IOGEAR Kaliber Gaming HVER Pro X

Plenty of pros, but a few cons, too

- ALEX COX

LET’S HIT YOU with the first thing that hit us: The top plate of the HVER Pro X is pretty outrageous. It’s a screwed-down aluminum slab that spills off all sides of the keyboard, as though it’s desperate to escape. We’ll say it: Those edges are really, desperately ugly, stamped and bent with xtreeem gamerz cuts and slashes that do more to take away from the look of the HVER Pro X than add to it. Aesthetics aside, they are at least practical—you can balance a pen on the rear lip, and the curves on the bottom and side edges make this more comfortable on the palms than some.

The top panel also aids in the Pro X’s spill-proof design. We won’t claim that the half can of Monster Energy that hit our review model was a deliberate test— ahem—but credit where it’s due, this survived without an issue, which could be a big plus for those with busy desks. Weirdly, though, our review model, as shipped, seemed to be under a whole lot of tension. It would not sit flat on the desk, whether the feet were extended or not. The only way to remedy the situation was to grab the bottom-left and top-right corners of the top plate—which appears to be responsible for the Pro X’s otherwise-commendable rigidity—and physically muscle the keyboard back into shape. That really is a new one.