// TOM'S HARDWARE US — HARDWARE & GADGET
IQUNIX MQ80 low profile mechanical keyboard review
The IQUNIX MQ80 is well-made and super stylish, but it’s not quite the instant sell it used to be. Catch this one if you don’t like magnetic switches, but otherwise wait for a sale.
Aluminum construction and PBT keycaps make it incredibly durable
Gasket mounted for soft keystrokes and enhanced acoustics
Switches aren’t adjustable, limited options available
Why you can trust Tom's Hardware
Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
When it comes to mechanical keyboards, IQUNIX has always been ahead of the curve. Before COVID turned the mainstream onto mechanical keyboards, the company had already been releasing some of the best mechanical keyboards available, quietly making the case for PBT keycaps and premium materials that have since become the norm.
With a catalog of traditional mechanical keyboards under its belt, it’s not surprising that the company would be ready to branch into new territory. It has the Hall Effect demographic covered with its EZ series, but the MQ80 goes another direction entirely. It takes all of the lessons the company learned about how to create an exceptional typing and gaming experience and compressed it. It’s all aluminum, low profile, and offers some of the best-sounding keystrokes of its kind, but steep competition and poor portability hold it back from being the go-to pick it might otherwise be.
The IQUNIX MQ80 breaks the mold for IQUNIX, but carries the same 75-percent layout as countless mechanical keyboards before it. The form factor is sometimes referred to as a “Compact TKL,” since it shares most of the same keys — minus the blank spaces in between. The result is a condensed slab of keys, including a full function row, arrow cluster, and seven navigation and editing keys.
Nothing too out of the ordinary there, but the MQ80 marries that compact layout with an impressively low height of only 0.4 inches (10.8mm) at the front and 1.08 inches (27.5mm) in the rear. The keycaps are the same height across every row, and while they're scooped to keep your finger centered above the switch, they otherwise feel identical below the finger tip. This makes it an easy transition if you’re coming from a laptop or Apple Magic Keyboard, but first-time LP users should be prepared for a learning curve.
The keyboard is wireless and supports both 2.4GHz and Bluetooth 5.1 connections, as well as wired if you need to use it while it’s recharging. It sports a 4,000 mAh battery which IQUNIX claims can sustain the keyboard for up to 350 hours. This is with the usual caveats of that being over Bluetooth with all of the lighting disabled, etc. etc. — but I was able to use it for close to two weeks between recharges, even with the lighting on.