Meletrix Zoom65 V3 - Barebones Keyboard Kit [Batch 2]

I'll start out by saying that I have loved the Zoom series. I own both a Zoom98 and a Zoom75, and love them both. I was expecting a similar quality and experience with this board, and was tremendously let down. There are a few huge issues that I and others have had that leads me to warn potential buyers away from wasting your money here, when there are other similarly priced, better options:
1. The catch ball mount system does not offer the benefits you would hope for
2. Poor design leads to easily broken ribbon cables
3. Constant and frequent connection problems when in wireless mode
4. Top case rattle when typing with long pole switches, leading to you needing to mod the board just to mitigate case rattle
5. The internal design of the board's tail light looks like it was thrown together last minute. The board looks like a prototype, far from a finished product.

(as a disclaimer, this is a review of the board itself. I have and will continue to recommend Dangkeebs for their excellent selection and customer service. Though I cannot recommend that you buy this board; if you do, buy it here.)

I'll start with the catch ball mount system, which is the part I was most excited about. I am someone that loves tinkering with my boards regularly, so the prospect of being able to tear it down quickly to make tweaks was really appealing. In practice though, there are a few issues that not only remove the benefit of the catch ball mount system, but actively damage the board as they have designed it. First and foremost are the ribbon cables. If you have the version with a screen and tail light, there are 3 ribbon cables present. One connecting the bottom of the PCB to a floating magnetic daughterboard connecter, one connecting the PCB to the tail light strip inside the top case, and one connecting the PCB to the screen, which is also attached to the top case. This means that you cannot just take the top case off and pull it away. You have to slowly and carefully pop the top off, then lift it just enough to get your fingers under it to grab the PCB, then pull both the PCB and top case off together.

The problem is that this naturally puts strain on the ribbon cables that connect the PCB to the LED strip and the screen. I am extremely delicate with my boards, and have never broken anything on any of the boards I own. In the month that I have had the Zoom 65, I have broken 3 ribbon cables, either from popping the top case off too quickly, or from the ribbon cable getting caught between the top and bottom case when putting the board back together. I can no longer use the tail light at all, and the screen only works half the time. YOu can also tell that the designer knew that this would be an issue, because they supply an entire bag of spare ribbon cables. Instead of designing a board that didn't risk breaking the components, they just left it as is and give you extras. No matter how careful you are, these will break with time.

This leads me to connection issues. When in wireless mode (using the dongle, or bluetooth), the board will just disconnect while typing, and the only way to get the connection back is to pop the top case off, then pull the PCB up to break the magnetic daughterboard connection, then reconnect it and pop the top case back on. This happens at least a dozen times per day to me, regardless of how charged the board's batteries are. I work in an office and type all day long, and it is extremely annoying to have to disassemble and reassemble my board constantly. This also means that this board in a wireless configuration is a horrible tool for gaming - you will just all of a sudden lose connection mid-game.

My final two issues have to do with the tail light - and if you are still determined to buy this board, buy a version without the tail light feature.

The way they did the tail light was to cut a sizeable gap into the back of the top case, and insert a flimsy plastic strip into the gap. They then secured the plastic strip in place with plastic brackets on the inside. The whole thing is very loose, and rattles around while you type. Since the metal back of the top case is also now effectively in two pieces with a gap between them, they rattle around when typing as well. The only way I have found to remedy this issue has been to tapoe cloth bandaids on the inside of the bottom case, and disconnect the tail light entirely.

To summarize, I am incredibly let down with this entire experience. I waited anxiously for this board for the better part of 2024, and expected a tinkerer's dream; a wealth of mounting options paired with a catch ball mount that makes swapping things out a breeze. What I got is an enthusiast's nightmare; a hodgepodge of underdeveloped and afterthought elements thrown together into a poorly designed, barely functional Frankenstein monster that I can't even sell, because nopbody wants to deal with it.

Steer clear!