Tecware Phantom 87 Key Mechanical Keyboard, RGB led, Outemu Blue Switch

I came from a Drevo Tyrfing V2, or to be exactly, two Drevo Tyrfing V2’s. The Drevo was nice but it simply had issues, not only that but after using the Tecware I feel like I know what brown switches are actually supposed to feel like.These springs feel like they were actually lubed, a lot of the keys such as space bar, shift, backspace, etc are just much more quiet and solid feeling. The board itself doesn’t bend as easily as the Drevo did, which came lopsided out of the box and required bending back in place to use on my desk. It has the same macro functionalities as the Drevo, and the important media keys rebinding if you desire that. Most importantly if your switches go bad, you can actually replace them on this board.With the Drevo being my first experience with a mechanical keyboard, and this Tecware being my second, I’d say choose the Tecware if you had to choose between the two.

Keys feel amazing, more rgb options than I can count, option to turn rgb off, extra keys included, tool to clean and swap included and it just LOOKS AWESOME! GET THIS KEYBOARD. I’m having fun typing this on it because the keyboard is so satisfying to use. I can’t believe it’s only 50 bucks.EDIT: so after a couple of months, the left side clip for the space bar wore out and now the keyboard often fails to actuate. The keyboard was great while it worked right but was clearly not built to last. I really didn’t use it very much and now it’s broken. bummer.

I’ve had several mechanical keyboards, and for the first six months this keyboard stacked up very well against some that cost in excess of $100. The switches are a little less crisp than official Cherrys but that was more than made up for by the excellent RGB customization, solid build quality, bonuses like the keycap puller and spare switches, and general comfort.However, about six months after purchase the space bar developed an issue where if I pressed it off center, it would tilt that way but not actually actuate the switch, and usually get stuck at that tilt until I pulled it back to level. I fixed this for about two months by flipping the space bar around (as some have suggested doing from the start for comfort reasons), but today it started tilting the other way as well, especially when playing games.I believe the reason for this is due to the stabilization system. Rather than using a metal spring that runs under the space bar to keep it level, this keyboard just uses two of what you might describe as dummy switches to either side of the actual space bar switch. Instead of a spring-loaded switch like every other button on the keyboard, they are just plastic squares with plastic crosses in the middle that slot into key cap stems. Consequently, the space bar has three stems – one for the actual switch and one for each dummy switch. It seems that the dummy switch stems have cracked, so instead of holding the space bar level they allow it to tilt when pressed anywhere off center.The keyboard is still usable, but it’s very annoying to have to keep my thumb right in the middle of the space bar, especially while playing video games.

