Head to head · Prices checked Nov 2, 2026

Focus Lab CTRL87 vs Keychron V3 Max

Get the Focus Lab CTRL87 for the 8,000 mAh battery and the 8,000 Hz polling rate. Get the Keychron V3 Max for hot-swappable.

KeebFinder may earn a commission when you buy through these links, at no extra cost to you.

Battery

Focus Lab CTRL87

No reviews

from$275at ktechs

Compare 2 stores

Hot-swappable

Keychron V3 Max

3.3 (8)3.3 · 8 reviews

from$150at Keychron (DE)

Compare 4 stores

Quick verdict

Which one should you get?

Get the

Focus Lab CTRL87

Battery

Rules this board out

Switches are soldered. Swapping them means soldering.
No ISO layout. ISO-DE, UK, and other ISO variants are not offered.

$275 at ktechs

Get the

Keychron V3 Max

Hot-swappable

Build quality in the top 5% of 80% boards under $200.

Rules this board out

South-facing LEDs. Shine-through legends stay dark, and some sculpted keycaps can clip the LED.
No numpad.

$150 at Keychron (DE)

What actually differs

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.

Focus Lab CTRL87

Keychron V3 Max

Layout size
87%
80%
Hot-swappable
No
Yes
Switch changes without soldering
Battery
8,000 mAh
4,000 mAh
A larger battery means fewer cables during the day
Max polling rate
8,000 Hz
1,000 Hz
Higher polling helps competitive FPS and does nothing for typing
Case material
Aluminum
ABS, Plastic

KeebFinder scores

How we score

Focus Lab CTRL87
Keychron V3 Max

Performance: 81
82
Build quality: 57
86
Productivity: 57
98
Customizability: 52
98
Portability: 58
77

What they share

Connection: Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz, Wired
Sound dampening

See every spec side by side

Full specs

Focus Lab CTRL87 vs Keychron V3 Max specs

Every tracked spec, side by side. Rows marked with a dot differ between the boards.

21 of 27 specs differ

Spec

Focus Lab CTRL87

Keychron V3 Max

Typing & switches

Switch options

—

Clicky, Linear, Tactile

Hot-swappable

Yes

Mount style

Plate Mount

Gasket Mount, Plate Mount

Sound dampening

Yes

Screw-in stabilizers

Yes

Layout

Layout size

87%

80%

Layout standard

—

ANSI, ISO, ISO-DE, ISO-ES, ISO-FR, ISO-Nordic, ISO-SW, ISO-UK

Ergonomics

Standard

Knob

Yes

Display

LED

None

Media keys

Yes

Connectivity & battery

Connection

Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz, Wired

Max polling rate

8,000 HzBetter

1,000 Hz

Battery

8,000 mAhBetter

4,000 mAh

USB-C

Yes

Build & materials

Case material

Aluminum

ABS, Plastic

Plate material

FR4

Polycarbonate

Keycaps

PBT

ABS, PBT

Weight

2,100 g

895 g

Dimensions

35 x 365 x 147 mm

24 x 149 x 368 mm

Typing angle

—

4°

Backlight

RGB

RGB, south-facing

Firmware & software

QMK

Yes

VIA

Yes

N-key rollover

Yes

Mac & Windows

Yes

Extras

Released

2026

2024

For EU buyers

ISO layouts by store

Which stores sell ISO-DE, UK, and the other regional layouts.

Focus Lab CTRL87

No ISO layout at the stores we track.

Keychron V3 Max

Keychron
ISO-DE, ISO-UK, ISO-Nordic, ISO-SW
Out of stockShips to you
Keychron (DE)
ISO-DE, ISO-UK, ISO-FR, ISO-ES, ISO-SW
In stockDoes not ship to you

Where to buy

Compare prices

Live prices from the stores we track, cheapest in-stock offer first.

Prices in USD are converted to your currency and can change at any time. KeebFinder may earn a commission when you buy through these links, at no extra cost to you.

Lowest price across stores, Amazon excluded.

Focus Lab CTRL872 stores