The finest gaming keyboards normally ship swanky RGB lighting, premium mechanical switches, and customization software program — however they typically value $100 or extra. The Hver Stealth from IOGear makes an attempt to ship all of those options for the impressively low value of $50. It has a handsome, high quality chassis regardless of the worth, and the RGB lighting has 15 built-in results which are beautiful if mild exhibits out of your peripherals are essential to you.
And should you flip off the lights, the aptly named ‘Stealth’ will mix into any workplace setting because of its understated design and pretty quiet (brown) switches. However whereas the worth is interesting and issues look good on the floor, making a mechanical keyboard inexpensive means reducing some corners. And with the Hver Stealth, that principally has to do with the keycaps and switches which supplies the keyboard a really feel that doesn’t match as much as its seems to be.
Hver Stealth Specs
| Switches | Boxed mechanical switches (brown) |
| Lighting | RGB per-key backlighting |
| Connectivity | Wired |
| Media Keys | Sure, with Fn |
| Keycaps | Double injected |
| Software program | Kaliber Gaming software program |
| Dimensions (LxWxH) | 17.6 x 5.3 x 1.5 inches |
| Weight | 1.75 kilos |
Design
The Hver Stealth makes use of a brushed aluminum base for its construct, and it has a high-quality really feel regardless of its funds value. Not solely does it really feel good and glossy to the contact, however it’s additionally shiny and displays mild properly. The total-size chiclet keyboard has a quantity pad and, proper above it, huge “Kaliber Gaming” branding. The branding isn’t overly obnoxious and it’s tucked behind the keys properly sufficient to not be an eyesore.
Above which are 4 LED lights to point when Num Lock, Caps Lock, Scroll Lock, or Home windows Lock are lively. The keycaps have multi-zone RGB lighting beneath them that may be custom-made with Kaliber Gaming software program. There may be additionally a strip of RGB lighting wrapped across the fringe of the keyboard’s base plate that appears nice.
The RGB often is the largest perk of this $50 keyboard at face worth. The lighting and its various choices are stunning, and you’ll fine-tune it to any colour you want utilizing the Kaliber Gaming software program’s colour gradient scale. Choices for lighting presets embrace twinkle, retro snake, sine wave, neon stream, and even a recreation mode that reacts based mostly in your gameplay.
My favourite is the flash away impact, which lights up the complete horizontal row of no matter key you press. There are a shocking variety of lighting presets for a funds keyboard, they usually’re good to take a look at. Sadly, the strip of RGB alongside the underside of the keyboard can’t be custom-made and stays rainbow-colored it doesn’t matter what colour you designate for the keys.
As we’d anticipate from mainly any gaming keyboard at this level, the Hver Stealth options anti-ghosting with n-key rollover, plus the power to swap the WASD key features with the arrow keys, maintaining MMO gamers in consideration. There are additionally secondary media keys embedded within the operate row which are accessible by holding the Fn key. Legends on among the keys vaguely point out what they do. The F1 key additionally exhibits a monitor, for instance, and urgent it with the Fn key launches the GeForce Expertise overlay. The F9 key exhibits three dots in a circle, which form of signifies its operate of biking by lighting results.
The Hver Stealth additionally guarantees “5 programmable keys for macro features, shortcuts and extra,” however there aren’t any devoted keys for this. The primary 5 quantity keys even have alternate labels (CM1, CM2, CM3, CM4, and CM5), which makes me assume they’re meant for use for macros — maybe together with the Fn key. However urgent Fn plus these keys simply cycles by varied lighting modes. It looks like you possibly can assign macros to any keys, so it’s not an enormous situation (particularly on condition that the keyboard has full numpad), however the product web page makes it sound like there’s a financial institution of devoted macro keys and that isn’t the case.
Beneath the keyboard are two rubber ft that flip out from the highest. The ft on the highest and the accompanying rubber pads on the underside hold the keyboard safe when typing. The Hver Stealth by no means slipped away from me it doesn’t matter what I did on the keyboard — from aggressive typing to gaming.
The Hver Stealth seems to be fairly understated once you flip off the lights. It’s even a bit quieter than most mechanical keyboards when typing, so it wouldn’t look or sound misplaced in an workplace (or a house workplace). And you must have sufficient cable size for many setups, as a result of the Stealth has a 61.02-inch (155cm) braided USB cable. It’s not detachable, however we wouldn’t anticipate it to be at something near this value.
