Ideazon MERC Gaming Keyboard @ [H] Consumer

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Chris_Morley

Former [H] Consumer Managing Ed.
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Our latest "gadget" article tells you if a "gaming keyboard" will give you the edge when it comes to actual gameplay.

Ideazon is the manufacturer of the successful Zboard keyboard targeted specifically at gamers. The Zboard had a customized, adaptable keyset that could replace a standard keyset on the provided keyboard base.


Being an old fashioned guy myself, I never felt the need to purchase this keyboard. However, Ideazon has applied their idea of a FPS layout to a standard keyboard design while keeping a full, albeit slightly modified, number pad. No longer do you need to change out the standard keyset on your Zboard with a customized one to access the unique gaming features.
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You can check out the article here.
 
Greay article guys. I have a Z-Board and I love it.
I just custom program each game to my liking and then make a small sketch to help me remember what I did. Ive never used any Z-Board customized keysets or keystrokes.

You didnt mention or I didn't see it.....can you custom program the left side keys "inside" the game to conform to your own likes, rather than sticking to the Z-Engine pre-defined set-ups????

I enjoyed your article.
 
magoo said:
Greay article guys. I have a Z-Board and I love it.
I just custom program each game to my liking and then make a small sketch to help me remember what I did. Ive never used any Z-Board customized keysets or keystrokes.

You didnt mention or I didn't see it.....can you custom program the left side keys "inside" the game to conform to your own likes, rather than sticking to the Z-Engine pre-defined set-ups????

I enjoyed your article.
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I have read elsewhere that future updates from Ideazon will allow for this, but I have no solid info on that. However, you can always use the "standard" mod that just maps the keys to the letters that are printed on the board - if you don't like or can't find a mod for the game you're playing.
 
you guys gave it a different bottom line score in different places. in the paragraphs where you explain each score, it got a 9.0 but in the chart below that it got a 9.2
 
Looks interesting. Good review. I know some people that may be interested in something like that. Personaly my ms natural keyboard is not going anywhere anytime soon.
 
I might pick one up. The design looks much better than their goofy Zboard, which I hated.
 
dualblade said:
you guys gave it a different bottom line score in different places. in the paragraphs where you explain each score, it got a 9.0 but in the chart below that it got a 9.2
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Fixed, thanks.
 
Being someone who does not use the WASD or arrow key setup for FPS games (I know, one of the >1% that doesn't), I don't think I'd get much use out of the product, but it's nice to see that they have a good build quality and solid configuration software. Should be a good product as long as they keep it supported.
 
nice review.
you have to retrain yourself to work with the ZBoard
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excellant point. I use the n52 speedpad and it took a little time to get used to the feel of it. After I did life got much easier. I adapt much more quickly to different game too. I know the feel of the device so I can customize the setup for any game, RPG, FPS or RTS. It's a good thing.
 
Chris -
How long/wide is that thing compared to a regular keyboard? It looks like one of the other things that might need getting used to is having your left hand so much farther over to the side than before. Seems like that in itself might make it a bit uncomfortable.

 
uzor said:
Chris -
How long/wide is that thing compared to a regular keyboard? It looks like one of the other things that might need getting used to is having your left hand so much farther over to the side than before. Seems like that in itself might make it a bit uncomfortable.

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The size specifications are on the front page of the article. As to comfort, having the keyboard keys directly in front of you puts the gaming pad in perfect ergonomic alignment with your left hand when you shift over. Very well done.
 
General Usage – 8



For everyday functions, this keyboard was good for typing, but issues with the keypad layout required extra thought and frequent use of the Num Lock key. Nevertheless, it’s easy to use the Z Engine software, and the added hotkeys make for bonus functionality beyond games.
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What would be required for a low score for general usage? Missing letters from the alphabet? The whole numpad area looks like a disaster for general usage.

