Not to be outdone by yesterday's Mad Catz S.T.R.I.K.E. 7 gaming keyboard announcement, Razer has stepped up to the podium to introduce their latest board known as the DeathStalker Ultimate. This input device features Razer's award-winning Switchblade User Interface which includes a large 4.05-inch LCD touch screen and 10 fully customizable tactile keys with dynamic displays.
More specifically, the LCD panel is capable of two different modes. In the first mode, the screen acts as a display that delivers various information and allows you to run a media player or web browser while inside a game. In the alternate mode, the display functions as a secondary mouse input device with intuitive gesture controls.
In addition to the Switchblade UI, the DeathStalker ships with a wealth of other features including chiclet style keys, three-way LED backlighting, 1000Hz ultrapolling and a braided cable. The board is also able to accept and process 10 simultaneous key actuations, a common problem that affects many non-gaming keyboards. This is known as anti-ghosting.
Razer has set an MSRP of $250 on the DeathStalker, a hefty price for a gaming keyboard but keep in mind that it's still $50 cheaper than the Mad Catz offering we profiled yesterday. Of course, it's worth pointing out that Razer's offering lacks one key feature found in many gaming boards - mechanical keys. This will no doubt be a deal-breaker for some but we suspect the DeathStalker will still do well thanks to the intuitive Switchblade UI.