Hello again dear readers, I am back with a keyboard review in the form of the Thermaltake Level 20 RGB Titanium. Thermaltake have been around for decades, and have created some great and some maybe not so great products. Cases have played a big part in their product history, but these days just about anything is available from power supplies to gaming chairs.
On my desk today, and proudly taking up most of it, I have the Level 20 RGB Titanium Gaming Keyboard with Cherry Silver speed switches. These have a shorter actuation point compared to other Cherry switches and that translates to a faster experience when typing and gaming.
As usual we’re going to start of with a look at the specifications before we move on to the product itself.
Thermaltake Level 20 RGB Titanium Gaming Keyboard Specifications & Features
| Color | Black |
| NO. OF MACRO KEYS | NO |
| NO. OF GAME PROFILES | SIX |
| GRAPHICAL UI | YES |
| Weight | 1500 GRAMS |
| GOLD-PLATED USB | YES |
| Dimension | 482 x 185.96 x 43.93 mm |
| Interface | USB |
| ANTI-GHOSTING KEYS | YES / N KEY Rollover (USB) |
| ON-BOARD MEMORY SIZE | 4M bit |
| POLLING RATE | 1000 HZ |
| BACK-LIGHT | 16.8 Million RGB Colors |
| WRIST REST | NO |
| AUDIO AND USB PASS-THROUGH | YES |
| MULTIMEDIA KEYS | 5 + Volume Wheel |
| BRAIDED CABLE | YES |
| Cable Length | 1.8 M |
| SWITCH TYPE | Mechanical |
| SWITCH NAME | CHERRY MX SPEED RGB SILVER MECHANICAL |
| ACTUATION POINT | SPEED RGB SILVER : 1.2 ± 0.4 MM |
| KEY STROKE | SPEED RGB SILVER : 3.4 – 0.4 MM |
| ACTUATION FORCE | 45g(SILVER) with Optimized Tactile Feel |
| KEY LIFESPAN | 50 Million Clicks Lifetime |
Thermaltake Level 20 RGB Titanium Gaming Keyboard: Closer Look
Now that is quite a big box for a keyboard, maybe I am used to the more minimalist designs. The top of the box has plenty of feature information showing along with a nice big picture of what you get inside, the box feels heavy.
The underside gives us a couple more images along with app details and some features in various languages.
The keyboard is very well protected in it’s packaging, now while there isn’t a whole host of plastic bags here, there are foamy plastic pieces and a bag, it would be nice to see more eggbox style packaging used where possible just to cut down on plastic use.
No bags of frills with this keyboard, the contents reveal the keyboard with a very thick braided cable, a package with some replacement gaming keycaps and a keypuller and a manual.
First impressions: the keyboard is very striking. A very sturdy metal top plate surrounds the surface mounted keys and the carved out notch is there to show off some RGB effects, the whole thing feels very well built, this is a premium keyboard.
From the front you can see the raised switches and a steady typing angle which can be increased with feet at the back.
Speaking of the feet, here they are. There isn’t a lot going on underneath the keyboard, but then again there doesn’t need to be, a label with various bits of information sits in the middle and rubber pads make up the rest, it’s nice to see one in the middle at the front for extra grip.
From the left hand side we can see how steep the typing angle can get, this isn’t bad, not quite as steep as some but plenty for a comfortable experience. I do recommend a wrist rest be used with this board.
On the right hand side we have much the same, we also get a great view of the media keys and Corsair style volume wheel.
Looking at the rear of the keyboard, we can see the RGB edging going all the way around. There is also a USB through port and an audio port, the very thick cable is fixed to the middle at the rear and cannot be unplugged.
The reason for such a thick cable is discovered at the other end, we have a keyboard USB connector, a USB port throughput connector and an audio connector for both speakers and mic (or headset).
Powering on the keyboard and we are greeted with a very pleasant level of illumination. The RGB lights are very bright allowing for effects to be shown off. It’s a good job they are dimmable.
The edge lighting looks impressive, this can be independently controlled in the software.
Illumination also extends to the media buttons.
