It is solid and works fine, but the switches are quite hard and lose sensitivity so fast and may miss some clicks on them. Also customs from my country has charge me almost 100$ extra for the keycap, cable and keyboard combo that is actually 250$ and i my package was missed for almost a month...
In fact i love the visual of this keyboard and im for sure custom this one with a better pcb and switches.
I love how the Black Speech theme was executed, definitely one of the most beautiful board I own. I was quite pleasantly surprised with how I sound, I just wish the backlighting was red or orange rather than white.
This was my first higher-end board, and I love the feel, the stiffness of the metal board. The pandas are heavier, than the gateron browns I used to use, but it turns out, for me this is better for typing. And now I can start debugging my code with the watchful eye of Sauron.
The only thing, is that I miss the numpad, but that can be fixed.
It's a great keyboard except one bad thing.
The backlight definitely doesn't fit with LOTR theme. Would be great if it has a red, soft yellow or orange color options.
The board has a very beautiful design, however it is extremely pricey given the board that you are getting with this. I would definitely be strategic about when you buy this, since the price fluctuated a lot during the period I looked at it.
This keyboard is absolutely beautiful. However the features of the keyboard leave a lot to be desired. The led's are pretty dim with the key cap set. Could be worse could be better. The switches themselves are absolutely fantastic. And the keycaps are comfy, while you may not have an indent or tab to find f and j, you'll quickly get used to where to find them as your fingers will find it's way back to the proper center of a key.
The biggest gripe I have is the build quality. The keyboard is a bit tinny as there is no sound dampening inside. And the top cover on mine has a clip/snap towards the center that may be broken or did not fasten properly and so I can slip a fingernail in without effort or any sort of force. I have opened a support ticket for this issue and will update my review depending on the outcome.
All in all a pretty decent keyboard if you get it for a decent price (I would not buy it at full price). Worth it alone if you get it for just a little bit more than the base black speech training keycap set.
Edit: I have RMA’d the keyboard due to the top plate lifting issue by near the spacebar. It was continually getting worse and causing some noise when pressing keys on the lower half of the board. I sent the board with everything in the box as soon as I got the shipping label. Still waiting on the replacement to be shipped. Support says they dispatched the replacement not long after I dropped it off at the UPS store but that it could take 3-5 business days to ship out the replacement.
Edit 2: I sent an email yesterday asking if there are any expedited shipping options. According to UPS tracking info, the defective unit was delivered to Drop/Corsair this morning. I sent another email acknowledging that the defective unit was delivered to them today. I have yet to receive a response.
Edit 3: Still no response from my couple of emails over the past day. My estimated ship date has now shifted again by another day. I will be opening another ticket to follow up on the ticket I originally opened if I don't receive a response soon.
Edit 4: Support responded finally, and have stated that it is preparing for shipment and should be shipped out soon. No mention of being able to expedite shipping.
Edit 5: I have been without the keyboard for a week now. My estimated ship date has shifted by a day again that puts it outside of the 3-5 business day window. Could still ship today or tomorrow, but Drop is not providing a structure that would enable their customer service reps to provide a more transparent and satisfactory solution. Sure the return/replacement policy is great but the shipping and handling is so long for something that is “ready to ship/in stock” that it brings the replacement policy down with it. I could probably have bought a new one and gotten it a lot faster. I did my part as fast as I could, sure would be nice if Drop did theirs for a shipping a replacement.
Edit 6: I finally have a tracking number.
Edit 7: The replacement keyboard arrived. The shipping box was not in good shape. The product box was ok for the most part. The keyboard itself is in good condition, works, and the top plate is secured properly and does not have any flex.