Either way, though, there is nothing like using the Cerakeys. They are a standout addition to my desk that I enjoy showing off whenever I have family or friends come over. I remain fully invested in keeping the Cerakey Mattes on my daily driver keyboard until they break or I am no longer able to type. They’re my personal favorite keycap I have used in my nearly 10 years of using mechanical keyboards. I’m hoping that stronger switches make their way to the market to continue to play nicely with the heavier keycaps, too.
It should be no surprise that I am a personal fan of Cerakey’s ceramic products. Check my previous reviews of their V2 Ceramic Keycaps and their Nada65 keyboard (featuring a panda-themed set of ceramic keycaps) if you don’t believe me. I’ve used those keycaps on my personal keyboards nearly every day since reviewing them (when not testing other keyboards or keycaps, mind you). They feel great on my fingers. They level up my current keyboard’s aesthetic into something more premium, more delicate, and more thocky.
Cerakey recently announced that they have produced a limited amount of their newest Ceramic Keycaps – Matte keycaps! Given that they have been my daily driver for months now, I was incredibly excited to review the Matte variants, put them through their paces, and test them out across multiple kinds of switches. With that said, let’s get to the review!
Check out Cerakey’s Matte Keycaps by clicking here. (Non-affiliated URL)
Cerakey is a passion project out of Hong Kong that specializes in ceramic keycaps and other computer peripherals. At this time, Cerakey is one of the only manufacturers of ceramic products for keyboards. Their V2 set of Ceramic Keycaps is their most recent iteration of their ceramic keycaps, featuring a slightly different underside construction, enhanced backlighting, and improved durability.
The V2 set of Ceramic Keycaps has been the set I have used all year. I’ve grown attached to them given their silky-smooth texture and delightful acoustic profile that is undoubtably the “thock” of my dreams. The V2s come in multiple colors (not just black and white!), and can be purchased in individual set portions or a full set. The Matte set is Cerakey’s newest V2 offering. While it is only available in Black and White and with Legends Only at this time, I am hopeful that interest in the Matte finish expands to the point of other colors being available just like the traditional Glossy Finish.
Seeing as this is a review of keycaps, this DigitalChumps review may read a bit differently than what you’re used to from lil’ ol’ me. Just like my previous review of Cerakey’s V2 keycaps, I’m going to cover what you need to get the most out of your new keycaps, what’s in the box, and things that a PC gamer should know as a Ceramic Keycap owner. Most importantly, I’m going to cover the major differences between the Matte and Glossy finishes! Let’s get to it.
Before You Start
If you’re considering ceramic keycaps (or any keycap of nontraditional materials), you’re most likely someone with moderate familiarity with mechanical keyboards and the notion of hot-swappable keycaps, switches, and the like.
Let’s say you have a keyboard already in mind for your new Cerakey Matte Keycaps. You must have a keyboard with south-facing LEDs. This is because the Cerakey Keycaps (Matte and Glossy finishes) are Cherry profile and will be impacted by “north-facing interference” which prevents you from pressing down all the way on any key. If you have a keyboard with south-facing LEDs, you won’t have this issue. Triple check with your keyboard manufacturer before proceeding with installation.
In my earlier review of Cerakey keycaps, I recommended that you consider pairing the keycaps with switches that have a minimum operating/actuation force of 40gf. This remains true. If you have a lighter switch, the heavy ceramic keycap will prematurely activate the switch and register inputs that you didn’t mean to register. If you’re considering pairing Cerakeys with magnetic switches, I discuss the potential later in this review, but do note that they’re not the best for most magnetic switches.
First Impressions and Key Details
I was sent the A and B sets of the Cerakey Matte keycaps to review, this meant that I had enough keycaps to fully complete a 75% keyboard and/or a TKL. The C set (which is already included in the “Full Set” available on Cerakey’s website) essentially covers the remaining keys on a numberpad.
Cerakey keycaps feel far lighter than they look. Most of the keys are around 3g each while the spacebar is far heavier at 19g. The undersides of the keycaps feature a hand-placed plastic stem. The earlier variants of the keycaps used a ceramic stem that was prone to chipping. Thanks to the plastic stems – the durability of the keycaps has tremendously improved.
