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The Isku FX is a large keyboard, measuring 24.7cm x 50.9cm and it has 123 keys with enhanced ‘anti ghosting capability'.
Sadly it is not a mechanical keyboard which I have to admit surprised me. I love mechanical keyboards and use the Razer BlackWidow Ultimate on a regular basis due to the incredible feel of the Cherry Blue switches.
Thankfully the Isku FX does support a polling rate of 1000hz, to reduce lag as much as possible.
The build quality of the keyboard is good, although it does feel a lot lighter than the high end models from either Razer or Steelseries, which both have metal chassis underneath the outer plastic covers. It will be easier to carry around with you to LAN events for example.
That said, it does feel a little insubstantial in hand, not something you would expect after spending £85 on a new keyboard. Roccat do include a surface area long the bottom for wrist support. This material is an advanced granular surface to provide ‘fast and controlled movements'.
In the middle of the keyboard just below the space bar are three keys, named T1/T2/T3. Roccat call these ‘Thumbster' macro keys and are meant to be activated with a quick press of the thumb. They company say “Perfect for casting a lightning-quick healing spell in the middle of a tough fight. Brilliant for a rapid weapon change. Think of your thumbs as two new eager allies. ”
The Isku FX features Easy-Shift[+] technology, which offers 36 easily-customizable macros strategically positioned in 3 spots in the easy-to-find WASD zone. This means you can fire off orders without ever having to re-adjust your hand position – so you won’t have to take your eyes off the screen to look for keys. Easy-Shift[+] key works just like the standard shift key, activating macros is as simple as typing an uppercase letter.
Along the side of the keyboard are 5 keys which the company have marked at M1/M2/M3/M4/M5. These are macro profile keys with support for up to 180 macros when used in combination with other keys.
Roccat have built in a Macro Live! Recording button, to manually record and save in game combinations.
The row in the middle at the very top are quick action media keys along with several others you can configure for specific tasks.
The brightness key resides just above the main keyboard area and to the right of the media panel section. There are 6 levels of backlighting available and this can also be completely disabled if you find it distracting. The Isku FX uses UV coated keys. There is support for a total of 16.8 million colours so you will never be short of options.
The Isku FX can also be programmed to automatically switch off the lights if you haven't pressed a key for a specific amount of time.
Underneath the Isku FX are cable channels which can be used to route cables.
There are 5 rubberized Non-Slip Gaming Boots and 2 rubberized Lock-Fast Gaming Feet underneath the keyboard. The retractable gaming feet tilt the keyboard to an angle of 5.90 degrees.
The cable emerges from the central section at the rear of the keyboard. The cable isn't braided but ends in a nicely designed little plug with the product name highlighted on it. The plug isn't gold plated, but this really doesn't make a difference in regards to signal quality.
Nice keyboard, but I agree, membrane at this price? They must be smoking something.
Waiting on their RYOS to see if it can match the blackwidow ultimate.
WOW players would love this, but ill stick to my steelseries for the time being. would like a new keyboard this year, mine is 2 years old. I like to change every 24 months as I think a keyboard always loses some of its feel after that period.
I love my roccat mouse, but I tried this keyboard out in my local shop and i was very disappointed with the quality of the keys. no feel at all. like my laptop 🙁
Not impressed at all. I play MMORPGs and I use a Razer board and its perfectly fine. I can set up my own macros with software. easy as pie.
They should c oncentrate more on hardware inside the board than software outside it.
membrane is fine if all you do is game, but even then there is little ‘click’ to tell you you made a command on some level.
The upcoming Roccat boards look better, the mechanical ones. ill wait for them. fair review and good pictures.