I got an email from Keychron inviting me to try their newly-improved keyboard launcher software. Better yet, it’s browser-based, so you just open up your browser and go, no software to install or keep updated. Except for one thing…
Now, if you don’t run macros, or want to assign keys to quick launch applications, or remap keys in general, or fine-tune the RGB lighting, this software can be considered optional.
However, it’s the only way you can do a firmware update if something goes amiss with your Keychron keyboard. And that can happen!
Forcing users to use a Chromium-based browser is bad because it ignores other perfectly viable browsers, like Firefox or Safari. macOS and most Linux distros don’t even include a Chromium-based browser. The graphic above isn’t accurate, either, as it ignores other notable Chromium-based browsers, like Vivaldi or Brave. This is also a bad thing because instead of adhering to web standards (as any good web-based software should), it uses hooks that are exclusive to Chromium, helping to further entrench Chromium–and Google–as the de facto monopoly in web browsing. And Google is actively working to destroy the web right now, in order to make more money for itself.
Mostly, it’s silly forcing people to use specific browsers, because it goes against everything that the web is meant to represent.
In conclusion, Keychron is bad and should feel bad.
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