s quite striking how ‘non-gamery’ this design looks. The white board that I got defaults to a peach-colored backlight that matches the accent keycaps, and this gives the board a cozy and homey look. If I saw this board in a booktuber’s cozy reading room, I wouldn’t bat an eye.
Again: whether you like this or not is down to personal preferences (and you can of course set the board to a variety of rainbow-styled RGB modes) but the sleek lines and simple design are somewhat of a departure from Ducky’s traditional gaming keyboard design styles.
On the back of the board, there’s a selector to choose what mode you want to use the keyboard in. You can go wired, or you can connect wirelessly via Bluetooth or the included receiver for a more responsive connection.
RGB
Ducky keyboards are known to have good RGB effects, and this is true for the One X as well. There are some caveats though.
Inside Ducky’s configurator tool (more on that later) you can choose a variety of effects and styles to make the board match your aesthetic preferences. The RGB lighting shines through all of the keys in a uniform way, and lighting effects have smooth transitions. I only tested the white version so I don’t know what the black version looks like, but the white backplate gives the board some extra dreaminess when it comes to its lightshow.
Brightness is on the lower end, however, so if you are mostly going to be using it in heavily lit rooms, this might be something to consider. Also, the configurator feels very incomplete at the time of writing. For example, if you want to set RGB on a per-key basis, the only mode you can do that in seems to be ‘breathe’ right now. I have no doubt that this is a bug that will get fixed in time, but right now it’s kind of disappointing.
Features and Build Quality
Materials and Design
The exterior case of the Ducky One X is entirely made out of plastic. Luckily, the board feels very sturdy. I can’t get the case to meaningfully twist or bend, and there’s nothing creaking on the inside when applying pressure either. Some users might prefer different case materials, but I personally don’t have any issues with plastic cases for gaming keyboards. Especially if they’re as well-done as this one.
Something to take note of is that, despite its plastic build, the Ducky One X is rather heavy. I’m not sure if this has something to do with the abundance of sound-improving foams and materials on the inside of the case or if induction switches require a heavier plate, but it’s not something you can ignore. I don’t mind heavier boards (they can even make a board feel more premium) but at over 1500 grams this isn’t a product that’s catering to frequent travelers.
Don’t let the plastic case deceive you. This is a hefty, sturdy keyboard.
Hotswap
Like most keyboards in this day and age, the Ducky One X has a hotswappable PCB. This means that you don’t need to (de)solder when swapping switches, and that’s obviously a massive plus.
With that said: Ducky is using proprietary switches here, so the board (as of writing) only accepts Ducky inductive switches. What this means is that you won’t be able to put any HE switches in here. With a lot of third-party HE switches now entering the market, this can be a bummer for people who are already invested in the HE ecosystem.
But even without having the ability to try other switches, a hotswappable PCB is a boon. Should a switch ever fail, it’s extremely easy to replace: simply pop out the old one and plug in the new one.
Keycaps
When it comes to top quality keycaps, Ducky is one of the OG companies. They’ve been using quality PBT caps long before this was even remotely considered to be the standard, and their caps still don’t disappoint. Ducky says that the caps on this particular board are made out of 85% PBT (with rival brands only going as high as 59%) and that this higher PBT percentage should result in the keys lasting longer before they develop a shine. I don’t personally use PBT keycaps long enough for them to develop a shine, but this could be a nice feature for those who only switch keyboards every decade or so.
In any case: the caps that you’re getting on this board are thick and feel high quality. The legends are nice and sharp, and light comes through them evenly.
They’re very lightly textured and feel pleasant to use under most circumstances, but they can feel a bit too chalky for my tastes when my fingers are completely dry. That’s a minor nitpick though, and a subjective one at that.
Customization
Ducky keyboards used to come with no software at all, but this Ducky One X changes that. With duckyhub.io, the brand introduces their web-based configuration tool to the world.
Sadly, it’s a bit of a disappointment. At least right now.
It starts when you open up the page for the first time. The whole page looks rough and almost like a placeholder. Odd abbreviations are used without offering any kind of explanation, and I saw some random Taiwanese sections of text popping up as well, even though I’m using it in English.
