NuPhy Air V2 review: Low profile beauty

The NuPhy Air V2 75% is a great option for those looking for a high quality, low profile mechanical keyboard.

Although they’re nowhere near as well known as the likes of Razer, Corsair, and SteelSeries, NuPhy has created a handful of absolutely gorgeous keyboards.

The Air V2 75% is their first sporting software compatibility with QMK and VIA, which removes the need for any constantly running third-party software like Razer Synapse or SteelSeries GG.

After using it for the last few weeks, I can confidently say that the NuPhy Air V2 is well worth checking out if you’re in the market for a new keyboard.

Key Specs

• Switch type: NuPhy Daisy Low Profile Linear
• Keycaps: Double shot PBT
• Connectivity: USB-C, 2.4ghz, Bluetooth 5.1
• Form factor: 75%
• Lighting: per-key RGB
• Features: 1,000Hz polling, 4,000 mAh battery, fits on top of most laptop keyboards, sound dampening, hot swappable
• Price: $119.95

Design

The NuPhy Air75 V2 low profile keyboard has one of the most unique designs I’ve seen in recent years, although it hasn’t changed much from its predecessor.

My review unit is the Iconic White version, although they’ve also introduced Basalt Black and Lunar Gray that look just as good.

The keycaps have a retro-esque feeling to them, with gray modifiers, a yellow space bar, a red enter key, and a teal escape keycap. There are alternative options in the box to change it up a bit from stock, which is well appreciated.

Dexerto

The Air75 V2 also comes with a keycap/switch puller, Mac-style keycaps, extra switches, and even a sheet of anime-style character stickers.

Two roughly inch-long RGB lights are on each flank of the keyboard, and the right LED acts as the battery meter, should you enable it. Otherwise, they both default to a rainbow effect.

The bottom of the NuPhy Air75 V2 keyboard is a translucent acrylic and features a weight in the center that helps make the keyboard feel absolutely wonderful.

NuPhy’s most unique feature across their keyboards is their specially designed feet that allow the keyboard to sit comfortably on top of laptop keyboards. I thought it was a gimmick at first, but quickly found myself slapping the Air75 V2 on top of my 13″ M1 Macbook Air whenever I worked away from my desk.

It doesn’t noticeably wobble or slide, and it’s super easy to type on while still maintaining access to the touchpad. NuPhy says it works on a wide variety of laptops as well, but your mileage may vary.

The Air75 V2 features both 2.4Ghz wireless and Bluetooth 5.1, and it’s super easy to connect the keyboard to your device with NuPhy’s easy-to-learn keyboard shortcuts. A list of them is included in the box that the keyboard comes in, and it also acts as a poster with an anime girl on the other side.

It also supports the MacOS keyboard layout, which can be toggled with a switch on the back side of the Air75 V2.

VIA/QMK support is absolutely stellar

With many keyboards these days, there are either limited customization options built into it with no software, or you’re forced to use a dedicated program. Many of them are bloated with countless features most people will never use and take up precious system resources, which is why I love NuPhy’s decision to use VIA/QMK.

Both VIA and QMK are available through a web app, and the proper firmware file will allow you to connect the keyboard to it without any issues. NuPhy even provides guides on setting up VIA and QMK on its website.

From there, you’ll be able to adjust what each key does, set up macros, change your lighting presets, and more. It was intimidating at first, but after taking time to learn VIA, it quickly became my favorite way to set up keyboards.

Gaming Performance

The NuPhy Air75 V2 isn’t the best keyboard for gaming, largely due to its size and layout (there is no space between the function keys and numbers, for example), but it does quite well regardless.

I tested it out in both Counter Strike 2 and a little bit of Starfield, and only had a couple of issues with fat-fingering the wrong keys in combat.

Battery life

Battery life on the NuPhy Air75 V2 is absolutely phenomenal. Rated at 220 hours with the RGB lighting off, I saw near the same performance throughout my testing.

With RGB on its stock settings, the Air75 V2 got just over 40 hours of use over 2.4 GHz wireless before I finally had to charge it. It’ll last even longer over Bluetooth 5.1 as well.

Dexerto

The energy use optimization done by NuPhy outclasses most other wireless mechanical keyboards and makes it so I can slide the keyboard into my laptop bag without hardly ever worrying about being caught with a dead battery.

The typing experience is superb

With it being a low-profile keyboard, I was worried at first that it would have a sub-par typing experience with low travel and very little improvements to acoustics – if any.

Luckily NuPhy has knocked it out of the park all across the board, from the quality of the keycaps, custom switches, and the Poron silicone sitting on top of the PCB and the overall build quality.

Should you buy it?

If you’re in the market for a high-quality, versatile keyboard then the NuPhy Air75 V2 should be on your list.

The low profile of the keyboard means you might have to spend some time adjusting to the Air75 V2, but the build quality and feel of it make it absolutely worth the purchase.

The verdict – 5/5

The gaming experience on the NuPhy Air75 V2 is quite subpar due to the spacing of the keys. However, the typing experience, build quality, battery life, and connectivity paired with a competitive $120 price tag make it a great keyboard in every other category.

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