Altogether, the Vulcan TKL Pro is one of the most exciting keyboards I've used for a long time. By comparison, non-mechanical keyboards tend to feel softer, cost less to produce and don't sound as loud. Scissor switches are another option, which provide a little more tactile feedback and a short travel distance, like you'd expect to find on a laptop. This keyboard from Currys offers excellent value for money, offering a full set of 105 fully mechanical keys for less than £40. I'm sure the main difference is preference, but would it be worth returning the K95 (return window open until tomorrow) and spending an extra $30 for the K100? The K100 has dedicated macro keys, a more comfortable wrist rest, and the Cherry MX Speed switches on our unit have a shorter travel distance than the Cherry MX Brown switches on our K70. If a keyboard's layout looks unfamiliar, this might be why. Older users may prefer something a little more refined, but for the younger audience this keyboard seems to be pitched towards the Torac will do the job nicely. I personally used neither of these, but if you do want a palm rest you might consider a third-party option instead. The 10 most popular stories of the day, delivered at 5pm UK time. All three components - keyboard, mouse and mousepad - feel well considered. Laptop-style Cherry ML switches are also becoming a thing. Each switch is described by its colour; the three most popular are as follows: Clicky feedback is fun and can make typing easier, but it can be annoying to others - especially if you're in an shared space or streaming. top-tier quality encodes of our content. These allow you to record and replay macros, adjust the brightness of the RGB lighting and access media controls. X. Will you support the Digital Foundry team? Linear switches eschew this added feedback, but operate more smoothly and are therefore most commonly selected for inclusion in gaming keyboards. This is a video to compare the Corsair K100 gaming keyboard with the company's previous flagship, the Corsair K95 Platinum XT. Well, the K100 somehow aims to out-flagship the flagship. Mechanical keyboards are defined by their switches. Mechanical keyboards are also available in many different switches, each of which has their own characteristics - loud versus quiet, tactile versus linear, long travel versus short travel and so on. Tenkeyless (TKL) keyboards are popular for gaming as they omit the little-used numpad, giving you more space to move your mouse and keeping your arms in an ergonomically superior position. Mechanical keyboards feel better to type or game on for many people, and are sometimes described as faster or more responsive. The only drag is needing to recharge the keyboard and mouse each week. Of course, it goes without saying that while there are certainly better and worse keyboards on the market, choosing the right keyboard is also a very personal experience. I've been reviewing gaming keyboards for years, from the rebirth of the mechanical keyboard almost a decade ago to the RGB-encrusted examples with unique switches and crazy features hitting the market as we continue into the halcyon days of 2021. However, mechanical switches are expensive to produce and often sound louder than their non-mechanical counterparts. The keyboard is a compact tenkeyless design with clicky switches, providing excellent tactile and auditory feedback plus full RGB backlighting. It feels well built, with an gently rounded aluminium alloy frame, and its bright RGB backlighting spills out of the large capital letters on each keycap. There are no replacement keycaps for WASD and a palm rest doesn't come in the box, although it's clear that the frame is still engineered to accept one. To find out which gaming keyboard is most worth your money, we put two of the hottest gaming peripherals up against one another: the $230 Corsair K100 and the $40 MSI Vigor GK20. It sounds trite, but this really is like having two keyboards in one. The mouse is based on the Razer Mamba Wireless, and adheres magnetically to the flip-out mousepad integrated into the keyboard. There's also a full-size Vulcan Pro model at £180. Its looks are somewhat similar to what we have seen from K95 keyboards, but there are quite some updates and new features that justify the keyboard‘s new name.. In a bold move, Corsair made the K100 … There are three more K60 variants coming out too. We didn't notice any performance penalty from using the Slipstream wireless connection, even in fast-paced games like CS:GO. While the keycaps are a big improvement, the Elite 2 doesn't include some add-ons provided with the original Elite. Be part of the most informed community and take advantage of our advanced tools to find the best product for your needs. The most common options are MX switches, originally made by Cherry and now made by a range of manufacturers. