Mice & Keyboards by stefan @ 2011-03-14
The Anansi from Razer is a membrane-based keyboard, with a nice customizable LED effect, over 100 programmable keys, on-the-fly macro recording and an unique feature: the 7 thumb modifier keys right under the Space Bar which help to perform even more complicated macros or can aid in various productivity applications.
At first I would like to thank Razer for offering me a sample of their Anansi Expert MMO Gaming Keyboard for reviewing.
"Razer is more than just the world's leading brand in gaming.
We were founded in 1998 in San Diego, California by our CEO Min-Liang Tan and our President Robert “Razerguy” Krakoff in a tiny shared office with a couple other gamers. We have grown today to hundreds of employees worldwide with offices in seven cities, including San Francisco, Hamburg, Seoul, Shanghai and Singapore.
Our vision from the very beginning was to be the world's greatest gaming brand and we've set out to achieve that by designing the best gaming products that any gamer has ever seen.
We believe that truly great products are based on technology, designed with extensive human factors and user ergonomic studies and then tested by the top professional gamers. In simpler terms, our own world class scientists and engineers develop cutting edge technology in-house or with partners, design phenomenal products around core technologies – and test the hell out of them in the field with our pro-gamers before we launch them.
We are the only gaming hardware company in the world with dedicated gaming user interface research and development labs, and our technology and designs are incubated in three dedicated design centers located in facilities in California, Singapore and Shenzhen. No other company boasts of technology like we do – because we're the only guys who have what it takes under the hood.
We tell it like it is: some can pretend to co-develop products with professional gamers, but gamers don't develop technology: scientists and engineers do (and ours just happen to be gamers as well).
We develop and design our products in our own labs and then put them to the test with top professional gamers who use them in pro-level tournaments and then provide us with feedback. Then we iterate on the product, refining it with the feedback – over and over and over again. That's how it's done, that's how a Razer product is built from ground up. No marketing BS and no hype.
We pioneered the eSports movement with the world's first $100K tournament back in 2000 and we have continued to give back to the community by sponsoring top eSports athletes who give back to Razer by beta-testing our products. We remain one of the largest sponsors of eSports community sponsoring top global eSports teams worldwide.
The people that work here at Razer are gamers just like you – some amateur, some ex-professional gamers, some just play for fun, just ask our CEO who will lay the smack down on you in Quake Live or our President, who has over ten level 80's on his local server. Hell, he will even take you on a raid in the middle of the work day.
We are the same gamers who are told by the suits that we need adult supervision and we need a professional CEO or management team – and we're the same gamers who tell the suits exactly where to shove it because we like doing what we do – and we do it on our own terms.
We hope our passion for gaming speaks to you like it does to us, through our products and we hope you enjoy the competitive edge we bring to your game."
Designed and engineered especially for the MMO gamer, the Razer Anansi is the world’s first keyboard that raises your level of gameplay by giving you the power to instantly use up to 7x more commands and abilities over the current ±12 ability keys you now have. Its seven thumb modifier keys located below the space bar allow you to actuate every possible combination of modifier key (shift, ctrl, alt) in total accuracy and comfort using a single key stroke, exponentially expanding the repertoire of spells, abilities and macros you have at your command.
From the casual MMO gamer to the serious hardcore raider, the Razer Anansi will take you to the head of the pack in both PVE and PVP action. Combine it with the Razer Naga MMOG mouse to use the Razer Anansi’s 7 thumb modifier keys seamlessly with the 12-button mouse keypad, giving you an unprecedented level of battle control while dual-wielding the world’s most phenomenal weapons for dragon slaying dominance.
7 thumb modifier keys
Say goodbye to the days of fumbling with your awkward key binds in the middle of a hectic boss fight or PVP skirmish. Seven thumb-based modifier keys allow you to increase the number of commands you are able to execute from your current ±12 ability keys to 7x that number, allowing you to both instantly and effortlessly actuate every possible in-game spell or ability and still have room for dozens of your own custom macros.
100+ programmable keys with on-the-fly macro recording
The Razer Anansi’s fully-programmable keys allow you to further expand your repertoire of boss-killing macros, giving you total control with convenient and instantaneous command executions. In addition, you can switch between up to 20 profiles for each game or avatar at the press of a button.
Five additional gaming macro keys
Whether it’s vanquishing your adversaries or preparing for your next quest, the five additional gaming macro keys on the left side of the Razer Anansi let you easily access extra abilities and commands such as switching equipment presets and buffing your team mates.
