BlackWidow Lite TKL Tenkeyless Mechanical Keyboard : Orange Key Switches – Tactile & Silent – White Individual Key…

I bought the star wars edition for two things: Star wars, and the TKL layout of the board(no number pad).At $100 MSRP, this board isn’t worth it, and that’s the price I’ll be focusing my review toward. I bought this for $70 on sale and that is still on the high end when looking at the features this board has.Most boards from relatively respected gaming brands (Razer, hyperx, corsair, cooler master, etc.) that fall into this price range have a certain set of standard features. Specifically for $100 I would expect RGB lighting or dedicated media keys, and perhaps some better caps. I do appreciate the included O-rings, but 91 small rubber rings are not worth another 30-40 bucks as compared to any other non-rgb backlight tkl board.The typing experience/caps: I enjoy the razer take on MX brown switches. The backlighting is consistent across the number and letter keys, but does become a bit darker toward the bottom of the keycaps due to how the light is positioned on the top of the switch, causing the stem to block light from reaching the bottom of the cap. This only affects a couple of keys (windows, pg down/up, pause break, prnt scrn). The bottom printed legends are more difficult to read when the keys are lit, as they are just printed on the bottom of the key and become lost below the glow of the main legend. They are basically invisible at night. The caps themselves pick up oils and will scratch easily when using the key puller. The MX style stems should allow aftermarket caps if you want to go that route. The font is clean and non-gamer, which is a plus(looking at you, corsair).Aesthetic: Slim bezels, a solitary ‘Razer’ across the bottom bezel is a nice touch as opposed to some other boards with crazy “gamer” aggressive design choices. I love the star wars graphic with the black/white color scheme and the stormtrooper hanging around the arrow keys.CAPS KEY GLOWS GREEN WHEN ON: Why? Just why?No need to use the synapse software if you just want to plug in and play. If you want to use macros you will need the software.Again, I think this board is overpriced. At 100 bones look at Ducky, Cooler Master or Corsair, as you can find a combo of better build, caps, rgb, and functionality for a similar price.

Bought this as a way to travel do games without needing to bring my full Blackwidow with me. The first thing you notice at the key caps shape/face size are smaller than the normal widow. When first trying it I noticed my fingers were grazing the other keys during presses. This was eventually resolved by adjusting my hand placement and using it over time. Orange switches vs Green there is for sure a difference in feel if you have used one over the other but it’s similar enough that if you play on either for a while you will become adjusted. As far as sound goes it’s still a mechanical keyboard it won’t be as quiet as linear or membrane but it is definitely not as aggressive as a sound. The cable length is good for desk users not good if you are using for a couch. The lighting is clean but it’s a bit of a bummer that they didn’t add RGB because of the office aesthetic.

I saw this go on sale and I decided to try it out as I wanted a small form factor keyboard that was black instead of the white Ducky One 2 SF that I already had, to match the mouse/pad I’m using at any given time.This keyboard is a TKL, meaning it does not have the number pad keys on the right side of the keyboard. This is great when you use a large mouse pad or have a small desk. It is marketed towards the office user, but I’m not sure why anyone would personally go out of their way to buy this for office usage as it lacks the number pad that I use at work daily. I purchased this solely for gaming and home PC usage.This keyboard comes with tactile switches which are a good compromise between red (linear) and blue (tactile). They appear to be slightly lubed from the factory and feel very smooth. It also has included orange colored o-rings for the switches if you want to lower the noise a bit, but I personally found they made the keyboard feel a bit mushy, like a traditional membrane keyboard so I opted to not use them. It also comes with a keycap puller to remove the keys to clean them or install the o-rings. Another nice touch is the typical Razer stickers that they include with all of their products.My main keyboard prior to purchasing this was a Ducky One 2 SF, but with Cherry MX Brown switches. This uses Razer’s “Orange” switches, which are a Brown equivalent. I’m fairly certain that they are made by Kailh, but labeled “Razer”. The Ducky I use is a very vibrant, full RGB. The Blackwidow Lite only comes with white LEDs, but I’m fine with it for the price. For some odd reason, my Caps Lock key is brighter and a bit more yellow than the other keys, especially when I lower the brightness on the rest of the keys. You can adjust the brightness without the optional Razer Synapse software, which I try to avoid whenever possible. The Caps Lock key will also light up green when it is pressed.While I prefer the Ducky in terms of feel and looks, this is a great alternative for half the price (The Razer is on sale for $60 at my time of writing this review). There are no major QC issues and everything feels very solid with its understated looks. I highly recommend this keyboard for the price.UPDATE 10-4-20: This keyboard is still going strong, and I am using it to write this update. No issues or wear to report.

Both my kids have Razer gaming keyboards – the more expensive ones like the Blackwidow Elite and the Tournament edition. I wanted to get in on the action and thought this would be a good way to start, as well as help my productivity. Unfortunately this keyboard has a major flaw – the keys don’t depress smoothly. They will “catch” on the sides and won’t fully depress, or even not pop back up.I tried removing the worst offender (the “E” key) with the keycap puller and reseating it. I tried it with and without the “O” ring. Nothing made a difference.It’s good to look at, the lighting is nice and I was looking forward to having a backlit keyboard as I typically keep my office lights low. I’ll give it 2 stars for aesthetics and materials but it sort of has to be a good keyboard first, which the one I received was not. I’ve returned the item.

So far so good. Material quality is marked down because this was an open box item. It had grease and dirt on the keyboard. See pics. Sure it couldve been something else, but as a consumer, especially considering current events and the people in warehouses handling more than just the box, its unsettling that it would arrive to me dirty like this. I would have paid the extra 10 to get new. Usually amazon warehouse stuff is in pretty good shape.Also the cable is nice but its huge and not as flexible as other cables. See my logitech g502 cable is much smaller and much lighter. This matters because of movement, not that youre moving your keyboard, but if you have to adjust and what not, it can be cumbersome.Overall, the keyboard is nice. Much quieter than my gamepad that has blues. The tactile bump is more subdued.Lighting is nice. Solid white and clean. Some key caps are a little uneven lighting passing through, maybe the keys were shot unevenly or probably ebcause the lighting is at the top side of the switch, which explains why all the font and what are at the higher part of the key caps.Goes well with the black and white. Colorway matches my special edition g502 as well.Only complaint is the FN location. The function key is on the right while controls are up at F keys. Theres no option for function lock either. It would be nicer if the function keys were all on the right with the ins, home, del, etc. cluster, because then it could be one hand to do function controls instead of two.I will provide another update after I’ve used it for gaming for a while.Update 1:The keyboard is just slightly bigger than my xps 13 laptop keyboard, meaning its a bit small. In the new pics, the typing area is slightly smaller than a full size keyboard (logitech k120 for comparison). The k120 is low profile, and even when raised is still lower profile than the razer. The razer is high, so id recommend getting a wrist rest if you have the habit of typing with your wrists/heel of your palms resting on the desk. The increased height adds additional strain on your wrists if you dont have good typing posture. I will continue to post updates.