I can kind of excuse a rough appearance (after all there’s no need for configuration tools to look amazing) but the experience is frankly plagued by bugs and unfinished sections. Things can take too long to load, configuring the lighting can be really difficult and downright unresponsive, and the whole thing just feels like it’s still in beta.
To top it all off, it’s also quite confusing to use. I have tested a lot of analog boards at this point, so I kind of know how to set one up, but if you’re new to this kind of tech then there’s going to be a learning curve.
There’s really no other way to say this: duckyhub needs a lot of improvement.
Switches
The Ducky One X comes with the brand’s own inductive switches. These work by having a coil on the keyboard PCB, and a thin piece of metal that sits on the bottom of the keycap stem. This piece of metal protrudes out of the keycap housing. When users move the keycap, the coil senses the piece of metal and can thus detect how far a key has been pressed. So in a sense, they’re very similar to HE switches. Inductive switches simply use a different approach.
Knowing this, a question arises. Why go for something new when there’s existing technology (Hall Effect switches) that works just fine?
According to Ducky, inductive switches offer better responsiveness than Hall Effect switches. Additionally, they also require less power, making them ideal for wireless applications. They also state that these switches have great consistency and a great feel and sound.
If I’m purely judging the switches based on how they feel and sound, I’m definitely a fan. Ducky’s inductive switches are very smooth and are a pleasure to use. They are factory-lubed, and I would personally not do anything to them should I choose to use them as my daily drivers. Compared to other analog switches, these are without a doubt among the better ones I’ve tried so far on this front.
Typing and Gaming Experience
Gaming Experience
If you’re calling your keyboard a board that ‘redefines analog keyboards,’ you better bring your A-game. The analog gaming keyboard space is getting flooded with great options these days, so any brand that wants to stand out needs to either deliver something new and groundbreaking or quite simply nail the basics.
Sadly, the Ducky One X does neither. Sure, it has Rapid Trigger and some other basic functionalities. But the Rapid Trigger sensitivity can only be set to ‘low’, ‘medium’, or ‘high’, and there’s no way to further customize how Rapid Trigger behaves. One could argue that these features are niche and won’t be used by the majority of people, but if you want to put out a ‘next-gen analog keyboard’, you’ll at least want to match what competitors offer.
To be complete, Ducky has also stated that they will be adding features to the board in time, so these things might come sooner or later. However, releasing a product that’s meant to evolve the market while missing a bunch of features that most other options on said market do have is not a good start.
What really puts the nail in the coffin for me is the lack of profiles. On all of my analog boards, I have multiple profiles set up. That’s because gaming and productivity are simply two drastically different tasks. Hair-trigger switches can be great for some games, for example, but cause a ton of typos when working. I don’t think I’m unique here. Most gamers will want to switch between profiles, unless they have different boards for work and play.
With the Ducky One X, there’s currently no way to set up multiple profiles. There’s no profile switch button combo on the board itself, nor are there multiple profiles to choose between in the software. That’s a major annoyance to me.
Typing Experience
As far as analog keyboards go, the Ducky One X offers one of the best typing experiences I’ve tested yet. The inductive switches feel and sound great to begin with, and then Ducky has added 5 different foams and materials inside the case that are meant to further improve that sound.
Furthermore, the plate-mounted stabilizers are nicely lubed, and I have no ping or rattling on my unit. Even the spacebar sounds basically flawless, which is a rarity on mass-produced gaming keyboards. If it’s a great typing experience (in an analog board) you’re looking for, the Ducky One X is something you should absolutely look towards.
Something that can get annoying (but doesn’t really have anything to do with the typing experience per se) is the fact that there’s a little bit of what I can only describe as coil whine when the RGB is on. This isn’t audible when you’re actively typing or consuming content, but I did notice it when I was proofreading or doing other tasks that are done in silence.
Battery Life and Wireless Connection
One of Ducky’s reasons for going with inductive switches is the battery life. Analog boards require a lot more power to operate, which is why there aren’t many wireless boards of this kind on the market.