The main problems:
- as you noted, the undersized zero key
- the undersized plus key
- the misplaced minus key (it should be in the corner of the numpad)
- the misplaced * key (it should be next to the minus key)
- the misplaced / key (it should be next to the * key; here it's not even on the numpad!)
- the misplaced delete key (it should be second highest from top in the 2x3 key area)
- the misplaced insert key (wouldn't be a problem, except it's where delete should be, leading to people actually pressing this infernal key)
- the unfindable page up/down keys (they need to be at the edge of the 2x3 area)
- the unseperated arrow keys

Most of these problems are related to lack of space, but many of them could be avoided with even moderately better design. The numpad area is filled with superfluous keys. The non-numlock versions of the keys 7, *, -, +, 1, 2, 3, 0, ., scroll lock, and pause are a mystery to me. A couple of them are obviously copy/paste related, but no one will use them, since people are used to the ctrl+c/v on their work computers and won't learn another system which only works on one keyboard and isn't even noticably easier. Print screen and break are probably there, but I have no idea which ones since they aren't labled properly. It's cute that they think they can single handedly revolutionize keyboards, but that's simply not the case. Standards are important to follow, especially for small companies, and this keyboard fails miserably at this.

Media application hotkeys in no way make up for these problems. A good numpad area is what seperates keyboards with good usability from keyboards with bad usability, and it is plainly obvious which category this one falls into.

Perhaps general usage considerations don't matter for a gaming keyboard, but in that case give the category a low weight, don't pretend that the keyboard is actually usable for Excel.

Then again, you did give a 9.0 for installation despite the fact that the check for updates doesn't work and making the keyboard work for some games required uninstalling the software and downloadig and installing a 29MB software suite. How can installation be worse than when it requires you to download another installation packet online, uninstalling and then reinstalling?

And giving props for Ideazon's plans to add a lot of functionality to the MERC? Usually selling unfinished software is considered a bad thing. A clear promise to finish it later hardly makes up for the initial failure.

If you like the keyboard, give it a good overall score, but don't give it scores in the installation and general usability categories that it obviously doesn't deserve.
 
ilkka said:
What would be required for a low score for general usage? Missing letters from the alphabet? The whole numpad area looks like a disaster for general usage.

The main problems:
- as you noted, the undersized zero key
- the undersized plus key
- the misplaced minus key (it should be in the corner of the numpad)
- the misplaced * key (it should be next to the minus key)
- the misplaced / key (it should be next to the * key; here it's not even on the numpad!)
- the misplaced delete key (it should be second highest from top in the 2x3 key area)
- the misplaced insert key (wouldn't be a problem, except it's where delete should be, leading to people actually pressing this infernal key)
- the unfindable page up/down keys (they need to be at the edge of the 2x3 area)
- the unseperated arrow keys

Most of these problems are related to lack of space, but many of them could be avoided with even moderately better design. The numpad area is filled with superfluous keys. The non-numlock versions of the keys 7, *, -, +, 1, 2, 3, 0, ., scroll lock, and pause are a mystery to me. A couple of them are obviously copy/paste related, but no one will use them, since people are used to the ctrl+c/v on their work computers and won't learn another system which only works on one keyboard and isn't even noticably easier. Print screen and break are probably there, but I have no idea which ones since they aren't labled properly. It's cute that they think they can single handedly revolutionize keyboards, but that's simply not the case. Standards are important to follow, especially for small companies, and this keyboard fails miserably at this.

Media application hotkeys in no way make up for these problems. A good numpad area is what seperates keyboards with good usability from keyboards with bad usability, and it is plainly obvious which category this one falls into.

Perhaps general usage considerations don't matter for a gaming keyboard, but in that case give the category a low weight, don't pretend that the keyboard is actually usable for Excel.

Then again, you did give a 9.0 for installation despite the fact that the check for updates doesn't work and making the keyboard work for some games required uninstalling the software and downloadig and installing a 29MB software suite. How can installation be worse than when it requires you to download another installation packet online, uninstalling and then reinstalling?

And giving props for Ideazon's plans to add a lot of functionality to the MERC? Usually selling unfinished software is considered a bad thing. A clear promise to finish it later hardly makes up for the initial failure.

If you like the keyboard, give it a good overall score, but don't give it scores in the installation and general usability categories that it obviously doesn't deserve.
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Thanks for your thoughts, they are noted.
 
My biggest issue (sorry not an owner of one) is that you are still getting the keys where the manufacturer thinks they should be.

