Rajio
- edited
World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria is getting closer and closer, and the next step in getting your rig WoW ready is taking a look at gaming keyboards. Today we’ll check out the Razer BlackWidow Ultimate gaming keyboard and see what all the fuss is about.
Right off the bat it's worth talking about the fact that this is a mechanical keyboard. That means you get nice satisfying clicks with every keypress, lots of tactile feedback and nice firm response. Mechanical keyboards usually make tonnes of noise compared to, say, a laptop keyboard. This is a telltale feature of this type of hardware. They make a racket that sounds a lot like a traditional mechanical typewriter, if you can imagine, with large meaty keys, not like the thin chiclet style keyboards that have become fashionable lately. The noise isn’t as problematic as you might imagine, and overall the amount of ambient feedback this keyboard provides makes for satisfying touch-typing sessions.
As you can imagine for something dubbed the BlackWidow, this keyboard has a wonderful matte black finish to it that is fingerprint resistant and has a silky touch. The typeface used for the characters on each key has a sort of retro-tech ‘terminal’ style to it which is quite welcome too. The keyboard tray and key labels are LED lit in bright green which contrasts well with the matte black. While it would be nice to be able to software-select which colour to use, the Razer Synapse 2.0 software does allow you to control how the lights function, or to disable them altogether. This software also allows you to customize the keyboard’s configuration, including the five programmable macro keys.
The cord for the keyboard is braided to be tangle resistant, adding to the luxury feel. It connects with two USB plugs, and can also connect to your PC’s audio jacks since the side of the keyboard sports jacks for headphone, microphone, and a USB plug handy for daily use. The keyboard itself is weighed (just over three pounds) and has rubberized feet so it stays firmly in place at all times. Thats an unexpected but surprisingly nice feature.
This is overall one of the nicest keyboards I’ve used in a long time. Okay, it's not cordless. It's not super quiet. It's not the most elegant looking thing in the world for you desktop minimalists. This thing is a magnificent beast. It's loud, it's heavy, and it's oh-so satisfying. The macro keys can be programmed on the fly (even during a game) making it great for gamers looking for an edge. It looks serious yet subtle on my desk. It has the overall feel of premium hardware. Most people almost never change their keyboard. It's the sort of thing that tends to get neglected in upgrades, and as such, it can be the weakest link in your gaming arsenal. If you’re a gamer you should head to Future Shop and check this out for yourself. It's worth it.
The Razer BlackWidow Ultimate takes you full speed into combat with a full-fledged mechanical key infrastructure delivering crisp, tactile feedback with every actuation. Bringing an entirely different feel and faster keystroke actuation to the table, this revolutionary fully backlit gaming keyboard is rounded off by its additional macro keys and unlimited on-the-fly macro recording.
Warships of the Alliance and Horde clash off the coast of a lost continent, scattering shipwrecked survivors across the shores of an exotic new frontier.
Check out other ways to get WoW ready:
- Getting WoW Ready: Gaming PC roundup
- Getting WoW Ready: Razer Naga Hex MMO gaming mouse
- Getting WoW Ready: The BlackWidow Ultimate gaming keyboard
- Getting WoW Ready: Logitech's G600 MMO gaming mouse
- Getting WoW Ready: The G35 Surround Sound Headset
- Getting WoW Ready: New PC monitors
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