From VR headsets and haptic feedback body vests to battery packs and pocket translators, I’ve reviewed a lot of tech in my time. In my 5 years as a tech writer, from a branding and design perspective, the Cyberboard Terminal from Angry Miao is the most interesting product I’ve gotten my hands on.
At a much higher price point than most keyboards, this isn’t for the average web surfer, but for hardcore gamers and Twitch streamers, this is a highly recommended product that’ll make your gaming setup stand out amongst the crowd.
At the same time, for software developers and remote workers, this keyboard could be worth it depending on how particular you are about your typing setup and preferences.
Vested Interest Disclosure: I have not been paid for this review in any way and the words below contain my honest thoughts on the product. However, I did receive the product from the company for free to review.
What is the Cyberboard Terminal?
The Cyberboard is a series of futuristic and artistic Bluetooth mechanical keyboards designed and produced by Angry Miao.
Their newest product in the series is the Cyberboard Terminal, inspired by the classic computer terminal and command lines that allowed us to enter the digital and virtual world.
HackerNoon seems to love the classic terminal design too, so much so that they built their own
One look at the Cyberboard Terminal will likely remind you of classic scenes from The Matrix, and that’s no accident.
Angry Miao’s entire business model is centered around merging art and technology. Fashion and design are just as important to them as the functionality and durability of the keyboard itself.
Packaging
Before we get into the specs, it would be a crime for me not to mention the packaging that the Cyberboard comes in. What I quickly learned about Angry Miao is that they aren’t just trying to create high-class, high-quality tech. They’re trying to create an entirely unique experience from point of purchase to delivery, unboxing, and usage.
The box that the Cyberboard comes in is sealed in bright orange tape all along the sides of the box that says “Future Art Community”. The box also has a claw mark design as if it were scratched by an angry cat.
Inside the box is a black and green briefcase. The sort of briefcase you’d expect firearms, explosives, or drugs to be smuggled in.
It has the Cyberboard logo in terminal green and along the sides of the briefcase it says it was “inspired by Tesla Cybertruck with a rebellious spirit.”
I know talking about the packaging sounds like marketing shilly promotion, but I assure you I’m saying this from the bottom of my heart and am not trying to give the company free advertisement in any way.
I used to resell on eBay and Amazon part-time throughout college, so I know what a hassle packaging can be and I’m glad the company went the extra mile.
When someone is paying hundreds of dollars for a keyboard, the attention to detail and small touches like this matter and do make a difference.
Specs
According to the
The following specs are taken straight from the user manual.
- Weight: 2 (±0.1) kg excluding / 2.5 (±0.1) kg including switches and keycaps
- Typing angle: 10° incline
- LED quantity: 5*40 lamps, 200 LEDs, 81 in-switch LEDs
- Plate mounting style: Gasket mount
- Drivers: No additional drivers required, supports N-key rollover
- Custom LED / function keys: Supports DIY web interface in Windows and MacOS
- Switch mounting style: Hot-swappable
- Connections: Dual mode, BLE 5.0 and USB automatically switchable (supports C to C; BLE 5.0 only available on Windows 8.0+)
- Caps Lock indicator: The indicator light is located between the numbers 6 and 7
- Battery status: Press Fn+F12 (the last effect is the battery status indicator)
When the battery charge is less than 5%, the battery status indicator will turn red
until power fully runs out. Press Fn+F10 to turn off the screen
- USB Port: USB2.0, TypeC, supports C to C
- Battery: Lithium battery 5000mAh*2
- Qi wireless charging: Output power 5W. Wireless charging will turn on when the battery is less than 85%, and it will be turned off when fully charged
- LED colors: 256 colors
- Maximum power consumption: 8W
Features:
- RGB lighting
- Advanced translucent Gasket Mount with integrated design
- Mirror PVD stainless steel weight plate
- Engraved and non-engraved keycaps
- Customizable LED panel
- Customizable backlighting
The Cyberboard Terminal for Daily Work
From writing and editing to hosting meetings and sales calls, the Cyberboard has been my typing tool for 8 hours a day for the past 30 days or so.
Overall, this is the best keyboard I’ve ever used in my life.
However, you must take that with a grain of salt, as I’ve never been the type to buy an expensive gaming keyboard.
Before the Cyberboard, the most I’ve ever spent on a keyboard is $50 USD.
Obviously, a keyboard at this price point will tick all the boxes you need for regular remote working tasks.
Pros:
- LED panel can be used as a clock
- Innovative keycap design allows for easy typing
- Gasket Mount with integrated design provides satisfying clickety clackety sounds for mechanical keyboard lovers, but quiet enough not to be heard in meetings
- Wireless: easy to switch positions for comfort
- Heavy and non-slip so it doesn’t move around while typing quickly
Cons:
- There is no numpad, so if you use the numpad a lot in your job, this is worth considering
- There is no print screen key
The Cyberboard for Gaming
I’ve used the Cyberboard Terminal for PC gaming and it works flawlessly. The keys are smooth and easy to navigate in high-pressure situations. I’ve tested it both in fast-paced FPS games like
Quiet Keys
The Cyberboard gives you the satisfying feel of a mechanical keyboard, while keeping the clickety-clackety noise to a minimum. That means when you have comms on during a game like Valorant, your teammates won’t be annoyed by any keyboard noises that make their way to your mic.
Smooth Keys
The smooth-edged keycaps make it easy to slide your fingers across the keys with little resistance.
Durability
If you want to button mash, do so to your heart’s content. The durable keycaps and gasket mound design can handle it. But ragequit at your own peril, this thing is heavy. If you punch it out of anger, I’m not sure which would break: the keyboard or your bones.
As I’m not a pro gamer, I can’t tell you whether or not this keyboard will up your KD overnight. However, as seen on the screenshot below…you can see I didn’t do too poorly with it ;)
Pricing
“Whether tech is the future of art or art is the future of tech, both are very likely to be true.” - Angry Miao Team
Angry Miao is trying to build a brand that fuses sophisticated technology with artistic design. Just like pieces of art or designer bags can get pricey, so too can designer keyboards.
The Base Kit of the Cyberboard Terminal will run you $600 USD.
To put that into perspective, a GeForce GTX 1080 GPU will run you from__$600 to $700 USD.__
The high cost of entry into the world of designer tech like this is the only downside I could think of when it comes to the Cyberboard Terminal.
Verdict
As a fully remote worker who is on the computer 7-9 hours+ a day and a pretty hardcore gamer who plays games 5-15 hours per week, I’d say the Cyberboard Terminal passed every test and met or surpassed all the expectations I had for a designer keyboard at this price point.
With that said, I can’t recommend it for the average remote worker, as $600 is likely too high an entry point for most people, unless your company is paying for it ;).
However, for Twitch streamers and YouTubers trying to spruce up their gaming setups, or those looking to enter the designer tech market, the Cyberboard Terminal is a great place to start.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqpCgx8j6Fw