Review: Gigabyte Aivia Osmium Mechanical Keyboard

Posted by Dexter K.

Monday, 31 December 2012 01:46

Article Index
Review: Gigabyte Aivia Osmium Mechanical Keyboard
Specifications and Features
Photo Gallery and a Closer Look
Performance: Typing/ Gaming
Verdict and Conclusion

Page 1 of 5

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Introduction

Recently we reviewed the Aivia Krypton mouse and found it to be pretty good so I shouldn't be surprised if the Osmium keyboard ends up having solid quality. After a bit of delay the Osmium keyboard is on the testing block. Actually it just went through a whole lot more testing than usual to be more specific.

This keyboard sure isn't your standard keyboard. It is loaded with tons of features such as backlit keys, mechanical switches, USB 3.0 ports, and macro keys. Needless to say it has pretty much everything you could want except maybe an LCD screen.

Since this keyboard is loaded with features it should not come as any surprise that I was very much excited to start using it as soon as it showed up. The switches on this keyboard are of the MX Red variety, but we will go more into that later on in the review.

The single best feature of this keyboard is the mechanical keys. They are not simple dome-cap keys that come in the majority of keyboards on the market. These have more of a "click" than your standard Dell or HP OEM keyboard. The reliability and build-quality is also worlds better than a standard keyboard. These days I simply cannot type properly on dome cap keyboards and once you go mechanical it is extremely hard to go back to anything but the best.

As previously mentioned the keys used in this keyboard are MX Reds. Previously we have reviewed MX Blacks here at funkykit and I personally own another keyboard with MX Blues. With that being said, there is a huge difference in the keys. Reds are soft and don't make much of a "click" when the key is pressed. Blacks make a click and are kind of soft. Blues are the loudest of the bunch and the most firm to type since the key needs to go all the way down and "bottom out" in order for the key to be registered. Generally speaking, Blues are the best for typing for long amounts of time while reds are not the best for typing and blacks are regarded as the best for gaming. Personally, blue keys suit me the best so switching to Reds was quite a difference. This is all of course not including MX Brown switches since I have not personally used them but according to others they are somewhere between Blues and Blacks in terms of noise and firmness.