At first we would like to thank ROCCAT for offering us a sample of the Horde AIMO Membranical RGB Gaming Keyboard for testing and reviewing.

 

 

 

About ROCCAT:

 

“ROCCAT designs the best gaming products in the world. We combine detail-loving German innovation with a genuine passion for what we do. The result is a forward-looking product portfolio adaptable to the gaming trends of tomorrow. The industry-leading experiences we develop are born of a deep affinity with gaming community that we ourselves are very much a part of.

 

We achieve this by having an outstandingly talented team comprised of gamers, visionaries and industry experts. Working at ROCCAT is fun, challenging and fast-paced, with no two days ever the same. Our background in gaming reflects itself in how we work, with a strong emphasis on teamwork, communication and mutual trust. We’re all on the same mission. Are you in?”

 

Product Features:

 

PRECISION KEY LAYOUT - fingertip design improves key distinction and island layout resists dirt

CONFIGURABLE TUNING WHEEL & KEY - on-the-fly control for multimedia, illumination & more

MEMBRANICAL KEYS - with precise midway travel actuation point

QUICK-FIRE MACROS - low-profile keys that prevent accidental miss-hits

RGB ILLUMINATION - configurable multicolor lighting with multiple zones

AIMO LIGHTING SYSTEM - intelligent illumination harmonized across devices

IMPROVED ANTI-GHOSTING - ensures every single key stroke is registered

DETACHABLE PALM REST - ergonomic design comfortable for long gaming sessions

ROCCAT® SWARM - comprehensive driver & software suite

 

Product Specifications:

 

The AIMO series would not be complete without trying out the Horde keyboard from ROCCAT; we do really enjoy the fact the manufacturer has chosen to go with a removable wrist rest this time, which makes the product more compact when not used. The Horde AIMO keyboard did arrive inside a medium-sized cardboard enclosure that also mentions the offered layout on the top cover:

 

 

 

On the back side, ROCCAT goes ahead and mentions the main product highlights, including the inclusion of the membranical keys or the tuning wheel with multiple functions:

 

 

 

After removing the top cover, we will be able to spot the main product, along with its accessories:

 

 

 

Speaking of the bundle, the removable wrist rest is additionally wrapped inside a transparent plastic bag:

 

 

 

Besides the matte texture, the all-black wrist rest does include the ROCCAT manufacturer logo in the middle:

 

 

 

On the bottom area, we will be able to spot the black plastic mounting claws, but also rubber strips so the wrist rest will remain fixed during use:

 

 

 

 

 

Next, we could remind of the documentation, which is supplied inside a transparent plastic envelope:

 

 

 

Here we will find a nice set of case stickers of different dimensions, the Quick Installation Guide but also a Disposal Information leaflet:

 

 

 

The Quick Installation Guide does describe the functionality of the Tuning Wheel, the Easy-Shift [+] Button Duplicator but also shows the keys that can be mapped with a secondary function:

 

 

 

The back side of the manual does also double up as a poster:

 

 

 

The Horde AIMO RGB keyboard packs a gaming-specific look, with a futuristic design on the entire top layer; with this particular model, ROCCAT has used so-called “membranical” key switches that improve the actuation speed of the usual membrane keyboards:

 

 

 

On the left side, ROCCAT has included five Macro keys that hold an actuation speed of 5ms; the rest of the keys have an actuation speed of 7.8ms:

 

 

 

EasyShift [+] function is conveniently placed on the Caps Lock key:

 

 

Here are some views on the frontal keyboard area, which do show the unusual design:

 

 

 

 

Instead of setting an extra function for the F keys, Horde AIMO does incorporate a set of separate keys on the top frame, near the Tuning Wheel; we can work with multimedia keys, illumination options, brightness, DPI, adjust the volume and so on. The Tuning Wheel does also incorporate Windows 10 Dial functionality:

 

 

 

 

Nearby, we will get to see the usual function LEDs:

 

 

 

The Horde AIMO logo is present under the numeric pad:

 

 

 

Here is also a view on the lateral side of the keyboard:

 

 

