General Use
For general typing the Rosewill was a good to use. The Cherry MX Red switches were ultra responsive thanks to the light action required for each key press. tT should be noted that it may take some time to become accustomed to using any mechanical keyboard but with perseverance you will find that a mechanical keyboard can certainly improve your typing skills. Personally, I find the Cherry MX Red switches a little too light for long bouts of typing and often find the keys bottoming out despite the attenuation level being around the halfway mark, such is my heavy typing mannerism. Touch typists will however find the lighter strokes required for Cherry MX red switches perfect. As with all mechanical keyboards, the only way to truly know which switch you prefer is to try them. This however is difficult for most people so I will try and summarise for you:
Most typists would opt for the MX Brown switches (light), most Gamers go for Blacks (stiff). The Cherry Red switches are the go between switch and afford excellent capabilities to both departments. If you want clicky (tactile feedback), light key presses then the Cherry blues are the ones to go for. Simple eh?
Ergonomically, the RK-9000RE is far from perfect because with the omission of a wrist rest, I found typing up this review a bind simply because I felt I had to hover the palms of my hands over the keyboard rather than rest them on the wrist rest. I can appreciate Rosewill are aiming for the value end of the mechanical market but I feel most users would still pay the extra for a wrist rest of some description.
Gaming
My one major gripe with the Rosewill keyboard is that it is not backlit, either full or partial. Many gaming keyboards today are backlit and for good reason because if, like me, you prefer to game in darkness or at least dim light, hitting the right key can be cumbersome if you cannot immediately identify it. While the WSAD keys can be excused as any gamer worth his salt will know precisely where they are, other keys are perhaps a little less familiar and require a quick glance down to recall the precise position. When the keyboard is not lit, precious milliseconds are wasted trying to focus on the right key which could mean the difference between life and death (in game). Another anomaly with the RK-9000RE is the small enter key rather than a blocky inverted L, the enter key is simply the same size and shape as the left SHIFT key. Not so much a problem for gaming but when you are used to the former shape, any diversion from this just doesn't feel 'right'.
Other than that, the keyboard worked flawlessly and without looking you would be hard pushed to distinguish it from any other keyboard with Cherry Red switches.
As with all mechanical keyboards, the Rosewill RK9000-RE features full n-key roll-over capabilities with the PS2 cable attached. Alternatively if you do not have a PS2 port, up-to 6 key presses can be detected simultaneously with keyboard using the USB cable.
Overall then the performance of the keyboard was great. I certainly have no major complaints other than those outlined above and if you can live without the wrist rest and back-lighting you are sure to be impressed with the RK-9000RE.
Time to wrap up this review with my closing thoughts...
For general typing the Rosewill was a good to use. The Cherry MX Red switches were ultra responsive thanks to the light action required for each key press. tT should be noted that it may take some time to become accustomed to using any mechanical keyboard but with perseverance you will find that a mechanical keyboard can certainly improve your typing skills. Personally, I find the Cherry MX Red switches a little too light for long bouts of typing and often find the keys bottoming out despite the attenuation level being around the halfway mark, such is my heavy typing mannerism. Touch typists will however find the lighter strokes required for Cherry MX red switches perfect. As with all mechanical keyboards, the only way to truly know which switch you prefer is to try them. This however is difficult for most people so I will try and summarise for you:
Most typists would opt for the MX Brown switches (light), most Gamers go for Blacks (stiff). The Cherry Red switches are the go between switch and afford excellent capabilities to both departments. If you want clicky (tactile feedback), light key presses then the Cherry blues are the ones to go for. Simple eh?
Ergonomically, the RK-9000RE is far from perfect because with the omission of a wrist rest, I found typing up this review a bind simply because I felt I had to hover the palms of my hands over the keyboard rather than rest them on the wrist rest. I can appreciate Rosewill are aiming for the value end of the mechanical market but I feel most users would still pay the extra for a wrist rest of some description.
Gaming
My one major gripe with the Rosewill keyboard is that it is not backlit, either full or partial. Many gaming keyboards today are backlit and for good reason because if, like me, you prefer to game in darkness or at least dim light, hitting the right key can be cumbersome if you cannot immediately identify it. While the WSAD keys can be excused as any gamer worth his salt will know precisely where they are, other keys are perhaps a little less familiar and require a quick glance down to recall the precise position. When the keyboard is not lit, precious milliseconds are wasted trying to focus on the right key which could mean the difference between life and death (in game). Another anomaly with the RK-9000RE is the small enter key rather than a blocky inverted L, the enter key is simply the same size and shape as the left SHIFT key. Not so much a problem for gaming but when you are used to the former shape, any diversion from this just doesn't feel 'right'.
Other than that, the keyboard worked flawlessly and without looking you would be hard pushed to distinguish it from any other keyboard with Cherry Red switches.
As with all mechanical keyboards, the Rosewill RK9000-RE features full n-key roll-over capabilities with the PS2 cable attached. Alternatively if you do not have a PS2 port, up-to 6 key presses can be detected simultaneously with keyboard using the USB cable.
Overall then the performance of the keyboard was great. I certainly have no major complaints other than those outlined above and if you can live without the wrist rest and back-lighting you are sure to be impressed with the RK-9000RE.
Time to wrap up this review with my closing thoughts...