The Matte finish looks gorgeous. Back when I took pottery and ceramics classes, I would occasionally use a subtle matte glaze that would preserve my art and give it a satiny finish. The same finish seems to be used on the Cerakey Matte keycaps, making them feel silky smooth. I enjoyed how the ceramic keycaps felt cool to the touch and study – the Matter finish offers that while also giving me some much-needed texture that the Glossy finish in my prior set could not offer. There is still a hint of a keycap shine when I put my keyboard directly underneath a source of light, but the Matte finish makes it so that the keycaps’ legends are readable.
Interestingly, this set of keycaps had a warning sticker on the box regarding proper maintenance of the keycaps – I wasn’t to use a metal keycap puller. Using a plastic puller decreases the likelihood of chipping and wearing the Matte glaze away. I followed up with Cerakey during my review period about the potential use of a metal keycap puller, and they told me that a metal puller could be used so long as I was careful. This was particularly concerning from my end, as the plastic keycap puller that came with the keycaps had trouble fitting between the keycaps and the board when I was attempting to remove the keycaps.
I still think that the Matte finish on the keycaps is durable and can hold up through regular wear-and-tear, though. They held up great under pressure – especially as I often reach 95+ wpm on my day-to-day office work. I frenetically type when I play video games.
The Matte keycaps automatically come with Homing Keys (F and J keycaps with a little bump on them)! One of my original complaints with the Cerakey Glossy keycaps is that they didn’t come with Homing Keys by default. The Homing keys on the Matte keycaps have a nice and pronounced ridge, ensuring that my fingers naturally rested at the center of the keyboard. The Matte finish makes the Cerakeys a smidgen less slippery than the Glossy variants, but they still have a natural slippery texture that you wouldn’t find on an ABS or PBT keycap.
Cerakey claims that their keycaps are LED-enhanced to fully show off your current keyboard’s pretty colors. In practice, this emerges in the form of the bottom of the white keycaps being partially transparent. It’s vibrant when you have the keycaps in front of you – imagine seeing the bottom half of all of the keycaps glow!
The Matte Keycaps are only available in Black and White at this time. I have a set of Black Cerakeys (Glossy finish) on one of my keyboards, and I haven’t been the most impressed by the supposed LED-enhancements. There’s a small degree of shinethrough on the black keycaps, but not to the same degree as the White keycaps’ shinethrough. If you’re wanting a set of Cerakeys that glow, you’re better off getting the White color as they glow to a greater extent than other colors.
Cerakey sends users a special kind of switch that is specifically made for the 19g spacebar – a Kailh BOX Dark Yellow switch. This switch is especially strong, requiring 70gf of force, and supports the spacebar with no issues whatsoever. Since originally installing my Cerakeys on my Daily Driver months ago, I’ve kept the Kailh BOX Dark Yellow as the spacebar switch while using other switches on the rest of my keyboard. Stick to using that switch for your spacebar, unless you’re using a Magnetic/HE switch (which I’ll discuss in a moment).
Switch and Keyboard Tests
Once again, I opted to testing the Cerakey Mattes on multiple keyboards. I’m assuming that those who are reading this review all have a different keyboards (with south-facing LEDs, don’t forget!!), so it would help to see how things sound and feel of keyboards of various construction.
First, I tested the Matte Keycaps on my EPOMAKER RT100, which uses a PC plate and plastic construction. At this time, I have WS Arowana Blacks installed. While installing the switches was easy, removing the switches was quite difficult because of the plastic key cutouts in the case. I had to carefully use a metal keycap puller to remove the function keys at the top row – so be prepared to treat the keycaps with kid gloves if you’re in the business of removing the switches to and from multiple keyboards.
On a keyboard with a PC plate, the keycaps resonate with the plate and produce a deep and clacky echo that is satisfying beyond belief. The Arowana Blacks (which are made up of PC, P2, and POK) are perfect for the Cerakeys given their 57gf actuation force.
Second, I tested the Matte Keycaps on my KiiBOOM Moonshadow V2. The Moonshadow V2 is an aluminum keyboard with an FR4 plate installed by default (and can be swapped with PC). On an aluminum keyboard like the Moonshadow V2, I would imagine that the acoustic profile would be quite loud despite foams and sound dampeners that would tone things down. This ended up being true, albeit to a delightfully clacky degree. The Cerakeys produced a pronounced and deeper sound profile that tuned down the traditional aluminum harshness.
