The new RedragonShop Eisa K686 Pro SE keyboard just arrived at my front door a few minutes ago.
This was sent to me as a review unit, so I'll be using it, checking it out and testing it over the next couple of weeks and then posting my review on the #AllThingsTech blog that you can view here:
Mechanical keyboards are popular with geeks because they can be customized with a variety of switches and keycaps. But have you ever seen a mechanical keyboard that can fold? Well, you will today because I’m going to tell you about the RK Royal Kludge RK925 folding mechanical keyboard. It’s certainly something different than what you will normally see when it comes to a mechanical keyboard.
The Royal Kludge RK925 is a foldable mechanical keyboard that can be either wired or wireless, depending on your preference. Don’t take the Kludge part of the name in a bad way here, as it’s not meant as if it’s an ill-assorted collection of parts assembled to fulfill a particular purpose.
https://www.seerofsouls.com/wp-content/themes/groovy/assets/images/transparent.gifAs you can see it’s definitely a foldable keyboard. But what’s different about the Royal Kludge RK925 it folds horizontally instead of vertically like most foldable keyboards you see will do. This truly sets it apart right from the start in my opinion.
Unfortunately once it’s folded in half, there is no locking mechanism or anything similar to keep it folder. You have to rely on the way you store it in your bag or whatever. There is however a velvet pouch for the folded keyboard to fit in, so that does keep it from coming unfolded if you store it in that.
Another thing that most gamers, among others, will appreciate about the RK925 is that it’s what they call a 60% keyboard with only 68 mechanical backlit keys.
Along the top edge of the Royal Kludge RK925 is where you will find the power switch, the USB-C charging/connectivity port and the foldout phone/tablet holder if you wish to use it with a mobile device. One neat thing is, the RK925 can be paired with up to 3 different devices using Bluetooth 5.1.
The foldout phone/tablet holder is very sturdy and has no issues at all. It will even work with cases, depending on their thickness of course. I personally used it with an iPhone 12 Pro and a Pixel 6 Pro while on vacation in Las Vegas.
This keyboard uses low profile white switches that have a 12mm height and a 1.4mm distance to actuation.
The double shot ABS keycaps have a very shallow concave shape but they are full-size keys allowing typing to feel roomy and comfortable. Being a mechanical keyboard, typing on it results in a pleasant clickity clackity. I found the volume of the clicking and clacking to be fine for my ears but if you work in a quiet office, you might bother others.
The backlight is bright but not too bright. It can be completely turned off or you can switch it to a ‘breathing’ mode where it will fade in and out.
It has a 600mAh battery that will give you up to 200 hours of nonstop typing with the backlight off and is fully recharged in 2-3 hours.
Note that this keyboard seems to automatically time out and go into power savings mode after about a minute. So if you come back to your desk and start typing, you might lose a stroke or two before you notice.
One thing to note is that the RK925 does not include a Mac mode so using it with a Macbook Pro or something similar works, but you won’t be able to do the special key combos using the OPTION and CMD keys unfortunately. If you can live without those special key combos, then using it with a Macbook or anything similar should work without any other issues.
Discount Code
Thanks to the awesome folks over at Royal Kludge for allowing me to review this product and others that they have sent over in the past. They have also provided me with a special URL that anyone can use to save a total of 10% off of your entire purchase across their site. So if you’re interested in purchasing the RK Royal Kludge RK925 folding mechanical keyboard, or any of their products, you can enter code DECRYPTED to Save 10% On Your Entire Order.
Final Thoughts
It’s nice to see a company that makes normal every day products come up with something different and do it differently than you would expect. The Royal Kludge RK925 does exactly that while maintaining the ability to work as expected. It’s very well made, sturdy, solid, portable and affordable.
If you’re looking for or in the need of a keyboard you can easily take with you but not have all the bulkiness of a regular keyboard, then this is certainly one product you should take a look at. Throw in that the price is only $79.99 if you buy directly from RK Royal Kludge.
Today I’m going to be reviewing the LTC Sound Slave 502 headset. This headset can be used as both 2.4GHz or Bluetooth modes and is the successor to LTC’s 501 wired/wireless headset that was released a couple of years ago.
LTC claims that the Sound Slave 502’s are an upgrade to the previous model with regards to having a 2.4GHz Bluetooth connection, Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) and more comfortable ear cups.
What’s In The Box
As with most every product, you have a user manual. First, there is a detachable microphone, a short USB-C extension cable, a USB-C to USB-A charging cable and the headphones themselves. Also included is a USB-C wireless dongle. This dongle is used to plug into the computer to allow you to achieve the 2.4GHz wireless connection.
