You might want to turn away from Finalmouse’s next mechanical keyboard if you find the RGB LEDs dancing on your keyboard to be annoying. A mechanical keyboard with its own display presenting moving images through the keyboard’s transparent keycaps and switches is the Finalmouse Centerpiece, which was shown on Saturday. The keyboard’s appearance is both dazzling and distracting.

Finalmouse is renowned for producing PC mice with intricate designs that are frequently hard to find. It usually targets PC gamers seeking for something distinctive and upscale for their system. Now, Finalmouse is releasing its first keyboard, which raises the bar for intricate design.

The display that is located behind the switches on the Centerpiece hasn’t received much attention from Finalmouse. Its exact dimensions, brightness, resolution, and refresh rate, for instance, are unknown. The Unreal Engine 5-powered “interactive skins” allegedly power the display, though. It’s unknown how many skins the Centerpiece will have, but in its demo, Finalmouse demonstrated a range of potential options, including 3D animations, a roaring lion, and floating koi fish that swim away when you touch a key.

Mechanical keyboards are among the peripherals with the most range of customization options, but Finalmouse’s Centerpiece is far more eye-catching than the majority of them, even Asus’ ROG Strix Flare II Animate, which has 312 programmable Mini LEDs.

The Centerpiece’s display is front and center, unlike mechanical keyboards with displays that are located next to the keys in the past. As a result, we can understand how the animations may be very disruptive, especially for folks who don’t use a touch keyboard and those who play competitive video games. Fortunately, you can turn off the display using the brightness slider on the side of the keyboard.

Interestingly, according to Finalmouse, the Centerpiece has its own CPU and GPU, thus running the display doesn’t consume any resources from the linked machine.

According to Finalmouse, designers may submit skins for the Centerpiece’s display and choose whether to make money from them. There was no further information given, though. The Centerpiece users will be able to download designs and switch between up to three via a dedicated switch on the side of the keyboard. According to Finalmouse’s announcement, users will be able to submit various skins for the Centerpiece to use via a Finalmouse Steam app called The Freethinker Portal.

According to Finalmouse, the Centerpiece depends on its Laminated DisplayCircuit Glass Stack. Glass is not a material that is frequently utilized in mechanical keyboards, as you might assume. It should be somewhat protected inside an aluminum chassis, but there are still many unanswered concerns about durability and how this all works. Naturally, Finalmouse asserts that the keyboard is durable enough to survive heavy use.

The business also asserts that the glass stack is encased in gaskets, which results in “typing acoustics and feel unmatched by any other.” We’ll simply have to hear the keyboard for ourselves to know for sure that’s a good thing, but according to Finalmouse’s release, the keyboard’s sound profile has been characterized as “soft marble raindrops” (it didn’t specify by whom, though).

The keyboard employs mechanical switches in addition to its eccentric display that are based on Gateron’s linear Black Ink switches. The switch invented by Gateron has a 4 mm travel and actuates with 60 g of force. According to Finalmouse, the switches in the Centerpiece keyboard should operate faster swiftly and have “slightly” modified travel specifications. The business will also provide keyboard analog switches with Hall-effect sensors, allowing customers to choose where the switches should be activated (anywhere along their whole length).

The Centerpiece will only be available to individuals looking for a daring PC attachment to alter and dominate their setup and keep themselves or, maybe, online viewers, stunned. This is due to its abbreviated layout, outrageous design (including keycaps with just side-printed legends), and expensive price. Early in 2019, the keyboard will be offered for $349, according to Finalmouse.

The following video by Finalmouse demonstrates the Centerpiece’s effects: