Software

There is no driver for the Kinesis Gaming Freestyle Edge in that you do not need to have an x86 program installed and running to enable software configuration. However, Kinesis Gaming did one better and bundled in an application with the keyboard itself. Now you know what the onboard flash memory and all those hardware drivers are for. To begin with, download the SmartSet App from the Kinesis website. The latest version, 3.0, is just a GUI to aid in programming the keyboard, which is otherwise all done onboard the TKO itself. In order to get the GUI to recognize the keyboard, you need to unlock it and then load the V-drive, something carried over from the Freestyle Edge. This handy programming guide discusses all this and more, as does the quick start guide.


Once done, you can check for any updates to the hardware, and there was already a firmware update available for my sample. This, as with other updates to the LED drivers, is more involved as a result of everything done directly on the device itself as opposed to x86 software drivers. First, you need to go to the Kinesis website and download the firmware file, which involves inputting the keyboard model number as a password check to ensure you have the correct file. With that done, flash the firmware by copying it over to the V-drive (a virtual drive that opens up in file explorer) firmware folder before going through a combination of key strokes outlined in the guides and manuals. At this point, the keyboard is good to go unless you need to do the same for other hardware components, which needs to be done in series with a 15–20 second break in between. You will definitely have to at the very least get used to loading and unloading the V-drive often!


We can now get to the keyboard-specific page in the SmartSet app, which does look very similar to the installed software drivers from your usual suspects with the exception of the actual saving and programming of the keyboard that requires more V-drive loading and unloading. It takes minimal effort and is not something you will have to keep on doing, so it is not an annoyance except in the very beginning, for those used to software drivers. On the other hand, having everything onboard means the keyboard can be used on any device without worrying about whether all the custom programming done will be retained or not.

So aside from the actual saving, which you will see in these videos, things are straightforward and quite feature-rich. There are global settings for the SmartSet app itself, which is compatible with both Kinesis Gaming keyboards, and the TKO boasts nine onboard profiles that can each be programmed with the variety of options you see here. Key mapping, or "Layout," as Kinesis calls it, allows for keys to be mapped to just about everything, including macOS or even other typing layouts. Some keys allow for more options on the top layer, especially the modifier keys, but the GUI explains this well. I also love the macro recorder, where you just type exactly what you want into a text editor and copy it over to assign it to a key. Kinesis Gaming also has some preset settings for the Hyperspace keys, including functionally, as well as some application (games mostly) specific controls. Lighting is also in two tabs, one for backlighting and another for edge lighting. The latter has fewer effects to choose from but can be matched with the backlighting for many effects. Each effect also comes with options, including direction, speed, and colors of choice. The virtual keyboard does a good job in all cases here, especially in visualizing what the various lighting effects do.