Logitech MX Mechanical Keyboard Review

The Logitech MX Mechanical is a full-size keyboard. Despite its full size, it doesn't take up too much space on a desk. However, if you'd prefer something smaller, you can purchase a compact version of this keyboard called the Logitech MX Mechanical Mini.

The Logitech MX Mechanical has excellent build quality. The top plate is aluminum, while the chassis is made of solid plastic, so the board exhibits no flex. The keycaps are ABS plastic with a soft coating that adds extra grip, which is good as ABS keycaps are prone to becoming slick from finger oil over time. The legends are shine-through, meaning you can see the backlighting in the dark. The stabilizers inside offer good stabilization, so there's very little wobble in the larger keys. On the top right of the keyboard, you'll find the charging port and power switch. Along the bottom of the board, there's a long rubber strip that does a good job of keeping it in place, and there are two smaller strips at the top and on each incline foot.

The Logitech MX Mechanical has good ergonomics. As it's a low-profile board, you can use it comfortably without a wrist rest, though Logitech does offer one for purchase if you want. It also has one incline setting should you need the extra angle.

The Logitech MX Mechanical has excellent white-only backlighting. It has a built-in sensor that turns the backlighting on when your hand is near and off when you've gone away from the keyboard to conserve battery power. The key legends are shine-through, meaning you can read your keys in a dark environment. While there are lighting effects available, you can't program or customize any of them.

This keyboard comes with a simple rubber USB-A to USB-C cable.

The Logitech MX Mechanical is extremely versatile in its wireless connectivity options. It comes with Logitech's BOLT receiver, which connects with select Logitech productivity devices, so you only need one receiver for multiple devices. When used with its receiver, you can still pair it with up to two other devices using Bluetooth. Without using its receiver, you can pair it with up to three devices via Bluetooth. You should also note that this keyboard isn't compatible with the Logitech Unifying Receiver and only works with the BOLT receiver. Logitech advertises that the battery lasts up to 15 days when used with the backlighting on and up to 10 months with the backlighting off.

The Logitech MX Mechanical doesn't have many extra features. You can access a number of functions as hotkeys including media controls and screen brightness controls. You can also access certain features and applications through hotkeys like a calculator app, an emoji menu, and a speech-to-text (dictation) feature. Unfortunately, this keyboard isn't macro-programmable. However, you can re-assign select keys to perform several different functions in the customization software.

• Logitech MX Mechanical
• USB-A to USB-C charging cable
• BOLT USB receiver
• User documentation

This Logitech MX Mechanical unit has Kailh Choc V2 Low Profile Brown switches, which have a subtle tactile bump halfway through the keypress. The pre-travel distance is short, but the smoothness of the switch means that the tactile bump doesn't offer a lot of resistance and doesn't require much force to get over. Overall, the keystroke is light and responsive, though this will feel different if you purchase the board with linear Red or clicky Blue switches.

The Logitech MX Mechanical offers a great typing experience. The ABS keycaps have a soft covering that adds a bit of grip and feels nice on the fingertips. The keys themselves are stable, though the larger keys have slightly more wobble; however, it isn't noticeable during use. Due to the flat, low-profile keycaps, the keys feel closer together than standard keyboards, but not enough to feel cramped. The Kailh Choc V2 Low-Profile Brown switches in the unit provide a slight tactile bump that doesn't feel rough or resistant, so the keypress feels smooth throughout. Overall, if you're used to typing on a scissor switch or other low-profile board, this keyboard will provide an enjoyable typing experience with little to no learning curve. If you're coming from a high-profile board, you may notice your typing speed is slightly slower at first as you get used to the low-profile keycaps and switches. You're unlikely to experience any wrist fatigue or finger fatigue during long periods of use.

With the tactile Brown switches installed, typing on this keyboard is quiet. If you buy this keyboard with clicky Blue switches, the typing noise is louder.

The Logitech MX Mechanical has decent latency. It's very well-suited for productivity tasks and even casual gaming, but it isn't suitable for reaction-based or competitive games.

This keyboard uses the Logi Options+ software, which is very similar to Logitech Options but features an updated interface that's clean and simple. You can use the software to create app-specific profiles, so your settings will be different for different applications. Although this keyboard doesn't have onboard memory, you can back up your settings with the Cloud and sync them across devices. Unfortunately, you can't program macros, and your customization is limited to a drop-down list of commands. Also, you can't re-program every key; instead, you're limited to the function row and a portion of the navigational cluster. The keys you can program are highlighted in the image above.

The Logitech MX Mechanical is fully compatible with Windows. While there's software available for Mac, some function keys, like the screen brightness function (F1, F2), may not work if you use a Mac computer with a monitor that isn't fully Mac compatible. For Linux systems, the dictate (F5), emoji (F6), screen grab (F7), and mic mute (F8) functions don't work. On mobile devices running Android or iOS, the emoji button (F6) and Mic Mute (F8) buttons don't work, and the calculator button doesn't work on iOS. iPadOS users should note that similar to iOS, the mic mute (F8) and calculator buttons don't work.