When pulling these out of the box, my first impression is how nice they look and how durable they feel. They have a bit of weight to them, but in a good way. They aren’t super heavy, but you can tell they aren’t just cheap, plastic headphones. The band that goes across the top is plastic, not it’s a thicker, more well-made plastic. There is of course soft-padded leather that rests on your head when you put them on. Again, a very sturdy feel to all of this.
The band can be adjusted to fit to size by sliding the sides up and down like most headphones today. You shouldn’t have any issues getting them to fit exactly how you are wanting them to fit.
The ear cups have a hard plastic shell and they even twist and rotate which is a feature I absolutely love when it comes to headphones. This allows you to lay them flat on your desk or wherever and not take up near as much space as a set that doesn’t fold. The ear cups are marked with an L and an R so you know which way they are to be worn. There is also an L and an R on the inside of the ear cups too.
https://www.seerofsouls.com/wp-content/themes/groovy/assets/images/transparent.gifOn the right ear cup is where all the controls are located. You will find the button to enable/disable ANC, a volume up and next button, a play/pause button, volume down and previous button, the USB-C charging port and the on/off switch. All of these buttons are nicely placed on the ear cup and are fairly easy to push and use without much hassle.
The padding on the ear cups is really good. They are super soft, allowing me to wear them for about 5 hours at one point without any issues, which is something I normally can’t do with over the ear headphones.
The band when it sits on top of your head is comfortable as well due to the soft leather. This is extremely important to me since I am bald, and a lot of headphones don’t have enough padding to be completely comfortable in this specific area.
Controls
On the right side is the power switch. It’s a simple slider that allows you to turn the power on and off to the headphones. When you turn them on, the LED indicator will either be orange for the 2.4GHz mode or blue for Bluetooth mode. Two switch modes, you simply hold down the Play/Pause button for about 3 seconds.
On the underside is the NAC switch as well as the volume up and down buttons. As mentioned above, the volume up and down buttons also act as the next and previous buttons. Located down here is also the play/pause button. Next to all of those is where the USB-C charging port is located.
https://www.seerofsouls.com/wp-content/themes/groovy/assets/images/transparent.gifAs mentioned above, these headphones do 2.4GHz wireless mode. If you don’t have Bluetooth available or simply don’t want to use Bluetooth, you can take the included dongle, plug it into a USB-C port on your PC, laptop, Switch or whatever and use them that way. The good thing about this dongle is, LTC includes a USB-C to USB-A adapter in the box, so having an actual USB-C port isn’t necessary.
To pair the headphones in 2.4GHz wireless mode, simply hold the plus and minus buttons for about 3 seconds to put them into pairing mode. They should connect very quickly and easily at this point.
Regardless if you’re using the LTC 502’s in wireless or Bluetooth mode, you will have a range of 33 feet (10 meters) from your PC or device to the headphones themselves.
Sound Quality
The number one question that everyone has is, what was the sound quality like? Out of the box they sound really good. The LTC 502’s use 40-millimeter large aperture drivers that deliver a higher sound and decently good bass.
During gameplay they sound quite punchy and crystal clear, especially when using them in a game that does voice chat, such as Fortnite or something similar. To me, they weren’t too loud which a lot of headphones can be and due to this, I could hear background effects and exposures in a nice, immersive way.
Now, let’s talk about Active Noise Cancellation, or ANC. This is where I feel the LTC 502’s really failed. I don’t believe this is something unique to my specific pair that I was sent as I know a couple of others who had this same problem. But when ANC is enabled, there is a distinctive humming sound in the background that is actually quite annoying, at least to me personally. The overall sound also seemed to be a bit hollower, or shallow in a way.
To me, I’m not sure the LTC 502’s require ANC in any way. When ANC is off, the sound is really good, and any outside noise doesn’t really come through the headphones.
I couldn’t get past the humming sound with ANC enabled, so for the rest of my testing and review period I used these headphones with ANC disabled as there was just a better overall experience without it.
The LTC Sound Slave 502’s have two omnidirectional microphones. One is built-in and located just above the 3.5mm headphone jack. There is also the detachable, flexible microphone that gets you a little better sound during intense gaming and chatting.
I used these headphones while playing Fortnite with a couple of friends of mine and neither of them complained about sound quality coming through the detachable mic as that was what I used at all times. I did do some quick testing over Discord with the built-in mic and was told everything sounded good. Nothing great or outstanding, but nothing bad either.
LTC claims that the Sound Slave 502 headphones will get about 16 hours of battery life if used in Bluetooth mode and 14 hours if used in 2.4GHz mode. Those times drop if you use ANC, so with the 2.4GHz mode and ANC enabled, you drop to about 11 hours and in Bluetooth mode with ANC enabled you’ll get around 12 hours of battery life.
