Customer Reviews

Razer Tarantula Gaming Keyboard

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I've used this keyboard for about 6 months now, and this review is based on my experience over this span of time. I am an avid gamer, and play mostly FPS (First-Person Shooter), RPG (Role-Playing Games) and RTS (Real-Time Strategy) games.

Build Quality: 9/10
The keyboard is very well constructed, with a solid feel, and plenty of space. This is not a keyboard for people with limited desktop real estate. The lighting on the keyboard is very pleasing, and the Razor logo on the palm rest fades in and out. The keys are all removable via the tool provided inside. Feet are properly rubberized, with the usual height stands to prop it up. The cables coming out of the keyboard are thick and well-constructed, and the connectors are gold-plated. Impressive! Overall, excellent. Makes you feel like you paid for proper quality.

Feel (9/10) & Function (5/10)
The keys are very responsive, and are on the firm side. There was no learning curve involved when I switched from my $10 cheap Logitech keyboard.

Ergonomics are acceptable, but aren't revolutionary in any way. This leads to my main comment about function. The customizable gaming keys run down both ends of the normal keyboard, and look great in theory. In practice however, I found using them a pain. Stretching my little fingers (probably the least dexterous of all fingers!) to hit one of the several gaming keys is a real hassle, especially when you're in the middle of an intense FPS battle. For example, trying to hit one of the left hotkeys is completely impractical if you're using the typical WSAD (forward, back, strafe left and right) and in the middle of combat, as it requires you to stretch your litle finger, which messes with the rest of your hand placement (unless you're a piano player, or especially dexterous, or possess large hands). Also, your right hand will be on the mouse, rendering the right keys nigh impossible to use as well.

On to the USB Ports. I haven't had problems with the ports, except that they're low power ports, and unable to support devices such as hard disks. Also, they're not USB 2.0, making them inefficient for large transfers of data to/from a media player. Otherwise, they've worked fine for me when I use them, which is almost never.

The ports for audio are unusable for me, because improper grounding of the LED lights on my keyboard means that there is a rising and fading buzz that corresponds with the Razor logo illumination. This is the biggest "Con" for me with regards to the keyboard. I tried to use them, but the buzz drove me crazy, and I haven't used the audio ports since. I'm not sure if it's a problem with my particular keyboard, but if not, it's an unacceptable flaw as it renders the audio ports unusable. Nobody wants to listen to electronic buzzing, especially not after paying this much for a keyboard.

Conclusions:
This keyboard is good value overall, and if appearance, build quality, and BASIC functions are your top priorities, then it's an excellent choice. If you're looking for a keyboard that will expand your gaming horizons, and change your gaming habits, this isn't it.

Big keyboard, with wide key spacings. Nice for gaming but not so good for typing, repeated letters are a real problem and it takes some time to adjust to spacing.

Big downsides are software and customer support. I have had repeted incompatability problems between Razer software and iTunes and Microsoft Outlook. I have only had the keyboard for a week but have had to reload software sevral times (seems to be the same problem I had with short lived Razer Death Adder Mouse).

Razer also has awful customer support, they don't seem to acecpt returns of failed products. So if you buy from Amazon, hope that yours fails before Amazon's 30 days are up.

Just got it, so no say on durability yet. May update later about it.

The good points are:

{

its shiny black.
can press more than 3 keys at once and have them register.
has easily pressed keys.
has reprogrammable keys.
media keys, and a port for expansions.
has a shuffle list key.
can bind programs to macro keys.
profile key can be used with other keys to cycle profiles.

friendly tech support, with some helpful tips. they haven't seemed to have gotten around to outsourcing their techs, so i can actually understand what they say to me.
a tool for popping out keys so i dont have to pull out a butter knife or something. (how i broke the space bar on my g15 while trying to clean it.)
}

the bad.

