Roccat Ryos MK Pro Mechanical Keyboard Review
Conclusion & Final Thoughts
This is the first Roccat product that I have had a chance to play around with outside a demonstration at a trade show. The build quality of the Ryos MK Pro is superb. It is a large heavy keyboard that doesn’t feel cheap. The seams for the shell line up perfectly even after being taken apart. It has a solid feel to it and feels like it will last for years to come. Aesthetically, the Ryos MK Pro looks good. Roccat says the shiny parts of the keyboard are smudge proof, but depending on how much you use the keyboard, hand sweat, it may prove to be smudge resistant rather than smudge proof. For me, I’ve used the Ryos MK Pro for about a week for daily tasks as well as gaming and I can see very little that indicates the keyboard has been used.
I was not sure how I was going to like the Cherry MX Black keys as there is not an audible click nor is there any tactile feedback. Honestly, it feels really close to using a super stiff membrane keyboard. The Cherry MX Black keys require the most force to activate the key. At first I noticed the difference between my old keyboard and the Ryos MK Pro. It is considerably different than using the daily membrane keyboard I have used for the last few years but after about two hours the realization that I was using a different keyboard was gone. After two days, the thought didn’t even cross my mind.
The choice to put diodes on every switch means that practically every key can be pressed at the same time and the keyboard will register it. Like you, I only have ten fingers and I am not flexible enough to get my feet up on my keyboard tray, so I laid the back of my cell phone on the keyboard just to the right of the TAB key. I used one hand to press down on my phone with activated about 25 keys. Then with my other hand I pressed as many keys down with my palm and fingers and would lift and then press another key.Using some of the keyboard tests online, the Ryos MK Pro never missed a key press nor did any errors or issues crop up.
The included and optional software the Ryos MK Pro uses is a mixed bag. The driver and control software for the keyboard works well and I didn’t have any issues. The issues arose when I tried to tie Roccat’s Power Grid software with the keyboard. There is an intermediate piece of software that is needed called Roccat Talk. Downloading the latest version caused me nothing but headaches. After I rolled back to v2.2 things went smoothly from there.
Keyboards and mice are such a personal item. No two people have the same ideals on what the perfect keyboard is and each will feel differently about how it feels when they use it. Manufactures know this and try to hit a wide audience with their product my offering options. The Ryos MK Pro is no different and offers four different Cherry MX switches to suit the consumers wants & needs.
I have officially replaced my daily keyboard with the Roccat Ryos MK Pro. I do like back lit keyboard and for daily typing having all the keys lit up when the lights are dim is nice. Load up a gaming profile and you can set only the keys you use to come on, and easily know which keys are used in said game. I think Roccat has struck a good balance between comfort, usability and customization. The macro keys and having the ability to assign two different functions to each key can really bring your game play to the next level. This is a rock solid keyboard and while $170.00 puts it on the high side of the market, I believe you get what you pay for and the Roccat Ryos MK Pro delivers.
[sc:must_have_award ]
