Custom PC - UK (2020-08)

M

atiasis knownforitsMackeyboards,
whichoffera similarlow-profile,
premiumaluminiumdesigntoApple’
ownmodels,butcomeata lowerpriceandhave
morefeatures.It makessomePC-focused
modelstoo,though,suchasthisohsoelegantly
namedMatiasRGBBacklitWiredAluminium
KeyboardforPC.
Asyoucanprobablyguessfromthatname,
thisis a wiredunitandit hasanaluminiumshell.
Thecompanydoesalsomakewirelessunitsbut
notinthisPC-focused,RGB-capableform.
Anotherfeaturethatisn’tofferedonMatias’
wirelessunitsis theall-blackliveryofthis
model.Thealuminiumtophasa blackanodised
surface,andthekeycapsandbasearemade
frommatttexturedandglossyblackplastic
respectively,resultingina verystealthy,sleek

MATIAS RGB BACKLIT WIRED

ALUMINIUMKEYBOARDFORPC /£100 inc VAT

SUPPLIER keyboardco.com

vibe.Thealuminiumtopis noticeablycoldwhen

youfirstgetthekeyboardoutofthebox,but

it soonwarmsupandwedidn’tfindit tobea

troublesomeheatdrain.

Addingfurthertoitssneakyfeelis this

keyboard’sverylowprofile.It measuresjust

19mmtallatthebackand8mmatthefront.In

fact,it’ssolowthatI foundI hadtogetridofthe

wristrestI normallyusewithconventional-

heightkeyboards.

ConsideringthatRGBis prominentinthe

nameofthiskeyboard,however,it’ssurprisingto

findthatitslightingsystemis sounintuitive.

Outofthebox,thekeyboarddoesn’tlight

upatall,andtherearenosecondaryfunction

legendsonthekeysindicatinghowtoturnonor

adjustthelighting.Matiashasadmittedlyprinted

instructionsinhugelettersontheinsideofthe

box,butwestillmissedthemthefirsttimewe

openeduptheboxandtriedoutthekeyboard

• they’rejustnotwhereyouwouldexpectto
  findthem.
  It transpires that hitting the Fn button along
  with - and + will turn on and adjust the lighting
  brightness, while and Fn-Esc will turn it off
  (although not back on again). As for choosing
  the colour, there’s a tiny dial on the back of the
  keyboard that, when rotated, will adjust the
  colour of the backlighting from white through
  yellow, orange, red, purple, blue, green, yellow
  and white again, in a smooth continuous
  gradient. It’s an unusual lighting control system
  but it works.
  Also around the back you’ll find a single USB
  2 passthrough port, which won’t be much good

for fast data transfer, but is fine for plugging in a

mouse. A rather cheap-looking 1.5m rubberised

cable also protrudes from the back edge.

Meanwhile, the keys themselves use a scissor

switch design and the caps have a very low

profile. In fact, we found them slightly too flat,

with the lack of contouring making it noticeably

harder to feel your way around the keys. The

very small gaps between each key didn’t help

here either – you have to be very accurate with

your touch typing to get it right. However, thanks

to the very light key action, you can type with a

pleasingly light touch once you get used to the

shape and size of the keys.

Conclusion

This premium keyboard is ideal for PC users

who covet the sleek, low-profile look of Mac

keyboards, but still want proper PC keys and

RGB lighting. It’s sleek, stylish, well-built and

it provides a good typing experience. It’s a tad

pricey for what’s on offer, though, and it can take

a while to get used to the very light action and

flat keycaps.

VERDICT

Slim, sleek and well built, but its flat keycaps

andverylightactionaren’tideal for everyone.

ULTRASLIM
+Incrediblythin

+Stylishdesign

+RGBlighting

+USB passthrough

ULTRADIM

• Flatkeycaps


• Hidden lighting
  controls


• A little pricey

SPEC

Connection Wired

Cable Rubber, 1.5m

Material Aluminium top, plastic base

Switch type Scissor

Backlighting RGB

Extras USB 2 passthrough, RGB backlighting dial

LABS TEST / KEYBOARDS

DESIGN

22 / 25

FEATURES

18 / 25

OVERALLSCORE

73 %%

PERFORMANCE

16 / 25

VALUE

17 / 25