Key Takeaways
1. The Keychron K2 HE Concrete is a limited edition keyboard set to launch in February 2026, featuring a heavy design and a matte finish resembling a bathroom tile.
2. It includes Gateron Double-Rail Magnetic Nebula switches, double-shot PBT keycaps, and supports Bluetooth and 2.4 GHz connectivity, with a 100-hour battery life.
3. Keychron introduced the Nape Pro, a wireless trackball designed as a companion device for their keyboards, featuring customizable buttons and a unique trackball design.
4. The Nape Pro has ergonomic features, including a rotary dial for scrolling and a tripod mount for versatile positioning next to the keyboard.
5. The Nape Pro is expected to launch in April or May 2026, with an estimated price of around $130 in the US, subject to final pricing adjustments.
Of all the many things Keychron presented at CES 2026, the K2 HE Concrete was perhaps the most unusual. This upcoming Concrete keyboard is set to be one of three limited edition HE keyboards that the brand is planning to release in February 2026. The Notebookcheck team visited the Keychron booth at CES to check out the K2 HE Concrete keyboard, and their main observations were that it is quite heavy, has a matte finish, and “feels like a bathroom tile.”
Specs and Features
Besides the color-matched keycaps, the K2 HE Concrete will probably be similar to the other Keychron K2 HE models. For a better understanding of what the K2 HE is all about, you can look at our review of the Keychron K4 HE, as the only variation is the layout. This means it will include the same Gateron Double-Rail Magnetic Nebula switches, double-shot PBT keycaps in OSA profile, and the same Bluetooth and 2.4 GHz connectivity along with handy hardware switches for OS and connectivity modes. The familiar specs and hardware also ensure that the K2 HE Concrete will have a 1 kHz polling rate, TMR sensors, and an impressive battery life of 100 hours.
Companion Device
While concrete keyboards might be amusing, Keychron also introduced a new wireless trackball named the Nape Pro, which is intended to be a companion device for Keychron’s wireless mechanical keyboards — or really any keyboard. The Nape Pro features a somewhat unique design, with a 25 mm trackball positioned in the center of a bar surrounded by six customizable buttons. By default, two of these buttons function as mouse buttons, but all buttons can be customized using Keychron Launcher, a web app that has consistently proven to be an excellent customization tool in our reviews. All the switches in the Nape Pro are Huano silent switches — likely the same ones used in the Keychron M6 8K that we recently reviewed. These mouse switches have a shorter average lifespan compared to other mouse switches but offer good tactile feedback and are not mushy.
Innovative Usability
The Keychron Nape Pro includes some clever design features that enhance its usability. It can be positioned horizontally beside a keyboard, where you would move your hand off the keyboard to control the cursor, or you could lay it horizontally at the bottom of the keyboard, allowing your thumbs to navigate and scroll. Besides the trackball and buttons on the Nape Pro’s body, there is a rotary dial-style ring around the trackball, which seems especially helpful for tasks like scrolling. Beyond its fun design and internals, the new trackball module appears to have a 1/4-20 threaded tripod mount on the bottom, a common addition for ergonomic split keyboards that opens up various possibilities for angled mounting and similar ideas.
The Nape Pro will feature a 200 mAh battery, which Keychron estimates will provide 50 hours of continuous use. It employs a PixArt 3222 sensor and supports up to 1 kHz polling over 2.4 GHz. However, it’s unclear if the battery life was tested using Bluetooth or 2.4 GHz.
Launch and Pricing
Keychron has announced that the Nape Pro wireless trackball will be available in April or May in the US. While the pricing has not been finalized, the Nape Pro is currently listed at 21,648 Yen with a 20% discount on the crowdfunding platform CoStory. This roughly translates to about $137 before the discount and an MSRP of $171. This is not an official price, and Keychron’s pricing in Japan often sees an increase of up to 30% in the Japanese market — for instance, the K10 HE is priced at $144.99 in the US but costs the equivalent of $187 in Japan. Based on this, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Nape Pro launched closer to $130 when it hits the US and other international markets. Only time will tell how practical the Nape Pro will be, but the initial impressions are favorable, especially given that the trackball can be positioned near the space bar and used without lifting your hands from the keyboard.
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