Today, I will be reviewing the Turtle Beach Vulcan II Mini 65% Optical Gaming Keyboard.
I have reviewed Turtle Beach products (primarily headsets) in the past, but this is my first time reviewing a Turtle Beach mechanical keyboard.
It’s important to note that with Turtle Beach buying Hamburg-based company Roccat GmbH for $19.2 million USD, this has given the company its foray into creating high quality gaming keyboards and mice.
So, before I get into the review, you will notice the word “Optical” being used. So, there are two types of switches, the mechanical that many people are familiar with and optical. Mechanical switches that have metal pins. While optical switches do not have metal pins.
People debate if there are differences but some feel optical switches are smoother and better on keyboard presses (last longer).
With that being said, this is not a hot swappable mechanical keyboard. You can’t just buy optical switches and put it on this keyboard, because of size differences. These are specifically TITAN II Optical Switches with ultra-fast linear actuation. According to Turtle Beach though, this keyboard features “Cross-shaped stems with third-party keycap compatibility”.
OK, now on to the review.
The first thing I noticed when I opened the box and looked at the keyboard from various angles is how cool it looks. At first glance, I saw the red switches but realized afterward, these are optical switches. They keycaps are super thin. I don’t think I have come across keycaps like this ever. Which is rather interesting. But by doing so, it really makes the LED lighting shine through even more (for people who really like that).
They switches are long-lasting and have a 200 million keypress life cycle, pre-lubed key stabilizers for smooth and stable keystrokes.
At first, it took me a while to get used to, but after five minutes, I’m typing things smoothly without any issues.
There are also 30 Smart Keys with dedicated LED indicate when secondary functions are active. Second function layer via Easy-Shift + key duplicator technology.
It’s important to note that this is a 65% mini keyboard, so you are not going to find the number keys to the right.
The Vulcan II comes with its own USB-C cable adapter and instructions.
So, what are my thoughts on this mechanical keyboard.
First and foremost, if you are a keeb and collect a lot of keyboards, this is one where you want to keep the keyboard with its original casing for storage. These keycaps are so thin and different from standard keycaps, that you can easily lose them.
Second, I’m usually an all-white keyboard user but this is probably one of the first all-black keyboards that I absolute love looking at when plugged in. There is a lot of style and creativity that went into this keyboard, especially looking at the space bar. Reminds me of a Japanese torii gate. But I absolutely dig the overall design.
Third and last, I absolutely love how these TITAN II switches are. At first, I thought maybe it was a little loud but now the more I use it, it’s not that bad. It’s actually pretty cool and how smooth the TITAN II optical switches are. I don’t really think replacing them is needed because they sound and feel just right.
In the end, I feel that the the Turtle Beach Vulcan II Mini 65% Optical Gaming Keyboard is a well-made keyboard. Granted, you are paying a bit more for that Turtle Beach brand name, but if you are looking for a stylish, all black keyboard that feels good to the touch and not worry about anything such as delays or lag, this is a solid optical gaming keyboard.
Recommended!
