Introduction

Varmilo is a PC peripherals brand that has become synonymous with customized, artistic keyboards that are created with specific themes in collaboration with designers and illustrators. Indeed, a single look at our previous Varmilo keyboard reviews—the MA87M Beijing Opera, the MA108 Forest Fairy, and the Minilo Eucalyptus—show immediately what I am referring to. The brand goes beyond simply having a custom set of keycaps and puts out a dedicated keyboard case designed to match the theme. In some cases there are even physical effects applied and we have seen first-party electrostatic capacitive (EC V2) switches too which are among my favorite to use. Needless to say then that when the opportunity comes to review a Varmilo keyboard, I am always up for it.

Mechkeys is a relatively new keyboard retailer that is a venture from the same people that brought us the audio retailer HiFiGo. It aims to provide easier access to the rarely seen Asian keyboards to those in other parts of the world and we did take advantage of this with coverage of brands including Lofree and James Donkey before. Varmilo was one such brand recently added by Mechkeys and I took them up on the offer to take a look at one of the more striking keyboards I have seen to date in the form of the Varmilo Crane of Lure series. It comes in mechanical (VBS108V2) or Varmilo EC V2 (VBM108V2) switch options so this review is valid for both types with the caveat being the VBS108V2 comes with three connectivity modes whereas the VBM108V2 is wired only. I also have a very special switch on my review sample custom made by Kailh for this series so there is clearly a lot to unpack. Thanks to Mechkeys and Varmilo for providing a review sample to TechPowerUp as we begin with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Specifications