I have been using an Ergodex pad for about a year now and love it. The keys go anywhere on the pad you choose. The driver allows you to record/assign the keys on the fly while gaming.

It is not a full keyboard replacement, so I still have my normal logitech keyboard for normal tasks.

Anyway, I do enjoy reading about hardware aimed at us gamers so thanks for the review.

Oh and to be lazy and mix subjects. The Ageia Physics cards, when UT2k7 comes out, I WILL be buying one.
 
No mention of the 9 simultaneous keystroke abilities? I found this to be very handy coming from my Dell standard with 3 sks limits....
 
No numpad, no good.

As if gamers use their computer for nothing but games. I can see selling a console USB keyboard without a full size numpad, but one intended for a PC? It couldn't of been just a regular keyboard with the Merc part on the left side? What were they thinking?

This would be a viable purchase in my mind had they not botched the keyboard for the sake of making it games-only. It's a keyboard. An input device. When you buy a 'gaming mouse,' it SHINES in other applications too. This thing seems like it'd be a drag in everything BUT games.

Plug it into a console and I see it's place. On a power user's desk? Ah, no. I think our numpads are used too frequently for that.

The only 'nice' thing I see about the keyboard is the price. It's cheap, really. Which seems kinda strange in a world of $100 wireless laser optical mice. They could add a few necessary useful features and give it a higher pricetag, but at least it wouldn't come off as feeling gimmicky and half-assed. In fact, if there was more to it with a higher price it'd probably have more 'buzz' and sell more units. Without having any typing experience with the keyboard, I'd of given it a 5 at best regardless of anything it did for the complaints I have.

Why aren't these keys individually mappable? I have to depend on this company for a profile for the game, or reconfigure the game itself? Pain in the ass! I hate depending on an equipment manufacturer to provide software - Especially for a keyboard - Because in three years, good-friggin-luck using that on anything. Sure, you can re-map in the game, but if the driver was more thought out, this wouldn't be necessary, AND they could still include their silly profiles.

Now, if Ideazon's reading this, if you want me to buy one of your keyboards...

1. Numpad. What were you people thinking?

2. Backlight. Shouldn't this be standard on gamer-grade keyboards nowadays?

3. Un-clusterfuck the media keys on the left hand side, and spread them over the rest of the keyboard, instead of that logo in the center. Take a page from Microsoft's Multimedia keyboards there. The rapid access buttons are spread across the top, nicely spaced, and the volume/audio playback controls are right smack in the middle, where they should be.
Nothings more annoying than jamming two of those keys at the same time with normal man-sized fingers, and having your PC try to do two things, when you only wanted it do to one.

4. Don't frig with the basic key size & layout. At all. If there were sound reasons to change this it would've happened by now. If this was a standard keyboard with the gaming unit attached on the left side I probably wouldn't of even bothered to comment on where I see it failing.

5. Split key model? Hello? People do use and demand these.
 
TheAcron........ you're demands are way above whats even possible, especially for mass market.

To address some of your points:

1.) I know very few who can use the numpad with much speed, though I think it could have been easily left alone. To me, and many users out there, the numpad is just a waste of space. Though, I still must knock them on it myself. Its stupidly designed and didnt need to be fooled with in the first place.

2.) You might like a backlight.... I hate them. Extremely distracting when I see the keyboard and entirely pointless for me generally because I never look at the keyboard..... never. I know the entire layout of my MS Multimedia by heart, if you're looking at the keyboard during a game you're dead anyway.

3.) I actually like them all in the same area. Spread out keys such as on the ones on my own MS Multimedia are a pain in the ass to use. You have to completely remove a hand from its place to hit the right ones and then completely remove the left hand for the left keys. Keeping them to one area is actually a very smart design decision IMO.

4.) Basic key size? The keys are the exact same thing as 90% of the MS keyboard and Logitech keyboards out there today..... oversized. Easier on the fingers and you dont accidently hit a key nearly as often.

5.) You're now being a hypocrit. Split keyboards are...... right you guessed it, NON STANDARD LAYOUTS. Which you whined about in number 4, so I'm wanting you to make up your mind here. Which do you want?