My tests showed this to be pretty accurate at least without ANC enabled. As mentioned above, ANC on these headphones wasn’t a pleasant experience at all and something I chose not to use.
Discount Code
Thanks to the awesome folks over at Redragon for allowing me to review this product and others that they have sent over in the past. They have also provided me with a special URL that anyone can use to save a total of 10% off of your entire purchase across their site. So if you’re interested in purchasing the Redragon x LTC Sound Slave 502 Headphones, or any of their products, you can click this link: Save 10% On Your Entire Order. I believe if you don’t click the link, you can always manually input DECRYPTED as the code during check out.
Final Thoughts
The burning question here is, would I recommend the LTC Sound Slave 502 headphones? Yes and no. If ANC is an important feature, then the answer is quickly a no as far as my testing went. If you aren’t concerned with or in need of ANC, then hands down yes. These headphones are solidly built and very comfortable even after a few hours of continued usage.
They retail for about $59.99 and at that price you really can’t go wrong, even if you get them and don’t plan on using the ANC side of things.
As with most any product, there is always room for a bit of improvement but overall, these are a solid buy if you’re not looking to spend hundreds of dollars.
As of the writing of this review, the LTC Sound Slave 502’s are out of stock on Amazon but again, should be available by the end of this month, February.
When it comes to using a PC or even a laptop, most everyone wants speakers to be able to listen to music, videos or just sound in general. There are certainly millions of options out there to choose from which means you can get something cheap, expensive, large, small or whatever.
Thanks to the awesome folks over at RedragonShop, I was sent over a set of their Redragon Anvil GS520 computer speakers. The question is, for the price of $39.99 how do these speakers deliver when it comes to sound as that’s obviously the most important feature when it comes to a set of speakers.
Specifications
<strong>Package Size</strong>: 7.48 x 6.69 x 4.33 inches<strong>Item Weight</strong>: 1.98 pounds<strong>2.0 Channel Stereo</strong>: Yes<strong>3.5mm Mic/Headset Jack</strong>: Yes<strong>RGB LED Backlit</strong>: Yes<strong>Power Consumption</strong>: 5W x 2
Features
Classic design and simple structure2.0 Channel stereo speakersAdopted low-voltage digital power for crystal clear soundMaximum Power of 5W x 2RGB lighting with touch control
The Redragon Anvil GS520 are very lightweight and are the usual plug and play set of speakers. They plug into an AC outlet on the wall or a power strip, then plug into the back of the PC. There are no drivers or anything else which makes them easy to use on a PC, laptop or anything that has a 3.5mm jack.
The speakers have control buttons for both volume up and volume down. Simply press the + sign to turn up the volume and press the – to turn it down. My one complaint here is that I wish they were either touch capacitive or it was a volume knob. Having actual buttons that get pushed seem a bit old school, but it works nonetheless.
https://www.seerofsouls.com/wp-content/themes/groovy/assets/images/transparent.gifSince the Redragon Anvil GS520 comes with RGB lighting, there is a button on the top of the right speaker that allows you to change the colors between 6 different settings. Simple press of the button changes the color and again, there’s no special software that’s needed for the RGB lighting.
As is the case with any speaker review, the question asked most is all about sound quality. So where does the Redragon Anvil GS520 stand in that department you ask?
Let me start off by saying, these aren’t Bose speakers by any means, which is what I’ve used for the past 6 – 7 years on my PC. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t good.
As stated originally, these speakers currently cost $39.99 so they are what you obviously call affordable speakers. For me, I tested them on my daily PC when viewing Twitch streams, watching YouTube and listening to Spotify.
Sound quality was clear and crisp, even when turned all the way up, though turning speakers all the way up isn’t something I normally do and certainly don’t suggest.
When listening to music that had a bit of bass to it, the bass came through the speakers very well. It wasn’t overpowering or under impressive in any way. The bass didn’t override the lows and highs or anything similar and kept the listening experience ideal.
Throw in the fact that the speakers do have RGB lighting is an extra bonus in my book. As we all know, RGB is something that a lot of people enjoy and want, and while it’s certainly not going to light up a room, it gives a nice touch to the speakers as they sit on your desk or table or whatever you might use.
Discount Code
Thanks to the awesome folks over at Redragon for allowing me to review this product and others that they have sent over in the past. They have also provided me with a special URL that anyone can use to save a total of 10% off of your entire purchase across their site. So if you’re interested in purchasing the Redragon Anvil GS520, or any of their products, you can click this link: Save 10% On Your Entire Order. I believe if you don’t click the link, you can always manually input DECRYPTED as the code during check out.
