I needed an illuminated keyboard for years. But like so many out there I didn't know they made such a beast. So for years I sat in a dim room squinting. Finally I said I have had enough. I did some research and came across the Saitek Eclipse keyboard.

MY first impression of the Saitek was ho-hum. Looks like just another keyboard. But when I plugged it in, well there is the beauty of this little thing. The keys light up and no more squinting!! It does a good job actually. Windows Vista found the keyboard and no drivers were needed. It is powered by the PCs USB interface. So there are no batteries or extra plugs. NO you can't use a PS2 adapter. It has to get the power for the light from the USB plug and a PS2 adapter doesn't have that feature. But I'm sure that's not a problem for most PCs now days.

Is the keyboard perfect? NOPE. While it has a nice feel and the key action is great. There are a few things that should be changed. First off the dial that changes the illumination intensity should be well...illuminated! There is a ring of light around the knob. But that doesn't tell me what it is in the dark. Also the buttons on either side of the knob (multimedia functions, and the on off switch for the backlight) are NOT ILLUMINATED!!!! Come on guys. You make an illuminated keyboard but you didn't illuminate the ON/OFF switch!?!? I will give them credit though, the multimedia keys (while cheesy looking) work as they should. You have the standard keys (PLAY, FF, REW, STOP, and MUTE) And finally I wish the lighting was a little more powerful on the right side of the keyboard. It works ok. But the keyboards light effect is not balanced across the entire keyboard. It kind of drags on the keyboards fit and finish appeal.

The keyboard does what it says it is supposed to do. It allows you to type in dim or no light conditions. For that I wouldn't trade it. But it needs a few silly design flaws fixed to make it perfect.


Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 59.00