Closer Examination

As we saw before, the Tesoro Gram MX ONE keyboard comes in a clear plastic wrap to keep it pristine and free of dust out of the box. Removing it, we get our first good look at the keyboard, and it is on the heavier side of average for even full-size keyboards, which is in no small part due to the thick steel plate frame that adds significant mass and structural integrity to the keyboard as a whole. I have the white version here, but the black version is otherwise identical in all other aspects but the color of the keyboard and keycaps. There is only a subtle monochrome Tesoro logo next to the indicator LEDs, and that is the only visible branding when the keyboard is in use.

Bezels are average in size, and there is an angled edge as we get to the bottom in a similar manner as on some other keyboards I have seen in the last couple of years. There are indicator LEDs above the numpad, which in turn has keycaps with secondary legends below the primary ones in the alphanumeric section. There are also some keyboard-specific secondary legends that appear on the front of the keycaps instead, making use of space that is usually not used. Single legend placement is top and center, which also hints towards where the LEDs are placed underneath the keycaps. The legend typeface is fairly clean, even accounting for the seams in looped legends via the standard doubleshot-injection process, and the keyboard as a whole will fit into a variety of environments well provided that front logo is not a bother.


Flipping the keyboard around, we see the usual certification sticker in the middle. There are four rubber pads on the corners in the back to keep the keyboard from sliding around on the desk, and two feet at the top open up sideways to optionally elevate the keyboard. These feet also have rubber pads to ensure they don't get scratched easily, which effectively adds two more rubber pads to the four corner pads when not in use.


As suspected based on the removable cable we saw before, the keyboard has a mini-USB port in the middle of the side facing away from the user, which would ideally be a prime location to have the cable go to the PC. This port is inset to allow for a lower profile of the connector on the keyboard side. The cable needs an available Type-A USB port on your motherboard, and USB 2.0 will suffice here.


The keycaps have an OEM profile, and the various rows are thus sculpted accordingly. They have a floating design, which allows for easier cleaning, but causes more light bleed, which may or may not be to your liking. With the single-color backlighting option here, however, that is not a concern regardless. The stock keycaps are made out of thick PBT plastic (average wall thickness of 1.35 mm), with all general legends (those not specific to this keyboard) doubleshot-injected for longevity. There are some legends specific to this keyboard that appear pad printed or laser etched and will not last as long, and are also opaque as seen above. The stock keycaps are pretty good to begin with thus, and definitely better than average, but the keyboard also offers good compatibility with aftermarket keycap sets if you want to go that route for customization.


As the name suggests, the Gram MX ONE uses Cherry MX switches. At or near launch, both color versions are only available with the Cherry MX Brown switch, but there will be versions with the Cherry MX Blue switch soon, if not already available by the time this review goes live. The single-color backlighting means the older Cherry MX switch design with the black opaque housing will do the job, as in this case, with separate LEDs above the switches. The larger keycaps use Costar stabilizers, which work better in mitigating a mushy feeling, especially with the space bar.