Introduction

Shurikey Gear is a brand-new outfit from Shenzhen Zhihaihe Tech Co., Ltd. which in turn is also more commonly known as ZHH, or simply the company behind Varmilo that impressed recently with its new second-generation electrostatic capacitive switches (EC V2) and unique designs we saw both with the Beijing Opera and Forest Fairy themes. With Shurikey Gear, the company wants to be more bold and introduce more fun. The name itself comes from the Shuriken ninja weapon, modified to add some sort of semblance to keyboards, and I suppose it is fitting then that the first keyboard is also named after a ninja. Thanks to Shurikey Gear for providing a review sample to TechPowerUp!


The Shurikey Gear Hanzo is named after the Japanese ninja Hattori Hanzō, who has become ubiquitous for far too many things involving swords and weebs worldwide. In this case, Shurikey Gear stretches things further by saying that the name Hanzo can be translated to be "half hide," and in that regard, the Shurikey Gear Hanzo at least has that owing to a user-replaceable top plate that hides the bottom half. But we all know the name is mostly for marketing and to look cool—the keyboard does distinguish itself visually as well. It launches today on Indiegogo and comes in three different themes to choose from at this time: vintage computer (001), western desert (002), and arcade game (003). I chose the western desert 002 theme for this review sample, and we begin coverage with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Specifications

Packaging and Accessories

Given Shurikey Gear is a new brand, I wasn't sure what to expect for the unboxing experience. With the Hanzo, the company is also promising more customization with a core "refit" element. The packaging is fairly clean, but retains the retro theme the keyboard is going for, with the company logo on the front amidst three horizontal stripes going all around the box. There is actually no information about the keyboard to be seen here, which is a first, and the back only has the company contact information in English and Mandarin. It is on the side that we see more specifics of the enclosed product and that the model name for the Shurikey Gear Hanzo is actually "SKB65." This sticker also confirms that I have the 002 model and the Varmilo EC Daisy V2 switches on this sample. The Hanzo name is finally found on the side, and this is where we see two double flaps that hold the contents inside in place during transit.


The truncated form of the company logo was seen on the other side of the product box, but it makes another showing on the underside as you open the box. We see more deliberate colors employed internally, in a way that distinguishes the keyboard from others already. The unboxing experience involves layers, with the keyboard inside a few layers of its own and the accessories found underneath and in a separate cardboard compartment to the top. We get some paperwork, including a warranty guide and QC sticker, but no manual in this pre-production test/marketing sample, which I expect to see rectified in the final versions since I did get a PDF manual, which works for now. Shurikey Gear also includes a color-coordinated USB Type-C to Type-A cable, which for this 002 model is a tan brown with a hook and loop strap that has the company name on it. The cable is substantially built, albeit without any sleeving or braiding. We also get a nice metal-wire keycap puller with a grippy base that has the truncated Shurikey Gear logo etched into it.


It may not be a Varmilo product, but the Shurikey Gear Hanzo still gets some replacement keycaps thrown into the box. These come separately packed in three layers inside a wax paper pouch and are comprised of a total of ten keycaps in three colors, including a couple of novelty ones. Contrary to appearances, these are actually thick ABS plastic keycaps (~1.5 mm thick) with doubleshot-injected legends, which makes for a glossier finish than PBT plastic, and the company says that the final retail versions will have better-quality legends, although I had no complaints with these in particular. It is likely a deliberate choice, as with a few other such implementations recently, but these are opaque keycaps. This means any backlighting on the keyboard will be accent lighting only if the stock keycaps installed on the keyboard follow the same trend. I do not know why we got a numpad Enter keycap—it is clearly wasted on this 65% keyboard.


The cardboard box underneath the keyboard contains another accessory in a wax paper wrap, which I initially thought might be a wrist rest until I felt it more. Removing it from the packaging confirms it is a replacement top cover. This accessory will be included with every Shurikey Gear Hanzo keyboard, with the exact color dependent on the chosen model. From what I can tell, model 001 gets a dark gray replacement cover, 002 this olive green one, and 003 a yellow replacement plate. It is made out of ABS plastic, as the rest of the keyboard case, no doubt, and we will see how it works out on the keyboard in more detail on the next page.


The keyboard itself comes well packaged inside another wax paper wrap and under a molded plastic cover that can then be used as a dust cover when the keyboard isn't being used. A shaped piece of foam keeps a moving part of the keyboard tightly snug and further protected, which is nice to see.


Shurikey Gear also included the same switch trial kit I had received with the newer Varmilo keyboards. This helps compare the new Varmilo EC V2 (electrostatic capacitive) switches to the Cherry MX Red, Black, and Blue switches the company also uses in their keyboards. Given the keyboard here does not support hot-swappable switches, the spare switches help with a closer examination of the used switch in due course of time.