God of synchronized RGB
The go-to choice for gamers well versed in commands and shortcuts, 65 and 60 percent keyboards are also great for expert typists, and really anyone looking to save some desk real estate by shaving off a third of the keyboard. Make no mistake, losing size doesn’t mean loss of functionality. Some manufacturers of compact keyboards have gone above and beyond to cram in just about everything you’d expect from a full-size keyboard. The latest to come across our desk is the Roccat Vulcan II Mini Mechanical Gaming Keyboard ($149), a gorgeous 65 percent board with excellent RGB lighting and tons of functionality, courtesy of Roccat’s Easy Shift technology.The New and Improved Vulcan
The Vulcan II is a looker straight out of its packaging. Topped with matte black keycaps, each key looks like its own miniature island, floating atop Roccat’s Titan II Optical Switches. The Vulcan II uses the Red version of these switches, which provide a linear and fast click with little to no sound. Compared with the more familiar Cherry MX Red, the TII Optical Red Switches have a much shorter actuation point (1.4mm to Cherry’s 2.0mm) and travel distance (3.4mm to Cherry’s 4.0). The difference is noticeable, and while it may take a moment to get used to, it does result in faster key presses.
The board’s switches aren’t hot-swappable like the Corsair K70 RGB Pro Mini’s are, but Roccat claims the key switches are compatible with most third-party cross-mount keycaps, offering plenty of customization options if you want to break free of the black or white color schemes offered by default.
Sacrificing a third of the keyboard makes for a compact form factor. The Vulcan II measures 1.2 by 12.7 by 4.5 inches (HWD), a little larger than the HyperX Alloy Origins 65 but otherwise a fairly standard size for a 65 percent keyboard.