7 thumb modifier keys
Over 100 programmable Hyperesponse keys
One-button profile switching
Five additional gaming keys
Optimized key matrix
Gaming mode option
Easy access media keys
Approximate dimensions in mm: 515(L) x 190(W) x 22(H)
PC with USB port
Windows® 7 / Windows Vista® / Windows® XP
Internet connection (for driver installation)
At least 35MB of hard disk space
The new MMO Gaming keyboard from Razer named Anansi is shipped inside a nice looking cardboard box, with a big product photo on the front and the usual black/green theme:
On the box we get some of the main product features highlighted:
On the top left corner, we are reminded that this keyboard was made to aid MMO gamers:
On one of the box laterals, we are shown some more pictograms, representing some of the product features, along with the System Requirements:
Razer recommends us to pair the keyboard with the Naga Epic, one mouse that they have previously launched and which also features lots of programmable buttons, ideal for hardcore MMO players:
On the back of the box, we get to see a photo of the product in operation, along with some explanations:
The product box is fully sealed, to avoid unauthorized persons messing with the inside contents:
Inside the outer box, we can find another cardboard enclosure, with the Razer logo and their popular saying:
After we open it up, we can reveal the keyboard wrapped in protective material:
The documentation can be found in a black envelope with the Razer logo, just under the keyboard:
On the back of the envelope, we can locate an open sign:
Here is what we can find inside the mysterious black envelope:
“Razer Guy” informs us on how to register on the website, to get extra benefits and enroll in the Cult of Razer:
In the Quick Start Guide, we get information regarding the main keyboard components, package contents, hardware requirements, and how to connect the keyboard to our PC:
The User's Manual shows us besides the information that we could find in the Quick Start Guide, instructions on how to use the software application:
The nice Razer stickers are also present, that can be put on our gaming laptop or desktop case for a nice effect:
The Anansi keyboard is all-black and comes with a braided cable (for extra durability), with two USB connectors:
The black and shiny surfaces on the keyboard are covered with a transparent plastic film, to avoid scratches during transport:
On the top right corner, we can find the status LEDs area, also protected with a transparent film:
The keyboard comes with a matte black finish, with all keys fully lit in the color we choose, keys are membrane based, and the first unique feature that attracts our attention is the inclusion of the extra keys under the Spacebar:
On the left side we can find 5 extra keys (M1-M5) that can be programmed with the software interface:
Here is a closer look on the extra programmable buttons located on the wrist-rest (thumb modifier keys); these are pre-programmed with every possible combination of the modifier keys (Shift, Ctrl, Alt), to perform the actions in games even faster and to aid when recording complicated macros:
In the center of the wrist rest we can also find a tiny Razer logo, which lights up the same color as the keys:
The status LEDs light up through a small plastic screen, which maintains the same interesting fonts as on the rest of the keyboard; in the photo we can see the Gaming Mode Option activated (green LED), which deactivates the Windows key, so we won't press it by mistake during MMO raids or other quests :
The “Fn” key is also present, to activate secondary functions and the right Alt Function key can be used to activate the On-The-Fly Macro Recording function. For example, if we want to set a macro, we have first to press Fn+Alt, (the On-The-Fly Macro Recording LED will light up red), press the macro sequence, press Fn+Alt again to stop the recording (the red LED will blink), and then press the key we want to assign the macro to (the red LED will turn off):
The F11 key is used to activate the Gaming Mode and the F12 key also has the function to set the backlight illumination intensity (on three levels or completely off):
On the back of the keyboard, we can see in center a sticker which shows the product model number, the model number, the power rating and serial number:
In each corner of the bottom of the keyboard, we can find rubber feet:
The two plastic feet can opened, in case we prefer to have the keyboard a bit raised:
The keyboard does come not with one, but with two USB connectors; by plugging the first connector, we will see that the keyboard has full functionality, except the backlight; to make use of the nice light effects, we must plug the second USB connector too:
Here are some nice color effects that we can obtain with the use of the software application;
After downloading the latest software version from the Razer website for the Anansi keyboard, we can install it like any other program:
When the installation is completed, a Windows OS restart will be requested; after the OS has been fully loaded, we can find an extra icon present in the tray, with the Razer logo; if we click on it, the main software interface will pop up, which is split on multiple tabs: assign keys, manage profiles, manage macros, lighting.In the Assign Keys tab, we can assign various functions to each of the keys based on your own preferences. Each key can be programmed using the following functions:
Default key – Revert to the default function of the key.
Single key – Change the function of the key to another.
Macro – Assign a macro to the key.
Profile Switch – Assign a profile to the key for quick profile change.
Launch Program – Activate a program with the key.
All keys can be programmed, except the “Fn” key.
When hovering the mouse pointer over the keyboard keys, a small view with the current key functions will show:
In the Manage Profile tab, we can store our various keyboard settings, such as macros or key assignments; also here, we can create and launch the customized profiles based on the specified application; the “Enable On-Screen Display” option shows the profile name when the profile is activated:
In the Manage Macros menu, we can execute a chain of commands (so called macros), with just a press of a pre-programmed key; in the main tab we can record an unlimited number of keystrokes, and these can be imported or exported on the HDD for future usage; here we can also set the name of the macro, a delay, assign some basic Windows commands or some additional Windows OS commands that can be inserted between keystrokes of our macro:
Finally, in the Lighting menu, we can choose one from over 16 million available colors to adjust the color of the keyboard lighting; if we leave the Spectrum Cycling option activated, the software will allow the colors to change indefinitely. In the same menu we can adjust the light brightness, but this exact function is also available to be executed with one of the function keys:
The Anansi is a very nice keyboard to work with and more silent under normal usage (office work), but also games compared to the mechanical ones I have reviewed in the past. The LED backlight adds a very nice effect, but is not too useful for people that are not looking at the keyboard when typing. Also, the matte finish helps not to pick up each and every fingerprint when we are using the product.
The extra keys on the wrist rest are placed carefully and you won't press them by mistake; also, the keyboard does also come with a Game mode, which disables the Windows key, that can be pressed accidentally during raids or other action-intensive games. Also, an useful feature is the ability to record macros on the fly by using the “Fn”+ Right Alt key.
By installing the software application, which is simple to use, we can have more control over the keyboard lighting, like specifying the color (by default, the keyboard is set from the factory to cycle through all available colors), or can record macros and assign keyboard functions more easily.
Razer recommends us that we should pair the Anansi with the Naga Epic mouse, which is another product aimed at MMO players.
The Anansi can be found on the Razer online shop for about 99.99 EUR.
I would like to thank again Razer for offering me this product for review.