Tesoro Excalibur RGB Mechanical Keyboard Review

1. Introduction2. Unboxing & First Look3. Testing4. Conclusion5. View All Pages

We continue to make our way through the growing list of ‘RGB' peripherals today with a look at the Tesoro Excalibur RGB Edition Mechanical Keyboard. While other RGB keyboards will set you back upwards of £150, Tesoro's solution comes in at just £85 but, how does it perform?

This Tesoro Excalibur RGB mechanical keyboard ships with Kailh Brown switches but the Excalibur RGB keyboard also comes with blue, red and black switch options.

Features and specifications:

• Kailh brown mechanical key switches.
• RGB lighting.

  

The Tesoro Excalibur RGB mechanical keyboard comes in a compact box, with the keyboard sat neatly inside.

The keyboard isn't overly flashy like some of the other RGB keyboards we have tested in recent months. The design is simple and doesn't immediately scream ‘gamer', this could easily be mistaken for a regular office keyboard- which isn't a bad thing.

Unfortunately, there is no USB or audio passthrough to be found on this keyboard, a feature that I personally value when it comes to mechanical keyboards. Its not a deal breaker but it would have made a nice addition.

The Tesoro Excalibur keyboard does not feature any gaming specific features like extra macro buttons, you only get the essentials with this keyboard.

Here you can see the brown Kailh switches, they use the same cross-head design as Cherry MX keys so you should be able to find replacement keycaps if you ever need them. Each key is also individually backlit.

This keyboard is entirely built out of plastic but the build quality is solid. There is no flex and I am confident that it could survive a bit of a beating.

To kick off our testing, we will be taking a look at the software suite that gives access to this keyboard's RGB and customization features.

Tesoro has developed its own software for the Excalibur RGB keyboard. It is pretty bare bones and doesn't look quite as polished as alternative offerings from competing companies, such as Logitech or Corsair.

While there are no extra macro keys on the board itself, you can click on any key you wish and set a new function to it, which adds some level of customisation to the board. However, dedicated keys for extra functions would still be preferred.

The lighting suite is pretty basic. overall, Tesoro's software is very easy to use but it could do with a bit of an aesthetic overhaul. Since this is an RGB product, you can cycle through most colors, although how accurately they will be represented is another matter.

Your basics like blue, red and green work fairly well. Other colors don't come out quite as well. For instance, the preset shade of yellow looks more like lime green and the white preset has a blue tint to it.

Lighting effects are sparse, you can set up a custom five color cycle for the keyboard but outside of that, there are no more options. Additionally, you can't speed up or slow down the rate of the color cycle, which is a shame as the effect runs painfully slow.

Overall, Tesoro's software is not the best we have used, it could do with a bit of an aesthetic overhaul and some extra customization options for future products would not go amiss, particularly in a gaming keyboard.

Now let's talk about how this keyboard performs. As we noted in the introduction to this review, Tesoro has opted to use the Chinese Kailh mechanical switch, as opposed to Cherry or something of its own design. Why Kailh? well currently Corsair has an exclusivity deal with Cherry for its RGB enabled mechanical switches, which is why there is such a shortage of Cherry MX RGB keyboards on the market.

Our model came with Kailh brown switches, which are tactile rather than linear. However, unlike blue switches, the browns don't click whenever a key press is registered, making for a slightly quieter typing and gaming experience.

By slightly quieter, I do mean slightly, these Kailh brown switches are still quite loud while typing. However, during games when the keys aren't being hammered quite as much, the noise is kept  to a minimum.

Tesoro has opted to not use a crazy design to appeal more to the gamer audience. The keyboard has a standard layout with standard keycaps, it is a tried and true design and makes for a very easy typing experience. I did not have to undergo an ‘adjustment period' in order to get used to using the Excalibur, nor did my touch typing take a hit.

Since this is branded as a gaming keyboard, we have to touch on gaming performance. This keyboard does not have any macro keys, which may be a deal breaker for some right off the bat.  Personally, I don't make use of macro keys so I was good to go.

There was no input lag while gaming and the Windows key has been made slightly smaller so I did not find myself accidentally hitting it. When there is no Windows lock button it can present a problem for gamers.

For typing, this keyboard is great, using a tried and true design. For gaming, you are getting the bare minimum, with no additional keys for macro functions or Windows lock function.

Overall, we are impressed with the Tesoro Excalibur RGB mechanical keyboard. It doesn't deviate from the norm too much in terms of design, making for an easy transition and a pleasant typing experience. I encountered no problems with key spacing or layout.

However, for a gaming keyboard, the features you get are surprisingly minimal. I personally prefer a bare bones keyboard but those that value macro functions and high levels of customization may want to look elsewhere.

The fact that this keyboard uses Kailh mechanical switches is not advertised on the box, I am not sure why Tesoro has chosen to do this but it is an important piece of information for the consumer to have in order to make an informed buying decision.

That said, Kailh switches aren't bad by any means. I have really enjoyed my time using Kailh's brown switch variant. You will actually find these switches in many keyboards from the likes of Razer and ThermalTake.

While other RGB keyboards cost upwards of £150, Tesoro's solution comes in at £85, which is a decent price for a basic but solid mechanical keyboard. Unfortunately, UK availability is scarce at the moment so it may be tricky to find.

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Pros:

• Simple design.
• RGB lighting.
• Kailh brown switches are excellent for typing and gaming.

Cons:

• Not much room for key command customisation.
• No USB passthrough.
• Software could do with a design overhaul.

KitGuru Says: If you are looking for a solid mechanical keyboard for under £100 then the Tesoro Excalibur RGB is an excellent choice.

 

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