X-keys USB Programmable Keypads and Keyboards (60 Key, XK-60)

This is a great keypad. It doesn't take long to learn the software; however, it does require being aware of the order of keystrokes and other functions. I've also used it with AutoHotKey with great success. Especially for the long scripts.I like how the top of the keys come off so a label can be placed on the keys and covered by the top. The keypad also comes with a usable assortment of labels, along with some blank ones. I recommend X-Keys for anyone needing a keypad.

This thing is simply amazing. It Just Works. You don't even need software-resident on your computer-- you can store the keys or keystrokes directly into the device's memory, and then? Never need to re-load the software again, if you don't want to.The software is pretty easy to use; basically you're given a simple graphic of the keyboard, which you double-click each key, to change it. I would be very nice if the software was "smart" enough to blink the corresponding key, when you did that, but as I understand it, the individual key lighting isn't addressable by the main keystroke-programming software. You use a separate utility for that feature. Oh well.When I bought this, I also purchased an assortment of double-keys-- some "tall" and some "wide". These are not interchangable! Depending on how you place the keyboard, these accessories will go left-to-right, or up-and-down across two keys. So you need a pack of each, if you plan on having some double-wide keys, and some double-tall. You can also purchase blanking plates, for unused keys, which can help to highlight your layout.I found the keycaps a bit tricky at first, to remove-- it comes with a little tool (a stainless-steel "tweezer"), but I kept pulling up the whole key--not just the key-cap. With some practice, I found just where to grab with the tool, to *just* remove the thin top-part, and not the whole key.I had ordered several sheets of key-labels, for hand-written legends. I used these at first, and they were okay. However, with 80 keys, it was tiresome hand-writing all those individual legends, to say nothing of my handwriting being too large for the standard sized keys.So I used yet another utility that came with the software, and painstakingly typed in all 80 legends, one key at a time. The interface wasn't too bad-- double-click on a key, click to select one line, two lines or three lines (max). The default justification is centered, but you can left- or right- justify too. I found if you leave it on 3 lines, but click on the middle of three lines, and only use that, it's a wee bit faster, per key.What I wish it had? Was multiple selection feature-- and apply the same legend to a set of keys, then you'd just need to *edit* individual keys some-- it would be much quicker, I think, to edit a minor change or sequence, than to edit each key individually.Even better? Specify a sequence, as in a special symbol is replaced with a sequence, starting with 1, then specifying an adder (usually +1) up to as many keys as is selected in sequence. Or start with "A" and going up the alphabet in sequence. That would have saved me a couple of hours.Once I got all the keys labeled, I simply printed it--on plain paper. The labels it came with? I found rather cumbersome to use, and do *not* recommend them at all. They have mild sticky--but only to hold them to the sheet! The label itself is plain paper, one removed! And between the small size, a mild static electric charge? It was rather a pain to get the keys labeled. With plain paper, I simply cut the individual labels apart with scissors-- an entire row, then individual keys as I was installing them. Very much a pain--and impossible to keep square. Oh well--the printed labels are ever so much better than my hand-written ones anyway.What I would love to see? Is Post-It type glue on a sheet of labels-- that *would* let you keep them perfectly square. I may see if I can find this as a larger sheet, that I can put through my laser printer.I should point out, that the labels are underneath a little plastic cover--so once you have them in place? They are protected, and ought to remain for the life of the keyboard.All in all, this is an amazing product! I would buy it again, in a second. Indeed-- I have considered purchasing a second one, to use as a dedicated directional keypad--but I am worried a bit, that the software would be confused as to which unit was which. So I purchased a different product for that role (keypad) (see my review on a Razor gaming keypad).One additional nit-to-pick: if you allow their programming software to remain resident (in memory at boot-up)? The light pattern you programmed, using the little lighting utility, is messed up the minute you re-start your computer. Then, you are obliged to re-start that utility--which immediately restores your pattern. My solution was to disable their software from remaining in memory-- you don't need it, if you use the "write to device" and "hardware mode".I recommend using hardware mode anyway: many games bypass the built-in software engine that Windows uses, and talk directly to the keyboard at the hardware layer. Such games would simply ignore the resident software key programming, and the keyboard would not work-- or worse, some games would see such software as a "cheat", and disable your game ID! But using *hardware* mode, all the keystrokes are saved to the keyboard's copious memory-- and the game simply sees it as another USB keyboard. To be sure, I have not tried the keyboard's ability to simulate a mouse, so if that is a feature you need, you may need to experiment.

