Numpad and Media Dock

This is usually where I get to the keyboard itself, but such is the nature of the Mountain Everest Max that there are two add-on modules we should examine first. The first is the detachable numpad. It ships in a box that is no different in design from those for the other accessories. But we see a more colorful back, including a render of the numpad and salient features that make this more than just a number-crunching tool. As with the keyboard, it comes inside a plastic wrap and a foam compartment for further protection.


At first glance, it looks no different from a regular stand-alone numpad, but you then realize it is much taller than it needs to be if it were only that, which is when you notice the four display keys. Each key hosts a 72 x 72 pixel TFT LCD screen with a transparent cover for potentially novel customization, which we will look into soon enough. The other keys are no different from a standard mechanical numpad, and Mountain is using an aluminium plate that has been given a brushed finish. From the side, we see floating keycaps, removing which confirms the use of the Cherry MX Red RGB switches as indicated by the sticker on the side of the larger product box. More of the same thin laser-etched ABS keycaps are seen here, which comes down to the choice you made when buying the keyboard since there are several language options in ABS or US ANSI in PBT.


It is on the back that things get more interesting, and I am not referring to that cartoonish face made up of two feet as eyes and the slider as the mouth some may have noticed. Those two feet, incidentally, just pop out since they are held by magnets. The slider is where we get a good idea of how Mountain integrates this numpad with the keyboard, with a push in either direction pushing out a Type-C connector and some magnets for stabilization which no doubt clip into a Type-C port and more magnets on the keyboard sides.


This next module is where the comparison to the ASUS ROG Claymore II temporarily pauses and the comparisons to the CORSAIR iCUE NEXUS begin. It is a media dock that ships inside the same box design as the other add-ons. The side points out that Mountain has paired with Plastic Bank to reduce ocean plastic waste, which is a note that is on the other boxes, too.


Build quality of the media dock does not come off as premium as the numpad, or the keyboard, and adopts an ABS plastic body that houses some LEDs on the left, media playback buttons and a dedicated volume mute toggle button, and a multi-function/menu selector button. Then there is the much larger display with a protective sticker you can relish peeling off. Underneath is a round 240 x 204 pixel RGB TFT LCD that acts as a monitor for several different things, as we will see shortly. The side facing away from the user in use has the Mountain logo, and the mating surface itself has another USB Type-C connector with two smaller magnets surrounding it.