So I see everyone talking about how great the GMMK Pro is and I am sure that the hype is warranted but I question why I should upgrade. I have the GMMK Regular Compact with Aura Keycaps and the standard brown switches that came with the build, and I am happy with it. The Pro’s knob is cool, and I think I might like my arrow keys back but can some of you rabid Pro fans convince me I need to drop some more cash for the Pro, or should I just stick with what I’ve got? The money isn’t the issue I am from that school of thought that believes if you want something, you buy it, and If you are fretting over 10, 20, 30, 40 bucks price difference then maybe you can’t really afford whatever it is that you are looking into buying anyways and you should be SAVING that money. Anyways, any input would be greatly appreciated.
All in All. my reason for buying the GMMK PRO was to cut space on my setup, because I had a full Keyboard with 100+ keys and it took a load of space, and I was Fortunate to have friends pitch in for a Christmas gift on the reserve and most of the addition cost of the keyboard. But if you have a compact already, I say the only thing you get out of the GMMK PRO is the Rotary tab and the customization you get with it. Although I love this keyboard, I wouldn’t warrant you buying the Pro when you already have a compact. But if you truly do have that mentality then go for it. I know you’ll love it just as or more than the one you have now.
I’ve been using TKL boards for ten years now, out of all the boards I’ve used GMMK Pro is hands down the best so far. It makes even bad switches feel good.
I would say go for it if you want to go a little bit more in depth into the mech keyboard world. I am currently using a GMMK PRO and it is, in my opinion, the easiest and most versatile entry into more a more customized keyboard experience. I would recommend that if you do get one, dont limit yourself with the basic switches and try to find the one you will like the most. The GMMK PRO is hot swappable, so if you don’t like the switches as much as you thought, you can always try a different set!
If you’re looking to dip your toes into a custom experience without completely breaking the bank, the GMMK Pro is a very good value proposition as Glorious tried to check all the enthusiast boxes. Is it executed well? Yes and no. There are definitely things left to be desired, but again, the value is absolutely insane. Though you stated money isn’t an issue, if you’re really looking at this board from an enthusiast perspective, something else you’re going to want to keep in mind is that you’ll most likely be dropping money on more renouned keycaps, switches, lube, stabs, the works. If you’re looking at this purely as an upgrade to your current keeb and plan on using glorious’ suite of products, then I’d say it’s well worth the upgrade. A 75% layout is very highly sought after due to the minimal compromises it makes compared to more compact board layouts like 65% and 60% (having f keys, arrow keys without needing to keybind is very nice to have). Hope I was able to give you some perspective and best of luck with your decision!
I’m a big fan of my GMMK Pro. And this is coming from an enthusiast with experience with much more expensive boards.
I currently have mine on my office desk at work. Of all the boards I could have taken there, it’s the one I wanted. For one, I won’t be devastated if it gets stolen with how easy it would be to replace. It also looks great and feels great (with some modding). While not as rich in sound as some other, popular, but more expensive boards, it made a perfect platform for building a silenced board for the office. On top of that, the 75% with knob form factor is great for what I need to be able to do at work.
I won’t pretend that this thing is without issues for me. However, I’m a bit more demanding than the average keyboard consumer, and I’ve actually enjoyed all the time I spent tinkering with it to get it where I wanted it to be.
For a jumping point into the custom hobby, it’s great. The value is good. It’s built like a tank, so durability isn’t an issue. Unfortunately, in building it with the durability you might want in a gamer board in mind, some of the design decisions go a bit against conventions in the custom hobbyist space. Still, you can work around a lot of that if you ever decide it matters to you. The community has come up with a bunch of different modifications you can use if you decide to tinker with it. You can pretty reasonably build a great sounding/ feeling board with some tinkering. Something that greatly exceeds the stock Pro model, and one that easily punches up in value–which is saying something, considering the value of the stock unit.
But if you’re just looking at it as an upgrade for a gamer board, it’s an absolute easy buy imo.