Novation Launchkey Mini 25 MK4 — Portable 25 Mini-Key, USB, MIDI Keyboard Controller with DAW Integration. Chord Mode, Scale Mode, Drum Pads, and Arpeggiator. Includes Music Creation Software Bundle

I have to use my readers to see the various functions, but that's my problem I guess. The pdf manual has to be downloaded from Focusrite. No info was included in the pkg about that or anything else. Only a safety data sheet. Once I Googled Novation owner's manual I was good. So, don't waste your time looking for it on the Novation site.The keybed is firm, but not too firm. It's perfect for me. I'm using Ableton as my DAW and so it configures seamlessly. So many options, but it's already proving to be an asset to my production process, it's only day two!

I did a lot of measurements before I bought this keyboard controller. All my estimates were off, it's actually smaller than I thought! Perfect for me. I'm trying to make my "mobile command center" fit inside the backpack (pictured above it's the Lenovo hardshell something). As you can see, it fits beautifully. I included pictures in front of a computer screen, next to a 17" laptop, and next to a standard computer keyboard for reference. With the app downloaded, it was plug and play into Waveform Pro, and I imagine any DAW that can read USB MIDI will find the keyboard no problem. In my opinion having played with it and the drum pads is the hardware itself is worth the price and is a great deal.For the negative, it's all to do with the "extras" they bundled with it. "Oh wow, Ableton lite! Multiple expensive instruments! (the Orchestral thing is 300 euro), all for free what a deal!" Every. Single. One of them. Requires you to sign up for a separate account, give full permissions for web tracking, give them your address and purchase info (bank, credit card, paypal), download a separate app because their expensive software doesn't have just a VST plugin. It has to have that software up and running on your computer to work with your DAW, which means potentially Meta (Facebook), Google, and several others I stopped reading in the agreement could be watching everything you do on your computer directly. I started with the Orchestra one and signed up through the whole process before realizing that every other one was a different company and required all the permissions. If you don't mind the EU spying on you along with Big Tech (Yes, the Orchestra instruments one is from Germany and require you to give EU permission to view your data even if you don't live in EU), then the extra software packages are a great deal. But I'm suspicious of anything that goes from 300 Euros to free just cause I bought a keyboard controller and has no VST, no way to download and delete the account.TL;DR It's a great deal, very small, good price, decent quality, but the addons spy on you and require a different account with a different company for every one, and probably a different desktop app as well.

Me being new to controllers, I did a solid month of comparisons, researching reviews, unboxing/feature videos, yada yada.... This always seemed to float to the top of everything within budget range. Even with holiday sales factoring in everything, I still bought this at full-price versus cheaper discounted products just due to quality of life perks and features that all seemed to make sense.My only gripe, which was kind of expected, but now realized, is that if you're not using a very popular DAW that is already in mind with auto-configurations from Novation, it may take some time and firmware updates to make everything less glitchy with the manual Remote/override signals.For example, my Reason 13 official integration works perfectly, but I was curious why it wasn't as out-of-the-box feature filled in mapping versus the other DAW integrations such as Ableton utilizing all the knobs and faders. I figured no problem and just manually add them on my own with the auto-learning. The signals between Reason and the hardware are being detected manually, but it is very flaky as of this writing (Jan '24), and a mapped fader for instance, only decides to work intermittently in the editor and playback. It's not a timing or latency issue, since the miniscule few Reason mappings out of the box are working perfectly fine (transport, track change, undo/play/record/stop, quantize and pads). So I'm assuming they ran into the same issues I have with the knobs and faders and decided to work on it more for a (hopefully) future bios/firmware update.

Fun thing to play around on

The Launchkey Mini is a solid, compact MIDI controller that I’ve really enjoyed using. It’s small, lightweight, and surprisingly versatile for its size. The 25 keys have a decent feel, and while they’re not as big as a full-sized keyboard, they’re still responsive and comfortable enough for playing melodies or chords. The velocity-sensitive keys work well, and there’s a nice balance between portability and functionality.The pads are responsive and great for triggering drum sounds or loops, and the sliders and knobs provide good tactile control when tweaking your DAW settings or mixing. I particularly like how easily it integrates with software like Ableton Live—once it’s plugged in, it’s ready to go, which saves time during setup.One of the best things about the Launchkey Mini is how portable it is. It’s small enough to toss into a bag, and I’ve found it super useful for mobile music production or when I don’t have a lot of space on my desk. It’s USB-powered, which is convenient since I don’t need an extra power supply or cables.Overall, it’s a great little MIDI controller for producers who want something compact but still capable. It doesn’t have the full range of a larger controller, but for what it’s meant to do, it does a great job. Would definitely recommend it if you need something portable and functional.