Review: GEEZER GS2 RGB - A mechanical keyboard on a budget

The Geezer GS2 RGB Back-lit Mechanical Keyboard is a USB powered keyboard, aimed at the budget-conscious/everyday user, who still wants some of the high-end features found only on expensive keyboards – namely the multi-coloured lighting options.

I’ll start by saying – I’m a huge fan of a good keyboard, I spend most of my day typing on one. Most of my career has been spent tapping away at standard, bundled, rubber-dome keyboards – and I’ve never had a problem with that! But with all the rage and discussion flooding the internet with regards to mechanical keyboards lately, I’ve been keeping an eye out for a back-lit full-sized mechanical keyboard with a relatively low price.

Table of Contents

Features

Full sized keyboard
Mechanical switches (Blue or Brown – click here to find out more about switches)
26 key anti-ghosting (click here to find out more about anti-ghosting)
Multi-coloured, per key back lighting with brightness control
12 back-lit animation modes
USB powered/connector
Keycap puller included in the box

Mechanical switches

Before going any further, I’ll quickly cover off the two types of switches that the Geezer GS2 can be purchased with.

Skip the explanation

Blue Switch

Cherry MX Blue Mechanical Switch — Cherry MX Blue Switch – Example

Blue switches are known for being amongst the loudest switch. They’re of the “clicky and tactile variety”, adding a distinguishable “click” sound when pressing the key as well as the noticeable bump when pressing a key.

Blue switches are the most common “clicky” switch and are generally favoured by typists, due to the click and bump – which confirms a key press.

Blue switches are generally not used by gamers, due to the higher “actuation force” required for each keypress, which comes in at 50cN. This makes double tapping a key a little harder.

Brown Switch

Cherry MX Brown Mechanical Switch — Cherry MX Brown Switch – Example

Brown switches are very similar to Blue switches, in that they are of the “tactile variety”, however they do not have the audible “click”. The tactile bump is still there, confirming each keypress.

Brown switches are the most popular and common type of tactile non-clicky switch, and are probably the most common type of mechanical switch used.

Brown switches take the click out of the Blue switches, making keyboards containing Brown switches much more suitable to environments where the click could be annoying – such as offices.

Brown switches are considered the middle ground for gaming and typing.

Geezer GS2 design & build quality

I purchased the white keycap model of the Geezer GS2, so my review of the design will reflect this.

Starting from the top down, the keycaps are made of (what appears to be) ABS plastic with the letter/number for each key etched out. The letters are actually clear, allowing the backlight to passthrough. Behind each key is a clear Huano Blue Switch, with a single RGB LED just above the switch.

Geezer GS2 RGB Backlit Budget Mechanical Keyboard - Switch view

The backplate in which the switches are placed is made of anodized aluminium which has an “iPhone” Gold/Rose Gold colour, depending on the ambient lighting. Underneath the backplate, the main body of the keyboard is made of a fairly weighted plastic (the whole keyboard weighs in at around 1KG).

The rubber feet on the Geezer GS2 are pretty strong (I think this is helped by the weight of the keyboard) and prevent the keyboard sliding around your desk – they’ve also shown no sign of peeling/falling off up to this point (over 2 weeks of use). The USB cable is a thick, braided, white cable and is 1.8m long.

Installing this keyboard is easy. It’s simply plug and play. No driver installation required!

“RGB” Lighting effects

I’ve put RGB in quotes as I wouldn’t really classify this as a fully RGB (16 million colour) keyboard. The Geezer GS2 provides 7 different backlight colours, all of which are dimmable with steps ranging from off, to 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% or 100%:

White
Pink
Dark blue
Aqua (light blue)
Green
Yellow
Red

The keyboard then has up to 12 different animation/illumination effects, which includes (and is not limited to):

A gentle breathing effect, for which you can choose one of the above colours.
Responsive key illumination – each key will light up a different colour when pressed.
A rainbow effect – columns of colour flow across the keyboard like a rainbow, this can either go from left to right or right to left.
Individually set key colours

Summary

At the time of writing this review, the Geezer GS2 costs only £36.99 via Amazon – which if you subscribe to Amazon Prime, means free next-day delivery. At that price point, this keyboard packs some incredible features (such as the ability to set per-key colours) as well as solid build quality.

If you’re looking for a budget mechanical keyboard with multi-colour, per-key backlighting, I don’t think you’ll find a cheaper option out there. While you don’t get 16 million colours per-key, desktop software management of the backlighting and Cherry MX keys (known world-wide for their reliability) – you do get a keyboard at less than 1/4 the price of big named brands, mechanical switches and basic per-key backlighting.

I’d highly recommend this keyboard for those looking to get started with a mechanical keyboard, but unsure as to whether they’re worth the investment.