My worst fear about the hobby, realized | NuPhy Gem80 review!

Ғылым және технология

The title might be a bit dramatic, but it really pains me to review what is a totally solid keyboard, but be really turned off by the customer service/after sales support. To me, when a brand like NuPhy has the reach and influence (and the SEO) so their keyboards are the first thing anyone sees when just getting into the hobby... well, a phenomenal customer service experience is ESSENTIAL so people aren't turned off by the experience with their first mechanical. Unfortunately, there does seem to be a bit of that here with this Gem80. It's a great board, at a decent price. And that's not to say that other brands in a similar segment have their CS game any better. But precisely because NuPhy is so prevalent among "what keyboard should I buy" threads, and tier lists among the general tech *not the mechanical keyboard* space, here's to hoping that NuPhy is able to figure out a better solution for after sales support.
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nuphy.com/collections/in-stoc...
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Timestamps
00:00 Intro/who is NuPhy?
00:40 specs
01:58 stock typing sounds | MSA keycaps | NuPhy x Gateron Raspberry
02:33 stock impressions
03:01 POM plate typing sounds | MSA keycaps
03:38 POM plate typing sounds | GMK Camping r2
04:12 POM impressions
04:32 should you buy?
05:00 one caveat/HW issue
05:11 customer service concerns
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Sound test setup:
Qwertykeys Neo 65 | gasket mount | carbon fiber plate | Various GMK keycaps
Typing test signal chain:
Michael Joly modded Rode NT5 (X-Y stereo pair) 6 inches above desk surface
SoundDevices MixPre 3 ii recording in 32-bit float
Sennheiser MKH416 (a-roll mic)
Sennheiser MKE600 (scratch audio)
Camera setup:
BMPCC4k w/ Olympus 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO(overhead)
BMPCC4k w/ Voigtlander 17.5mm f/.95 (face cam)
BMPCC4k w/ Lumix 30mmf/2.8 macro (shoulder cam)
Sony A7iv w/ various lenses (b-roll)

Пікірлер: 18

  • @kusaknd1667
    @kusaknd16673 ай бұрын

    spot on. Their customer service was so bad that people in the community were left on their own to modify the software to fix the double-input problem. The issue is largely fixed now, but it took them such a long time that many customers refunded their boards. How a few members of the community could do something that a team of professionals could not is absolutely beyond me.

  • @SergM-hv3tb
    @SergM-hv3tb3 ай бұрын

    This thing has no right to cost more than the neo80 for the barebones.

  • @sentimentalhermit

    @sentimentalhermit

    3 ай бұрын

    Yeah, ever since the Neo80 came out, I've made a rule for myself not to pay more than $100 for any pre-built (that isn't an all aluminum case) or $70 for a barebones kit. If I ever pick up a Gem80, it'll be a few months from now from the used market

  • @MyReviews_karkan

    @MyReviews_karkan

    3 ай бұрын

    Btw, they already dropped the price to $150. Lol

  • @MyReviews_karkan
    @MyReviews_karkan3 ай бұрын

    Well, moving to VIA is a first step. I had to skip many good keyboards because they have their own software that doesn't work on my system. Next fix the customer service issues. Great video as always Edit: price has already deopped to $150. Lol

  • @MarbsMusic
    @MarbsMusic3 ай бұрын

    I have the blue one and use Cream Black Pros and GMK Striker with the FR4 and it sounds great. That being said to me it's "different" than the Neo80. I just finished a Neo80 with WS Heavy tactile and GMK Botanical and it's truly phenomenal and that is what I have on my primary PC. However I have the GEM80 on my Mac Studio and really enjoying it there over the Q1 pro that had been there the past... about a year. I haven't had any issues with the board at all and when I reached out on a couple of questions NuPhy was quick to respond. As someone who also follows a lot of keyboard news I was somewhat concerned when I initially ordered but so far the board has been stellar. I did get those switches and caps which are very nice, just like GMK if I have a matching set. Very thorough and thanks for bringing up previous issue. Hopefully NuPhy is one the road to getting these all corrected, I think this is a great board, better it is was a tad cheaper but definitely nice if they will provide some good support with it.

