The Epomaker Shadow-S was a delightful TKL keyboard to review for office and gaming work. I wish I had the power to make easier adjustments to the screen (like the premium DynaTab 75X), but the screen showed just enough information for me to be satisfied. The keyboard’s thockiness made it quite a satisfying keyboard to use. For gaming, it performed well across the board, so keep that in mind if you’re on the market for a $100 prebuilt mechanical keyboard.
Epomaker’s Shadow-S is one of the newest additions to Epomaker’s line of mechanical keyboards. Boasting an LED screen and volume knob, it adds some additional aesthetic appeal for users who want something more out of their mechanical keyboards. I’ve been impressed with Epomaker’s attempts at changing up their lineup to appeal to consumers, especially the DynaTab 75X. Let’s see how this new tenkeyless (TKL) keyboard fares as a gaming keyboard!
For those of you unfamiliar with Epomaker’s previous work, the Shadow-S is technically a new variant of last year’s Shadow-X mechanical keyboard. The Shadow-S moves the LED from above the arrow keys to the top of the keyboard while adding a row of function keys (bringing this from a 70% to an 85% keyboard). The Shadow-S also boasts VIA-compatibility, a rare treat for those wanting to customize their keyboard using the standard QMK/VIA service!
This new button and screen configuration looks and feels far better than having the screen on the right hand side. Having a screen on the keyboard is a nice-to-have option rather than a must-have feature in my opinion. Usually, I’m looking at my computer screen when I’m typing/playing rather than my keyboard. This makes the screen’s contents less necessary for my functional needs. However, in my reviews of previous keyboard screens (such as Epomaker’s DynaTab 75X and the Chilkey ND75), I’ve come around to appreciating the creativity and uniqueness that comes with being able to add something fun to my keyboard beyond color from the keyboard’s LEDs.
The Shadow-S comes in two color variants (White Brown and Pink White). My review unit is the White Brown color, which is my personal favorite. This specific color combination looks familiar to classic/retro consoles of the 90s. The keycap designs are also quite tasteful, utilizing dark brown keycaps for the modifier keys as well as the middle function keys. The keycaps and switches are hot-swappable, meaning that you can take them out if you don’t care for their looks.
Onto the switches, there are four types available – Epomaker Flamingo, Epomaker Mulan, Epomaker Wisteria, and Epomaker Sea Salt Silent. I’ve tested the Wisteria switches on the DynaTab 75X (you can read my thoughts on that review). For this model, I was given the opportunity to test the Flamingo and Mulan switches.
The Epomaker Flamingo switches are linear switches and sound loud and thocky – far louder than the Wisterias. If anything, the Flamingo switches are the thockiest switches I’ve tested from Epomaker. They have a total travel of 3.8mm and an actuation travel of 1.5, making them relatively sensitive. Not much pressure is needed to register keypresses, but it requires a bit more force than the Wisterias. I share an office with my partner, and these switches sounded quite loud. If you’re looking for a thocky set of switches, then the Flamingo should be your choice for this keyboard.
The Mulan switches are also linear but with a slightly softer thockier sound and feel. While they’re smooth, these switches are less sensitive thanks to their 2.00mm pre-travel. They had the same total travel and required the same degree of pressure for inputs overall, so they’re not too different from the Flamingos. They’re just slightly quieter.
My recommendation for switches is as follows: If you’re wanting the most sensitive in terms of actuation (finger pressure), you’re better off going with the Wisteria switches. If you’re wanting the thock of a mechanical keyboard, you’re better off with the Flamingo or Mulans. Between those two, it’s up to the volume levels. If you prefer a louder thock, then Flamingo; a softer thock, the Mulans. If sound and actuation force don’t matter, then I would recommend the Mulans only because of their 2.00mm pre-travel, which is a solid middle ground for most mechanical keyboard owners. Part of getting used to mechanical keyboards is the degree to which one needs to press before the keyboard recognizes an input, and anything under 2.0mm feels too sensitive for me. When I was reviewing magnetic switches, it took a while for me to get used to 1.5mm and below.
The Shadow-S is primarily constructed out of plastic, with the one exception being its metal knob. It’s a light keyboard, but that’s not a bad thing. It also features a gasket mount which should product softer sounds. I love gasket mounted keyboards because of how they feel and sound, but the Flamingo switches are still pretty loud. The keyboard’s multiple layers of foam dampen the keyboard’s sounds quite well.
The Shadow-S has quite a lot going for it in terms of its sound-dampening and construction. It feels great to type on overall thanks to the thockiness of the switches (both Mulan and Flamingo), while it doesn’t feel flimsy when pressing firmly down onto the keyboard. Neither of the switches I tested had any wobble to them, either, further driving home that this keyboard feels stable despite being made of plastic.
