XArmor U9W 2.4 GHz RF wireless mechanical keyboard Cherry MX Brown

by iONE

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 17.5 x 5.7 x 1 inches ; 3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• ASIN: B004S862FW
• Item model number: XArmor U9W
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)

Product Description

XArmor is proud to introduce the world's first wireless mechanical key switch keyboard designed for typing enthusiasts who want maximum mobility. Constructed with Cherry MX brown mechanical key switches, tactile response keys - you know what we mean, you press, you feel the spring and you feel the tactile feedback! XArmor U9W is also equipped with smart battery saving features to put the keyboard into sleep mode when not using. Keyboard Specification: ?104 key US layout ?50 million actuation on key switches ?keyboard dimension: 17.5" x 5.7" x 1" (inch) System Requirements: ?Windows® XP, Vista, Windows® 7 ?Mac OS X compatible

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I love this wireless keyboard. June 28, 2011

By Jack Choy

Amazon Verified Purchase

I have a wired Cherry Blue keyboard that I use at work and I love that keyboard even though it's noisy. I was a bit worried about getting this one with Cherry Brown keys, but it didn't turn out bad at all. It's still a great mechanical keyboard and I can type much faster on it that the other mushy keyboards. My laptop's chiclet keyboard drives me insane with tons of mistakes, but with this wireless keyboard (which now sits on top of my laptop keyboard) has improved my accuracy and speed tremendously. Most people probably don't worry about ghosting (pressing multiple keys at once and having them register). So I tested this and it behaves a little strangely. If I type press the keys a, s, d, and f all at the same time, they register (great!). But if I try g, h, j, and k, only one of the keys register. q, w, e, and r will register all at the same time. z, x, c, and v, too. Basically, certain combinations on the left-side of the keyboard will register. This might be great for gamers who might be prone to press multiple keys at the same time.

There are 3 blue LEDs: A Tx (Transmit) LED which blinks every time you press or let go of a key. It was kinda cool at the beginning, but now it seems kinda useless. Too bad I can't turn it off. There's a battery LED, but I've not seen it turn on yet after 2 weeks of on and off use. There's a Num Lock LED.

Pros:
Mechanical keyboard (I make less mistakes and type much faster)
It's wireless! I've measure the distance up to about 10 feet. It didn't make sense for me to go beyond that given that I can't see clearly what I'm typing at that distance from a laptop or a desktop.

Cons:
I wish it was the noisier Cherry Blue keys, but that's just me being picky.
I wish it had a Caps Lock LED.
I wish there was a way to turn ofd the Tx LED.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent desktop replacement keyboard. October 25, 2011

By Rolando Jamilla

Amazon Verified Purchase

I use this with my desk top replacement laptop. I had a Logitech Dinovo for Notebooks keyboard which was fine, but, it had a tendency to fall apart. The keys would slip off the scissor springs that kept it off the membrane. It was quiet, but, unreliable.

The U9W is perfect. Not cords. Well, they give you a cord, but I haven't had to use it. The battery life seems very acceptable. The keyboard does go into sleep mode, which is good since there isn't an on/off switch to conserve battery life. The keyboard wakes when you tap a key and an unobtrusive LED light turns on. Another LED lights up whenever a key is tapped. The third is a battery indicator, I guess it lights up when your batteries are low in energy. I haven't seen it turn on except when it wakes. By the way that is a good feature. Like the LEDs in your car, they should light up when you start it up, to verify that it will illuminate when you need it to.

Anyway, the Dinovo is a better keyboard for portability, no doubt. Small, light and quiet. You can travel with the Dinovo. It's small enough to put into your laptop bag without taking up too much space and it has an on/off switch. The iOne Armor U9W is not that keyboard. It's more of the opposite. I wouldn't travel with it without removing the batteries as, it will wake if anything depresses a key.

The keyboard is a bit quirky, I have to say. There is a place to store the USB micro-dongle. But, it's just for storage. It would have been nice to see a switch that shuts the keyboard off, when stored. I have a Logitech mouse that does that. It's a nice feature. Adding this feature would resolve battery drain issues with the travel.

The other thing that is quirky is the attachment of the palm rest. The rest works very well, but it snaps in with tabs that can be easily snapped off. In fact I was very concerned that I might break them off when I first installed the palm rest. It went on fine, but when installed, its more or less hinged to the keyboard. So, it will drop down if you lift it up. This probably isn't good if you intend to use the keyboard in your lap. The keyboard is usable in your lap, but the palm rest is not that effective.

The only other thing I would have like to see is storage for that cord. If you are going to include a "back-up" cord, include a place to store that thing. Seriously, you have storage for the micro-dongle that probably wouldn't be removed from the laptop, but, nowhere to store the cord. A redesign of the palm rest should include this.

Quirks aside, I am giving this 5 stars for a reason. It's a very good keyboard. It feels like a keyboard meant for touch typing. The palm rest is just the right size. The keys feels right, perfectly spaced. The keys are where they are supposed to be. It's noisy, but, if you want a mechanical keyboard, that's what you're going get. I don't see this keyboard falling apart like membrane keyboards. For a 17" desktop replacement laptop, this wireless keyboard is perfect when you're sitting at your desk, especially since docking stations are usually not an option for the home user.

If you're looking for keyboard to use at your desk because you hate the keys on your laptop, this is the keyboard to buy. Look elsewhere if you want something for travel. For that, I'm keeping my Dinovo as a backup. If iOne fixes the quirks, I might be more inclined to state otherwise. But, this is the first attempt at wireless mechanical keyboard for anyone, so, maybe version 2.0 will resolve these issues.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great keyboard September 12, 2011

By Nelson E. Ingersoll

Amazon Verified Purchase

As a general rule, I type a lot every day. I am a programmer and I play online multi-player games like Left 4 Dead 2 and Borderlands. I use this keyboard for both uses. It's a quality keyboard with few frills.

First and foremost this is a mechanical keyboard. If you want a quiet, lightweight, gentle, don't-break-me-bro keyboard this probably isn't your kind of keyboard. On the other hand if you need a stout keyboard you can use day in day out, which won't skitter across the desk as you type, and won't wear out in a year or two, this keyboard is good.

The key-press is a little hard; however, not overly so. This isn't a membrane keyboard. It has tactile feedback. This keyboard uses Cherry Switch MX Brown mechanical keys which are a much loved in the mechanical keyboard world.

This keyboard has a very useful feature. You can run it wired via USB or wirelessly without a USB cable. The best of both wired and wireless worlds. You only need the cable when running without batteries or batteries when running wirelessly.

I can recommend this keyboard for home or office use, though in either environment it is important that you understand the keyboard is not quite as quiet or lightweight as cheaper membrane keyboard and doesn't have all sorts of bells and whistles.