INTRODUCTION

   During the past two months i have received quite a few of the latest keyboards to hit the market all of which are quite special and are mostly targeted towards gamers and enthusiasts. A couple of days ago i brought you a review of the latest Mechanical Gaming Keyboard by TteSports called the MEKA G-UNIT which proved to be more than just a good addition to their MEKA line of mechanical keyboards. Today we will be also taking a look at a gaming oriented keyboard, this time however it is manufactured by ROCCAT and although it's not mechanical like the G-UNIT still it sports a good number of features along with a surprisingly good build quality.

   ROCCAT is the snow storm to the gaming industry. Everything called gaming before needs to be redefined. You will enter a world in which three attributes will keep you on the right path: alliance, independence and truth. DO IT YOUR OWN WAY AND DON'T TALK SHIT – this is the statement ROCCAT follows. The ROCCATEERS can be found all over the world. And it was a revelation which led them together to energize the crucial benefit. The lake Inari long kept the secret our ROCCAT scientists call "Aimo". With every ROCCAT tool you will more and more internalize its Energy. Become part of our alliance.

   The Isku Illuminated Gaming Keyboard may not be the most impressive one out there and it certainly lacks the features found in some more expensive models along with the durability of mechanical keyboards but overall it's amongst the very few keyboards in the market that i actually like in terms of design and for things that are actually placed outside of the PC Case i thing that appearances are very important. That aside as you will also see later on the Isku comes with quite a few features which should really come in handy especially for people who also happen to own the Kone[+] gaming mouse since the latest Talk technology by ROCCAT allows you to control certain features of the mouse via the keyboard. So let’s move forward and see what the Isku is all about.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The Isku arrived inside a large flat box with two product images at the front used to showcase all the available features.

You can see the keyboard layout right next to a few words by one of the people who developed the Isku at the bottom.

Aside the features list written in 9 languages the rear of the box is also filled with in-depth explanations regarding the features and specifications of the Isku.

ROCCAT packs the Isku inside a secondary cardboard section and a protective bag.

Unfortunately the bundle is not very big and so aside the keyboard itself you will also receive the quick installation guide, software CD and the ROCCAT ID card.

THE ROCCAT ISKU

Although quite larger (yet thinner) than most keyboards out there (509mm width, 247mm depth) the design of the Isku is really something.

The ROCCAT logo is engraved onto the quite large armrest.

The three programmable Thumbster keys placed right above the ROCCAT logo and beneath the space bar can be used for pretty much anything you can think of.

Moving at the left top of the Isku we find the 5 different (P1-P5) profile selection LEDs and a large record button which can be used to assist with the recording of macro commands.

A total of 5 more programmable buttons are present at the far left of the Isku.

At the top center of the keyboard we see a set of multimedia keys (mute, volume up/down, backwards/forwards, web browser and windows explorer launch).

You can control the illumination level of the Isku keys via this button placed on the top right.

Further on the right we see the ROCCAT Talk logo and the usual Num/scroll/caps lock LEDs.

Worth mentioning is that the Isku features one of the largest armrests i have ever seen and although that also means you need more room on your desk still i think that's a very good feature.

Six rubber feet, two height adjusters and several cable channels are present at the bottom of the Isku.

Because the Isku is a relatively short keyboard the height adjusters feel somewhat short, still i found no issue with them during testing.

A gold plated USB connector may not actually improve anything in terms of performance but it's always nice to see, unfortunately ROCCAT doesn't feel the same.

The Isku features a total of 5 different illumination levels which are not that far apart (you can see the lowest and highest setting above).

USING THE ISKU

Well you all know the drill so prior to actually using the unit i strongly suggest heading over to the official ROCCAT support page to get the latest driver version.

The update takes slightly over a minute and when it finishes you will just need to unplug and plug the unit.

Although the control software could be a bit more user friendly still it has a plethora of functions which you can adjust including setting the assignments for all of the macro buttons including the ones with EasyShift[+] (which in turn doubles the number of available macro keys), adjust the level of illumination, set the character repeat and finally you can also disable certain keys, contact the ROCCAT support team and also check for available updates.

CONCLUSION

   Unlike all the latest mechanical keyboards to hit the market the Isku actually features the all-time classic membrane keys which is actually not a bad thing if you are used to typing with a normal keyboard. Of course a mechanical keyboard is not that hard to get used to but it does take some time and some people may not go along with that. In any case during the two weeks i was using the Isku i really liked the feeling when pressing the keys, almost as much as i did when using the MEKA G-UNIT. Certainly the lifespan of the Iskus membrane keys is nowhere near the one of the MEKA G-UNIT and its Cherry Black MX keys but i guess we can't have it all in life and the Isku does offer some unique features that the G-UNIT does not. The somewhat unique design of the Isku is also something i happen to like while the large armrest is certainly great and not something we see a lot with similar keyboards. Finally although some people consider the Talk feature as one of the strong points of the Isku i didn't really find much use for it when combined with the Kone[+] (although quite unique as a feature) but others certainly do so that probably comes down to personal preference.

   Price is always one of the most decisive factors when choosing a product and this is an area where the Isku is not doing very well, not when there are some mechanical keyboards available at around the same price range. More specifically the ROCCAT Isku currently retails for around USD90 inside the USA and 74Euros inside the EU (Amazon) and although that's not what I’d call expensive people who prefer durability over features may opt for a mechanical keyboard instead. Overall the ROCCAT Isku is a very good keyboard with good build quality, great design and plenty of features and that's why it's on the receiving end of our golden award.

 PROS

- Build Quality
- Design
- Illuminated Keys
- Large Armrest
- Control Panel
- ROCCAT Talk

CONS

- Membrane Keys (Not Mechanical)
- Plain USB Connector
- Price (For Some)