The ASUS ProArt KD300 is a new keyboard that comes to respond to the needs of the professional marketespecially creators and office workers. And it does so based on the mechanical and Hall effect keyboard technologies that the Taiwanese manufacturer uses in its consumer models.
Peripherals are a group of products that sometimes go unnoticed. And they are important, since the computing experience and productivity in any use case depends largely on these input devices, keyboards and mice.
The ASUS ProArt KD300 shares the base hardware of the premium gaming keyboard, ROG Falchion RX. It is a compact size keyboard (65%) which will take up minimal space on the work table. To do this, move the dedicated arrow group and navigation column to the right edge. It borrows the Falchion RX’s touchpad and ASUS Red (linear) optical switches which have an average actuation force of 40-55gf.
The touchpad on the ASUS ProArt KD300 has been moved to the back of the keyboard, rather than the top panel, giving it a cleaner aestheticreinforced by a matte carbon color finish, which ASUS calls Black Aerolite. The touchpad can be configured along with the rest of the keyboard settings in the Gear Link web app and supports gestures, multimedia, brightness and volume controls, as well as performing functions such as scrolling and mouse clicks.
The ProArt KD300 can be connected to the PC by cable through a port USB type C and also wirelessly, using the Bluetooth standard or via a 2.4 GHz wireless connection. These wireless connectivity modes are supported by a 4000 mAh battery which ASUS claims will last up to 16 months with the backlight off in 2.4GHz mode. The keyboard polls at a rate of 1000Hz in both 2.4GHz and wired modes, while Bluetooth reduces the polling rate to 133Hz.
The keyboard includes other convenient ‘quality of life’ features, such as an OS select switch to toggle between Windows or macOS modes, as well as a three-way toggle switch for Bluetooth, wired, and 2.4 GHz connection modes. The keyboard chassis, made of injection-molded polycarbonate, features an aluminum reinforcement plate, flip-up legs for additional typing angles, and a floating key design. The ASUS ProArt KD300 will soon be available internationally as a premium offering for the professional market.