{
the audio/headphone ports require that the keyboards headphone/microphone jacks to be plugged into the pc. while many would say duh, that makes sense. i'd reply why have them unless i just feel like having my headphones closer to the keyboard?
also it DOES need 2 usb ports to be used fully. basically that extra line gives two usb ports connected to the keyboard. so really only 1 extra usb port gained.

as another review posted, the keyboard's play/pause DOES NOT WORK with winamp. it does w/o the software drivers. but after its just screwed. had to resort to using windows media player *shivers*. the keyboard actually functions better with media players without the driver/software.

the media keys DO NOT WORK with anything other than the selected player. why they decided to go from the universal controls, i have no bloody clue. i used to be able to go to any player i wished, and have it work. no software needed.

the media keys are not movable, or reprogrammable. i dont like having to take my mouse hand off the action to swap songs. would be much better if the keys were movable/remapped.

can not bind any keys/macros to use home/delete/windows etc etc. can't insert them, cant move around anything. can't click the times in milliseconds to modity them if dont want the standard timing.

now for the anti ghosting. yes, you can press 10 keys at once. sadly only 6 of them ever work for me. that is with the software installed too. granted 6 is better than 3, which i hardly did more than anyhow. i unfortunately wield usb 1.0 ports on my pc, so that is probrably why. not likely to ever use more than 6 keys at once anyway. i use more than 3 for stuff like descent 3 or freespace. after burner, turning up left/right, while banking left/right, while dropping chaff is sometimes needed. or when i have to hold shift to walk, and move diagonally and jump at same time.


the battle dock is completely useless. can buy an overpriced web cam, or a gimpy ineffective light. i dont see why i should have to hang a light over my keyboard to see the keys. if they can't have glowing keys, maybe a trim with lights, like it is on some of their mice. or more translucent casing in some areas or glow in the dark paint for letter keys, with the ability to toggle the light. also a little fan or something might be nice, or expandable keyboard memory. and a nice case to carry all that extra baggage.

no lcd display. i liked it on my old g15. would have made a nifty battle dock accessory.

the wrist rest is not removable, or adjustable. all for the sake to have a glowing snake emblem.

no disable windows key button either. have to remap it. i actually use the windows key often, so remapping it is a pain. there is an option for keymap a, keymap b, but, thats only for profiles not stored on keyboard, in other words, not standard. thats because the first 5, which are stored on the keyboard (for the rare case i'd actually drag it's ultra expensive butt some where else), only can have one keymap. the key maps are basically where i can rebind all the keys on one setting, hit profile and get the b side, with the normal goods. so basically i'd have to carry a flash drive if i want accurate functionality.
my hot fix would be to turn the razor key (which is really the right windows key/menu key) into a windows key, but apparently i cant.

no macros are able to be bound on any other key except the designated special keys. of which have an abysmal macro rate. on my old g15, i could store like 32 characters, this is more like 8. so before i could save entire commands.

tech support, basically almost any question about the functionality of the keyboard = me s.o.l. (and i dont mean satellite of love). They knew how to repair it, but not how to actually make it an acceptable piece of hardware for its high price. nice people though. so its not their fault.

the macros are executed very slowly.

the software only allows executables to be bound to macro keys. in order to bind files, batch files, or whatever, have to get the link manually, and input it into the open window.


over all my old logitech g15 owns this keyboard so badly, that i feel slightly sad i bought it. people might ask, why did i buy a tarantula if i had such a great keyboard. because i rode my old one so hard it started to fall apart. that is after a few years of hard service. one of the few logitech products that actually didnt break within 6 months. only minor annoyances.

the tarantula is not worth buying unless you absolutely need the extra few keys when gaming. if not, get a g15. it has better macro system, lcd display for looking at time, and winamp song. better media buttons, disable windows key switch.

dont misunderstand. this keyboard is actually a good keyboard. i do like razer products. they are overpriced in general, but usually worth having (at discount price). but this is no where near worth 80$, nor is it better than logitechs g15. which is the saddest part? me spending money on it, or the fact that this keyboard could actually dominate the logitech with a few minor changes? instead the tarantula tragically fails.
}

The first thing you should do when you buy this keyboard:
*Download and update the drivers (for Vista, especially).
*Download and update the firmware after updating the drivers.

