Our first port of call in assessing the overall performance of the Knucker should without doubt be the keys, or more precisely the switches. The keys are quite light-weight and wide, which means that striking them accurately is very simple. It also seems like Tt eSPORTS have gone for a low profile in order to minimise the actuation distance and make the initial push seem like overcoming the bump of a tactile mechanical switch, whilst in reality you're overcoming the initial deformation of a rubber dome. Following that the amount of force required is low, as one would expect from both switch types.

The effect is somewhat mixed. Although intended to mimic tactile mechanical switches such as the Cherry MX Blue, the switch dynamics don't resemble those of a mechanical switch type in operation apart from a point of heavy resistance and then semi-linear thereafter. Blue's have a linear initial action which the Plunger types do not, the best comparison being 'similar to Blues once you meet the initial point of tactile feedback'. As advertised however it's also lot quieter, exhibiting none of the distinctive click of a mechanical switch at either tactile point of when it hits the backplate. Despite note quite living up to expectations it's much more satisfying than a typical membrane switch, which to be fair is the keyboards chief competition. As with most membrane keyboards, actuation is upon virtually depressing the key to its fullest extent rather that at an intermediate point.

One exception to this was the Spacebar. Exhibiting lower resistance to get over the initial bump, and exhibiting different points of actuation depending on the side of Spacebar struck, this key was by some margin the least reliable and lead to a few missed strikes before began to adapt. Given the even nature of the rest of the key set - including the larger Enter and R-Shift - this was a little disappointing.

The Knucker lacks both macro and media keys, so the choice of USB or PS2 connector generally comes down to a mix of personal preference and the need for ever greater levels of Anti-Ghosting. We did most of our testing in PS2 mode.

Typing and word-processing on the Knucker is very good, although speed for touch-typists will be a little hampered compared to mechanical keyboards due to slightly less key spring-back. On the other hand keystrokes are much quieter, lending themselves to an office or other group environment where the repetitive clicking of a switch could grow to frustrate colleagues. Compared to standard membrane rubber-dome switches the keys are much more responsive, resulting in the potential for faster speeds and better precision.

Increasing key repeat rates, previously the main domain of OS settings which the average office worker may be locked out from, can in many cases aid productivity, especially in spreadsheet manipulation when cycling through cells. We wouldn't say that it left such a significant impression that it would sway any purchasing decisions, but it does represent a pleasant bonus.

Speaking of bonuses, the removable keycaps make cleaning the keyboard far more easy than typical membrane keyboards.

Anti-Ghosting / NKRO

The Knucker lists up-to 16 key anti-ghosting in the technical specifications, which with the exception of a number of extreme outlier cases is plenty for a gaming keyboard. The most important keys to have anti-ghosting features is of course the keys around WASD, generally one key either side plus L-Shift and L-Control.



Once again, Aquakey or Microsoft's web-based java app are good first ports of call for anti-ghosting testing in the absence testing every possible 16-key combination in game. Using these tools we were able to assess the anti-ghosting capability as fair-to-good: Knucker PS2 anti-ghosting is capable of determining individual keypresses for the keys SHIFT+CTRL+WASD+QE12345RTFG, but not ZXC (which are mutually exclusive with 123 when six or more relevant keys are pressed) and the diagonal line consisting of BHU8. Slightly more troubling is that certain keys are unresponsive with only three keys in the crucial WASD zone held down, including number and symbol keys in the top row often crucial for MMO's.

Now, keep in mind that this is nowhere near poor as far as gaming keyboards go. Most only claim 6-key rollover, so to provably demonstrate 16 is very good. It does mean however that your keybindings will need to take our results into account in certain titles, most specifically MMO and RTS genres. If possible, offloading borderline functions to a mouse macro would be sensible.

Gaming Performance

As is usual, we tested the Knucker with three different titles representing three gaming genres which have markedly different key usage patterns. This time around we have plumped for Borderlands 2, Torchlight 2 and Starcraft 2.

Borderlands 2

2012's critically acclaimed FPS is first up, and encapsulates the need for dependable keystrokes to accommodate fast-paced action. The Knucker turned out to be quite ably suited to the game in most instances thanks to the short actuation length and predictable response, with anti-ghosting features never failing during gameplay.

A frustration was the spacebar - as previously identified the left-side does not actuate in the same way as the right, and so requires much more force than you'd expect. This isn't quite so noticeable in typing as in gaming due to a personal typing style which strikes the right of the spacebar, whilst in gaming only the left is hit. The result is that sometimes a jump wouldn't be registered when intended, although over time it was possible to adapt. Obviously this is less than ideal, and may be a specific issue with a batch of which this was a member.

Starcraft 2 And Torchlight 2

Torchlight 2 and Starcraft represent genres where your fingers tend to migrate across the keyboard a little more than an average FPS. Response, precision and fast successive keypresses are all crucial, whilst anti-ghosting is also of particular aid in the absence of an advanced macro mouse. In the case of Starcraft, developing a rhythm through a predictable and regular response from the key aids in developing muscle memory.

Plunger switches on the Knucker were well up to the task. Compared to typical membrane switches the low actuation distances and improved consistency did make a surprising difference at times, although they don't compare too well to the much more expensive mechanical switches we've seen recently. The spacebar one again misbehaved in Starcraft, but Torchlight never really requires the use of that key.

Hardware-based keyboard repeat rate increases (through the use of the S1->S4 functionality) were surprisingly noticeable in Starcraft 2, especially when spawning large numbers of zerg larvae. If you spend the majority of your time in this game or genre the 8x repeat rate functionality could have a significant impact on your macro, whilst the uniform response should not impede your micro.

Finally, moving the Windows key is a godsend. Other manufacturer's do allow you to disable the key temporarily, but there's elegance to the concept of moving it out the way entirely. Baring adding such firmware complications - no doubt also increasing development times and cost - it seems like an ideal compromise.

We should also note that despite initial concerns the inherent chassis flexibility didn't pose a problem, indicating positioning of support and reinforcement on the feet when angling the keyboard. Similarly, the wrist-rest also adds some palm support, but it's quite minimal. Those who suffer particularly from wrist may want to also purchase an additional rest to alleviate pressure.

For a mid-range keyboard the Knucker was pretty impressive. Time to conclude with out overall thoughts...