It’s been a few months since my last Keyboard Journey review, which was of the Epomaker TH87, and I’m back with a keyboard that I’ve had an awful lot of fun owning - the Kataaa Model VI.
Apart from the rather weird brand name, which sounds like something Bruce Lee would shout while smashing his fist into a baddie’s face, the Model VI is a surprisingly solid keyboard considering its feature set and, more importantly, its price.
Big Bezels. Yes, please.
So what attracted me to it?
The first time I saw the Model VI was in one of MikeyTypes’ videos. The first thing that caught my attention wasn’t the switches, the keycaps or even the sound.
It was the bezels.
They’re chunky. Particularly along the top and bottom of the keyboard.
And I love them.
There’s something wonderfully simple about the design. It doesn’t desperately try to look futuristic or squeeze every millimetre out of its footprint. There’s even a pen bank built into the top bezel, which is an oddly practical little touch.
The whole thing has character.
The Model VI is also unapologetically plastic, but I genuinely think that works in its favour.
For a few reasons:
The price. I paid around £40 for mine. That's delivered!
The sound. Plastic makes achieving that deeper, slightly thockier sound profile rather easy.
It feels robust. This isn’t a keyboard that constantly makes me feel like I need to baby it.
Sometimes I just want a keyboard I can throw onto the desk and use. The Model VI is very good at being that keyboard. It can take whatever you (normally) throw at it.
Some Pleasant Surprises
Once mine arrived, I found a few other things that surprised me.
First, the stock keycaps are relatively thin ABS.
Normally, when you combine thin ABS keycaps with certain switches, you start heading towards a brighter and more energetic sound profile.
Then there are the switches. They’re made by HMX. They aren't what I'd call outright clackers, but they add another brighter ingredient to the Model VI's overall sound.
There’s also full per-key RGB, and some of the lighting effects are refreshingly different from the usual collection you see on practically every RGB keyboard.
My favourite is the heatmap mode. As you type, the keys gradually move from blue towards red depending on how frequently you press them. It’s completely unnecessary.
Naturally, I love it.
Another surprise is the weight. Despite being a plastic keyboard, the Model VI weighs around 1.1kg, so it has considerably more heft than you might expect when you first look at it.
Underneath everything is a firm aluminium plate, which contributes to the keyboard feeling much more substantial than its price might suggest.
Not Quite the Clacker I Expected
It isn’t perfect, though. My first disappointment was actually the sound.
Thin ABS keycaps. HMX switches. Aluminium plate.
Those ingredients made me expect something brighter, sharper and considerably more clacky.
Instead, the Model VI produces a relatively subdued clack.
That isn't necessarily a bad thing. Sound is subjective, after all, and the keyboard still sounds good. But if you see “thin ABS” and “HMX” and immediately imagine an angry little plastic clack machine, temper those expectations.
This isn't quite that.
My second issue is with configuration. The Model VI works with VIA, but you'll need to load the appropriate JSON file first. Finding a working version took me considerably longer than it should have.
Once you've got everything running, it's fine. Getting there is the annoying part. Drop me a line if you're ever looking for it.
Living With It
As with almost every keyboard I buy, I used the Model VI in its completely stock configuration for at least a week. I think it was closer to two or three weeks.
I like doing this because I want to understand what the manufacturer intended before I start pulling switches out, replacing keycaps and doing mods like covering the inside with tape. It's always good to be mindful of these things. It helps me prolong my enjoyment factor of the product, which in turn helps me enjoy the hobby more. But I digress.
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| The Kataaa Model VI has eight Philips screws that separate you from its insides. Be warned that it screw into the plastic, so it will wear out at some point. Try to minimise opening of the board. |
And in stock form? This is a good keyboard. More importantly, the longer I used it, the more I appreciated it.
Naturally, that also meant I eventually started wondering:
What can I change?
So I performed the only modification I've made to the keyboard so far. The tape mod.
Four Layers Later...
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| "Tape Mod Done 17.04.2026 09:50" |
I added roughly four layers of painter's tape to the back of the PCB.
The difference wasn't enormous, but it was noticeable. The acoustics tightened up considerably, and an echo that I hadn't consciously noticed before suddenly disappeared.
It was one of those modifications where you don't necessarily realise something is bothering you until it isn't there anymore, and that was enough for me.
I haven't felt the need to fill the case with foam or perform an extensive list of modifications.
The Model VI doesn't need rescuing, I feel.
From there, I've mostly experimented with switches and keycaps.
Over the past few months I've tried plenty of configurations, but some of my favourites have been MMD Holy Panda tactile switches, various clickies from the Kailh BOX family, and most recently the Keygeek Y3X. You can hear how the current configuration sounds at the typing test at the end of this blog post.
And somewhere during all that experimentation, the Model VI found its role in my collection.
My Metal Keyboard Detox
This is one of the keyboards I reach for when I want to detox from metal slabs.
Yes. I realise how ridiculous that sentence sounds. But the deeper I've gone into this hobby, the more keyboards I've accumulated that are machined from aluminium, brass, copper and increasingly elaborate combinations of materials.
They can feel magnificent. They can sound magnificent. They can also make you forget that a keyboard doesn't need to weigh several kilograms and cost hundreds of pounds to be enjoyable.
The Model VI reminds me of that. There's something about returning to a £40 plastic keyboard that grounds me.
It makes me appreciate the expensive keyboards more, rather than making the inexpensive ones feel worse.
It reminds me where I came from in this hobby. And perhaps where I'm going.
The £40 Keyboard Beside the Expensive One
A few weeks ago, I bought an Oblique keyboard. At the time of writing, it's the most expensive keyboard in my collection.
I've been using it and I enjoy it enormously.
Yet here I am.
Writing this entire review on the Kataaa Model VI.
And perhaps that's the best endorsement I can give it.
Mechanical keyboards are a wonderfully irrational hobby. Sometimes the keyboard you want to use isn't the most expensive one, the heaviest one or the technically most impressive one sitting on your shelf.
Sometimes it's the chunky plastic keyboard with massive bezels and a pen bank.
I like that. And this is a common theme in my keyboard review series. The heart wants what it wants. I am mindful of not letting prejudices get in the way of me enjoying the hobby.
I've also recently been finding myself in the presence of toxic people and Discord servers. It hit me with a sudden realisation that I don't have to put up with all these things (I've recently decided to cut myself off of these negative sinkholes, which is another topic for another day).
I like being whimsical and occasionally illogical about this hobby. I often find myself reading something and watching a review, and I'm presented with a perspective to which I then ask myself, "But, why?" – so there's no other best teacher than experiencing things to answer that question.
All these things somehow land me where the Kataaa Model VI is, and the keyboard represents exactly that.
I guess that's why it's staying in my collection and why it'll remain in my rotation.
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