The Lemokey L5 HE is a standout of a futuristic and premium HE keyboard using bleeding edge Hall Effect technology for ultra-precise inputs. Its aluminum construction is top notch and its switches are sound amazing, far better than most other HE switches I’ve tested over the past few months. While the L5 HE is not available yet, I’m excited for consumers to try it out when it becomes widely available in a few months!
Recently, I’ve started to use a Hall Effect (HE) keyboard as one of my three daily driver keyboards. While I’ve been generally impressed with the build quality and potential of Hall Effect technology, I’ve been relatively unimpressed with the acoustics of prebuilt HE keyboards and HE switches. They’ve been far too clacky for my liking, save for exactly one HE switch that is only compatible with a handful of HE keyboards. Part of the value of owning a custom mechanical keyboard is how it sounds, not just how it looks and feels.
When I got my hands on the Lemokey L5 HE, I was happy to hear a slightly deeper clack that could be misinterpreted as a creamy thock. It looked amazing, too!
Lemokey is Keychron’s gaming brand, emphasizing mechanical keyboard features that matter more for gamers than the average mechanical keyboard user. You know, things like lightning-fast high polling rates, durability, and comfortability. Instead of Keychron’s refined and simple color schemes, Lemokey utilizes a familiar gamer-inspired aesthetic of neon LEDs against dark aluminum. The L5 HE is Lemokey’s newest Hall Effect keyboard, and it will be available later this year!
After holding the keyboard in-hand and using it for several weeks, it’s no surprise that the L5 HE not only met its Kickstarter goal, but surpassed it several times over. The back price point aside, its specs are impressive for those wanting a top-of-the-line Hall Effect Keyboard for pro gaming.
Lemokey has positioned the L5 HE as a pro-level Hall Effect keyboard featuring unmatched speed and precision, specifically utilizing next-generation magnetic switches not yet found or utilized on other Hall Effect Keyboards. It also boasts an 8K Hz Polling and Scan Rate – capable of registering extremely quick inputs for the most sensitive in-game movements. I have not yet found a use for 8K polling, but I’ll be honest – I’m not what would be considered a “pro gamer.” As much as I review video games for DigitalChumps and play a handful of competitive games, I am far from the top 1% of most competitive titles. While the 8K polling rate might be overkill for me, it might not be for you.
Check the Lemokey L5 HE on Lemokey’s website! (Non-affiliated URL)
The L5 HE is a 75% keyboard, made entirely of aluminum and features double-shot keycaps. The back side of the keyboard has an LED strip with a complementary colored triangle prism. It also features an aluminum knob at the top right hand corner that can be used to control your computer’s volume; pressing on the knob mutes volume by default.
I love me some aluminum keyboards. Other than how they sound (which can be loud, I’ll admit), they are hefty beyond all get out. The L5 HE weighs a whopping 4lbs and didn’t budge once I put it on my desk. Aluminum keyboards are sturdy, too; there was no give even when I put my full weight into pressing down onto the keyboard. The L5 is gorgeous, heavy, and worth the premium pricetag even for those who weren’t able to take advantage of the Kickstarter Early Adopter pricing.
By default, the L5 HE utilizes top-mounting. However, it allows users to easily swap to a gasket mount thanks to the included rubber gaskets in the box. To my knowledge, this is the first adjustable-mount HE keyboard on the market, which is exceptionally cool. Hopefully other manufacturers incorporate adjustable mounts in their future HE keyboards, as having the option is great. Personally, I love gasket mounts, so I was thrilled to be given the opportunity to make that adjustment if I desired.
I was sent the Cyber colorway to review – black with a green ESC key. This specific model features a handful of transparent keycaps that complement the black keycaps on the rest of the keyboard.
The doubleshot PBT keycaps (which come on all variants of the L5 HE) have delightful shinethrough. The north-facing LEDs are bright by default and make the legends easily readable when the lights are shimmering. I like the idea of the transparent keycaps, but clear keycaps can be hard to read when lights are on. I’ve had the same readability issues when using similarly transparent keycaps from the likes of KiiBOOM and Melgeek, so this isn’t a new issue. The clear complementary keycaps have the same Cyberpunk design language as the Melgeek CYBER01’s clear keycaps, but with green instead of yellow/white. This design language is not the most readable, but it sure feels smooth to the touch and produces a slightly different sound than the rest of the keycaps. Either way, the clear legends are readable and feature an excellent degree of shinethrough to show off the LEDs. When the keyboard is fully illuminated, it looks absolutely glorious.