Basically all your comments are those of your own demands. You do not most likely represent everyone. They can not please you by what your comments say.

I personally thin the MERC is light years ahead of the crap that the Zboard was. The Zboard basically was unusable except for games, the MERC though allows you to use it for general keyboarding and has a gaming attachement, the Zboard was a gaming attachement that doubled as a keyboard.... sometimes, and never at the same time.
 
Skrying said:
1.) I know very few who can use the numpad with much speed, though I think it could have been easily left alone. To me, and many users out there, the numpad is just a waste of space. Though, I still must knock them on it myself. Its stupidly designed and didnt need to be fooled with in the first place.
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So why are you knocking me for commenting on that? Increasing your postcount, or something? :D


Skrying said:
2.) You might like a backlight.... I hate them. Extremely distracting when I see the keyboard and entirely pointless for me generally because I never look at the keyboard..... never. I know the entire layout of my MS Multimedia by heart, if you're looking at the keyboard during a game you're dead anyway.
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Seemed like a logical option for a gaming keyboard for me. I'm just suggesting it as an option. I don't use a backlit one either, but, they do seem to be all the rage lately, and would be a sound decision for them to include it in their product, looking at who the product is being pitched to.


Skrying said:
3.) I actually like them all in the same area. Spread out keys such as on the ones on my own MS Multimedia are a pain in the ass to use. You have to completely remove a hand from its place to hit the right ones and then completely remove the left hand for the left keys. Keeping them to one area is actually a very smart design decision IMO.
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Sort of a matter of opinion, isn't it? Also, what keys on your MS Multimedia outside of volume control are you using in games? The Mail, Web/Home, and Messenger keys? :confused:


Skrying said:
4.) Basic key size? The keys are the exact same thing as 90% of the MS keyboard and Logitech keyboards out there today..... oversized. Easier on the fingers and you dont accidently hit a key nearly as often.
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There are undersized + & 0 keys. These where was I was referring to in the reference to size, otherwise, as you can see, the place where a normal keyboard's arrow keys, home/pageup, and numpad looks like a car accident.


Skrying said:
5.) You're now being a hypocrit. Split keyboards are...... right you guessed it, NON STANDARD LAYOUTS. Which you whined about in number 4, so I'm wanting you to make up your mind here. Which do you want?
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I said model. As in, option. As in, seeing a ergo-friendly split key with this pad on the side would be interesting. Further, there isn't anything non-standard about split keys outside of the split itself. The numpad still works. The buttons are all in the same places, otherwise. And there's no need for name-calling. And if there is a need, I'd be calling you a threadcrapping prick. :) Did you design this thing? Why are you so angry?


Skrying said:
Basically all your comments are those of your own demands.
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Yes... It would make sense that they are, seeing as I made them...


Skrying said:
You do not most likely represent everyone.
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Oh, wow... This explains all sorts of things. :rolleyes:


Skrying said:
They can not please you by what your comments say.
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Yeah they could. I think a well designed split key with a gaming side, full numpad, and a backlight (with an on/off switch) would be absolutely awesome. It'd interest me enough to consider buying one. But only if the gaming portion was programmable for other uses in Windows as well.
 
Looks interesting. I think my Dell kb might be giving out on me, and I might consider one of these models. I wonder if BestBuy stocks them....
 
It was an interesting review about a product I've never heard of, that's for sure.

I have to say though, from the point I saw the picture of it through where I finished reading, my opinion of it went steadily downhill. I own a Belkin Nostromo N52, and I couldn't help but think the entire time how it's inferior to the N52 in so many ways. I guess you could argue it replaces the standard keyboard, and therefore saves space, but it also seems to hinder normal keyboard use at the same time (I'm the type of person who uses the numpad often, so that part would hurt)

But some things that stood out:

-You can't map keys to new functions? Why not?
-No macros. Of course, this would come AFTER the ability to map keys individually, but it's a big thing to have in something made for gaming.
-They keyboard looks cramped. Is it just me, or is it all sized down to fit the left side?
-You gave it a WHAT!?