I bought this USB Key Pad and absolutely love it! It is very easy to program and has really freed me from the normal keyboard. I can't recommend this any higher. Very Well done.

Update:While I primarily use a Mac and got this for a Mac, I do also own a PC. While programming this device with a Mac is utterly impractical, it does work fine with a Mac, once it is programmed. You just do have to program it first.Programming this device with a PC is pathetically easy. It was a truly pain free experience. I can't say anything negative about it. It was exactly what one would expect out of a well designed product worth using and recommending to others. And so, with the proviso that you own a PC, I recommend it.The thing is: It really does have to be a PC. I have parallels on my Mac and the exact same version of windows on that as I have on my PC. And it didn't matter. It doesn't work. It was an exercise in frustration. That experience deserves one star. I can't explain WHY it shouldn't work just as well but it doesn't. You cannot program this device on a Mac, on the physical machine. It doesn't work. And I'm not a neophyte. If you actually work as a programmer, you can probably breeze past me and make this work. But if you're merely a hobbyist programmer or competent computer user, forget it. It's more trouble than it's worth.Once the programming is done, I have had exactly zero problems using it anywhere. Post programming it's exactly what I wanted. It's actually a little better. My biggest regret at that point is that although I eyed the x-keys device the longest, I tried some other stuff first, which are now waiting in my electronics recycling pile. If you happen to be comparing this to some kind of similar Koolertron keypad or Elgato Deck, this may not be as flashy but it actually works reliably and that's more important. Even down to just feel, this feels like something to get real work done, instead of something pretty and prone to breakage.So, go in with the proper expectations. This is for work. And it will live up to that admirably. The star knock off is for set up. You need a PC to set up. With a PC it will work. It will work after set up with a Mac without any fuss. Without a PC it will not work because the set up is too much of a pain and it will just go in the trash. Without a PC, it's a 1 star device, and that's what I'm knocking the one star off for. Because I feel I should be able to set up just as easily on Parallels and I can't. And I don't think a product that can work with both Mac and PC should absolutely require a PC.Original review:I'll update this if I get it working before the return window closes. But X-Keys should not be considered user friendly either way.For a Mac user there are 4 ways to get this product working with your computer.The first is ControllerMate. ControllerMate is no longer in production for Mac. It is not compatible with any MacOS past 10.14 Mojave.The second is Keyboard Maestro. Keyboard Maestro does work with OS 11 Big Sur (the current operating system for me) but doesn't work with X-Key products in Big Sur as of November 2020 which is what I can find on it. So it doesn't do any good for this product. Keyboard Maestro also costs $36 in addition to whatever you have paid for this product.The third option is a bootcamp or parallels, which is cheaper than a whole new windows computer but I wouldn't classify as a cheap option. And I am still having trouble getting the computer to recognize the X-keys component in a way that allows me to make keybindings.Fourth is to plug it in to a windows computer. Thankfully for myself, I do have a windows machine I am unburying. Maybe that will work. However if you don't have a full windows machine, I'd have to say you should probably give this piece of hardware a go. It just doesn't work for mac. OR at the very least won't work for Mac until you've gotten it working for windows.Instructions for all of this are minimal. If you know what you're doing, maybe this is all just fine. If you just want a macro-keypad, this is terrible.Again, I'll update IF I get it working. As it is, the product that seems to do all this best so far among my purchases to try and do this is the ActionPad Server.app. It just takes up your phone and doesn't give you many buttons. X-Keys is awfully expensive to work less well than a iphone app. So, I wouldn't recommend it so far. In fact, I'm pretty disappointed.