Rosewill Mechanical Keyboard with Cherry MX Red Switch (RK-9000RE)

The media could not be loaded.  I'm using this keyboard to type this review. I've been researching mechanical keyboards for about a month now, and I finally grabbed this bad boy for $60 on sale. I chose this keyboard because it was cheap and had good reviews. The bad reviews such as the faulty USB port don't really scare me, as I consider myself decent with a soldering iron. Typing on this keyboard definitely feels 1000x better than my old mushy/stuck membrane keyboard that I've been using for about 3 years.Getting used to this keyboard is going to take some time, I would say maybe a week for me to get use to it. But it does feel really good. I probably will pick up another mechanical keyboard with MX Brown switches because that's what I originally wanted, but I couldn't pass up this deal.For those who don't know, from my research I've concluded that:- MX Blue - loud, clicky and clacky. You don't need to bottom out completely to activate the switch (this takes practice)- MX Brown - A more subtle version of the Blues. Quieter and deeper sound, but doesn't give as good of a solid response as blue does.- MX Reds - For gamers, who needs to double tap keys and such. These are almost silent compared to Browns and Blues, and keypresses are linear. (There's no bump that feel like in Blues/Browns)Pros:- MX Blue switches give a really nice feedback letting you know that the switch has been activated.- Heavy duty. This keyboard could probably knock someone out if they got hit with it, and wake them up shortly after just by typing on it. The overall construction feels solid and well built.- Simple packaging. Comes with a keyboard nicely wrapped, two braided cables (PS/2 & USB), and a sheet of paper talking about the blue switches. I'm not sure why they gave us two separate cables when just the USB cable and a USB->PS/2 adapter would've been easier to manufacture and cheaper.- I believe most of the keycaps on this board are standard size, which means you can remove them and customize them with your own keycaps. (Correct me if I'm wrong on this)- Good rubbery grips so it doesn't slide around, and risers if you like the elevated angle.Some cons that I noticed right away:- Plugging your keyboard into the PS/2 port is supposed to be "better". This gives you N key rollover, which means you can mash all of the keys at once, at the same time, and they'll all register. PS/2 also supposedly has the advantage of being faster than USB (good for gamers). However, as of this review, PS/2 didn't work for me. I could have a bad cable, but who knows. I'm currently connecting through USB, and that should be more than enough to make the average user happy.- The LED lights are bright blue. I'm really not a fan of obnoxious lights, but these are subtle enough as long as you don't look at them directly (at an angle is fine)- I'm not sure why this is, but the sound of the space bar and backspace key sounds different than the rest of the keys. Almost all of the keys have a "click" sound. The spacebar key has a "clack", and the backspace has a "cluck". Not really noticeable unless you're trying to listen for it.- Removing the sticker on the back voids the warranty. That sucks, I wanted to paint the plate that the keys are sitting on. (it's red and noticeable in the light) I will probably void the warranty later down the road and paint it black.Some things/features that I wish it had:- Even 1 USB port would be nice. This keyboard comes with none.- LED backlit keys would also be nice, but I hardly need to look at the keyboard when I type anyways.- I wish it came with a keycap puller. It's almost impossible to remove keys by hand without one on this keyboard.You would have to remove the top part of the case to pull out the keys if you don't have a keycap puller.This is my longest review that I've written on Amazon..and I enjoyed it. Mechanical keyboards are so much fun. I highly recommend this one for those of you who are starting out and don't want to spend 100+ (yet).

I picked up this keyboard for my home office.The Rosewoll RK-9000 has a solid feel to it. The metal back plate makes the MX Blues nice and crisp. If you bottom them out, you get an extra-solid "thud". The keyboard is relatively heavy, which, in conjunction with the rubber feet on the bottom, makes it stay planted where you put it until you intentionally move it.When I compared this side-by-side to an older Das Keyboard Ultimate, I noticed that this was almost twice as heavy. The thinner bezels around the outside make the footprint smaller, even with the same key layout. I like that.That said, this is as basic as they come. No MACROS, no back-lighting, no audio or USB jacks on the keyboard. I am not listing that as a pro or a con, but it is what it is.Pros:Nice, solid feel.Standard key layout, but smaller footprint than some other mechanical keyboards out there.Rewarding tactile feel of MX Blues. I have Browns in my MaxKeyboard X8 at work, and these are noticeably more tactile.Price. This cost about 1/3 of what my Max Keyboard did. I understand that my X8 has a bunch of things this doesn't, but it is a good way to get into a mechanical keyboard for a decent price.Cons:USB cord: Mini-USB is not the greatest plug to use with the heavier braided cord. The jack on the keyboard could be lower on the keyboard in my opinion.Where it is, it gets in the way. I think this is the biggest flaw of this keyboard. I have only switched cords a few times, and already the jack seems to be a bit loose.LEDs are bright: I keep my office lighting dim. The LEDs for CAPS lock and such are a bit too bright.Overall, I like this keyboard. I am typing this review from it. The price is good, and the build quality solid. It doesn't so some of the fancy things that some others do, but that is okay...I still like it.

Nice keyboard feel, but the connector came loose almost immediately, forcing me to tape the cable to the keyboard to maintain a connection. Then the connector completely separated, rendering the keyboard useless. This is such a shame, because it could've been a great keyboard. I'd never buy another Rosewill keyboard again, because they seem to have no engineering judgment.I'm disgusted by this whole experience. I recommend the Ducky MX Cherry Black instead, or maybe a Das Keyboard. (I have both, and they're fine.)