Hall Effect keyboards are a unique variant of custom keyboard. You know how mechanical keyboards use mechanical switches (linear and tactile)? Hall Effect keyboards use a unique magnetic switch that is just as premium and durable as the Hall Effect technology in controllers like the DualSense Edge. On the durability front, Hall Effect switches are rated for much greater use – upwards of 100 million keypresses per switch. They are also customizable – their actuation points (how far one needs to press down for the switch to register an input) can be customized anywhere from 0.01mm to the maximum 4.0mm (or whatever the switch’s total distance happens to be). There are some additional features that Hall Effect switches bring, like dynamic rapid triggering (which activate/deactivate keys based on travel distance, allowing for repetitious inputs without fully depressing the key), modular tapping (which allows for a single key to perform two different outputs depending on how far down the switch is pressed), and more.
I’ve reviewed many Hall Effect keyboards over the past few months thanks to so many manufacturers, Keychron/Lemokey included, incorporating Hall Effect into their lineup of keyboards. The once-ridiculously-expensive technology is becoming more affordable thanks to so many keyboards entering the market, which should be considered a great thing for folks who are curious about switching from a mechanical keeb to a HE keyboard. That said, I want to emphasize that there is a degree of hype stemming from the media and some users that overstate the power of Hall Effect.
I’m going to be the voice of reason here: Having a HE keyboard does not make you a pro gamer. It doesn’t make you any better at VALORANT just because you’ve switched from mechanical switches to magnetic. Sure, you might be able to do more with your keyboard, and some things might be easier to do, but you still need to have skills and put in the work to improve at your favorite competitive game. In my months of testing magnetic switches across several a many keyboards, I didn’t suddenly become better when I made the switch. I just played slightly differently.
The best parts of having magnetic switches involve the customizable actuation points and the durability. Having a switch rated for 100 million keypresses gives me some piece of mind as I play games like Counter-Strike 2, VALORANT, and Apex Legends in that the switches will hold up for quite a long time as I mash keys on the keyboard.
Speaking of customizable actuation points and magnetic switches, the Lemokey L5 HE utilizes a unique switch that isn’t widely available at this time: Tunneling Magnetoresistance (TMR). TMR is more sensitive than traditional HE sensors – instead of 0.1mm increments, TMR can supposedly be finer tuned in 0.01mm increments. This makes for an insanely sensitive and customizable switch.
The L5 HE comes preinstalled with Lemokey Ultra-Fast Lime Magnetic Switches that boast that TMR technology. They have a decently sensitive ~25gf starting force and are made of a POM housing. The Ultra-Fast Limes feel smooth and linear thanks to that 25gf of force. I usually prefer stronger springs when typing, but gaming feels far better when I’m playing with a lighter switch. POM is one of my favorite switch materials because of its softer composition; the softer the switch, the greater potential for a creamy acoustic profile. These switches are the closest thing to a deep thock on the HE market, deeper than the Gateron Magnetic Jades. After my testing, I’m thrilled to say that these switches are the best-sounding HE switches as of April 2025. The competition may be heating up as more HE switches become available, but these switches are a must-have if you want a HE keyboard with a slightly creamy sound profile that is ever-so-satisfying!
Sadly, the L5 HE is incompatible with other HE switches at this time. Because of the TMR tech, I couldn’t just swap the switches out with another set of HE switches. As there are no other TMR switches available on the market, what you see is what you get when the keyboard ships to consumers later this year. Hopefully, though, other HE switches with the TMR tech will become available for those who want a switch that sounds and feels different than the Limes.
It’s hard to justify swapping out those Ultra-Fast Lime switches, though. They sound and feel absolutely amazing.
Does the average player need 8K? Definitely not – it’s overkill for the critical mass of players. However, the features of the L5 HE, when taken together, comprise a multitude of “nice-to-have” elements that make the keyboard a compelling option for a player who wants to be a pro gamer. What a pro gamer entails is up for debate, but I felt as though the keyboard could keep up with my inputs throughout a litany of games.
To adjust the L5 HE’s settings, I was to use Lemokey driver. This driver is a web driver, meaning all I had to do was open Google Chrome to make the changes I wanted to make. It’s very easy to use, almost as easy and descriptive as Wooting’s web driver. If you prefer to use QMK VIA, that’s possible, too!
I had only one issue when reviewing this keyboard, which was inconsistent readability of the clear keycaps, but these are minor in the grand scheme of using the keyboard. Keycaps can be swapped out, though, so I didn’t feel like I was using a keyboard that was subpar. The L5 HE has punched above its weight in the acoustic and feel category, making it a notable contender as a gaming keyboard.
The Lemokey L5 HE is a standout of a futuristic and premium HE keyboard using bleeding edge Hall Effect technology for ultra-precise inputs. Its aluminum construction is top notch and its switches are sound amazing, far better than most other HE switches I’ve tested over the past few months. While the L5 HE is not available yet, I’m excited for consumers to try it out when it becomes widely available in a few months!