The good folks over at Redragonshop have sent me the Caraxes Pro SE K644 65% keyboard to review. If smaller keyboards are your thing, then keep reading for the details on this keyboard.
The Redragon Caraxes Pro SE K644 is a great 65% mechanical keyboard that offers a lot of features for a very reasonable price. It is hot-swappable, so you can easily change the switches to your liking. It also has RGB backlighting, and it can be connected via wired, Bluetooth, or 2.4GHz wireless.
The Caraxes Pro is made of high-quality materials, and it feels very sturdy. The keycaps are well-made, and they have a nice texture. The switches are Outemu Reds, which are linear and quiet. They are perfect for gaming or typing. The Caraxes Pro SE K644 has a lot of features that make it a great choice for gamers. It has a fast response time, and it is very responsive. It also has N-key rollover, so you can press any number of keys at the same time without any ghosting.
Bluetooth/2.4Ghz/Wired 3-Mode100% Hot-Swap SocketFree-Mod Plate Mounted PCBNo drivers required for RGB lighting controlHot-Swappable Quiet Red Linear SwitchCreative 1.2X Larger Size Keycaps
Pros And Cons
<strong>Pros</strong>Hot-swappable switchesRGB BacklightingWired, Bluetooth, and 2.4GHz wireless connectivitySturdy build qualityWell-made keycapsLinear and quiet Outemu Reds switchesFast response timeN-key rolloverQuiet typing<strong>Cons</strong>No wrist rest included
The Redragon Caraxes Pro SE K644 is also a great choice for typists. The keys are very smooth to type on, and they have a good amount of travel. The keyboard is also very quiet, so you won’t disturb anyone else in the room.
There’s a wireless mini USB receiver for desktops and laptops and Bluetooth v5.0/V3.0 for various handhelds and laptops. With its onboard rechargeable battery, you won’t need to worry about replacing the cells when the power is low. And if you still do, you can instantly switch to USB-C wired connection which will recharge those batteries while you continue gaming. And what’s even crazier are the hotkeys that light up the entire top row of keys to indicate the battery level from 10% to 100%.
Keeping ergonomics for gaming on the highest priority, the Caraxes features hot-swappable linear RED mechanical switches that can not only support OUTEMU, but all 3/5-pin switches on the market. Thanks to the unique and exclusive structure design of the key sockets, switch mounting/swapping is now a lot easier, and there’s lower key wobbling too. Backlit with individual 16.8m RGB LEDs which are controlled by Redragon’s proprietary software, and the unique combination of cream, grey, and orange keys, this keyboard can instantly turn heads around, while you keep them engrossed in your key skills.
Battery Life
Battery life is decently good from my experience. Redragon states that if you use backlighting you’ll get 30 hours of battery life and 120 hours of battery life if you don’t use backlighting. I only tested it with backlighting on and the battery life was slightly better than they stated as I managed to get 32 hours of battery life on two different occasions.
To check to see how much battery life is left, Redragon offers a quick and easy way for you to check by simply pressing the FN + Space buttons at the same time. This will light up the number row according to how much charge is left. If the 1 and 2 numbers are the only ones lit up, then it’s low battery life. If all numbers are lit up, then you have a full charge. You can look at the images below to understand better how it works.
Thanks to the awesome folks over at Redragon for allowing me to review this product and others that they have sent over in the past. They have also provided me with a special URL that anyone can use to save a total of 10% off of your entire purchase across their site. So if you’re interested in purchasing the Redragon Caraxes 644 Pro SE, or any of their products, you can click this link: Save 10% On Your Entire Order. I believe if you don’t click the link, you can always manually input DECRYPTED as the code during check out.
Final Thoughts
If the smaller sized keyboard is your thing, then the Redragon Caraxes Pro SE K644 is definitely something for you to look into. It’s quiet, it’s comfortable to use and is priced very reasonably at only $59.99. Throw in that you can save 10% off by using the code above, then you’re getting a great deal on a great keyboard.
This is Jason's first review and first post. He'll be publishing more stuff very soon so make sure you drop him a follow and keep your eyes glued to the AllThingsTech blog!
If you'd like to read my review of the LTC Sound Slave 502 Dual Wireless Gaming Headset, you can do so via the link below as I've now published that review on the #AllThingsTech blog.
Also, if the review makes you want to pick up a pair of the headphones or any other Redragon product, you can use my code mentioned in the review to save 10% off your entire order.
Let me know your thoughts, and if you decide to purchase a set for yourself, there is a code within the article that helps you save 10% off your entire Redragon order!