 

The bottom keyboard area is manufactured of matte black plastic as well:

 

 

 

The keyboard kickstands are provided with rubber tips, which is a good design choice:

 

 

 

 

A separate set of rubber feet is provided, if the user won’t make use of the kickstands:

 

 

 

 

The central sticker does reveal the product serial number but also the internal code name:

 

 

 

Thanks to the plastic claws, the wrist rest can be attached or removed in just a few seconds:

 

 

 

 

Horde AIMO is shipped with a braided USB cable, which is not thick and can be routed without any difficulties; its low width is mainly because the lack of an USB pass-through:

 

 

 

The cable ends up with a custom-style USB connector:

 

 

 

After connecting the keyboard to a spare USB port, we did install the ROCCAT Swarm unified software, which did recognize the Horde AIMO right away and prompted for a firmware update. As soon as the firmware update was completed, the module for controlling the keyboard was installed as well. The “Pinned” area of the menu does allow the user to select some configuration options that are accessed frequently to be displayed on the first page:

 

 

 

From the General Features area, we can choose different Sound Feedback options, along with the specific volume; Character Repeat options are available as well and from the same menu se can Reset the keyboard to the factory defaults:

 

 

 

The Key Assignment area is quite self-explanatory and allows the user to set different functions to the keys:

 

 

 

The keys can be remapped from the menu that appears when one “virtual key” is selected from the GUI:

 

 

 

Here are the function types we can assign to the buttons (besides replacing the current key mapping with another key):

 

Basic Functions

ROCCAT Functions

System & OS

 

Internet

Multimedia

Open

Timer

 

The Profile Manager allows the user to manage stored profiles or import other ones from previously saved files:

 

 

 

The Macro Manager does have quite a bit of preloaded profiles, but defining new ones is quite an easy process:

 

 

 

 

The Tuning Wheel can be configured as well:

 

 

 

From the Key Illumination area, we can choose either to go with the AIMO lighting (that requires no extra configuration, since it will adapt itself to the apps and devices we do use), choose one of the presets or configure the setup ourselves:

 

 

 

Here is the full list of lighting types we do have to our disposal:

 

 

 

Depending on the chosen preset, we will receive other configuration options:

 

Wave

Snake

Full Lit

Heartbeat 2.0

Breathing 2.0

 

The Custom mode allows the user to have full control over the LED setup:

 

 

 

In order to try out the new Membranical switches of the Horde AIMO keyboard, we first wrote some articles in Word and afterwards we continued gaming in titles such as AION and Quake Champions: the main keys feel less rubbery when actuated versus a standard membrane switch and ROCCAT has managed to keep the sound levels to a minimum as well. The plastic casing of the keyboard does assist further with noise dampening, while the actuation point does allow the user to type without the need of bottoming out.

 

The configurable Tuning Wheel of this model is quite impressive with the multiple actions we can set to it and is assisted by the nearby buttons; the Horde AIMO Dial wheel can used for gaming and productivity purposes as well. For easy access to the Macro keys, ROCCAT has designed them with a low profile and do feature a 1.2mm actuation point.

 

Horde AIMO is equipped with an ARM Cortex-M0+ 50Mhz processor and 512kB of onboard memory for storing profiles hardware-side; the 1.8m USB cable is braided for additional durability, while the anti-ghosting feature does ensure the user that each keypress is registered.

 

As the other AIMO peripherals we have tested before, Horde is driven by the Swarm software that manages custom configuration options, but also the usual RGB lighting system. AIMO configures by itself depending on the usage environment and syncs with the other connected compatible peripherals, but we can go with custom profiles as well. Also speaking of the RGB lighting, the brightness is not as high as we would have liked, so it is not comparable with a standard Cherry MX offering in this regard.

 

We do appreciate the inclusion of the detachable wrist rest that allows the keyboard to remain compact when this accessory is not needed.

 

The product can be found online for about 111 Euros.

ROCCAT Horde AIMO Membranical RGB Gaming Keyboard is Recommended for:

 

We would like to thank again to ROCCAT for making this review possible!