Third, I tested the Matte Keycaps on my Keychron Q6 HE, a Hall Effect Gaming Keyboard made entirely out of aluminum. The switches on this keyboard are the stock Gateron Double-Rail Magnetic Nebula Switches, which have a 40gf of Operating Force. The Keychron Q6 HE already produces a soft clackiness, so pairing the Cerakeys with the Keychron Q6 HE improves the acoustic profile by making profile slightly deeper. Notice a trend here? Cerakey’s keycaps make your keyboard slightly louder, slightly thockier, and all the more deliciously creamy.
I’m going to be honest with you – most magnetic switches won’t play entirely well with Cerakey’s Matte keycaps, but there are a few switches now that should play nicely in theory. At this time, there are a small handful of HE switches with an operating force that exceeds 40gf, including the Gateron Double Rail Auroras, Geon Raptor HE, and the Geon Raw HE Linears (60g variant). These switches would be fine with most of the Cerakey keycaps, but you won’t be able to get by with the spacebar. The spacebar’s 19g of weight will most likely be too much for most HE switches, so you’ll have to either adjust the actuation point of the spacebar to require a near-full press or use the stock spacebar keycap that came with your original keyboard.
It’s too early to comment on inductive switches (such as the ones on the Ducky One X or the Epomaker MagCore 87). I’m sure that things will change in the next few months as more switches become available, but I’ll test out the Cerakeys when I get my hands on a keyboard with inductive switches.
Gaming Potential
Cerakey and other outlets have expressed caution amongst consumers who are considering using ceramic keycaps for gaming. I feel like I am one of a small handful of voices in the gaming space who support using ceramic keycaps within reason and under careful situations. Here’s what I mean by that:
High-intensity games such as Counter-Strike 2, Wild Bastards, and VALORANT were fine to play with these keycaps. Sure, I was cautious to not spam inputs, but the fact remains that some folks might not be as careful as I when playing these games. On the Matte Keycaps, my hands slipped far less than when I had the glossy keycaps installed, so think of that as a unique benefit to the Cerakey Mattes that other keycaps wouldn’t provide.
For other games, though, I had no problems whatsoever when using the keycaps. The Matte keycaps’ unique textures and construction yielded satisfying inputs when I was using my keyboard to play games like League of Legends, Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, and Star of Providence. I kept thinking that my fingers would become fatigued when using the keycaps, but they never did.
I guess that’s why I’ve been such a fan of Cerakey’s offerings all of this time. The chill of the ceramic meshed with the delightfully unique acoustic profile makes typing all the more delicious and premium.
Final Thoughts
As I get to the end of this review, one critical question remains: If you’re on the fence between the Glossy and the Matte keycaps, which should you choose? Cerakey and other review outlets have emphasized that there is no “best choice,” instead it’s up to users’ preferences. I mostly agree with that sentiment, barring some minute differences.
If you’re wanting a shinier keyboard and don’t mind some slippage if your hands get sweaty, then go all out with the Glossy variants. If you’re not too keen on a shiny keyboard, but you want that silky and satiny smoothness you get from a traditional ABS keycap, then the Matte variant is the perfect fit for your needs.
I won’t attempt to persuade you that Cerakeys are a must-have on your keyboard. I know that some folks online hype up some things over others, and I won’t add to that hype train. Instead, I’ll make a firm recommendation: I love these keycaps, and they are perfect for my personal tastes. The Matte keycaps are exceptional in reducing slippage from my slippery hands while also producing the deeper thocks and clacks that I want my keyboards to produce.
Either way, though, there is nothing like using the Cerakeys. They are a standout addition to my desk that I enjoy showing off whenever I have family or friends come over. I remain fully invested in keeping the Cerakey Mattes on my daily driver keyboard until they break or I am no longer able to type. They’re my personal favorite keycap I have used in my nearly 10 years of using mechanical keyboards. I’m hoping that stronger switches make their way to the market to continue to play nicely with the heavier keycaps, too.
A set of Cerakey Matte (A and B set) keycaps were provided by Cerakey for the purpose of this DigitalChumps review.
