Usage & Final Thoughts
ROCCAT has gone ahead and made tenkeyless (TKL) versions of their very popular Vulcan keyboard and I am all for that. Tenkeyless is probably my favorite form factor as they take up far less space than full-size keyboards, but don’t eliminate things like your function row and arrow keys like say a 60% keyboard does. So making an already popular keyboard smaller is a great thing.
Now there are two different versions of this new keyboard, you have the Vulkan TKL and Vulkan TKL Pro. We received the Pro version which features ROCCAT’s new Titan optical switches. The non-pro version has their Titan mechanical switches. For those not familiar with optical switches they use an optical light sensor inside the switch. Upon pressing a key, you allow a receiver to be activated by this light signal, instantly actuating the switch command. These type of switches are considered faster and more accurate than mechanical switches. These switches are built off of the Titan mechanical switches and will feel the same, except there is no physical actuation that activates the switch command. These switches have a 1.4mm actuation point and unlike mechanical switches are rating for 100 million clicks. Overall using these switches feels just like a mechanical switch and I like the idea of them being more accurate.
One thing that is really different about this keyboard is that it makes use of low-profile keycaps, all of which are concave. These make it appear that the keycaps are floating on top of the switches, which looks pretty cool. These keycaps will take a little bit to get used to. The keycaps are ABS, which means they are very prone to shine and wear. Gaming and typing on this keyboard felt really good once I got used to the keycaps. I did not find myself missing any keys and I was able to type extremely fast, which is great for writing reviews and news on the site.
I did notice a slight vibration echo when typing. I don’t know if this was caused by the aluminum top plate, but it is definitely noticeable if you don’t have music on.
The lighting on the keyboard is excellent and since the keycaps appear to be floating over the switches you see more of the lighting, which really gives this keyboard a cool look.
ROCCAT’s Swarm software will get the job done which it comes to reprogramming keys and setting up macros. It does feel quite dated compared to other gaming software though. Also, it was odd the we could only set Easy-Shift+ functions for half of the keyboard.
Overall if you are looking for a keyboard that is going to feel good, be very accurate, and looks awesome the ROCCAT Vulkan TKL Pro is a solid choice. Right now you can pick it up at our favorite online retailer for $139.99. Overall ThinkComputers gives the ROCCAT Vulkan TKL Pro Gaming Keyboard an 8 out of 10 score.
Pros:
– Sleek design
– Titan Optical switches
– Very comfortable
– RGB lighting is excellent
– Removable USB-C cable
Cons:
– Vibration echo when typing
– Swarm software feels dated
