CM Storm MECH Review

👤by Tim Harmer Comments 📅07-10-13
Lighting and Customisation



CM Storm have chosen white per-key LED lighting for the MECH and boosted the overall brightness when even reduced to a minimal level of illumination by integrating a white backplate. Lighting is controlled through the alternate functions of the keys F1-F4, enabled by pressing the FN keys on the left and right of the keyboard.

FN+F1 : Turn lighting on/off
FN+F2 : Decrease LED brightness
FN+F3 : Increase LED brightness
FN+F4 : Change Lighting Mode


Five brightness levels isn't quite the most comprehensive of options, but they’re more than adequate with plenty of variance at the low end for those who have issues with blue/white specular light distracting them through their glasses. When shining through the keycap light is considerably biased towards the top of the key, but not to the extent that the symbols in the lower half are illegible.



The MECH isn’t limited to simple on/off across the whole key set. In common with their Quickfire range two additional lighting modes also apply: gaming mode and a pulsing mode. Gaming mode illuminates only the macro, WASD and arrow keys, whilst pulsing mode will do just that - pulse the LEDs slowly from low to high intensity. Unfortunately lighting configuration isn’t stored on a per-profile basis, so it can’t be used as an indicator of active profile.

When it comes to mechanical keyboard lighting we have been spoiled quite recently. Were it not for those insights into what is now possible at this price point we’d say that the MECH has good lighting options, but now it can only be seen as relatively middle-of-the-road. Thank goodness that’s not all the keyboard is relying on.

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As a unique selling point a removable faceplate is certainly up there. Once the MECH’s screws are removed the entire faceplate can be lifted and replaced, although one should take care to protect the rather flexible piece of aluminium. Below that you gain access to the backplate, and cleaning becomes a doddle. It’s also nice to see that Cooler Master haven’t forgotten to earth the metal faceplate, just in case.

So what can you do with this rather unexpected flexibility? Well, for a start it’s likely that Cooler Master/CM Storm will be selling replacement/branded faceplate sets to fit your own preferences, but why be tied down? One of the more adventurous non-destructive case mods popular in recent years has been internal and external chassis coating in carbon fibre-effect vinyl, and there’s no reason why you couldn’t go for the same effect here.



But why be limited to pre-cut vinyl pieces. There are printing shops around the UK which will print full colour graphics on vinyl for you to apply yourself if that’s something you feel comfortable doing. If you’re slightly more accomplished you could even design and cut your own faceplate.

It’s in this respect that the MECH is more customisable and flexible than the vast majority of keyboards currently available. Whilst not the most expert of mods - you probably won’t exactly be winning any prizes for it in expert circles - it does finally let a gamer truly personalise their keyboard with a small amount of skill and only a modest budget. For some, that will be priceless.

UPDATE:

You can check out the video below to see how the plate is removed, and a few fascia designs that CM Storm have developed in-house.



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Moving to onboard features, CM Storm have taken the step of ensuring that as much functionality as possible can be accessed on the keyboard without having to rely on software. Many keyboard manufacturers only extend this to the lighting, but in both Windows-Key Lock and the macro system the MECH is ahead of the pack.

We’ve extolled the virtues being able to disable the Windows Key on gaming keyboards for some time, and doing it at the hardware level is a welcome additional step. To enable the lock simply press FN+F12 and you’ll be notified by a now illuminated F12 key. It was a feature we appreciate on the Quickfire TK and it should serve the MECH in good stead too.

By far the most powerful feature is the on-board macro record system and profile selection. The quick guide takes you through this functionality, but in essence you’re able to record macros in real-time through the use of FN+ALT shortcuts, and that recording is on a per-profile basis.

Profiles can also be switched using simple keyboard commands which is a feature that has been lacking in even high-end keyboards until now, with few notable exceptions. When switching profiles using FN+1-5 the keyboard will flash twice as a notification. It would be great to have some visual identifier of the active profile, but the shortcut is so swift it’s not a huge priority.

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To sum up, aesthetic customisation on the MECH is excellent for an off-the-shelf product, whilst onboard functionality independent of software is very good too. We would like to see a little more lighting customisation and a means of quickly checking the current profile, but those are minor concerns. All in all, very creditable.


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