TT Premium X1 Overview
The TT Premium X1 features a full 104-key layout, so users that have grown accustomed to utilizing the 10-key portion of a keyboard will rejoice. In addition to the numpad area, the right side of the X1 is home to a set of dedicated multimedia controls that add a bit of convenience to the keyboard. With all of these available keys, Thermaltake still utilizes some keys for double-duty, assigning optional lighting or profile functionality to these keys via their use with the FN key. More on all of these later.
While Thermaltake touts the X1 as being a premium product with “supreme quality”, we were left scratching our head at the all-plastic design. Sure, there is quite a bit of heft to this keyboard, which is often falsely associated with quality, but the lack of premium materials like aluminum or PDT plastic doesn’t have us too impressed.
We have seen a lot of keyboards lately that sport a very slim and minimal profile, but the X1 is not one of them. From the top down, it is quite obvious that the X1 was not designed to be a slim and minimalist keyboard. There is quite a wide border on the left and right sides of the keyboard, and the top border, with its illuminated TT logo and multimedia controls, is quite broad as well. That being said, the TT logo looks great, and the multimedia controls go a long way with regards to convenience.
The side profile of the X1 is pretty standard with its slightly sloped design. The top plate of the keyboard gives the look of a shelf that sits on top of the keyboard’s frame, and for all intents and purposes, looks and functions just fine.
At home in the top left corner of the X1 is a semi-transparent TT logo, complete with RGB lighting. We really like this design, though its placement does contribute to the wide frame of the keyboard.
Taking a closer look at the upper right-hand corner of the X1 provides us with a view of the additional multimedia keys, as well as a few others. Starting from the left, the three round buttons control the X1’s Game Mode, backlighting levels, and Windows Key lock. The next set of controls to the right are a wide scroll wheel used to adjust system volume, which is paired up with an easy-to-reach mute button. Stop, Previous, Play/Pause, and Forward buttons are also available to assist with playback duties.
As mentioned earlier, the TT Premium X1 is available with either CHERRY MX RGB Blue or Speed RGB Silver switches. Our review sample just so happens to be outfitted with the Speed RGB Silver style, and their transparent bodies help bring the light from the RGB LEDs up from below. The Speed RGB Silver switches features CHERRY’s fastest response times, with just 1.2mm of travel for the actuation point. The Silver switches also have a pretty light actuation force threshold, with just 45g of force needed to get things in motion.
With the keycaps out of the way, we can also see the silver underlay that rests beneath each switch. We really like the look of this feature, and the way it enhances the glow of the switch lighting looks quite nice.
Placed next to the cord connection on the X1 is a 3.5mm 4-pole audio jack for headset duties, as well as a single USB 2.0 Type-A port. This USB port offers USB pass-through, and gets its connectivity from the second USB plug at the end of the 1.8M braided cord.
Speaking of the cord, it is fully braided with a soft material that is quite a bit more flexible than other braided keyboard cables we have used. At the end of the cord are two USB Type-A plugs; one for keyboard functionality and the other for USB pass-through duties. There is also a single, 4-pole 3.5mm audio jack for audio duties.