If you don't do this you'll run into compatibility issues with Vista and the keyboard won't work until Windows loads (i.e. can't press keys for BIOS or Windows boot menu). The firmware fixes this issue and the drivers that come with the unit are not Vista compatible, so they fail to install properly. A serious gamer is going to download the latest updates anyway, but I wanted to make it clear that the keyboard was originally released for Windows XP and not Vista, so drivers had to be written for Vista.

The functionality of the keyboard consists of 10 customizable keys (5 left, 5 right) that you can set macros on. The keys are backlit and can be changed out for a set of included keys that have various pictures on them (for gaming). On the right are play options for Windows Media Player (and others), shuffle and volume. On the left there is a home key that brings up your default browser. Rotate, zoom and 100% keys can be set to work with the Windows picture viewer, Photoshop and a few others.

The Home, End, Delete, Page Up and Page Down keys take some getting used to as the Delete key is huge and the End key is higher than it normally is. Another thing I noticed is the offset at which I had to place the keyboard in order to type with the home keys. As with any keyboard, it takes time to get used to a key layout and this isn't an issue in my opinion.

The keyboard takes a minimalist approach to gaming, but caters to the professional gamer with nice programmable features. Some gamers like fancy key layouts and loads of oddball looking gadgets. The Tarantula bypasses the fluff and goes right to the source--giving you what you need as a gamer and not stuffing the keyboard with items that you won't use anyway.

I changed from a Zboard (which still functions just fine) to this keyboard for a change in pace. If you're a serious gamer looking for a sleek approach to a gaming keyboard then this is probably going to satisfy your needs.

Razer makes quality products. This is no exception.

I've been using this keyboard for 12 months now. I still enjoy the very short keystroke, which lowers the noise output while typing. I wish it were easyer to keep clean under the keys, and the "battle dock" or whatever they are calling the expansion slot is pretty much useless. The mic and headphone port is also a waste because there's noise issues on both. The onboard USB hub should be powered considering that the keyboard eats up 2 motherboard USB slots, and with them being non-powered, their usefulness is restricted. The quick launch macros are a good idea, but I found that I stoped using them after the first couple of times that the settings were lost.

All that said, and as the title states, it's a very nice keyboard. I've enjoyed the ability to control winamp without closing full screen apps, and the left-side buttons for photoshop are recockulasly useful. The zoom rocker is a great tool for fine detail photoshop drawing and editing. The one button sleep function is great for when you need to jump up and leave in a hurry. And the board looks pretty nice too. I'm not sure it's provided any advantage in gaming the way that a mouse can, except for maybe some swagger.

I was really excited to get this keyboard, now I wish I had bought something else.

1. The whole keyboard doesn't light up. (but you probably knew that)
2. It takes 2 usb ports just to run.
3. Probably won't work until windows boots up. (good luck with your bios)
4. The software for this thing is horrible. Seems razor is more interested in marketing and looking cool than producing something functional.
5. Profile key is worthless. You should be able to set up 2 profiles and toggle between them with the profile key. I tried to setup a simple profile to disable the windows key. The only time it works is when the configuration program is loaded and running in the background.
6. Home, end, delete pg up and pg down keys are not in a standard layout.
7. It's expensive.

Bought this thing for full retail price about a year ago, and I don't feel it was worth the money. It is a huge keyboard and the software is pretty good. Probably best if you play FPS but for me, playing WOW, basically like any other keyboard. Its not backlit so you might want to look for that feature. You can plug your headphones directly into it which is cool. Anyway it is broke right now at first the space bar stopped working and now most of the keys don't work. I contacted customer support by email and basically they told me I was S.O.L. They said they don't have any sort of repair program and don't exchange keyboards.

