This review can be useful for people who are interesting in daily experience with Cooler Master MasterKeys Pro L White LED and people who are developers who are looking for a great keyboard.
If you do not bother to read the whole article, then this is main take away points:
GOOD
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BAD
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| Summary: It is a great keyboard for a software developer at work. It offers excellent quality and exceptional value for money. |
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STORY
My keyboard at work is … how to describe this in politically correct way … unpleasant to use. There are two models of the keyboard in the office. One I am using which has a classic key layout but it is uncomfortable and dull to use. Another one has better clicking experience but it annoying to use due to key placement. It is problematic when you are using many shortcuts during development and suddenly it is hard to use them efficiently as keys are in the wrong place.
Last year I was thinking about to the my spare wireless keyboard that I have at home. At a similar time I have noticed that some of my colleagues are using a mechanical keyboard. I decided to try it and I enjoyed a lot. My main problem with the mechanical keyboard was:
- They are very loudly.
- They have plenty features that are gamers friendly but it can be distracting for development typing.
- The backlight is great for light show but less comfortable as a daily backlight.
What I was looking for is:
- Full-sized mechanical keyboard
- A mono-coloured backlight as I don’t need to perform a light show at work.
- Reasonable priced.
I am not playing games* so I wasn’t interested in any features related to gaming like resist to damage during ‘rage quit’ and so on.
*) That’s a lie actually.
I did research on the internet about mechanical keyboards and I quickly released that for good keyboard you need to spend around 150 pounds. I just couldn’t justify why I should spend that much money. I decided to abandon the idea of having a mechanical keyboard and I was too lazy to bring my own wireless keyboard to work. As result, I stuck to my office keyboard.
This year I did another research and I found something that meets my criteria. I decided to buy Cooler Master MasterKeys Pro L White LED. This is an official specification found on Coolermaster’s website. http://www.coolermaster.com/peripheral/keyboards/masterkeys-pro-l/
I was a bit surprised that Cooler Master make keyboards. I knew this company for decent cooling systems for CPU but I didn’t know, they are doing gaming stuff. Actually, after the short time, I realized that it looks like the natural evolution for this company to make a gaming toys.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
I ordered it. When I received a package, my first impression was disturbing. Amazon delivered my package into recycle bin. I was a wonder if Amazon knew that I bought rubbish and it is worth recycling only.
You can find many unboxing videos, so I will skip that. It seems an ascetic and simplicity were the main theme for this keyboard. The box is as small as possible and contains essentials only. Keyboard is simple and without fancy or quirky ‘features’.
After I plugged-in keyboard to my laptop, I was amazed. Writing experience was very smooth. I feel, I typed everything faster than on my laptop’s keyboard (Asus ROG-G771JW) and Logitech illuminated keyboard. The backlight is awesome. Overall, I was very happy. I had only one concern. My wrist feels painful after 30 minutes of using the keyboard. I bought wrist support and it solves the problem.
MY DAILY EXPERIENCE WITH KEYBOARD:
- As I mentioned but I think is worth to repeat. Typing on the keyboard is an amazing experience. However, let’s face it. You can live with a typical office keyboard. The main difference is that on you developing with pleasure and experience on typing is quicker and smoother. I guess it is just my imagination. That’s all.
- It has a classic layout without any quirky key design mutations and I like that because it helps me to use ‘normal’ keyboards without hassle. Truth is you can get used to it to any keyboard but it slows you down when you switch between different layouts/
- Another amazing thing that you can setup keyboard using … keyboard. You don’t need drivers. It can come handy when you are doing pair programming with different PC and use your keyboard.
- They provide a tool, so you can develop your own stuff on the keyboard which sounds awesome but I haven’t use it .. yet.
- My main problem is the lack of wrist support. I used the keyboard for 30 minutes and my whites start to hurt. I needed to buy wrist support and it solves a problem. It is the second time in my life when I have this kind of problem.
- This keyboard has mode when you can play … Snake game. On keyboard! It comes handy when you need to wait for your tests to finish.
- Cable is quite short. It is OK if you keep your PC on a desk, but if is under your desk, then you will have a problem. Cable quality is one of the best as I used.
- The keyboard is not too noisy. Good enough for office use and you should not pissed off colleagues, but it is too loud to use at night at home.
- In first few days, I had a few occasions where Windows stop recognize keyboard and it stops work. It stops happening after I restart Windows.
SUMMARY
It is an awesome keyboard so far. Typing is awesome. I think it is a great keyboard in terms of quality for money and value for money. You may need to buy wrist support or your wrist will kill you.
In fact, I am really surprised how much difference make to use a mechanical keyboard instead of the normal keyboard.
If you are a software developer who needs a great mechanical keyboard with monochrome backlight and spends reasonable money then this keyboard is the best choice.
I chose this keyboard as my first mechanical keyboard as I didn’t want invest fortune, but there are cheaper alternatives (for around £55 if you want to try a mechanical keyboard.
Second part will be after 3 months and third part will be after 1 year of usage
Picture source: http://www.coolermaster.com/peripheral/keyboards/masterkeys-pro-l-white/
Dominik Symonowicz 