What first struck us first about CM Storm’s brand-new Mech keyboard was its sheer size. It’s 51mm wider than Corsair’s K95, despite the latter having two rows of macro keys. Much of its width is taken up by the handle, which should really be removable given that it will spend most of its life pointlessly occupying desk space. Likewise, the massive wrist-rest is permanently attached, but it does provide plenty of support, if not necessarily comfort.
The handle and wrist-rest are formed from chunky, cheap-looking plastic, which is also glossy, and therefore prone to picking up fingerprints, which isn’t ideal on a keyboard. On the plus side, the aluminium front plate looks attractive with its exposed screws, and the board is incredibly solid – we’d certainly avoid angering anyone who happened to be carrying one. Rubber strips on the feet and legs will keep it firmly planted on your desk too.
Cooler Master sent us the Cherry MX Blue version of the Mech, but versions with the Red and Brown switches will also be available. As people generally have strong preferences in this respect, this is a great option. Every key on the Mech is backed by a mechanical switch, and on the Blue version, this means that key presses are fast and well defined. There’s support for 64-key rollover too, so there won’t be any unregistered presses.
Via its single USB 3 connection, the Mech provides dual USB 3 outputs, a mini-USB charging port and two audio jacks. This is great in terms of connections, but using digital USB audio over simpler (and cheaper) pass-through analogue jacks isn’t a great choice, as it’s useless to anyone with even a half-decent sound card. Meanwhile, a key-removal tool is included, as well as a hex key, enabling you to remove and potentially customise the front plate. The USB cable is also removable, which makes it all the more irksome that the handle and wrist-rest are stuck in place.
Laptop-style FN keys grace the F-keys with secondary functions related to media, volume and backlighting as well as the Windows key lock. Dedicated buttons would be preferable for these functions, though, especially given the ample room around the chassis. The white backlit keys look good, though, and they can be switched between five brightness levels and three modes – fully lit, breathing or just gaming keys.
The 1-5 and FN keys are also used to switch profiles, with the keyboard flashing to indicate a change, but providing no visual reminder of the current profile. Each profile can store 15 macros for a whopping total of 75. The downloadable software has heaps of options too, but it’s also the least intuitive and most frustrating to use of all those on test, and the manual doesn’t explain the process of recording macros very well either.
CONCLUSION
While it’s £60 cheaper than the Strike 7, the Mech is still expensive. At £130, every part of it should feel premium. Thankfully, this is true in many places – the removable aluminium front plate, fully mechanical key set and dual USB 3 outputs, for example. However, the feeling is countered by the non-removable and bulky plastic surrounding, as well as the irritating software, which makes taking advantage of the board’s numerous key customisations a cumbersome process. With a few improvements, the Mech could be a true premium keyboard of choice, but for now it’s too overpriced for what’s on offer.
