8BitDo Retro87 vs Keychron J12 HE
Get the Keychron J12 HE for hall effect and rapid trigger.
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Which one should you get?
Get the
8BitDo Retro87
Build quality in the bottom 40% of 80% boards under $150.
- No numpad.
Get the
Keychron J12 HE
Hall effect
Build quality in the top 30% of 75% boards under $200.
- Magnetic switches only. Standard MX switches will not fit.
- South-facing LEDs. Shine-through legends stay dark, and some sculpted keycaps can clip the LED.
- No numpad.
The differences that matter
Skip the 40-row spec sheet. These are the specs that change how each board feels, sounds, and fits your desk.
8BitDo Retro87
Keychron J12 HE
Layout size
80%
75%
Hall effect (magnetic)
No
Yes
Adjustable actuation helps in games and not in normal typing
Rapid trigger
No
Yes
Faster resets help in games and not in normal typing
Case material
Aluminum, Plastic
Plastic
Switch options
Clicky
Clicky, Linear, Magnetic, Tactile
- 8BitDo Retro87
- Keychron J12 HE
- Performance
- 6388
- Build quality
- 5376
- Productivity
- 7389
- Customizability
- 6886
- Portability
- 7780
- Connection: Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz, Wired
- Hot-swappable
- Max polling rate: 1,000 Hz
8BitDo Retro87 vs Keychron J12 HE specs
Every tracked spec, side by side. Rows marked with a dot differ between the boards.
16 of 26 specs differ
8BitDo Retro87
Keychron J12 HE
Switch options
Hall effect (magnetic)
Rapid trigger
Hot-swappable
Mount style
Sound dampening
Layout size
Layout standard
Ergonomics
Knob
Display
Connection
Max polling rate
Battery
USB-C
Case material
Plate material
Keycaps
Weight
Dimensions
Backlight
QMK
VIA
N-key rollover
Mac & Windows
Released
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