The Basics (continued):

In the below left image are the last set of the F keys, which deal with sound and the Windows key. F9 will mute all sounds, F10 will decrease the volume, F11 will increase the volume, and the F12 function will lock the Windows key so it is not accidentally pressed during gameplay and interrupt your game. There are three lock status lights on the upper right hand corner of the keyboard, shown in the below right image. There is a Num Lock status light for your numerical key pad (num pad), Caps Lock for your Caps lock key, and Scr Lock for the Scroll lock key. All illuminate when one of the three lock keys are toggled on.



The last key detail image is below. Some gaming keyboards remove the num pad to save some physical space and make the keyboard a little easier to lug around. The Ins, Home, PgUp, Del, End, and PgDn keys are shared with the numbers 4 through 9. The PrtSc, ScrLk, and Pause keys are also nestled into the num pad area, as well as the directional arrows. And, this is the first keyboard I have ever seen with a double zero key.



One thing I noticed while using the keyboard was the operation of the Plus and Enter buttons on the num pad. When Num Lock is turned off, the Plus and Enter keys are disabled. It was somewhat annoying as I had to keep checking the Num Lock status when they did not respond after I pressed them. In addition, using the Ctrl Alt Del keystroke is cumbersome. The Num Lock needs to be off for the keystroke to work.

The key puller accessory could come in handy for those with OCD that want to clean under they keys every so often. For review purposes I removed a key to show the detail of the Cherry MX switches found under every key. In the below left image, you can see the CM Storm Quick Fire TK keyboard with the G key removed. The below right image shows a closer look at the switch. On the top of the Cherry MX switch is a tiny light for lighting up each key with the back-light feature. The Red Cherry MX switches have no tactile feel, or any click sound.



For a size comparison I used my CM Storm Quick Fire keyboard. It does not have a num pad, to keep it as compact as possible. In the image below the CM Storm Quick Fire TK keyboard is on the top, with the Quick Fire on the bottom. The keyboards are the same size other than the width. There is about an inch difference, with the Quick Fire TK being slightly wider due to the extra row of keys. Both are very compact and do not take up any unnecessary space on your desk.