i-rocks Golem Series K50E gaming keyboard

Although we do love a good mechanical keyboard here at KitGuru, we're not blind to the fact that it is not the only way to do things. There are of course traditional membrane, rubber done keys and the more laptop orientated scissor switch, a modified version of which is what i-rocks has utilised in its new Golem Series K50E board. It has quite a standard look compared to the average LED festooned gaming board, but this one does have a basic level of backlighting, a few media keys and some subtle styling. Is it worth its modest price tag and is it a worthy alternative to the many mechanical boards dominating the peripheral scene? Features Unique High Scissor-Structure for comforting and stability. 3.8mm key stroke and Illuminated function to suit gaming needs. Supports simultaneous activation of multiple keys, no ghosting and jamming. Adjustable responsiveness to adapt to needs of individual games. Windows and App keys disabled in gaming mode to prevent accidental activation. Plug and Play, no drivers required. Specifications Interface: USB or PS/2. Keys: 108 ( By language). Key stroke : 3.8 ±0.3 mm. Key force: 55±15g. Anti-ghosting: 24Keys in PS/2 (In main area), 13Keys in USB (In main area). Switch life: about 30 million life cycles. Membrane key-switches with Scissor-Structure.. Illuminated ON/OFF function. Electric current: 300 mA maximum. Voltage: DC5V. USB cable length: 180 cm. Dimensions: 447 (L) x 144 (W) x 33 (H) mm. The packaging for this Golem Series board really reminds me of old graphics card boxes, with its looming figure in the background and flaming cross. Beyond the fancy artwork however, the box also shows off some of this keyboard's top features, including anti-ghosting and long term switch life. The back continues that trend, as well as highlighting the main area that the anti-ghosting technology takes effect in. The only accessory that comes with the K50E is an instruction manual - which was actually quite useful when testing. The keyboard itself is rather plain looking, with matt black paint and only a couple of logos and a red band across the top giving it any sort of styling. The overall construction is reasonably solid, though there is a little flex in the frame if twisted. The keys have the usual concave dip for resting fingers on. Interestingly, when compared with other standard height keys, the ones on the K50E are actually slightly raised at the front, declining towards the back, whereas 'normal' keys are reversed. They have a higher back, and an inclined front. The keys also feature translucent lettering to allow for the orange backlighting to shine through. These are dual-scissor switches, at double the usual height. Under all of that plastic however is a standard membrane system. The keys are not separated out as we have seen on some boards, so this one is likely to be vulnerable to spill damage. No media key double functions on the F keys, those are reserved for keys at the end. We find a volume up, down and mute button - no skip or play/pause keys. There is also a mode button, which is said to switch the board being able to register 13 keystrokes per second, up to 50. According to the manual, this is for gaming purposes, though theoretically it could also be useful for high speed typing. The "Turbo" function that the mode switch engages, does also lock the Windows keys. Flipping the board over, we can see that on the underside it is bright and cheery. Although a splash of colour is nice to see on the otherwise quite dull board, it seems a shame that is almost exclusively on the back. If there was ever a place to make dull, it is the underside! Unless i-rocks got a deal on red paint and decided to use it here, I do not understand painting it such an eye-catching colour. Still, it does feature cable routing for those that prefer their cables to come out of the side, rather than the centre of their board. There are some extended feet if you want your K50E at a slight angle. Better yet, they have rubber feet of their own, so raising the board up should not affect grip. The cable for this keyboard comes with a pre-attached PS2 converter, though it can be removed if preferred. The cable is standard rubber with no braiding and the header is entirely nickel-plated. To test a gaming peripheral, we use them as our main work and play tool for more than a week, running it through the gamut of games from various genres and tens of hours of typing out thousands upon thousands of words. All the while we evaluate them for gaming ability, comfort and ease of use and note down our thoughts. So that is exactly what we did with the i-rocks Golem K50E. It was quite a change of pace to review a keyboard that does not come equipped with mechanical switches, most of which come from a single manufacturer. While I would not go so far as to say that this i-rocks board's membrane scissor switches are in any way better than mechanical ones, they do a pretty good job. Thanks to the double spring action they are responsive and quick and their increased height over the usual low profile laptop scissor keys was nice to see. The only really noticeable difference mid-game is that the keys are not quite as responsive as you would get on a mechanical. They take a bit more force than your average red switch key to go down and they do not have a linear progression, gradually getting harder to press as they complete their transit. This does not make too much difference in games since you are pressing each key uniformly, relatively hard most of the time, but it will contribute to a slightly higher response time. The backlighting is a dark red/orange in darkness but looks more yellowy with a light on But of course if you can afford a mechanical board you are probably thinking of buying one and will be reading those sorts of reviews. What you want to know is whether as a cheaper (£38) keyboard, the i-rocks K50E can offer an alternative for gamers. It can indeed, and though I will likely continue to recommend a mechanical for serious gamers, those looking for a cheaper upgrade option from a stock board would certainly find an improvement in the K50E. When it comes to typing, I was similarly impressed. Although again, I would prefer a mechanical board (with brown switches if given the choice), I really liked what i-rocks did to make this a more comfortable board to type on. The raised height keys and the double scissor arms are a big improvement over the comparatively wobbly and inaccurate stock membrane boards. It has a bit of a "mechanical feel," as the marketing material says, but they do not feature that linear transition of mechanical keys which does feel nicer. However the i-rocks K50E is relatively quiet during usage too and comfortable to type on too. For those keeping track at home, my usual typing rate is around 115 words per minute and I averaged out at around 110 WPM with this keyboard, so it is not bad at all and really those results show that a membrane board does not have to be much slower than a mechanical if done right. I did miss a wrist rest while using it, as in between long sentences it is nice to be able to rest your forearms for a second on something. However this board does at least have a uniform front edge so attaching a third-party rest should not be too difficult. The media keys were well placed and could be operated with one hand meaning you can use them mid-game. However they do lack the usual skip and play/pause functions. The Anti-ghosting features seem to work well enough, though they do not extend to all of the board's keys, which reduces their effectiveness. The i-rocks K50E is a surprisingly capable keyboard for one that is backed up by the same membrane interface that has been the bane of gamers everywhere for the past few decades. Thanks to the implementation of the higher keycaps and the double scissor arms this is a very comfortable and capable keyboard to type and game on. It is not as good as a mechanical and if the money is there, I would always recommend spending that bit extra to get the real deal. But this board goes a long way to providing a good middle ground at a much more competitive price. It also comes with some nice additional features like media keys and basic backlighting, though I thought the styling choice of making the underside the most colourful part of the entire board was a strange one. Some may miss the addition of a wrist rest and with no back end software there are no key remapping features and no backlighting tweaks. There are also a few media functions missing, but you can lock the Windows keys down, which gamers will surely appreciate. While it is not going to blow away a dedicated mechanical gamer any time soon, the i-rocks K50E does a solid job in its price range and shows that there is a middle ground between rubber dome keys and Cherry MX's offerings, making it possible to get good performance without emptying your wallet. The i-rocks K50E Golem series gaming keyboard can be bought on Amazon for £38 inc vat. Discuss on our Facebook page, over HERE. Pros Quick and accurate during gaming. Surprisingly fast and comfortable to type on, with tactile feel. Basic backlighting and media keys. Multiple typing modes with lockable Windows keys. Cons Still has a bit of that membrane squishy feeling when typing. Keys not segregated to avoid spill damage. No back-end software for profile changes or key remapping. KitGuru Says: It is not ready to dethrone mechanical switch keyboards just yet, but for its price point the K50E offers a solid performing gaming keyboard that will not break the bank.

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i-rocks Golem Series K50E gaming keyboard

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