Typing Expertise on the Hver Stealth
The typing expertise on the Hver Stealth leaves a bit to be desired. The double injected keycaps have laborious, angled corners that don’t really feel nice when your fingers miss the center of a key. The keycaps additionally really feel low cost and are considerably slippery — they didn’t make my keystrokes really feel as exact as I like.
What makes the typing expertise worse are the weak brown boxed-style switches the mechanical keyboard makes use of. Though they supply quieter keystrokes, which is nice in an workplace setting, they really feel mushy. Granted, a few of this comes down to private desire, however the tactile suggestions from the brown box-styled switches isn’t notably pleasing. Paired with the slippery, sharp, and in any other case cheap-feeling keycaps, these switches make for a less-than-ideal typing expertise. There doesn’t appear to be a lot keycap wobble, which is one factor the corporate says the switches assist forestall — however I simply want they felt higher.
That stated, these points didn’t hinder my typing abilities and I really noticed enhancements in typing pace and accuracy, regardless of it not feeling nice to kind on. I examined my typing capability on 10fastfingers.com, and managed 59 phrases per minute (WPM) with 89.73% accuracy with the Stealth. That is quicker than I kind on my private Razer BlackWidow V3 Professional with Razer Inexperienced switches (55WPM) however much less correct (93.52%). It’s additionally quicker than I kind on my work keyboard. I bought 53 WPM on the Asus ROG Strix Scope TKL Electro Punk with Cherry MX Purple switches with a 90.58%.
Gaming Expertise on the Hver Stealth
Regardless of the sub-par really feel of the keycaps and switches, the Hver Stealth felt fairly good whereas gaming. I didn’t really feel any discomfort as I plowed my means by Large Daddies in Bioshock: Remastered. However the Hver Stealth didn’t actually profit my gaming efficiency, both. The tactile clicky switches on my Razer BlackWidow V3 Professional are snappy sufficient that they really feel like they have an effect on my gameplay for the higher, however the mushiness of the Stealth’s keys appeared to cut back my rapid-fire inputs, and I bought taken down by Splicers and returned to the Vita-Chamber way more typically than I’m prepared to confess.
The keycaps additionally really feel higher to the contact on the V3 Professional and performed a consider my gaming efficiency. The keycaps on my BlackWidow V3 Professional hug my fingertips and really feel much less slippery than the Stealth’s keys. This won’t be a very honest comparability, although, contemplating the Razer keyboard prices over 4 occasions as a lot because the Stealth.
Software program
The Hver Stealth makes use of the corporate’s Kaliber Gaming software program to regulate backlighting and assign keyboard features. It doesn’t mechanically set up once you plug the keyboard in — it’s a must to obtain it from the product web page on IOGear’s web site. The interface is easy sufficient, and has three profiles that may be tailor-made to fit your gaming and typing wants.
There’s a macro editor button the place you may make new cycles or import/export outdated ones in batches. There’s additionally a lighting part the place you possibly can flip the RGB on or off, assign one among its 15 lighting results, modify brightness and strobe pace, or choose a solitary colour. The one factor that I disliked about this handy however barebones software program is that you could’t modify the home windows and font measurement — the letters are too small to learn simply, however that simply could also be my old-man grievances.
Backside Line
The Hver Stealth is stacked with premium options sometimes seen on keyboards that value twice as a lot — or extra. Even Logitech’s G413 SE can’t compete with the Stealth’s options or its $50 value. This alone makes the Hver Stealth an attractive alternative for players on a funds. Whereas the brown switches aren’t superb, they’re a giant leap over the membrane keyboards that usually occupy the decrease finish of the market.
Past the specs and the beautiful RGB, the consumer expertise on the Hver Stealth feels a little bit low cost, particularly in comparison with higher-end mechanical keyboards. The keycaps and switches simply don’t really feel nice, and whereas the switches are mechanical they don’t do a lot to reinforce gaming capability the best way extra premium choices can. The keyboard has no media controls or devoted macro keys, and no swap choices aside from brown. If you happen to favor linear or clicky switches, you’re out of luck.
In case your funds is strict at $50, the Hver Stealth is a greater choice than membrane keyboards, and it’s not a nasty alternative for first-time mechanical keyboard patrons who’re averse to spending extra. However growing your funds by $25 will get you a a lot higher-quality keyboard — one thing just like the TKL Redragon Vishnu K596 or Cooler Grasp’s CK552 (our present choose for the finest funds mechanical keyboard).