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. subscription fee of €5. The full-size layout offers everything you could want in terms of features, barring except a rolling volume wheel - instead, you'll have to make do with only six macro keys, seven media controls and three other small buttons for recording new macros, adjusting the full RGB backlighting or locking the Windows key. For US buyers, consider the similar Redragon K551 (full-size) and K552 (compact) keyboards, which come with clicky MX Blue style switches. What's better, mechanical or non-mechanical? The Corsair K100 RGB is slightly better than the Corsair K70 RGB MK.2. We purchase our own keyboards and MX Speed Silver), quieter operation (e.g. The Torac offers a clear contrast against monochrome and rectangular office keyboards, with bright RGB backlighting and a metal frame that extends beyond that is strictly necessary. wsjudd. All Rights Reserved. Everything can be customised in the company's iCUE software, which remains the most comprehensive tool available for tweaking lighting effects, recording macros and rebinding keys. An exciting keyboard that nails the essentials and delivers a killer new feature too. Product Comparison: Corsair K70 Rapidfire vs Corsair K70 LUX. Where other keyboards are using optical-mechanical switches just for fractionally faster inputs, Wooting is doing something revolutionary. Price-wise you are looking at $230 USD. so that you can compare the results easily. Corsair K70 RGB MK.2 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard - USB Passthrough & Media Controls - Linear & Quiet - Cherry MX Red - RGB LED Backlit (CH-9109010-NA) 4.7 … All things considered, it's a solid evolution from Corsair that offers reasonable value at its $90/£110 RRP. A mechanical gaming keyboard cheaper than many membrane alternatives. Rather than contrasting colours and red highlights, the K60 uses a black anodised brushed aluminium chassis with low profile ABS keycaps lit by (optional) RGB backlighting. Corsair's iCUE software is on tap if you want it, with deep options for programming custom lighting patterns or interfacing with other apps and games. Logitech ERGO K860 Wireless Split Keyboard. We think it's a small price to pay for unlimited access to The Fastest Keyboard in the World. ; Select an onboard profile slot and click Save.. With that out of the way, let's get straight to the top twelve picks. The K100 is the first keyboard with Corsair’s new proprietary OPX opto-mechanical switches. CORSAIR K100 RGB (OPX Optical Mechanical Switch) Review ... Beginning in 2013 with the Vengeance K70 they set the standard in design and quality in the consumer space, being the first to bring new technologies to market where they could, and striving to be the best when that wasn’t possible. Corsair’s K100 premium gaming clacker shifts to optical-mechanical switches, ups the polling rate to 4,000Hz, (thanks to a multi-threaded SoC), and adds a customizable iCue control wheel. Advertiser Disclosure. The Turret also works great on PC, particularly on computers hooked up to a TV for couch gaming. The labels on each key are easy to read, while a Function layer allows convenient access to media and volume controls. We've already covered the best gaming mice and gaming headsets, and now it's time to take a closer look at another critical area: the best gaming keyboards. games and hardware run, visualising precisely what they're capable of. The Corsair K100 RGB was introduced on the first of October 2020 as their new flagship gaming keyboard. I'm thinking of getting a … However, the K70's switches provide tactile feedback, unlike either of the switches available on the K100. For the uninitiated, optical or opto-mechanical switches use a … The vanilla K60 offers the same features as the K60 except with single-colour (red) backlighting, the K60 Pro SE adds a wrist rest and PBT keycaps and finally the K60 Low Profile uses low profile switches for a more laptop-like feel. Never miss a thing. We've tried to ensure that each of the ten options here are distinct, rather than ten variations on the same theme. Find a Retailer Find a Retailer. So we did. I think I'm in love. The K100 has dedicated macro keys, a more comfortable wrist rest, and the Cherry MX Speed switches on our unit have a shorter travel distance than the Cherry MX Brown switches on our K70. The membrane switches still offer decent tactile feedback, they're water resistant and up to 10 keys can be pressed at once - not always a given on non-mechanical keyboards! There's even a nice wrist rest that echoes that found on the considerably more expensive Corsair K70 MK.2. This position is easier to maintain over long periods - although regular breaks are always advised! Speed switches are the fastest available in the market and are more preferred by gamers whereas the Brown switches are made for gamers, and typists both as they have a tactile bump but no audible click. The black anodised aluminium chassis looks super clean and as sturdy as anything, and the designers also managed to do something not generally possible on a TKL (no numpad) design - they