MSI’s Vigor GK80 serves because the flagship for MSI’s gaming keyboard lineup. That is why MSI are concentrating on absolutely the premium in peripherals with this expensive board. However, this eclectic keyboard suffers on the hand of its construct high quality and design, which obfuscate the high-end elements at its basis.
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MSI’s Vigor GK80 options the complete vary of important options you may anticipate from a gaming keyboard. Those are, particularly, Cherry MX Red switches, full per-key RGB performance, varied included keycap units, n-key rollover, USB passthrough, an ergonomic wrist relaxation, and devoted media keys.
That listing of options may very well be utilized to nearly every other high-end keyboard, with the GK80 providing little or no else to sway customers. If something, it really falls behind the competitors in general construct high quality. At $160 / £170 MSRP, the GK80 doesn’t come low cost, both.
The most notable letdown is the keycaps. They are an entire mess, the end is dreadful, they usually’re busier than the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The keycaps characteristic a typeface that’s extremely inconsistent – case and level: the pound signal seems prefer it was taken from a completely generic font household moderately than one created bespoke for the board. The keys additionally characteristic nondescript icons for settings that the majority customers will both decide to alter within the Mystic Light app or are in any other case locked behind proprietary apps for MSI graphics playing cards.
Unfortunately, what’s included within the field with the GK80 doesn’t encourage the best confidence within the high quality customary adhered to throughout the manufacturing course of. Almost each keycap on our board options visible impurities, both within the end or the place they’ve been separated from the mould.
Also, one of many keycaps included throughout the field doesn’t appear to suit wherever on the keyboard itself. This elongated key – which I imagine is designed for the return key on an ANSI format keyboard – is barely too lengthy for the backspace, return, and + keys on ISO boards, however will make for a pleasant house bar at a 3rd of the usual measurement.
For the flurry of lighting that MSI have insisted on this board – from the per-key RGB lighting to the sunshine bars working parallel on both aspect – the caps lock and num lock indicators are visually bereft underneath a thick layer of semi-translucent plastic.
Unfortunately, the identical lack of element carries over to the included wrist relaxation. The appreciable bulk of this metallic slab is sufficient to hold it considerably in place, however options no mechanism or magnet to bodily connect it to the board. It’s additionally moderately unfinished, with each ends of the wrist relaxation devoid of any finish piece or cap apart from a small detachable rubber grommet that covers little or no of the opening. I’ll give MSI the advantage of the doubt and assume that is for cable administration and never only a blissful accident… perhaps.
The core of the GK80 isn’t, in itself, dreadful. The Cherry switches are responsive and if you happen to like a linear change you’ll discover few higher within the gaming house. All the standard RGB bells and whistles are there too, nevertheless it’s a disgrace that they’re being hidden behind these keycaps and the trifling Mystic Light software program. N-key rollover has turn into a considerably pointless customary for nearly everybody, however it’s a signal that the perform of this keyboard is up-to-par with the competitors.
If you swap the keycaps and the wrist relaxation for some which might be rather less guache, then the top outcome could be a very great-looking board that has the switches to match. Unfortunately, you can not relaxation in your mechanical switched laurels and we aren’t at a loss for keyboards available in the market that supply all the things and extra straight out of the field. Which all leaves the Vigor GK80 overpriced, underwhelming, and unable to compete.
SE7EN.WS verdict: 4/10
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