INTRODUCTION

   If there's something that people value more than a good mouse that is a good keyboard and although in the past there weren't that many models to choose from and almost every single one of those used regular membrane technology keys. To date only 5 keyboards have had the pleasure of sitting on my desk for long periods of time since the early 90s' the Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard (which i got in 1995), it's successor the Microsoft Natural Pro Ergonomic Keyboard (year 2000), the Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard (got it back in 2005 if i recall correctly), the Professional Model S by Das Keyboard (roughly two years ago) and finally the Mad Catz S.T.R.I.K.E.7 Adjustable Keyboard (slightly just over a year ago). So as you can imagine i don't easily trust keyboards especially since i don't primarily use them for gaming and thus i only use the best for me but specially designed models like the 87 Francium Pro by Deck (a subsidiary of TG3 Electronics) which arrived on our doorstep a while back are certainly very good candidates.

   TG3 Electronics, Inc. is a leading supplier of engineered input solutions. These solutions include; standard and custom keyboards, bump bars, and control panels. TG3 was incorporated in 1986 by its founder, Tom Giles. With an international sales force and the best engineers in the industry, TG3 has grown steadily over the past 23 years. Headquarters is located in a 45,000 square foot, state of the art facility in Kenosha, WI. TG3 also has a major manufacturing interest in Zhuhai China and Hong Kong. TG3 sells into a very diverse marketplace that includes but is not limited to; medical, industrial, point of sale, military, mobile data, telecommunications, white goods, and gaming. Whether your input requirements are large or small, complex or simple, TG3 can handle your application from concept to completion.

   As you can definitely see from the list of keyboards I’ve used in the past only one out of the five that have landed on my desk for extended periods of time featured mechanical switches so I’m not going to tell you that mechanical keyboards are the only way to go since that would obviously go against what I’ve been doing for over two decades. The truth of the matter however is that mechanical switches have a much longer lifespan (up to 50 million actuations) and far better audible/tactile feedback compared to regular membrane ones features that go a long way especially for hardcore gamers and professionals. The 87 Francium Pro may seem way too basic and it lacks the numeric keypad but with it Deck takes things a step further compared to everyday mechanical keyboards since they didn't only use LED illuminated Cherry MX mechanical switches (brown ones in our sample) featuring Full N-Key rollover but they have also made it so that the user can create his own LED effects thanks to the built-in NUC123 32-bit Cortex™-M0 microcontroller (runs at 72MHz and features 10-bit ADC with 20KB SRAM) and use macros linked to keys directly from the keyboard (without the use of software). I'm certain that you're all quite curious to see how all these translate in real-world use so let's not keep you waiting any longer.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The 87 Francium Pro arrived inside a black box with part of the keyboard at the top (blue illumination although our sample had white), the company logo and the model name.

You can see the type of Cherry MX used at the front along with the N-Key rollover feature.

Both the serial and part numbers are placed on a sticker found on the right side.

The product features are listed at the bottom along with the OS compatibility and bundle contents lists.

Deck packs the 87 Francium Pro quite well so no problems here.

Along with the 87 Francium Pro mechanical keyboard you will also get the user manual and a metallic keycap puller that can also be used as a bottle opener.

THE 87 FRANCIUM PRO

Since the 87 Francium Pro lacks the numeric keypad its quite smaller and sturdier compared to normal keyboards. To be more precise the 87 Francium Pro measures 360mm in length, 138mm in width and 43mm in height.

Deck uses high quality PBT keycaps with Papyrus and comic sans font printed on them (some people may not like it but i do).

The company logo is placed at the front if the spacebar.

F1 through F6 can also be used as media buttons while F7 launches the calculator and F8 locks the Windows buttons (useful while playing).

You can switch between lighting modes with F9, toggle 6-key and Full N-Key rollover with F10, enable the second layer with F11 and program keys with the PN key (Fn+).

With the up/down arrow keys you have the ability to control the illumination brightness.

Moving at the bottom of the 87 Francium Pro we see a channel which allows you to route the cable in 3 different directions, 4 long rubber feet that keep the keyboard in place and two lifters.

The lifters keep the tallest end of the keyboard roughly 14mm from the desk.

Deck used a nice 1.8m long braided cable with the 87 Francium Pro that ends up to a normal USB connector.

Gaining access to the cherry MX LED switches is very easy thanks to the keycap puller although due to its metallic body it may scratch the keycap if you’re not careful.

USING THE 87 FRANCIUM PRO

Deck offers firmware updates which you can perform via their firmware downloader as seen above.

To upload/download custom scripts you can use the LED utility by Deck (recommend searching online for custom scripts since there are many available).

By default the 87 Francium Pro comes with four lighting modes. Did my best to record some in the above pictures (you can find several custom ones showcased with GIF files easily just by searching online).

CONCLUSION

   The lack of bells and whistles we see in some other mechanical keyboards by manufacturers like Razer may disappoint some potential buyers (especially young in age) but i always believed that there's something special in being simple and the 87 Francium Pro by Deck is exactly that. You see with the 87 Francium Pro you may not get something fancy that you may place on your desk just for its looks, instead you're getting a high quality keyboard that takes up far less space compared to other models and offers quite a few impressive features like the ability to switch between 6-key and full N-key rollover, record macros without the need of a program and create your own custom LED effects which you can share with your friends. Unfortunately although the quality of the keycaps is very high that also hinders the brightness levels but to be completely honest with all of you i wouldn't be getting a keyboard to throw a party so at least in my opinion the brightness levels are more than ok. Overall we didn't come across any problems while testing the 87 Francium Pro although i would had liked to receive a sample with the Cherry MX red switches instead since browns come 2nd in my list.

   Although we were unable to locate the 87 Francium Pro by Deck inside the EU it is very much available inside the USA for a price ranging from USD155 and up to USD170 depending on the type of mechanical switch you choose to get. Of course i hope that Deck can widen availability of their keyboards since we know many people who'd like to get their hands on the 87 Francium Pro. That being said the Deck 87 Francium Pro may not be the perfect mechanical keyboard but its size paired with the very sturdy build quality and the available features are more than enough to secure our Golden Award.

PROS

- Superb Build Quality (Sturdy/PBT Keycaps)
- Cherry MX Switches (Red/Blue/Brown)
- 6-Key & Full N-Key Rollover
- Backlighting (4 Preset Modes/Custom Scripts)
- Keyboard Based Macros (No Software Needed)
- Braided Cable

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- Current Availability