With a battery life of around 12 hours with the RGB on, I can’t say that I’m impressed, though. Sure, it will get you through most gaming sessions, but you will want to plug it in if you’re at a LAN or something. I never use keyboards completely wirelessly (I’m someone who wasted money on fancy coiled cables) so for me this isn’t an issue, but if you were expecting multi-day experiences before having to charge you’ll be disappointed.
The board can connect through Bluetooth and via a wireless dongle. Because of the fact that this is a gaming-centric keyboard, I mostly tested it with the dongle (Bluetooth isn’t meant for gaming) and that experience was great. I had no connection drops and the keyboard felt as responsive in wireless mode as it did in wired mode.
Something that’s quirky is that the backlight turns off after a minute or so, even in wired mode. As far as I can see, there’s no way to change this, so if you’ve got your keyboard set up to cast a certain vibe into the room, this can be a source of frustration.
Sound Test
Apologies for the background noise. My workspace is located near a busy street, so sometimes the sounds of loud vehicles can come through in the background.
Alternatives
The Ducky One X wants to redefine analog keyboards, so it should be compared to other keyboards of its kind. There, the comparisons become quite simple.
Ducky One X vs Meletrix BOOG75
For me, the only board that matches the Ducky One X when it comes to the typing feel and sound is the Meletrix BOOG75. That board has a very different sound signature, but I feel like the overall quality is on a similar level. As far as gaming performances go, both boards are also quite evenly matched.
The Meletrix does have a more premium-looking and feeling case though, and it looks more like a custom-built board.
Read our Meletrix BOOG75 review
Ducky One X vs HE Boards
For most of the ‘usual suspects’ the comparison will be the same. If gaming performances and ease of use are your main concern, boards like the Wooting 80HE, the Razer Huntsman V3 Pro TKL, and the SteelSeries Apex Pro TKL are better options. If typing sound and feel are what you want out of a keyboard, the Ducky One X beats all of the aforementioned keyboards.
As mentioned in the review, the One X is one of the best sounding analog keyboards that I’ve personally tested.
If you’re interested in a specific comparison, feel free to reach out in the comments. I answer all comments.
Conclusion
In all honesty, the Ducky One X feels like a product that’s still in the testing phase. The potential is definitely there, but the execution is lacking.
That doesn’t mean that it’s a bad product. The typing experience, for example, is already among the best on the analog keyboard market. If that’s your main concern, you should absolutely consider this one. The build quality is also top notch, so if you’re not looking at it from a gaming POV it’s a fantastic keyboard.
However, the board falls behind the competition when you look further than that. The inductive switches are a nice idea, but Ducky hasn’t (yet?) shown why these are better than Hall Effect switches. In fact, the gaming functionality of this board is limited compared to today’s top tier offerings. Yes, it’s miles better than a traditional mechanical board for gaming, but it’s definitely not miles better than good Hall Effect keyboards.
That’s not to say that there is no potential though. It’s always nice to see companies take a risk and develop something new, so I’m not saying Ducky shouldn’t have done this. Perhaps inductive switches really are a lot better than HE switches. I’m not an engineer, and I’m not disregarding the technology right out of the gate. It’s just that there’s not really anything in this board that showcases why or how inductive switches are better.
The board also stumbles in various ways. The web-based software is a nice idea (and I love how companies are moving towards browser-based customization tools) but it’s confusing, unresponsive, and buggy. There’s some (light) coil whine when the RGB is off. Profiles are non-existent, which is a pain on analog keyboards. Detailed customization of gaming features like Rapid Trigger is not possible.
All of these are things that can quite easily be fixed in future iterations (or even firmware updates) so this board might be a future star in the making, but right now it just kind of misses the mark. Perhaps I’m being too hard on it, but if you claim that your product will ‘redefine analog keyboards,’ people will have high expectations.
You can check out the Ducky One X on their website.
This product was received for free from the manufacturer and given to our reviewer to test and review. Brands and manufacturers have no editorial control over our reviews. For more information, check out our review FAQ.
