3-way comparison · Prices checked Oct 28, 2026

HHKB Classic vs HHKB Hybrid Type S vs Keychron Q1 HE

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HHKB Classic

No reviews

from$204at MK

90-day lowLowest price in 90 days

Compare 2 stores

HHKB Hybrid Type S

No reviews

from$264at MK

Compare 2 stores

Hall effect

Keychron Q1 HE

4.8 · 20 reviews

from$160at Input Gear

Compare 5 stores

Quick verdict

Which one should you get?

Get the

HHKB Classic

Build quality in the bottom 15% of 60% boards under $300.

Rules this board out

Switches are soldered. Swapping them means soldering.
No ISO layout. ISO-DE, UK, and other ISO variants are not offered.
Compact layout only. No function row, dedicated arrow keys, or numpad.

$204 at MK

Get the

HHKB Hybrid Type S

Build quality in the bottom 15% of 60% boards under $300.

Rules this board out

Switches are soldered. Swapping them means soldering.
No ISO layout. ISO-DE, UK, and other ISO variants are not offered.
Compact layout only. No function row, dedicated arrow keys, or numpad.

$264 at MK

Get the

Keychron Q1 HE

Hall effect

Build quality in the top 5% of 75% boards under $200.

Rules this board out

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.

$160 at Input Gear

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.

HHKB Classic

HHKB Hybrid Type S

Keychron Q1 HE

Layout size
60%
60%
75%
Hall effect (magnetic)
No
No
Yes
Adjustable actuation helps in games and not in normal typing
Rapid trigger
No
No
Yes
Faster resets help in games and not in normal typing
Connection
Wired
Bluetooth, Wired
Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz, Wired
Wireless for several devices and wired for lower latency
Hot-swappable
No
No
Yes
Switch changes without soldering

KeebFinder scores

How we score

HHKB Classic
HHKB Hybrid Type S
Keychron Q1 HE

Performance: 56
56
100
Build quality: 45
45
90
Productivity: 58
58
97
Customizability: 47
48
98
Portability: 73
87
81

See every spec side by side

Full specs

HHKB Classic vs HHKB Hybrid Type S vs Keychron Q1 HE specs

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

16 of 29 specs differ

Spec

HHKB Classic

HHKB Hybrid Type S

Keychron Q1 HE

Typing & switches

Switch options

—

Clicky, Silent

Clicky, Linear, Magnetic, Tactile

Hall effect (magnetic)

Yes

Rapid trigger

Yes

Hot-swappable

Yes

Mount style

Plate Mount

Gasket Mount, PCB Mount

Sound dampening

Yes

Screw-in stabilizers

Yes

Layout

Layout size

60%

75%

Layout standard

ANSI

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

Ergonomics

Standard

Knob

Yes

Display

None

Media keys

Yes

Connectivity & battery

Connection

Wired

Bluetooth, Wired

Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz, Wired

Max polling rate

—

8,000 Hz

Battery

Wired only

2,000 mAh

4,000 mAh

USB-C

Yes

Build & materials

Case material

Plastic

PBT, Plastic

Aluminum

Plate material

Plastic

Aluminum, Polycarbonate

Keycaps

PBT

ABS, PBT

Weight

—

4,000 g

Dimensions

—

23 x 145 x 328 mm

Typing angle

—

5°, 6°, 7°

Backlight

None

RGB, south-facing

Firmware & software

QMK

Yes

VIA

Yes

N-key rollover

Yes

Mac & Windows

Yes

Extras

Released

2023

For EU buyers

ISO layouts by store

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

HHKB Classic

No ISO layout at the stores we track.

HHKB Hybrid Type S

No ISO layout at the stores we track.

Keychron Q1 HE

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

HHKB Classic2 stores