Tecware Spectre 96 Review – The Keyboard With A Bit Of Everything

Unboxing

Today we’re looking at Tecware Spectre 96 keyboard, in our case featuring the brand’s Cocoa Brown switches. Opening the box doesn’t quite reveal everything yet, as the keyboard is packed under the foam package. You also get the word from Tecware founder Jackson Tieng as a token of appreciation.

The items you’re getting in the package includes:
– 1.8m braided USB-C to USB-A cable
– User guide
– Switch & keycap removal tool
– Spacebar dampening pad
– 4x spare switches
– 2.4GHz wireless USB dongle
– Spare LCD screen protector
– Tecware Spectre 96 keyboard main unit

Walkaround

The Tecware Spectre 96 utilizes the 96% form factor that some see as the best of both worlds: numeric keypad for number inputs, without the extra space incurred from the navigation keys. The RGB lighting only lights up the base, while the keycaps themselves do not allow light to shine through.

This keyboard does feature a control dial, which by default switches between menus (you can switch it into volume control mode via Fn + dial press), and a small 1.14-inch TFT LCD display that can be used to navigate basic keyboard settings and display images / GIFs as you see fit.

Behind the keyboard you’ll find a USB-C port used for charging, and next to it is the mode switch that allows the keyboard to operate between wired, 2.4GHz wireless, or Bluetooth mode. The USB dongle is stored in a magnetically-attached compartment below the keyboard right out of the box.

The keyboard offers two-stage height adjustments on top of the default profile, which is 3° and 6° based on our measurements (not counting the natural lift angle of the keyboard itself). No wrist rest is included (like this Corsair K70 PRO TKL we just reviewed), so you’ll need to bring you own if the keyboard is too tall for your wrists to adapt.

Unlike most keyboards from mainstream brands, the Tecware Spectre 96 offers a fully hot-swappable configuration with 5-pin switch socket compatibility; sitting on top of them is non-shinethrough, double-shot PBT keycaps that fits the standard cross stem switch layout. This should mean plenty of aftermarket options available if the default isn’t quite of your taste.

Specifications

Tecware Spectre 96

Specifications can be found on product webpage.

Body Material	Polycarbonate (PC) plate, ABS case
Form Factor	96%
Wrist Rest	None
Keycap Material	Double-shot PBT (non-shinethrough)
Switch Type (As tested)	Tecware Pre-lubed Cocoa Brown (Hot-swappable 5-pin socket) Switch Type: Tactile Actuation force: 36±5g (55±5g bottom-out) Pre-travel: Unspecified Total travel: 4.0±0.5mm Lifespan: 50M keystrokes
Polling Rate	1000Hz
Key Rollover	Full NKRO, anti-ghosting
SOCD Support	None
Onboard Memory	None (single preset only)
OS Support	Windows 10, Windows 11, macOS
Connectivity	Detachable wired braided cable, USB Type-C to USB Type-A 2.4GHz via dongle Bluetooth 5.0
Battery	4,000mAh
Colors	White Black (As tested)
Dimensions	382 x 145 x 38 mm
Weight	0.98kg

User Experience

Before going through the app’s functionality, it’s worth mentioning that the Tecware software may be flagged by your antivirus – if that happens, simply whitelist the application from your antivirus provider of choice and you should be good to go. Opening the app and you’re instantly greeted with the screen depicted above, which is key remapping menu that enables you to assign commands or inputs on all keys directly or via the Fn combination key.

The lighting section is pretty straightforward, you get 19 presets to choose from, but there’s also the per-key RGB option available in a separate menu. This preset lighting section can also be accessed directly through the keyboard’s menu, though the onboard menu doesn’t clearly specify each preset, as you’ll only see “Preset 13”, “Preset 16”, etc.

The image display section is only accessible when you connect the keyboard via wired mode, and here you can import images or GIFs to upload into the keyboard for playback; you can also perform the time sync function (via the incorrectly written ‘Time Syns’ button on the lower-right) for the keyboard’s onboard clock as well.

By default, the keyboard is not running the most aggressive latency settings (which has five levels, one being the fastest). It’s not the cut-and-dry polling rate setting that you’ll find in most other keyboards, at best you can only calculate based on the latency figures provided in this page, which differs between each connection modes.

As for the onboard menus, you can switch the keyboard into macOS mode if you have a Mac-based system; there’s also the CPU/GPU monitoring page that only activates when you have the software open. Volume control can be accessed here through the sub-menu, but you can override this by switching to the volume control mode with the combination key Fn + pressing the dial.

The audio clip above is the overall audio profile of the keyboard out of the box, and you may notice the spacebar is considerably louder and produces more ‘ping’ than other keys. For that, Tecware has included a spacebar dampening pad to reduce the noise, which you can compare with the audio clips as follows.

Do note that while the dampening pad greatly reduces the noise, it also makes pressing the spacebar a lot mushier, so it’s a choice that you’ll have to pick between crispier typing feel or lower noise.

The Good

The Tecware Spectre 96 has a lot of great features, especially for the affordable pricing it offers. Starting with typing – I personally prefer tactile switches over linear ones, so the brown switch feels more natural for my typing style. That said, typing feel is solid with well-controlled noise profile for the most part, and if you prefer something else, there’s always the option to swap to another switch entirely using the tools already provided in the package (or just spares, if you accidentally broke them).

Meanwhile, the onboard display does its job just fine, in my opinion. It gives enough essential information during a gaming session, like the clock that is most likely not visible while you’re in-game; alternatively, you can look at the CPU and GPU temps on the fly without the need of a software overlay. If that’s not quite your thing, the display can also act as a way for you to show off your flair too.

Another nice feature for the price it’s commanding for, is the inclusion of wireless connectivity options. Granted, the latency performance might not be the best comparing to the likes of Razer or Corsair with dedicated hardware to match – but if you’re just a casual typist more than a competitive gamer, it’s going to serve you just fine.

The Bad

There’s not much downsides as far as this Tecware Spectre 96 is concerned, though there’s one thing I’d like to point out, which is the software. While it’s fine for occasional use, the user interface feels a bit clunky to use and there’s several bits of typos that honestly should be avoided. The software definitely needs more polish, but other than that, it’s doing its job.

Verdict

Now, the big question: how much is the Tecware Spectre 96 is going to cost? Just RM339. Honestly, I’m surprised too – for the features this keyboard packs, you’re really getting your money’s worth, assuming you’re sticking to its stock components. Of course, the beauty of custom keyboards are the endless customization it offers, but even at its default form, there’s very little to complain, and a lot to like.

Special thanks to Tecware Malaysia (Sun Cycle Sdn Bhd) for providing the Spectre 96 keyboard for this review.