Packaging and Accessories

This is my fourth Vortex keyboard in for review, and each time, the packaging has been different. Somehow, the colorful box you see above with the brushed texture that can only be felt and not seen is the tamest of the lot, too. The company definitely explores different ideas for packaging freely, noting that first impressions can be quite strong, and delivers a box that is petite, which complements the keyboard inside. It comes with a plastic wrap on the outside to minimize dust, and the box itself has an 80s neon aesthetic to it with the POK3R V2 name and switch type on the front. This design continues on the back, and it is only on the sides that we actually barely see the Vortex name. A double flap in the center on the front helps keep the contents inside in place during transit.


Opening the box, we see the keyboard itself in a shaped plastic clamshell on top for the keycaps, and the cardboard all around for further protection. Underneath the keyboard is a separating layer of cardboard, which keeps the provided detachable keyboard cable separate from the keyboard. The cable is black, 5' long to go with the smaller form factor of the keyboard, and terminates in a gold-plated USB Type-C connector on one end and a USB Type-A connector on the other, which is indicative of the use of Type-C connectivity on the keyboard. There is no manual included in the box, and Vortex says the manual will be up on their website soon. I was sent a PDF version, but given the extent of onboard programming here, a hard copy should have really been included with the keyboard.