Introduction
There has been a big explosion in the area of keyboards with the emergence of gaming specific keyboards which have really expanded over the past couple of years and made a true market for themselves. Microsoft really for the most part has stayed away from prospect of a gaming keyboard and left competitors like Logitech take the market by storm. Well Microsoft has now teamed up with Razer one of the leaders in gaming peripherals to bring the Microsoft Reclusa Gaming Keyboard to the market to try and get Microsoft there foot in the door. So how does Microsoft’’s first attempt with the gaming keyboard turn out?
Features
- Blue LED Backlighting: Ambient backlit keys allow gaming in low-or no-light conditions.
- Razer Hyperesponse Gaming Key Action: Reduces key latency for maximized response.
- Two 360-Degree Jog-Dials: One on each side of the keyboard for quick access during gameplay.
- Four Bumper Buttons: Programmable buttons that enable easy access to common keyboard commands.
- Six Programmable Gaming Hot Keys: Create and store different macros and keystrokes for each game profile – gamers can combine several moves with the touch of one key.
- On-The-Fly Profile Management: Users can create and store Key Mapping and Macros for each game profile; keyboard software also automatically assigns different game profiles for supported games.: Detachable Padded Wrist Rest: Ergonomically designed for exceptional comfort.
- Gold-plated USB Ports: Provides additional peripherals plug-in access with maximum conductivity.
- The next most important feature of a gaming keyboard is the response of the keys, and we're happy to say that the Reclusa feels nicer to handle than (we imagine) Angelina Jolie's backside.
- The Reclusa’s long oval shape doesn’t have any pointy edges, nor does it boast any wave-like design for its typing area. The top of the keyboard has a glossy, reflective finish that reveals.
The Microsoft Razer Reclusa is the second product to be released from the two companies. While it may look quite out of this world, it's functions are well placed and the Razer software rounds up the package.
Design
There are not many times that I am not impressed by the initial impressions on a gaming keyboard, but with the Microsoft Reclusa they chose not to go with a flamboyant flashy approach but instead with a much darker tone of black that fills the entire keyboard outside of some gray accents. The keyboard also goes into a much rounder view of a gaming keyboard once again very different from the rest of the market. In general however this is a nice approach and will work for an office environment who may get a few games put in after hours. The design really wouldn’’t stand out as a gaming keyboard if it wasn’’t for the blue back lights that shine beautifully in a darker environment. We have seen a back light on several gaming keyboards before but this one has a very smooth feel to it that hasn’’t been replicated by other keyboards before.
One of the other design features that struck me was the wrist rest which has a good deal of comfort and just a very ergonomic design that gives some very nice comfort. The round style for the keyboard does give a nice feel to the design as it just gives a different look on the keyboard but in general the design is just good not great.
Testing
In general there are only a few ways to look at a gaming keyboard for gaming and for daily use. Lets go through the daily use of the Reclusa Gaming Keyboard because we all know although we build gorgeous gaming machines there is still a good chance we will be surfing the web or checking our e-mail on the machine. So the general use of the Reclusa is actually pretty impressive as we all know Microsoft has been successful with this market in the past and the feel of the keyboard for typing is actually smooth. The keys are on the softer side and for me I find that style of key to be extremely comfortable for writing up documents like this review.
But lets get into the gaming side of things which is the main purpose of this keyboard which is where we will start by talking about the software that is bundled with the keyboard. The software is extremely simplistic and just allows you to customize the functions of the keys for gaming. You can also customize the extra keys on the keyboard for gaming use which can be done with a few clicks of the mouse. The customization options are pretty extensive, I have seen more options in other software, but in my opinion there is enough in this software that 99% of gamers.
On the gaming side of things the Reclusa is just a pretty standard form of a gaming keyboard with no new bells or whistles. As I have said a few times in this review the Reclusa is a rather standard gaming keyboard that doesn’’t try to become anything more then a gaming keyboard. From my experiences with the unit I have to say that the response time was impressive and you could fee a lot of the Razer style edge coming in this unit. The response time of the keyboard is actually one of the more positive aspects of the keyboard as it seems extremely consistent and very accurate.