Finally in this look at the keyboard we have a shot of the Cherry Silver Speed Switch, these feature an actuation point of 1.2mm instead of the usual 2.0mm, this can lead to a sense of being able to glide more effortlessly over the keys when typing. Faster reaction times in gaming should also be a benefit of these Silver switches.
Software – PC App
After some delving around the Level 20 RGB Titanium keyboard’s product page I found the TT iTake engine app (please put the links on the support tab TT). Here on the first page we get key assignment and profile management.
The next tab along at the top is the macro programming and management area.
Moving to the lower tabs, the next one in line is the lighting control, here you can see the various lighting zones available, main keys and edge lighting separately, along with a host of effects and a full colour wheel.
Finally we have the TT Sync screen, this will make options available if more Thermaltake RGB products are available.
Software – Mobile App
Being an Android user I downloaded the TT iTake mobile application from the Play Store. Once connected the first screen that shows up is lighting management, performing much the same functions as the PC App.
A Macro manager is also available within the mobile application.
The voice control application is quite nifty, it recognises speech very well and I was able to change colour combinations on the keyboard with just voice commands.
Another feature is the remote keyboard, this allows a user synced to the keyboard to type remotely, this might be something someone with a home media centre might want to use.
The Thermaltake Level 20 RGB Titanium Gaming Keyboard Review: The Verdict
Coming in with a premium level product, Thermaltake are taking on the likes of Corsair and Asus in the mechanical keyboard market. We are presented with a very well built unit, available in two shades of metal top plating and with a choice of Cherry Blue or Cherry Silver switches. Taking up a fairly large footprint on the desk, this full size offering with gaming features and the usual RGB attempts to offer more functionality through various app integrations such as mobile and Alexa.
Setting up the keyboard was very straight forward, allowing for onboard shortcuts to handle changes to settings. The software however did take some tracking down, it is currently linked through the product page and would benefit greatly from being on a support tab.
In Windows use the keyboard is a joy, this is actually mainly down to the fantastic Cherry Silver – Speed switches. The shorter actuation allows for faster typing and for me at least, increased accuracy, I need Silver switches in my life. I had no issues at all during normal typing functions, including writing up this review. The typing angle is comfortable, I did use my foam wrist rest with it most of the time, but this is something I highly recommend with just about any keyboard. I don’t often use media keys but the volume controller on this board is very pleasant and handily placed with a distinct nod to Corsair’s k-series styling.
Gaming shows off more strengths with this keyboard which is proving itself a contender at the high end. The lighting is controllable to suit any gaming needs, especially usage in low light situations. The switches are fast and never missed a beat when playing games, the sturdy build quality handled hectic gameplay with ease.
Configuring the keyboard was fun, the TT iTake engine software has just about everything you need for setting up Macros and LED control. The Android app works incredibly well, once you find and connect to the machine on your network (your PC’s IP address) you can manage your keyboard without exiting a game or app on your desktop, very useful indeed. Some features are a little quirky and maybe not necessary, but some may find them very useful. Alexa/Mobile voice command integration could be a great way to switch profiles for macro combinations.
A little note which might be a QC issue, one of the LED’s has failed during review, however I will chalk this up to a component failure which would be handled under warranty, the key switch itself works perfectly.
What’s hot:
- Striking design and excellent build quality
- Premium Cherry Switches
- Multiple options for configuration
What’s not:
- Quite a large footprint
- Software difficult to track down
- More switch choices would be great
At around £155 at the time of writing, this keyboard is at the top end of the price range for mechanical gaming keyboards based on the Cherry switch system. It competes almost directly with the Corsair K70, while offering a couple of neat extra features.
The keyboard is very well built and would suit any gamer after a reliable full size keyboard with excellent switches.
Functionality is on point, macro programming available along with multiple profile settings and of course RGB lighting. Access to manage the keyboard via not just a PC app but mobile apps and even Alexa is very cool indeed.
I am going to give Thermaltake our Platinum award for the Level 20 RGB Titanium, because not only did they choose some of the best components on a strong design, but they thought about adding extra functionality which I think some people could find very useful, it would certainly be great to say during a game ‘Alexa – set macro profile 2’.
Thanks to Thermaltake for sending a sample of the Level 20 RGB Titanium Gaming Keyboard in for review. Now please do me a TKL version with those Cherry Silvers.
