Saitek Eclipse II Keyboard

Saitek Eclipse II Keyboard (PK02AU)

Saitek Eclipse II Keyboard Front View

Editorial Reviews
From the manufacturer
The Saitek Eclipse II keyboard builds on the success of the backlit Eclipse and Gaming keyboards, now offering a choice of colors – purple, red and blue – selectable by the user and adjustable via a dimmer mechanism. The key characters and keypad illuminate making the Eclipse II keyboard ideal for use in any lighting environment.

Solidly constructed from high quality materials including a stylish silver casing, the Eclipse II’s weighted base and large area rubber feet keep it firmly planted to the desk, while cushioned, silent keys mean hours of fatigue-free use.

• Key characters and keypad illuminate through laser-etched keys
• Media keys for volume control, play/pause and skip tracks
• Variable backlighting adjusts through dimmer mechanism
• Angle adjustment and extendable wrist rest for maximum comfort to suit the way you type
• Weighted base with large area rubber feet to keep keyboard securely planted to the desk
• Quiet, cushioned keys for hours of stress-free use
• Familiar 104 key layout

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Inside the Eclipse II
The Eclipse II has a slimmer typing area than most keyboards, measuring about 4.5 inches from the bottom of the spacebar to the function keys. The top row keys (mostly F-keys) are slimmer than the keys on the main typing area and are a bit closer to the top typing row, hence saving space and requiring less of a stretch to reach those F-keys. From left to right, the Eclipse measures about the same size as your average keyboard.

The keyboard firmly plants itself to the desk, thanks to its weighted base and four rubber feet. These rubber feet jut out from each corner, which is less than ideal if you want to dock the keyboard against a peripheral such as the RollerMousePro. To bump up its ergonomic feel, the unit can be propped up at two different heights and also ships with a wrist rest that can easily be attached to the front of the keyboard.

The Eclipse II is no lightweight: It's built to take a beating. Its 104 keys are surrounded by a tough black finish, outlined in a stylish, silver border. If you firmly tap the keyboard with your finger and do the same again with another keyboard, you'll notice that the Eclipse is made of some solid material.

Other than the F-keys and the spacebar, the keys are about the same size as your average keyboard. The spacebar is a bit pudgy, smaller in length but thicker.

The juicy part of the Eclipse II is that it backlights through laser-etched keys. You can choose between three different colors—red, purple, and blue—which can be changed on the fly at the press of a button and even dimmed using a knob. The sides of the keyboard also light up.

The picture doesn't do much justice, but in reality, it looks pretty cool

Here we have the blue backlight set

And the last of the three colors: red

This area features multimedia controls where you can adjust sound volume and perform playback operations like play, pause, etc.

Using the Keyboard
So the Eclipse looks great sitting on your desk—and even better in the dark. But what about when you actually want to sit down and type on it?

The Eclipse II gives you the best of both worlds—form and function. Behind its fancy façade, the Eclipse II is by far one of the most advanced and comfortable keyboards to type on. Its sturdy design can take a beating if you like to bang on the keys, and the soft, cushy keys made little noise. Though it's not loud and clicky, the Eclipse II had enough pressure to give you a positive tactile response.

We don't use those F-keys that often, but we were able to press them without strain or even lifting our palms from the wrist rest much. That pudgy spacebar was just big enough for us and comfy to press.

We had no issues with the multimedia controls. They worked in iTunes and Windows Media. Changing colors on the fly couldn't be any easier, and we dimmed those colors for perfect lighting, or even turned the lighting off during bright days. Okay, we admit it: We left the lights on even during the day because they look pretty cool.

At night, the backlit keys certainly can help your typing. While in most cases the monitor will cast enough light for you to find the keys you want, the Eclipse's solid, lit landscape of 104 keys was a definite improvement.

Product Details
Amazon Sales Rank: #645 in Consumer Electronics
Color: Silver black
Brand: Saitek
Model: PK02AU
Platform: PlayStation2
Dimensions: 1.10" h x 9.00" w x 19.50" l, 2.60 pounds

The Saitek Eclipse II keyboard isn't quite as off-the-wall or ergonomic as some of these other devices: Its familiar 104-key layout and slim, stylish look require no learning curve whatsoever. Where the keyboard veers from the norm is with its illuminated and backlit keys. This can be very handy for all you brave gamers out there who play until 3 a.m. during those summer nights.

The Eclipse II improves on the original Saitek Eclipse by adding two more colors to the original's blue—red and purple. It also adds multimedia buttons for volume control, play/pause and skip tracks, and the ability to dim the lighting (the original had only two brightness settings).

So when you get past the "ooos" and "aaahs," is the Eclipse II only form and no function? For those of us who aren't ready to wait for another delayed release of the Optimus keyboard, will the Eclipse II be a tasty appetizer before then? We spent a good two weeks with it to find out.

Growing Keys

Saitek Eclipse II Keyboard (PK02AU)