Introduction

Varmilo is a PC peripherals brand that has become synonymous with customized, artistic keyboards that are created with specific themes in collaboration with designers and illustrators. Indeed, a single look at our previous Varmilo keyboard reviews—the MA87M Beijing Opera, the MA108 Forest Fairy, and the Minilo Eucalyptus—show immediately what I am referring to. The brand goes beyond simply having a custom set of keycaps and puts out a dedicated keyboard case designed to match the theme. In some cases there are even physical effects applied and we have seen first-party electrostatic capacitive (EC V2) switches too which are among my favorite to use. Needless to say then that when the opportunity comes to review a Varmilo keyboard, I am always up for it.


Mechkeys is a relatively new keyboard retailer that is a venture from the same people that brought us the audio retailer HiFiGo. It aims to provide easier access to the rarely seen Asian keyboards to those in other parts of the world and we did take advantage of this with coverage of brands including Lofree and James Donkey before. Varmilo was one such brand recently added by Mechkeys and I took them up on the offer to take a look at one of the more striking keyboards I have seen to date in the form of the Varmilo Crane of Lure series. It comes in mechanical (VBS108V2) or Varmilo EC V2 (VBM108V2) switch options so this review is valid for both types with the caveat being the VBS108V2 comes with three connectivity modes whereas the VBM108V2 is wired only. I also have a very special switch on my review sample custom made by Kailh for this series so there is clearly a lot to unpack. Thanks to Mechkeys and Varmilo for providing a review sample to TechPowerUp as we begin with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Specifications

Packaging and Accessories

As with most such themed keyboards from Varmilo, the VBS108V2 Crane of Lure gets a matching design on the product box too. Indeed, this might be the first time that I had to photograph the front of a keyboard box in the vertical orientation given the design which was done in collaboration with famous Chinese designer and illustrator Li Huan. This work is called "Ask the Crane" and uses some of his "Hua Culture Girls" artwork in combination with the crane—an important symbol of divinity in Taoism. The goal is to give a modern twist to traditional Chinese cultural elements and there is more to this as we will see on the next page. Think of it as an analogue to the female artwork we've been seeing used by Chinese IEM companies, except this does feel actually artistic and creative. On the back is more credit given to the involved parties in addition to contact information for Varmilo. Two double flaps on the side help keep the contents in place during transit and opening the box reveals the keyboard inside a wax paper wrap with a protective plastic dust cover on top. The various accessories are found underneath or in a separate compartment, including paperwork in the form of a QC sticker, a contact card, and a quick guide on the Fn layer on the VBS108V2 and VBS87V2 (TKL version) base keyboards, of which the former was used to be built upon with this design. Varmilo does provide an online user manual which is worth going through to make the most of the keyboard.


Varmilo's traditional packaging involves the product box sealed in plastic and placed between two foam end pieces before being covered by a cardboard shipping box itself as seen on previous unboxing pages. I chose to omit it this time but note that one of the accessories—the replacement keycaps seen here—are still placed outside the product box so don't miss out on that. We get five PBT dye sub keycaps here meant to replace Esc and F1-F4 here with both English and an older Chinese font used on the keycaps. There's also the expected Type-C to Type-A cable here and a metal wire-style keycap puller too, and I appreciated the keychain pendant comprising of a randomly chosen switch—the EC Sakura V2 in this case—placed in a clear mold for you to use however you please.


There is also a matching desk pad in the Crane of Lure theme which Mechkeys was kind enough to include with the keyboard. It comes rolled up inside a plastic wrap, which in turn goes inside the cardboard packaging seen above. The desk pad takes up 90 x 40 cm of space and is 3 mm deep. It uses knitted fabric, which doubles as a mouse pad, and the ends are stitched to prevent fraying and surfaces separating. The bottom is natural rubber foam, thickened for durability and lots of grip on the resting surface. The desk pad costs $19 and there is also a wireless mouse in the same theme at $40 for those wanting to complete the set—I do wish Varmilo made a wrist/palm rest too!