Update Aug 2020:”W” switch died after 2 1/2 years, I suspect “Q, E, R, A, S, D, F” are soon to follow based on the majority of my gaming. This is what I would call normal wear, no complaints here. “W” was the switch with the most strokes on it. Replacing the key was super easy, and they give you extra switched when you purchase the keyboard. Awesome! Total down time < 5 min.Still very satisfied after 2 & 1/2 years. Felt good enough about this keyboard to grab some new key caps & this thing really pops now. Matches my Glorious Model D ?Original Review:TL;DR: Buy this keyboard. If you are coming from another low/mid-end mechanical you will be very happy. If you are coming from membrane you will be ecstatic. If you are coming from a higher-end keyboard & don’t pro-game this will fit the mold just find, you & your wallet will be happy.Initially I was hesitant to purchase this product with it’s lack of reviews, but consider this is a relatively new product (introduced to amazon on Jan 2018) I looked to their other keyboard reviews and was pleasantly satisfied. That being said, if you are uncomfortable with the lack of review I suggest looking at the other products they make and then come back to read the (currently) 3 positive reviews on this keyboard. My review will be two parts, first the product as a stand alone item and second this product against similar items I own.Part 1Pros:Price: only $40 keyboard I can find with red switches87 key design: personal preference, but I like a full 16.5” of mouse space to play fps’sLights: it’s real pretty, there are 18 different pre-set LED modes with 9 different LED color options.Software: If you want more lighting options download the free software. It’s free, super easy to use (easier than the Corsair software IMO) and now my keyboard looks awesomeThe switches: only red’s I can find at this price range. I am not good enough at typing or video games to be an expert of this but the activation point seems to be consistent. They all seem to activate at around 40% of the entire stroke.Peripherals: comes with extra switches, two key pullers, and an easy to follow quick start guide (explains the lighting modes)Build quality: Sturdy, no flex, replaceable switchesCable routing: there are three different channels to route the cable throughAesthetics: aside from the pretty lights, many people enjoy the floating key design. I find it easier to keep clean and looking niceNeutral:The switches (yes, again): While these are nice for $40, if you are coming from Cherry MX or the like you will notice a different. They are not as “snappy” for lack of a better work, but still leaps and bounds over membrane, obviously.Cons:Guided keys: the space bar & shift keys are both on the mushy side. Not a deal breaker, but def noticeable when compared to the other keys that operate with no little metal guide bar.Part 2Tecware Phantom vs:-Red Dragon 87 key w/blue switchesAt roughly the same price (Tecware is $3 cheaper) I would recommend the Tecware simply due to the fact you can get it with red switches which I prefer. If you were comparing blues vs blues, it’s a toss up that boils down to personal preference. The red dragon has a lot more reviews, but the initial quality of this Tecware product is very impressive. Buy whichever one you think looks cooler. UNLESS, you don’t care about RGB. In that case get the Red Dragon because it cheaper without RGB.-Corsaire StrafeKeep in mind this is a $110 product to a $40 one… The Cherry MX switches in the corsaire are nice. If I didn’t have the two side by side or had never touched Cherry MX I would have zero complaints about these OUTEM switches. The Corsaire has a few other features I won’t really dive into it’s not hard to compare specs. The biggest difference I notice is a more consistent key stroke on the Corsaire notable in the guided keys (space & shift). This can make a difference in gaming, but at the level I play it is not worth an extra $70. Bottom line I do not think my Strafe is $70 better than this Phantom. It is without a doubt nicer.-Drevo GramrI love the size of this little keyboard, but the switches/keys were bad. Noticeably worse than this Phantom. It was about 1.5-2” shorter on the width which is nice, but I have a huge mouse pad and would rather have nicer switches than that extra space. If desk space is at a premium and an extra 1.5-2” is going to make a difference (insert phallic joke here) then go for the tiny Gramr. Otherwise this Phantom is better in every way for a few bucks less.If your wondering why I own(d) all these keyboard…Quick background, my first mechanical keyboard was the Red Dragon 87 key. I loved it, but the blue switches were annoying my wife. Also I felt a linear switch would be a (slight) advantage in fps’s. In practice I’m not getting any high K/D with red switches and am no better a CSGO player, which is disappointing. But you can learn from my mistake, nice hardware won’t make you suck less. Second keyboard is a friends used Corsair Strife, and I instantly fell in love with the red switches. After hitting my thumb on the 10-key pad a few hundred times I decided to go back to 87-key, but cannot justify spending over $50 on a keyboard when my highest rank is Gold in Overwatch. I tried the Drevo Gramr mostly for work where desk space is at a premium and the minimalist design seemed practical, but couldn’t get over the switch quality and the lighting scheme which never worked for me. Now I have this Phantom & love it.

Great feel, responsive, I made the right call by choosing the Brown switches but as of yet haven’t tried the others (looking up packs of Outemu switches online reveals it would be cheaper to just buy an entirely new keyboard, so I might pick up one with Blue or Red switches at some point).Software is easy to use, and it’s great to have full customizability vs my old keyboard that only had solid red, solid blue, and solid purple for backlight options.It’s very solid and heavy, doesn’t slide around during use at all, no flex whatsoever, and I love the compact size over a fullsize keyboard. The lack of a num pad only took a few days to adjust to. It saves a lot of space.I’m very, very happy with this keyboard but only gave it four stars for two reasons: one, I don’t believe it’s the perfect keyboard, because it’s my first mechanical keyboard I can’t speak to that. Second, it came without an outer package, which is great for reducing waste but means that the tracking stickers cover a lot of the package itself, and I was kind of wanting to keep it for display. That has more to do Amazon/UPS than the manufacturer, though.If you’re thinking about buying one, pull the trigger!