The LED screen in the upper right corner has two display modes. The first shows the date, time, and battery level. It’s a nice utilitarian touch when I’m playing a game in full screen and unable to keep track of time. I couldn’t customize the screen’s information, however. I wish I could remove the date or change the time from 24h to 12h, but that’s ok. I could also upload custom images using a separate tool (available on Epomaker’s website). The image uploading app was straightforward to use, but I wish it had additional features (like image sharing). I’ve yet to come across a fully-featured image-tool that feels fully completed – the keyboards with screens that I’ve reviewed have all used different image uploading tools that felt lacking in some regard.
When I saw that the Shadow-S was VIA-compatible, I was incredibly excited. VIA is an excellent open-source keyboard customization tool that allows the user to create macros, adjust lighting, and more. It officially supports 1400 keyboards and can be used in a web browser or installed on your computer. Super straightforward stuff. However, the Shadow-S is not officially supported by VIA, meaning that you have to upload a JSON file into the app/webapp to get it working. I hope that future versions of the Shadow get officially incorporated into the VIA application so that you don’t need to upload additional files.
In theory, VIA compatibility for an Epomaker keyboard should be given a fair share of praise. This means that users who switch to an Epomaker from an existing VIA-compatible keyboard don’t need to install additional drivers to get the most of their keyboard. By needing to install a third-party image uploader tool, customization becomes unnecessarily complicated and disparate across the board. I would have preferred that Epomaker had chosen to forgo VIA compatibility altogether and just opted to using their existing Epomaker Driver that is used for their other keyboards with screens (like the DynaTab 75X and RT100).
If you don’t want to use a software suite to customize the Shadow-S’ south-facing RGBs, you can do so with a combination of FN + arrow keys. This is pretty standard for mechanical keyboards, so I’m glad that Epomaker kept that in mind for the Shadow-S.
The remaining Shadow-S features are becoming increasingly standard in the prebuilt mechanical keyboard space, ranging from a 4000mAh battery to multiconnectivity to compatibility with multiple OS. I conducted most of this review using the included 1.8m USB cable in wired mode, but the keyboard’s Bluetooth and 2.4Ghz modes were a quick flip of the switch at the back of the keyboard and quick to set up. No complaints from me.
For standard office use, the Shadow-S is a great TKL keyboard for under $100. I especially love how it sounds, as it makes my day-to-day office work feels satisfying as I type for hours on end. Controlling the volume of my music is a nice touch with the knob. The Shadow-S a great addition for a user who wants a classic-looking keyboard that has a thocky sound and feel.
Now, let’s talk about the gaming potential of the Shadow-S. I put the keyboard through its paces using both sets of switches to gauge the best fit for players. That said, I’m pleased to report that both the Flamingo and Mulan switches performed well across the board barring one exception, which I’ll note in a moment. I used the same evaluation criteria I’ve used in prior mechanical keyboard reviews where I test the keyboard in games of increasing intensity, from casual to intense.
In the lower-intensity games, like Teamfight Tactics, Athenian Rhapsody, Civilization, and Stardew Valley, this keyboard worked fine. No complaints! Given the thockiness of the switches (especially the Flamingos, my word), keypresses felt quite satisfying to complement the few but meaningful inputs I was making.
For medium-intensity games, such as League of Legends, Project Tower, Abiotic Factor, and Realm of Ink, the Shadow-S showed no signs of missing inputs. It held up quite well to the pressure of multiple (and mildly repetitious) inputs. I didn’t feel as though this keyboard struggled by any means.
Onto the higher intensity games, such as VALORANT, Counter-Strike 2, and Starfield. This keyboard performed quite well. The Flamingo switches’ smaller pre-travel made it so that I could make rapid-fire inputs, at least quicker than the Mulans or the Wisterias. While it didn’t have the rapid-trigger that often comes with magnetic switches, the Shadow-S with the Flamingo switches made intense PC gaming a breeze.
For a gaming keyboard, the Shadow-S is an excellent choice those playing a wide breadth of games. It holds up well under pressure, its Flamingo switches are especially effective for high-intensity games given their 1.5mm of pre-travel. It’s a smidgen unfortunate that the louder switches have the lowest degree of pre-travel, but that’s a price that I’m personally willing to pay if that means that I can make faster and more accurate inputs. The Shadow-S is great for most players, in any case.
Currently, the Epomaker Shadow-S is priced at $99.99, which is more than fair for the features that come baked into this prebuilt keyboard. The screen and knob are a nice touch, and it’s nice to see these additions on a keyboard of this price. It’s a solid keyboard that avoids compromises aside from some customization quirks. Looking past the VIA pseudo-compatibility and the separate image upload tool, there aren’t any major drawbacks to this keyboard that should exclude it from your consideration if you’re on the market for a prebuilt keyboard with a knob and screen.
The Epomaker Shadow-S was a delightful TKL keyboard to review for office and gaming work. I wish I had the power to make easier adjustments to the screen (like the premium DynaTab 75X), but the screen showed just enough information for me to be satisfied. The keyboard’s thockiness made it quite a satisfying keyboard to use. For gaming, it performed well across the board, so keep that in mind if you’re on the market for a $100 prebuilt mechanical keyboard.
A review unit was provided by Epomaker for the purpose of this DigitalChumps review.
