Rosewill NEON K85 RGB Keyboard Review 3

Rosewill NEON K85 RGB Keyboard Review

(3 Comments) »

Value and Conclusion

  • The Rosewill NEON K85 RGB keyboard costs $69.99 from retailers, including Newegg.com and Amazon.com for customers in the USA, as of the date of this article.
  • Excellent price point for what you get
  • Thick aluminum frame provides good build quality
  • Extensive on-board lighting brightness control
  • Dedicated media buttons
  • Thick ABS keycaps with doubleshot injected universal legends
  • Lightweight driver that enables more customization options
  • High degree of lighting effects, with good transition animations
  • Foldable wrist rest
  • Inferior control on side-plate lighting, with no option to even turn them off
  • Keyboard-specific secondary legends are laser etched and will wear off sooner rather than later
  • The Kailh Brown switches on one of my samples were inconsistent in travel and feel, with a scratchy feeling when actuated
  • One-year warranty is short
With the price point in mind, I do believe Rosewill has a winner here. Features that other brands with often a larger market share put on keyboards that cost $100+ coming in at $70 really puts the cons in a dismissible light - especially since none of those are a deal breaker. The closest would be if you were planning to use this in an office only to find out that the side plates' lighting can not be turned off, but hopefully this review helps in that regard by having you make an informed decision accordingly. Similarly, the laser etched secondary legends that are specific to the keyboard are disappointing given the otherwise better-than-average stock keycaps, particularly so given these help with onboard controls, but the detailed user manual overcomes that. There are also the scratchy Kalih Brown switches. I am more inclined to say that this issue is due to a bad batch of Kailh Brown switches on my sample, which is not indicative of them in general given I have multiple other keyboards with those very switches here that had no such issues. But if you do notice this in newer keyboards, please let me know, and I will follow up on it with Kailh.

The pros heavily outweigh the cons here, even if pricing is a neutral point. I especially like the folding wrist rest that can be used to prop up the keyboard as a flat device should you prefer it as such, and the wrist rest is very functional as well. The aluminum frame and thick ABS stock keycaps provide good build quality, and the keyboard feels nice to use with minimal bezels throughout. Back and side lighting are nice options, and the driver takes over from where the onboard controls end, providing a plethora of more customization options - both functional and aesthetic alike.

Overall, I have no problem recommending this to anyone looking for a good mechanical keyboard with a budget in mind. There are definitely things the more established brands do better, but not at this price point.
Recommended
Budget
Discuss(3 Comments)
View as single page
Dec 24th, 2024 21:25 EST change timezone

New Forum Posts

Popular Reviews

Controversial News Posts