Vertux Tantalum

Keyboards and mice are a bit of a touchy subject in the gaming world. These two peripherals remain the most subjective weapon in a gamer’s arsenal. While many prefer the high-end mechanical keyboards with aluminum alloy finish, others make do with regular budget keyboard and mouse. Vertux, Promate’s gaming line, aims to bring a bit of high-end gaming down to the modest of prices, but does it compare to the big boys in the club?

- Gabriel Pe

DESIGN

The Vertux Tantalum is a mechanical keyboard. I know mechanical keyboards aren’t for everyone because of their mostly clicky sound and sometimes resistant keys. I prefer mechanical keys if given a chance.

Before going to the keyboard, I wanted to give props to Vertux for having decent packaging. The trial hole on the arrow keys allows customers to try the keyboard out without fully shelling out; not a lot of manufacturers do this.

On to the keyboard itself, the Tantalum is a full-sized mechanical keyboard. The majority of the keyboard’s body is made out of hard plastic with only the top part sporting a metal plate which has the brand’s logo. The rest of the keyboard is made out of hard plastic. Still, the keyboard felt sturdy, except for a soft spot above the arrow keys.

Another thing to note is the lack of dedicated media keys. While I usually don’t use them that much, it would have been great if it was there at least. The keyboard does have a braided USB cable, which is pretty sweet.

HARDWARE

The Tantalum keyboard has RGB lighting, alluring most gamers (yes, even me initially). The keyboard’s RGB is per key; while this may be great in theory for personalization, the lack of software prevents you from doing so. The keyboard does already have preset RGB lighting options, and there are quite a few of them.