Full RGB LEDs seem to be the rage these days, for better or worse. From the keyboard side of things,, full RGB Cherry MX Switches are still difficult to come by. Aside from Corsair, no one else seems to have something. Ducky Channel is moving forward with Shine 5, which is a full RGB design, but it won't arrive in North America till probably late October with a price tag that matches Corsair's offering. So, it's kind of a surprise to see Cooler Master to introduce a new keyboard that is not full RGB. I guess Cherry still can't make them fast enough....
Quick Fire XTi is an interesting beast. It's likely to implement the older LEDs rather than full spectrum RGB one for lighting. Perhaps Cooler Master got a good deal on those Cherry MX switches. Who knows.... For one thing, this keyboard is a rather minimalist design. It doesn't even have Cooler Master's logo in the front. Instead, it is embossed on the back side of the keyboard. The focus of the keyboard seems to be its ability to store profiles and macros. These information are stored with the keyboard and not dependent on a computer host. So, the approach is more akin to Ducky Channel's by including a decent ARM based micro-controller rather than Corsair's approach, which depends on the computer host for most of its functionality. There are pros and cons to each approach. It's interesting to see Cool Master electing to go with the more independent route. I suppose one could be traveling to tournaments that allows one to bring their own keyboards and mice. So, having the settings and macros stored on the keyboard could be an important advantage.
The one thing Cooler Master left out was the media control keys. Instead of media keys, the programmable keys took their place. So, it's another give and take for one to end up with a minimal 104 key board foot print without resorting to extending outward like Logitech's G910. Cooler Master is asking for $150 USD for one of these. It's available with almost all the popular MX switches, such as MX blue, brown and red, According to keychatter.com, Cooler Master may even do a MX green production run pending demand. The price is a bit of surprise as Cooler Master used to play more or less in the mainstream and economy brackets. So, this is signaling that they moving up to higher end. Indeed, it's a bit on the higher end, but given its ample abilities, Cooler Master felt the price is justified. We will see how the market respond.
Looks like Cooler Master Quick Fire XTi with MX blue switches is available from Amazon.com already. Handy links are listed below if you are looking to purchase one from Amazon.com to support this site. Thanks!
Cooler Master QuickFire XTi Multi-Color Backlit Mechanical Keyboard, Blue Switches (SGK-4060-KKCL1-US)
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