Redragon K631 Castor Pro 65% Wireless Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Review

(Image: Redragon / Cody Campbell)

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Cody has been a gamer ever since his family got a Sega Genesis when he was five-years-old. In addition to his love of narrative-focused RPGs and ho... Read more

Reviewed by Benjamin Barr

Finding the right small form factor keyboard can be challenging. It’s especially difficult if you’re looking for specific features like wireless functionality and you have a limited budget. Luckily, there are a few options out there.

The Redragon K631 Castor Pro a budget-friendly mechanical keyboard that combines a compact 65% form factor with three different connectivity options. They sent one to High Ground Gaming for our fair and unbiased review. Here’s what we found.

Note: The first keyboard Redragon sent us died during a firmware update. The second one is functioning as expected, though it’s worth mentioning that this occurred as we wish to be transparent about our experience. This will not be factored into the keyboard’s final score, however.

Unboxing and Build Quality

In the box, you will find a detachable rubber USB Type-A to USB Type-C cable, instructions, stickers, a keycap remover, a switch remover and the keyboard itself. The Castor Pro comes in three different color variations: Black and red, black and mint, and white and mint. All three have a ridged plastic base and what appear to be ABS plastic keycaps. The USB-C charging port is on the left side of the keyboard, right next to a switch which can be used to alternate connectivity modes.

The 65% form factor gives the Castor Pro a minimalist design. This is similar to 60% keyboards, but with a single extra row of keys on the right side which allows the space for designated arrow keys. The one downside to this keyboard’s overall design is its height. There are a set of adjustable feet on the back which allow for a slight incline, but the keyboard is still quite steep and it doesn’t come with a wrist rest to compensate.

Wireless Performance

The Castor Pro has three different modes of connectivity: A wired USB Type-C to Type-A connection and both 2.4GHz and Bluetooth 5.0 wireless connections. The wired mode is the fastest and most stable connection. Meanwhile, Bluetooth offers the longer wireless battery life of the two wireless modes, but the 2.4GHz connection has considerably less latency, making it ideal for gaming.

All three connectivity options seem to work well. I tested out the keyboard playing some Ghostwire Tokyo and the connection was solid the entire time. I didn’t find that I had any noticeable issues with latency or dropped keystrokes.

Linear Switches

The Castor Pro is a mechanical keyboard that comes with linear switches, meaning that the act of depressing a key will be met with an an even amount of resistance all the way down. These particular switches are something of an enigma though, as Redragon does not advertise their manufacturer and they aren’t marked with any sort of branding.

That said, they perform fairly well for budget switches. The tension is a little loose compared to Cherry MX Reds and other, similar name-brand switches, but that’s more a matter of taste than quality. They actuate about a third of the way down, which is good for gamers looking for faster reaction times. Those who find that they don’t like these switches, however, will be able to change them out since the keyboard is hot swappable with any 3 or 5 pin MX switches.

Redragon Software

Redragon does offer software for the K631 Castor Pro, though it’s a little light on functionality. It comes with three profiles and allows users to customize macros, key bindings and lighting effects. There are a variety of animated lighting effects for users to choose from. Their brightness, speed, and color can be adjusted as well. That’s pretty much it though.

We would have liked for this software to have a bit more functionality. There are plenty of gaming keyboard applications out there from other brands that offer significantly more customization options. One major feature that seems to be missing is the ability to set how long before the keyboard goes to sleep in wireless mode. It currently auto sleeps after only two minutes. Other software might also offer game-modes and other specialty features.

Is the K631 Castor Pro Worth the Money?

The Castor Pro is currently going for $51.99 which puts it right in line with other small form factor wireless keyboards like the Royal Kludge RK68. There is a fair amount of give and take with the keyboards at this price point. Some of Redragon’s competitors have more mechanical switch options, though most of them don’t offer the high-speed 2.4GHz wireless connection that makes the K631 ideal for ranged gaming.

It’s also worth noting that while the switches in the Castor Pro might not be the best on the market, the keyboard itself is a terrific value and the fact that it’s hot swappable means that gamers can buy it now and then upgrade later. It might not be the most feature-rich keyboard on the market, but the features it does have come at a fair price.