snuck in a volume wheel and mute switch in the upper right. As usual though, a lot of this comes down to personal preference so experimentation is key. Why do some keyboards have differently shaped Enter and Shift keys? MX RGB Red). to show you what 4K gaming actually looks like we needed to build our own platform If you like the idea of the Huntsman TE but prefer a larger keyboard, you can pick up the full-size Huntsman which includes a number pad. To configure a hardware profile: Open iCUE. The lighting effects look as good as ever, with rainbows shooting out of each key, the logo and new side channels too. Sometimes we include links to online retail stores. The K95, for example, is their flagship keyboard range and towers over the enthusiast-grade K70. Comparatively, K70 will be the best choice between these two. The keyboard looks and feels better than the price would suggest, with effective RGB backlighting, handy function keys and surprisingly clean aesthetic. You will need to dip into Roccat's (powerful but poorly laid out) software to change colours and effects, but there is a shortcut to disable the backlight entirely should you need to. That gives you incredibly granular control, so you can steer in a driving game like you're using a racing wheel or change between walking and running in a shooter just by pressing down harder. This might be done for several reasons: to lower manufacturing costs by reducing the number of expensive mechanical switches included, to save space on crowded desks or to create a more portable design. His favourite games are Counter-Strike, StarCraft and Fallout 2. If you miss the classic Logitech G15, this is a really nice modern take on the same great idea. The Huntsman Elite is an even fancier version which includes a plush vegan leather palm rest, a volume wheel, dedicated media keys and RGB underglow lighting - additions that seem worthwhile given the relatively low price difference between the two full-size boards. Some popular examples include the Fnatic Gear Rush, Fnatic MiniStreak, Corsair Strafe and Corsair K70 Lux; these keyboards and other quiet mechanical keyboards are linked below. Corsair has released it's all-new K100 RGB series keyboard. No part of this site or its content may be reproduced without the permission of the copyright holder. A USB pass-through port, elegant cable routing, intuitive companion software and a comfy palm rest complete the package. The Huntsman TE comes in a completely standard layout, so you can choose a new set of keycaps down the road, and no space is wasted with alternate functions on the F keys. No cherry-picked units sent by brands. This is a sterling introduction to mechanical keyboards at a very reasonable price. Elsewhere, the Vulcan TKL Pro ticks all the boxes. We'll continue to update this article over time, and the more feedback we get, the better we can make it! Razer Blackwidow (2019) Razer’s best keyboard flaunts plenty of features. The switches are remarkable too; they're soft linear switches somewhat akin to a Cherry MX Red that register a key press using an optical sensor, cutting out the debounce delay inherent to more traditional switch designs. The Detailed breakdown is given below why we are calling it the Winner. A notched volume wheel is also provided in the upper right corner of the board, allowing you to make on-the-fly adjustments without needing to dive into a settings menu - handy when you're listening for footsteps in Warzone. Wooting also produces a great line of wrist rests, Note - this has just been announced so there's no availability yet; please stand by. The K60 RGB Pro is perhaps Corsair's most restrained keyboard to date, and a far cry for the gamer stylings that the brand has traditionally been known for - ever since the first K60 in 2011. Like the K90 and K95, the K100 is a full-size keyboard with a num-pad, plus a dedicated column of macro keys on the left, media keys on the right and a volume wheel in the upper right corner. One potential gotcha is that the lighting here isn't customisable, so you can't set the keyboard to a single colour - each key will always light up in the same colour, unless the lighting is turned all the way down. Gain early access to all tests results for new products, Prices will now be listed directly in reviews and tables, Have 5 votes per product category to choose which product we’ll review next, Gain unlimited access to detailed test results in tools and results (no blurred results), Having trouble deciding between two keyboards? Corsair also owns Elgato, so expect tight integration with products like the Stream Deck as well. You can even mount the recently-released iCue Nexus touch screen onto the keyboard if you want to adjust keyboard settings, see system stats or launch commonly-used programs. These keyboards set themselves apart thanks to their analogue controls - rather than seeing if a key has been tapped or not, the keyboard uses optical sensors to gauge how far down it's been pressed.