Closer Examination

The NZXT Function 2 MiniTKL, as with the Function MiniTKL which launched a couple years ago, is a unique take on the TKL form factor. We have 88 keys in total here compared to the 87 that would be in the US ANSI TKL layout and yet this keyboard takes up 2-3 cm less space along the length, which in turn means your mouse can be that much closer to you and more in line with your shoulder width. This form factor can take some getting used to though but as a perk you do get standard keycap spacing, which is even more unheard of for any keyboard that goes for a single bank of keys. There is a tiny gap between R. Control and left arrow admittedly but that is more because NZXT opted to stick with 1.25u keys to the right of the space bar that resulted in only three fitting in there. Then there is the part where we get a volume wheel and three extra buttons on the left side allowing for mute/unmute, LEDs on/off, and Windows lock on/off. The wheel has a textured silicone grip on it which I worry will get dirty sooner than later and I also felt it was not as nice to use as your usual large metal knobs on the top of the keyboard. But given we even have this in the first place, I can't complain too much. Branding comes in the form of the special NZXT key on the right side as well as NZXT printed on the side facing away from the user. Bezels are minimal and keycap legends are placed on the top center of the keycaps with general secondary legends alongside and some keyboard-specific ones being front-facing instead. The legends don't have the best contrast here but this is part of the compromise of going with doubleshot PBT keycaps that support backlighting. The white keycaps may fare better in this regard though.


Turning the keyboard around, we see the usual plastic sticker with the various certification labels. The entire keyboard feels fairly solid despite the plastic chassis in use—perhaps the aluminium frame doubling up as the plate is helping here. The keyboard is still relatively light as a whole thanks to the use of ABS plastic here but this allows NZXT to add two sets of keyboard feet for added elevation angles. These feet have rubber pads on the bottom for additional grip and the case itself has five rubber pads for the same. Note the hole providing access to a reset switch on the left side with both sets of feet raised.


The Function 2 MiniTKL only supports wired connectivity and there is a Type-C port flush mounted on the left side facing away from the user. The provided cable fits in easily and we see there is obviously room for aftermarket cables if you wish to jazz things up. The cable has a durable fabric sheath in black to match this black keyboard, is the usual 6' in length, and goes to an available USB Type-A port on your PC where USB 3.0 (USB 3.2 Gen 1) is recommended for power and data alike.


A look from the side shows the built-in elevation of the keyboard, which I would classify as medium profile and can maybe benefit from a wrist rest if you are not used to touch typing with hands hovering over the keys at all times. The keycaps are floating in nature owing to the lack of a top case panel and this allows easy access to remove/replace the keycaps as well as to clean the keyboard. The provided keycap puller helps remove some of the keycaps for a closer examination, albeit with the potential of scratching their sides, so I decided to use one of my own metal wire-style keycap pullers thereafter. NZXT is using the OEM keycap profile here with the six rows contoured and positioned to reduce the entry barrier to people used to a pre-built mainstream keyboard that is likely doing the same. The keycaps are made of thick PBT plastic with doubleshot-injected legends on the top for durability and longevity alike. The legends on the top surface are backlit, which is why we see the secondary legends placed alongside the primary ones for more even backlighting, although the ones on the front appear to be pad printed and are opaque.


The PBT keycaps on the Function 2 series are a welcome change from the thin ABS keycaps on the previous Function series of NZXT keyboards; I saw quite a few complaints about those original keycaps wearing out sooner than later. However, the biggest change from the previous lineup is NZXT ditching mechanical switches in favor of optical ones. If I could have talked to them earlier I might have tried to shift them towards Hall effect magnetic switches instead, but at least NZXT isn't trying to make more of the optical switches than they realistically can do—more on this shortly. As of the time of this review, the Function 2 series will ship with these Gateron optical switches that have an actuation force falling between the two sets of spare switches in the box. I would like NZXT to offer the keyboard with the option to choose any of the three switches or at least sell the other two separately, for more user choice. All of these happen to be linear feedback switches anyway meaning anyone wanting a tactile and/or clicky switch should look elsewhere. The switches are placed in a north-facing configuration which can have slightly reduced keycap profile compatibility in case you decide to replace the keycaps. The larger keycaps use plate-mounted stabilizers which unfortunately feel quite mushy and uneven despite them being lubed out of the box.


The switch remover tool is handy to remove the hot-swappable switches off the PCB where we see the use of the optical switch socket with a continuous light source generated and passing through the socket. The switch stem interrupts the light to trigger what should be an instantaneous actuation. The optical switch used here has a dark blue Cherry MX-style crosspoint stem, uses the usual single pin design for optical switches, and has a clear top housing to aid with RGB lighting in addition to an opaque white bottom housing. Also, we can see Gateron is the switch manufacturer which is good news given its reputation of producing excellent switches, whether mechanical, optical, or magnetic.

Disassembly

Given the hot-swappable nature of the switches, it only made sense to take one of these Gateron optical switches apart. There is not much to see here, with the composition replicating the cross-point Cherry MX stem design as much as possible for keycap compatibility and to avoid re-inventing the wheel for PCB assembly. The stem is the most important part of the switch with the slider having to be of precise length. It's also well-lubed to have smooth travel up and down the housing. The bottom housing does not have the metal contacts that typical mechanical switches have and this optical switch thus has fewer moving parts contacting each other. Actuation happens with the stem slider moving in that pin in the center to where it will interrupt the aforementioned light signal in the switch socket. Depending on the travel length and the cutout in the stem, there is some leeway to have this be at different travel distances. This is why the first analog switches were optical switches trying to take advantage of this but the limitation is ultimately that you have a reduced range of motion, and detection, compared to the likes of Hall effect magnetic switches. It is best to focus on optical switches for their lower latency, at least on the switch side, compared to mechanical switches as well as having discrete actuation distances allowing some form of customization.


At this point I was ready to take apart the rest of the keyboard but, as you might have judged by this section being combined with the previous one, NZXT had other plans. Sure, there are 15 Phillips-head screws securing the plate/PCB piece in place and you can remove them after taking off several specific keycaps. But then NZXT's glue shows up which makes it harder to do so without potentially risking something breaking. The PCB has a tape mod and there are two thin foam pieces between the plate and the PCB which all seem to compress together and highly resist any disassembly. There's also hot glue over the internal connector making the Function 2 MiniTKL a nightmare for anyone wanting to mod the keyboard. I know that isopropanol can help loosen the hot glue application but that's beyond the point. Besides, good luck doing so with the limited range on offer here. The only plus point here is NZXT seems to have taken criticism of the original Function series to heart, which only had a single thin foam sheet that barely did anything to dampen keystrokes, and has done more. I am not sure it is enough though since the foam sheets still feel super thin and weak.