Introduction

[Update: Epomaker has dropped plans to have an optical version (SK61) in this color scheme, which had the company rename the current mechanical switch version “GK61.” The context of this review remains the same, but there won’t be an SK61 Red—it is instead the GK61 Red with mechanical switches only.]

Epomaker is quickly becoming one of my favorite keyboard brands, and this is after the very first Epomaker review just earlier this very year with the GK96LS. We have since covered four other keyboards/kits with another one already on the way, too. These include a 60% form factor and move all the way up to the aforementioned 95% one, with the recently launched AK84S possibly my favorite of the lot in terms of everything that came with it. So when the company asked if I would be interested in taking a look at a new numpad, I wasn’t sure since that seemed best-suited for a quick look article, if that. Then came the news of the Red Wine set, which that numpad was part of, and here we are thus. Thanks again to Epomaker for sending review samples to TechPowerUp.

This is effectively a two-for-one, with the main focus on the all-new Epomaker SK61 Red. It is a 60% keyboard using optical switches (typically, it is SK for optical and GK for mechanical) and a different color scheme for the keycaps to add another option to the brand’s extremely popular 60% keyboards. The funny thing is that the other Epomaker product article was a Building a Keyboard entry using the GK61XS kit, and that kit got delayed due to this new release coming out since to take up the first Epomaker 60% keyboard review here. The SK21 alongside is a dedicated 21-key numpad, which goes well with the SK61 for a nice-looking set. I am going to treat the Epomaker SK21 as an accessory to the Epomaker SK61, so let’s see how the two work together in this review beginning with a look at the product specifications for the SK61 in the table below.

Specifications