I have somewhat of a keyboard Obsession, I own the Logitech diNovo & The diNovo Edge (both very expensive) and I'm always looking for a new keyboard to fit my fetish. I've actually owned the Tarantula for awhile, just never got around to writing a review for it. Razer markets themselves as a "gamers" company. And while this is an outstanding gaming keyboard, it's so much more. I use the zoom/rotate/100% keys in Photoshop all the time. And the macro abilities, while great for games, are very useful in applications like Photoshop. I press one button and BOOM my image size box pops up. Normally it's just C+A+I to do this, but with my L1 macro'ed to it, it's a second faster. I've set up a lot of macros in Photoshop to do common tasks, and it saves time definitely.

The keystrokes here are superb, I was very use to the keys on my diNovo Edge, not sure which of the 2 I like better. But the Trantuala is one of the best I've used as far as how the keys feel. They're soft, but still firm, and only require a slight press to register. Each key has it's own membrane so the quality is top notch.

The sucker is big, but I love the buttons, the media controls are pretty standard on keyboards nows, I kind of wish the buttons here were closer to the bottom, but that's just because I'm use to Logitech diNovo's placement. I open Winamp with 1 button, press shuffle + play and I got random music to last me all day.

The "sleep mode" button puts the PC into sleep mode, I don't use sleep mode but for those who do it will be useful. The "Home" button I guess is supposed to open your web browser and open your default page. I said I guess because mine does nothing.

with the latest drivers + firmware you can customize anything. I spoke on the macro feature, well it has a profile feature. You can configure 100 different profiles, with 10 macro keys and various driver settings you can pretty much have it do everything under the sun. Oh yeah, and you can set macro keys to launch a program too, or have a macro key launch another profile. Really you could get pretty complex with your configuration if you wanted.

The initial prototype board all the keys were back lit, now it's just the 10 macro keys + the profile button. You can buy a light that hooks up to the "Battle Dock" never used it so I can't comment, but I know the light wouldn't fit due to my keyboard tray not being deep enough.

It comes with 10 replaceable keys, the L1-L5/R1-R5 were boring, so I popped on the included new ones. Now I have a knife, pistol, rifle, grenade & others. Very cool to look at. And since I game they actually fit. This definitely gives the board a violent touch which I like :)

I like the drivers a lot, they are simple and give you plenty of configuration options. Also included are 2 USB ports and a headphone/mic jack. Now the USB ports are only 1.1 so it's slow, but would be more than good for anything that doesn't use 2.0, very convenient. My Motorola Q for example is only USB 1.1 so I can plug it right into my keyboard, very useful as the cable that came with it is only about 3 feet long.

This along with my diNovo Edge are the 2 best keyboards I've ever owned. The responsiveness of the keys on this bad boy is almost unreal. If you can spare the size (almost 20 inches wide) this is the board to get bar none! I had to give up my soda cup space on my keyboard tray to make this fit, but it was well worth it :)

I like the keyboard's idea - programmable keys. However, there is a fleeting problem of USB occasionally reporting that the keyboard cannot be detected. This comes and goes, sometimes rapidly and can be very annoying while "gaming' because it changes the window focus. Sometimes it goes for days with no problem and then fails. It has 2 USB connections provided by a separate USB cable, however the voltage drop on the cable renders the two ports unusable. The programmable keys do work well but the keyboard in its totality is a flawed product.

ADDENDUM: Time often heals. I used a different manufacturer's key board for 3 months and then reinstalled the tarantula. It has caused no problems now for about seven months. Go figure! Remote USB support still fails. A USB external voltage booster did not help.

This is a pretty cool keyboard. I love the programmable keys and the program provided is pretty easy to use for making macro's or remapping the keyboard. It types really well and the keys have great response. Problems I have is that it takes two usb ports to plug in and for some reason the added usb ports on the keyboard itself wont work for me (says something about insufficient power). Also one of the keys stopped working, but that was easily fixed by removing the key with the tool provided and resetting it in place. Also, get a cable splitter for your audio cable if you want to use the headphone jack on the keyboard without having to unplug your existing speakers all the time.