The Neolution T-Rex is best for gaming, not typing

We gave you our thoughts after spending a week with the Neolution Cyborg. This time, we give you a review of the Neolution T-Rex gaming keyboard.

The Neolution T-Rex costs PhP 770 ($17.79) and was the most affordable keyboard during the Pinoy Gaming Festival (PGF) 2013. Although it is not a mechanical keyboard, it features soft-touch gaming keys, which make it easier to use with less worry of breaking it. According to the sales person in the Neolution booth, the Neolution T-Rex was designed to be more durable than most keyboards. We spent a month typing and gaming with this unit and here’s what we think.

The Neolution T-Rex unit

The unit itself is composed of two parts —the keyboard and the detachable palm rest. I like the idea of the detachable palm rest because it caters to both players who prefer it and those who don’t. It’s also great if you like lugging around your keyboard in internet cafés or LAN parties and find out there isn’t enough space for it all. The drawback here is that it was very difficult to attach although I’m not quite sure if that’s a problem for my unit alone. For some reason, the right side of the palm rest doesn’t seem to lock in place. But once you place it on the table, it turns out fine and does not affect its performance.

The wire seems to be a bit thicker than your average keyboard, though it offers nothing new. I guess this is okay since you don’t move the keyboard around when you play. Again, if you’re planning on taking this with you on LAN parties, make sure you pay attention to how you handle the wire. I suggest not wrapping it around the whole keyboard unless you’re aiming to destroy the wiring.

The soft-touch gaming keys feel nice under my fingers and are relatively comfortable to use either when typing or playing games. I’ve used other supposedly-durable gaming keyboards within the price range of PhP 250 to PhP 400 ($4.62 to $9.24) and I often ended up replacing them after a few months. For its affordable price, the Neolution T-Rex was quite impressive as far as the soft-touch keys go.

The Neolution Keyboard also supports anti-ghosting. Anti-ghosting is basically a feature where you are allowed to press multiple keys at the same time. In most keyboards, the user is only allowed to press three or four buttons at the same time if you’re lucky. A ghosted keyboard doesn’t respond to multiple buttons pressed at a time and often gives off a high-pitched beep. This is particularly annoying when you’re playing a racing game that holding down the buttons for nitro, accelerate, and the directions. The Neolution keyboard, on the other hand, allows up to 18 keys to be pressed simultaneously. This will allow you to play most two-player games on PC using one keyboard without having to worry that your button mashing is literally causing the other player to lose.

The arrow keys and the WASD keys of the Neolution T-Rex are made of rubber because they are very prominent keys, which are often used for games like Continent of the Ninth (C9), Dragon Nest, Counter Strike, Audition, and MStar. The surface of these keys also feels rougher and obviously more durable compared to other keys.

If you’re uncomfortable with these eight keys being different from the rest, the Neolution T-Rex comes with eight spare keys, which you can replace them with. You can also use them as temporary replacements if you decide to take out the rubber keys and scrub them, as (judging by how they look and feel) they will visibly accumulate and absorb dirt more than the other keys.

The spacebar is significantly thicker than that of a normal keyboard. I assume this is because the space bar is also crucial in most games where it is often used as the jump button in shooter and action games or the trigger button in rhythm games. The thickness of the space bar also keeps your thumb from accidentally pressing either the other keys above it or the empty space below it.

There are also small foldable plastic stands at the back of the keyboard. Opened to full angle, they don’t raise the keyboard too high, but if you prefer a more elevated and angled keyboard, you can open it only half way and get a little more height. You can also choose to keep it folded if you don’t like elevated keyboards at all.