  • @sentimentalhermit
    @sentimentalhermit3 ай бұрын

    I read the Forbes article that reviewed the Gem80. It's funny how it mentions that the NuPhy engineers "solved" their acoustic issues by adding more foams

  • @alexossan2829
    @alexossan28293 ай бұрын

    Key chatter is just not acceptable. Previously on my Keychron K8 Pro I also had intermittent key chatter, and they swiftly sent me a brand new replacement. Turned out it was the Gateron switches they used that was causing chatter, but I was quite satisfied with Keychron's service. I was actually interested in the Gem80 as I've been wanting to try a plastic bottom 75/80 keyboard, and I live in Taiwan so availability should be good. But these problems with NuPhy is making me hesitate now. Maybe I should just stop procrastinating and build my Loop TKL first lol

  • @kusaknd1667

    @kusaknd1667

    3 ай бұрын

    key chatter has largely been fixed by their newer firmwares that can be found in their reddit. it's still inexcusable that they took this long to fix the problem.

  • @ooashisu
    @ooashisu3 ай бұрын

    For what it's worth, I've had a Halo75 for a year or so (maybe more?), and it is great. I had an issue with a couple of switches sticking sometimes, and they sent me a replacement kit with 10 switches so I could swap out the defective ones very quickly. No issues whatsoever with their support.

  • @cheetoritos
    @cheetoritos3 ай бұрын

    I love my Gem80! I did have a key chatter problem but they responded in a few days with new firmware that did fix it for me. I pre ordered as well, so not sure how the claims that other people had to fix it for them are true as I contacted them right after I received my unit.

  • @annasoH323
    @annasoH3233 ай бұрын

    Thanks for being open about things. I get the sense most of us are okay with physical mods but balk at software mods. And your point about the general tech space pushing these, well... If you're marketing to the "everything works out of the box" Apple-adjacent folks, it had better work out of the box (no shade on Apple folks - I have my spots where I use their stuff).

  • @Dynoids
    @Dynoids2 ай бұрын

    Love the keyboard, great starter for me and my wife. Wouldn't recommend it to people unless the gem80 is specifically the style they want. Lots of issues and Nuphy has been pretty iffy. As a board its pretty neat out of the box.

  • @minhquanvu2944
    @minhquanvu29443 ай бұрын

    i mean what's stopping you from buying a Neo80 or a KDB 8X MKIII at that price? Even the 100$ Cidoo V87 Pro offer more than this and sound much better

  • @Jukecity
    @Jukecity2 ай бұрын

    It's really hard to get behind a product that puts more effort into SEO and marketing than the product itself. If they could knock $30-$40 off of the price it would be okay, but not great. It's hard to get over the fact that they have a cast plastic bottom on such an expensive keyboard. For almost $200 they have to do better. Top tier customer service for what is a luxury keyboard is the bare minimum that someone dropping that kind of money on a keyboard should expect. But this looks like a product designed to swindle people who don't know any better.

  • @noratatax2618
    @noratatax26183 ай бұрын

    why dont you share your face anymore? I really liked the laughing and subscribe bit!

  • @kesamek8537
    @kesamek85373 ай бұрын

    Love this channel, top information and S Tier video production. The Gem80 is something I would like to desire more, but NuPhy isn't brave enough to go north facing LEDs, or offer an optional north facing pcb, even when in 2024 any good modern switch no longer has interference problems with cherry profile keycaps. Such a pity. As for their customer service, niche products live or die by it. NuPhy be warned.

  • @minhquanvu2944

    @minhquanvu2944

    3 ай бұрын

    Cheap switch, maybe, but when you use something more needy and expensive you will notice that north facing is not as smooth as sound facing (except Kailh Box design)

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