Usage & Final Thoughts
So I’ve been using the Tesoro GRAM XS for a good month now and while I initially liked it at first I was pretty happy to switch back to another keyboard. There are two main problems I see with this keyboard. The first is one we’ve seen with a lot of these low-profile keyboard is there is there is no angle adjustment. Typically we see pop-out feet on most keyboards, but they are absent here. Because of this the keyboard sits very flat, which makes is less comfortable to use than other keyboards.
Secondly the key caps, they are completely flat. On most keyboards we have concave key caps, even laptop keyboards have concave key caps. The completely flat key caps actually made typing uncomfortable and I tended to accidentally press keys that I didn’t want to, even after using the keyboard daily for 3 weeks. While this issues might be isolated to me and my gaming / typing style I would highly recommend spending some time with the GRAM XS before you make your final decision on it.
There is a lot to like about the GRAM XS though. It is a very low-profile keyboard and is going to look pretty amazing sitting on your desk. The white chassis with white key caps is just done perfectly and the RGB backlighting is good too.
The low-profile mechanical switches are great and really give you that feel / feedback that you want from a mechanical keyboard, but of course allow for a much smaller / thinner keyboard. Besides the issues I mentioned above typing on the GRAM XS is pretty fluid and you can definitely tell that you are using a mechanical keyboard.
Tesoro has made some improvements to their software, but it is still quite behind software like the SteelSeries Engine and Corsair’s CUE. I also was pretty bummed that you couldn’t do per-key lighting customization.
Right now you can pickup the GRAM XS at our favorite online retailer for $119.99. Overall ThinkComputers gives the Tesoro GRAM XS a 7 out of 10 score.
Pros:
– Thin low-profile design
– White on white looks amazing
– Good backlighting
– Price
Cons:
– No angle adjustment (pop-out feet)
– Key caps are not concave, not as comfortable
– No per-key backlighting
