Epomaker RT85 delivers retro-styled 75% wireless keyboard with notable quirks

Epomaker’s RT85 puts a joystick and a customizable DIY screen on the right side of an 82-key 75% wireless keyboard, ships with an 8000mAh battery, and carries a retail price of $85.99. The board supports Bluetooth, USB Type-C, and 2.4GHz wireless, and Epomaker’s product copy claims a 1000Hz polling rate in cable and 2.4GHz modes, positioning the RT85 as a low-cost retro-flavored option for gaming and productivity.

In the box the RT85 includes the keyboard, a plastic cover, a Type-C to USB-A cable, a tool for swapping keycaps and switches, two extra switches, and a manual. Review coverage noted that the printed manual is incomplete: the keys “don’t have their default alternate functions (like stop and play music) printed on them,” and users “need to download the full manual from the website to learn all the Fn keybinds,” which complicates out-of-box setup for anyone expecting visible Fn legends.

Epomaker lists a substantial sound-dampening stack aimed at a “Rich, deep and ‘Thocky’” tone, specifying five layers by name: PORON sandwich foam, an IXPE switch pad, a PET sound enhancement pad, EPDM switch socket foam, and a silicone base. The RT85 uses a gasket-mount structure and double-shot PBT keycaps, and marketing copy highlights “lubed linear switches” and “tuned stabilizers” as part of the typing and acoustics package. One hands-on reviewer praised the gasket mount, saying the keyboard “naturally absorbs the traditionally heavy forces that comes with typing.”

There are two distinct colorways: a retro white with grey and vibrant orange and a calming green with dark grey, and reviewers who received the white/grey/orange sample described it as nostalgically styled. The review sample arrived with Wisteria V2 Linear switches, and coverage says two additional switch types are offered, though exact models beyond Wisteria V2 were not listed in the supplied materials.

A notable ambiguity appears in hot-swap wording across sources. Epomaker’s feature list calls out a “hot-swappable PCB,” while review text at one point describes “hot-swappable keycaps.” The supplied notes do not resolve which is accurate, and hands-on confirmation is suggested before relying on hot-swap compatibility claims for switch modding plans.

Physical build impressions skew positive for a sub-$100 board: one reviewer called the construction “sturdy plastic,” and another wrote that “the plastic casing feels sturdy while avoiding feeling bulky and overly heavy,” adding there were “no concerns of excessive flexibility or flimsiness.” Ergonomically the RT85 offers two rear stands and thick rubber feet to prevent slipping.

Feature tradeoffs define the RT85’s character: Epomaker touts an 8000mAh battery and a fixed small TFT or customizable LED screen, plus a retro joystick that acts as a volume controller, but the keyboard drops the detachable TV screen found on the now-discontinued RT80. One reviewer summarized the package as “an admittedly strange keyboard” that nonetheless “fulfills the retro-tech dream” and described it as “worth a consideration as you look for a 75% prebuilt mechanical keyboard.”