Cooler Master MasterKeys PBT Keyboards Review

We took a look at Cooler Master’s MasterKeys Pro lineup of gaming keyboards about 3 months ago. These were the new generation of gaming keyboards from Cooler Master and we liked them quite a lot. We were wondering when the MasterKeys keyboards we saw at CES in January with the very unique keycaps were coming out, well today is the day. These new keyboards are of course the Cooler Master MasterKeys PBT Keyboards. The main difference between these keyboards and the ones in the MasterKeys Pro lineup is that they come with high-quality keycaps made of PBT plastic, rather than the traditional ABS plastic used in almost all keycaps on the market. This gives them a very unique feel and they are able to maintain their texture over a longer period of time. Today we have both the MasterKeys PBT S and MasterKeys PBT L decks, so let’s see what they can do!

Special thanks to Cooler Master for providing us with the MasterKeys PBT Keyboards to review.

Packaging
The MasterKeys PBT keyboards come in retail boxes that are much like the Pro Series. There is a large picture of the keyboard and it lets you know what size you have. Cooler Master is only offering PBT versions in their “S” (tenkeyless), and “L” (104-key) sizes, so there is no “M” size, which is a little disappointing.

Cooler Master MasterKeys PBT Keyboards

Also on the front of the keyboard it lets us know we do indeed have PBT keycpas as well as Cherry MX mechanical switches. Our two keyboards came with Cherry MX Green switches, but Cooler Master will also offer these decks with Cherry MX Silver switches as well.

Cooler Master MasterKeys PBT Keyboards

Flipping over to the back of the box there is an exploded view of the deck showing its different layers and the main features are listed in quite a few different languages.

Cooler Master MasterKeys PBT Keyboards

Opening the boxes up inside you’ll find the MasterKeys PBT keyboards, a set of red “WASD” and “QER” keycaps, a keycap remover, USB cable, and a user’s guide. I’ve liked that Cooler Master has gone with the removable USB cable design with their new keyboards.

Cooler Master MasterKeys PBT Keyboards

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