Razer Tarantula Gaming Keyboard

Reviews: Peripherals

Accessories | Gaming Devices | Keyboards / Mice | Printers

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Anthony Fiti
Kurtis
Razer
Dec. 19, 2006

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Taking a Closer Look

One of the interesting design choices with this keyboard is that the extra keys on this keyboard are on either side. There is nothing above the F keys except for the Caps/Num/Scroll Lock indicator lights. So all you have to do to access either the macro keys or the media and web browser keys is move your hands left or right.

Another interesting design decision is the layout of the Home/End group of keys. One of the nice things they did was move the insert key away from the delete key. I love this because I will occasionally find myself hitting the insert key instead of the delete key (yes, I use the delete key, it's nothing to be ashamed of). So having it moved away and grouped with other infrequently used keys like Scroll Lock, Print Screen and Pause/Break is nice. The five keys that are left over are grouped together in a vertical fashion with the home and end keys on top, the delete key is double tall on the left side and the scroll up and scroll down keys flanking the delete key on the right. I'm not a huge fan of this configuration, as I often use home and end to get to the beginning and end of web pages and when I would go to hit them I'd hit the page up and down keys instead. I'm sure this is something I could eventually get used to but it was quite an annoyance during my testing.

Other than the items mentioned above, the keyboard has a normal layout for today's keyboards. The top row of keys are all half height (function keys, escape, insert, scroll lock, print screen and pause/break), and the typical right windows key and the context menu button are replaced with the Razer logo key.

On the left side of the keyboard are the L-macro keys (L for left, R for right), along with buttons for putting the computer into sleep mode, a button that starts up a new web browser window, rotate, zoom in and out of images, and a 100% key for going back to the 1:1 scale. On the right side are the R-macro keys, a button to start your media player, play, stop, next and previous, shuffle toggle, volume rocker and a mute bottom. The L/R macro keys and the profile key above the Home/End area are backlit, but no other keys on the keyboard are.

This keyboard is wide - wider than your typical keyboard, and therefore you might have issues using a keyboard tray or drawer with the Tarantula. It's almost as wide as my Logitech G15 keyboard (about 1" shorter). The keyboard does not feature any removable wrist rest, so you're forced to deal with the integrated wrist rest and the glowing (and fading in and out) Razer logo.

Finally, at the top of the keyboard is the Razer Battledock, to which you connect special add-ons they create. Once you open the cover however, a simple mini-USB port is revealed. Razer didn't furnish me with any of their attachments, so I won't be testing this feature.

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Page 1: Introduction & First Looks
Page 2: Taking a Closer Look
Page 3: Setup & Testing
Page 4: Conclusion

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1 User Comment

1 - Posted by PsychoSnowMan on May 6, 2007 - 8:01 pm

I've read some other reviews that have said you need to upgrade the firmware for the anti-ghosting to work. It might be a good idea to try this out and update the review.
Also can the backlighting be disabled? I sleep in the same room as my computer, and my mouse, joystick, and stereo already have LEDs that shine all night.

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