Overall
In general this is a good gaming keyboard that needs some better design techniques and some more spunk to get it to the next level, however for the price still makes it a good buy.
Originally Posted on Kunzo.com
Microsoft Reclusa Gaming Keyboard Review
The owner and editor-in-chief of Darkstation.com. I've been apart of the website since 2002 and purchased the website in 2010. Owning and running Darkstation is a dream come true. I love video games and I love writing and talking about them even more.
Hardcore PC gamers adore their rigs. They'll fill them with thousand dollar video cards, overclock the wazoo out of the CPU and jam a nitrogen-powered cooling system into the box without blinking. This concoction of extremely expensive components will be used to drive a whopping 30' LCD screen that costs more than most people's cars. Yet they'll often scrimp on the very component that they use more than anything else - the keyboard.Over the last few years, we've had a plague of gaming mice taking care of that side of the hand-PC equation, but gaming keyboards are about as common as games that run on the Mac. Microsoft released its own gaming mouse a few months back, in the form of the Habu Gaming Mouse. The product of an unlikely union with Razer, it had some major firmware quirks at launch, but these were soon cleaned up, resulting in an excellent mouse. The partnership has obviously been a positive experience for both parties, as they've jumped back into bed together to create the Reclusa gaming keyboard.
So what makes a keyboard a 'Gaming' keyboard, as opposed to a 'Keyboard' keyboard? It'd be easy to be cynical and claim that all a gaming keyboard needs is a doubling of the price and the addition of a logo of a snake, gun, or a crosshair. However, true gaming keyboards have a number of differences that make them better suited for purchasing complicated Counter-Strike setups than typing shopping lists out.
First and foremost is a range of custom keys, which can be assigned to macro key combinations. In this regard the Reclusa is a bit of a disappointment. It's only got ten, bunched into two groups of five at each end of the keyboard. Compared to the eighteen found on the current king of keyboards, Logitech's G15, the Reclusa comes a distant second. Making matters worse is the lack of macro programmability for these keys. You're limited to a string of eight key presses per macro, with a minimum of a 50ms break between each press. Making matters worse is a silly limit of only five different keyboard profiles. Compare this to the G15, which has an endless amount of profiles, and the Reclusa's limit of five is downright crazy. Most gamers play more than five games, don't they? Oh well, at least the customisation software is easy to install and use, but then again it would have to be, given that it does so little.
The next most important feature of a gaming keyboard is the response of the keys, and we're happy to say that the Reclusa feels nicer to handle than (we imagine) Angelina Jolie's backside. The buttons have a relatively low profile, allowing for rapid key presses, with a smooth, weighty response. They're not quite as responsive as the scissor keys found on laptops, but it's definitely a very comfortable keyboard to use. Most gamers are allergic to any form of natural or artificial lighting, so they tend to play games entirely in the dark, lest their fragile skin crumble into dust if any rays were to strike them. So the lovely blue backlight on the keys should prove very useful during those midnight raids, and they're evenly lit across most of the keys.There's a lovely faux leather wrist pad, which is very comfy but can be removed if you're not concerned about RSI eating away at your carpal tunnels. At the top of the keyboard is a ridiculous chunk of shiny plastic that does absolutely nothing, bar taking up valuable desk space. Two USB 1.1 ports are included, and both are gold plated. Sorry, but we'd rather have the standard stainless steel plugs in USB 2.0 format than a bit of bandwidth-crippled bling.
And that's about it. It feels really nice, but doesn't have the range of key functionality that most gamers expect. Oh yeah, if you're a bit of an interior design wanker, you might appreciate the smooth lines, but, again, that chunky plastic bit at the top just looks wrong.
Microsoft Reclusa Gaming Keyboard Software
Where it suffers most is the price. With a retail price of AU$119.95, or around US$60 in the States, the Reclusa simply can't compete with other keyboards in the same price bracket. The G15 retails for twenty Aussie bucks less, and comes with a funky multifunction LCD screen! Perhaps if the Reclusa cost around half its current price we could let our fingers do the talking, but at this price it's relegated to the bottom of the pile.