Drop is back with one third Lord of the Ringsthemed keyboard. But unlike the first two, which borrow their language and iconography from the good guy Elves and Dwarves, the third is all about celebrating darkness. The keyboard pairs the Black Speech keycap set – a black-on-grey spin on the Elven set that evokes the language of Mordor (which I won’t voice here) – featuring a special version of Drop’s ENTR keyboard. It’s available to pre-order now, with shipping expected in mid-April.
Tolkien’s Black Speech had no written form, and the only example in the Lord of the Rings — the inscription on the One Ring, found here on the space bar — used an Elven script. The Black Speech keycaps use the same Tengwar letters and Sindarin modifiers as the Elven set, with a sinister new font. They are accompanied by illustrations of the Eye of Sauron, Shards of Narsil, a Nazgul and the One Ring.
The keyboard has a few other special touches. First, there’s the Eye of Sauron illustration by artist Olivia Shetler (aka Oshetart) above the arrow keys. Second, the keyboard uses Drop’s Holy Panda X switches instead of the Gateron Yellow or Halo True switches typically found on ENTR keyboards. The Black Speech keyboard isn’t hot-swappable, so you won’t replace the switches without grabbing a soldering iron.
Other specs include a tenkeyless layout that omits the numpad for a more compact design, white backlighting (but no RGB), and a detachable USB-C cable. You get a few extra keycaps in the box, meaning you can either opt for a two-tone gray design for the keyboard’s keycaps, or add a few red caps for a bit of flair. And don’t worry, in addition to their Tengwar legends, most keycaps also include a letter or symbol from the real world, so you don’t literally have to learn how to talk like an Orc to use the keyboard.
Drop’s Black Speech keyboard has a regular MSRP of $199, but it’s currently listed for $149 on Drop’s website. Looks like keyboards are back on the menu guys.