No offense, but giving that keyboard a 9.2/10.0 makes me wonder how many "gaming" control devices you've used. While many of them are not a keyboard replacement like this thing is, there are a few that would blow this thing out of the water anyday, whether you can use it for everyday typing or not. I'm not sure if combining a gamepad and a keyboard into 21 inches is a benefit more than it's a drawback.
 
Im confused can you map the gaming keys to other functions? Like in RTCW I use the numpad 0 key to sprint. For me to acheive the same feel using the gaming keys on the Merc I would want to change the Jumo button to Sprint. I could care less about labeling the buttons so long as I can get each button to do what I want.

I am a freak and would want to change the Crouch button to Jump and the Run/Walk button to Jump. Is this possible in it current iteration? I have my set FPS key configuration and use the same one as much as posssible for all games.

EDIT: And quite frankly how on Earth could they possibly consider this a gamers keyobard if you cant remap individul keys?
 
BoogerBomb said:
EDIT: And quite frankly how on Earth could they possibly consider this a gamers keyobard if you cant remap individul keys?
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From what I understand, you cannot do that, and that's the largest drawback IMO. That's pretty much what my post was complaining about... unless I misunderstood the review?
 
I have very recently purchased the Ideazon MERC gaming keyboard and I can tell you all that I am VERY impressed with it indeed! I hope to address some of the concerns raised in previous postings:

Yes, it can take a little getting used to (as with probably any new PC device) - but in a very short space of time I had adapted to the new gaming layout, and in my opinion this is the boards' main strength. The gaming keys are laid out in a very intuitive manner, and DEFINITELY better than a normal keyboard for playing games.

ALL keys are COMPLETELY programmable. The SOLE exceptions are: the 'Z-Engine' hotkey (which activates the key-programming interface) and the multimedia hotkeys (which are 'hardwired' to Microsoft Media Player). In fact, from what I have experienced, a command can be mapped to more than 1 key, if desired. Added to this is the fact that multiple commands can be assigned to 1 key, including pauses.

I should add that I initially installed the application that came on the CD. However, upon choosing the 'check for engine updates' option I found that there was a newer version of the software (released in December 2006). The installation of the new software required that I first un-unstall the old, but after this I was up and running.

Pre-defined setups are called 'mods'. Using the 'update mods' option allowed me to automatically download over 100 mods for various genres of games. Each of these can be used 'as is' or altered to individual requirements. A feature I liked in particular is that user-defined mods can be 'exported' to a file (rather like exporting e registry key). This makes it very easy to send them by email, for instance. You may also send your mods to Ideazon for them to add to their website for others to download.

To use a particular mod, it must be set as 'active'. While active, running the game associated with the mod will automatically set the game keys for the mod to the gaming keyboard, and an LED comes on to let you know the mod is active. To play another game, the mod for that game must be set as 'active'. It's as simple as that.

The keyboard seems a little bigger than a normal keyboard, but probably not by very much - a few centimetres at most. It feels fairly solid and as good quality as one would expect - it does NOT feel 'cheap'. The keys themselves have a nice feel & size.

It should be stressed that it is a GAMING keyboard. It is NOT a spreadsheet keyboard, nor a programming keyboard. It is intended to be used in games - this is where it really shines, this is what it was made for. If you work on spreadsheets or program a lot, you are possibly better off with a normal keyboard. But this is not a surprise - one should always select the right tool for the task at hand. The alpha-numeric keys have a nice feel to them, and I am quite comfortable typing text. The numeric keypad may take a little getting used to, but who uses this in games anyway - especially when one has dedicated keys available for this very purpose (playing games)?

If you are looking for a keyboard that has ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING, well, you're likely to be slightly disappointed - it's not the keyboards' fault - life's just like that. But if you play a lot of games on your PC, this is just the keyboard you wished you always had!

A great product, and I have NO regrets whatsoever about buying it!
 
I have owned a Merc since a couple of days before US release (I live pretty damn close to Canada). Love it for gaming and it works well for general keyboard use. For anything specific or numpad-intensive, I break out the wireless keyboard that is stashed in my desk drawer. If you're concerned that the Merc's keyboard is impractical, keep your current one and get the Fang if you have the real estate.
 
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