Back to School Review: Thermaltake MEKA G1 Keyboard and Dasher Mouse Pad

Reviewer Experience

Games tested have been Starcraft 2, Portal 2, Left 4 Dead 2, and Duke Nukem Forever. Adjusting to the keyboard for typing takes very little time, and noticeably increases the speed at which one can type. Since key presses are not as distinct as on a keyboard which uses Blue switches, there is a higher rate of error due to accidental key presses, but no more than on any non-mechanical keyboard, and the linear feel of the key presses on the Black switches is vastly superior to typing on any non-mechanical keyboard.



A few concerns/potential improvements for the keyboard are as follows: Considering that the MEKA G1 is a $140 (MSRP) gaming keyboard (although the market price is $99), there are certain standard features lacking. There are no programmable macro keys on the keyboard. While this allows the keyboard to be completely plug and play, requiring no software whatsoever, it limits the potential of this keyboard for gaming, as macro keys can very often improve gaming ability (especially in games like Starcraft 2).


Lack of left Windows key with Fn key in its place

Another issue is the lack of media keys in conjunction with the lack of a left Windows Key. The user still has access to media functions with the use of an FN key that replaces the left Windows Key in conjunction with the F1-F7 keys at the top of the keyboard. Adding media keys would solve both the lack of the left Windows Key as well as the use of an FN modifier which requires two fingers to operate vs. a media key which requires just one finger.


Multimedia Fn keys in blue

A possible change, although it is not an inherent design flaw, would be a larger overall size for the keyboard, with slightly larger spacing between keys that the current configuration, similar to other gaming keyboards currently on the market.



The Tt Dasher is ideal for players who prefer low sensitivity on their mouse while gaming because it allows the player to move the mouse over a large area. It has a rubberized bottom which helps prevent it from moving around on the desk, and a “silk clothing compound” surface (as listed on packaging). This ensures the mouse moves smoothly across the mouse pad and there are no issues in terms of detection when using a laser, optical, or mechanical mouse.

After some use, we have decided that while it’s a great mouse pad, it simply takes up too much real estate on the desk. We played Starcraft 2, Portal 2, and Left 4 Dead 2 using the mouse pad. However, our preferred mouse sensitivity is extremely high, which requires very little movement to manipulate. We simply didn't find a situation that took advantage of the full extent of the mouse pad considering the sensitivity.

We spent some time playing at lower sensitivities to see how the mouse pad would affect play, and in that case it was very convenient to have such a large area to move the mouse across. The movement across the pad is smooth and consistent. It is easy to tell when a boundary of the mouse pad is reached, although it is a rare occurrence.