The Origin PC BlackWidow Chroma Mechanical Keyboard Review
by E. Fylladitakis on August 6, 2015 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Peripherals
- Keyboard
- Origin PC
- Razer
- Mechanical Keyboards
Final Words
As with every keyboard that we review, I used the ORIGIN PC BlackWidow Chroma gaming mechanical keyboard as my personal keyboard for around 10 days to subjectively evaluate its abilities and to better expose its strengths and weaknesses. My typical weekly usage includes a lot of typing (about 100-150 pages), a few hours of gaming and some casual usage, such as internet browsing and messaging. Because typing covers the majority of my typical schedule, the BlackWidow Chroma felt very comfortable and enjoyable to work with. That is largely because of the Razer Green switches, which are practically nearly exact copies of the MX Blue switch, a switch that most people consider ideal for typing. In my personal opinion, I do prefer the MX Brown switch because the clicking noise of the MX Blue switch slightly distracts me. Still, the BlackWidow Chroma feels excellent when typing, especially when typing long texts.
Teal (left) and purple (right) static backlighting
For gaming, the BlackWidow Chroma was fine and very responsive as a keyboard, but the software was entirely inadequate for my needs. Since my current game of choice is an action RPG, I have a few macros that all include mouse movements. The Razer Synapse software cannot include any mouse functions into its macros, so I had to resort to third party software, compile the macros as .exe files and then insert them into the gaming profile of the keyboard as program launches. I also use a lot of macros to insert common text responses for the game, but also code for my professional needs. Although the Razer Synapse software can do that, it was far less complicated and configurable to write these macros with the third party software that I am usually using. Therefore, the actual functionality of the entire Razer Synapse software was reduced to change the backlighting to my favorite color, program two individual profiles and repurpose some keys to execute external programs (that were the macros I compiled with another software). Honestly, Razer can do a lot better with their software if they decide to spend some resources on it.
Yellow(left) and pink (right) static backlighting
As a keyboard, the ORIGIN PC BlackWidow Chroma is fairly well made. Even though it is mostly plastic, the materials are of good quality and the metallic support plate does provide mechanical cohesion where it is required. The matte black cover does repel skin oil and keeps the top free of fingerprints and smear. Beneath the plastics, Kailh's switches and design are adequately good for a high performance keyboard. Certainly, they essentially are copies of Cherry's products, but that does not mean that they are of significantly lower quality. In our experience, Kailh's switches are not as consistent as Cherry's, yet their test results do stay well within the expected quality limits.
There are just two issues with the ORIGIN PC BlackWidow Chroma - the mediocre software and the retail price. We thoroughly explained the limitations of the Razer Synapse software above and we are disappointed to see that the company has done little to evolve their software over the last year, this despite the heavy competition from numerous other companies. These drawbacks could easily be remedied if Razer were to further develop the software, but otherwise the Razer Synapse currently feels inadequate for a top-tier gaming keyboard.
With the current retail price of the ORIGIN PC BlackWidow Chroma, which is at $170 including shipping, we feel that the company will have a very hard time competing. No matter how well made or performing the BlackWidow Chroma may be, it is still a keyboard with a plastic body and switches made by Kailh. The mediocre software does not help much either. Corsair's K70 RGB now retailing for $140 including shipping, Tesoro's similar Lobera Supreme had its price reduced to $110 including shipping, and even the huge K95 RGB sharing the same price tag as the BlackWidow Chroma. Ultimately the BlackWidow Chroma is not a bad product, but given this competition its poorly priced. To that end I suspect a price cut would go a long way towards addressing the market and putting the keyboard on much better competitive footing.
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FMinus - Wednesday, August 12, 2015 - link
You're the lucky one.Every single cold boot, the mouse need about 10 minutes to start working correctly with Synapse installed. Without synapse, any mouse with additional buttons like the Naga or Ouroboros are kind of useless so I have to run it - which makes my mornings with coffee sitting in front the screen with the mouse jerking around for 10 minutes kind of disastrous.
That being said, for me the Razer mice have had a longer lifespan as any other brand, that's why I keep buying them, but if this cold boot crap isn't ironed out soon (because it's happening for about a year) I will have to look for something else. And I'm not the only one with those issues.
Wwhat - Saturday, August 8, 2015 - link
Reason enough for me to never ever get a razer product. Even when you can probably find ways around that nonsense, there is a principal to the thing too. And requiring that account probably means it comes with spyware too, so no, not for me or anybody with half a grain of sense.Refuge - Thursday, August 6, 2015 - link
Shit, if it is identical I would have taken a picture of the new logo, the under plate, and the new O button. Slapped a link to the review a year ago, and then called it a day man.I'm sure you had to have something more interesting or at the very least, a better use of your time than this review. Right?
chrnochime - Thursday, August 6, 2015 - link
They didn't have time to even spell check their first paragrah where "botique" sprung up, so I guess they're too busy doing something else.SirGCal - Thursday, August 6, 2015 - link
Well...1) 10 key rollover isn't enough, I hit that all the time. I had a 12 key and had to give it up. N key is preferred but I have some 20+ keys that work fine also.
2) More importantly, the F keys are in the wrong location. F1 should be roughly directly over the 2 key and there should be a space between F4 and F5 and another between F8 and F9...
3) Razor switches instead of the trusted and proven Cherry? I think I'll pass... Especially for the price.
Stuka87 - Thursday, August 6, 2015 - link
The keyswitches in the Black Widow Ultimate Stealth (Which I have) are awesome. My favorite keyswitches that I have used. They are far quieter than any cherry switch I have used (Although I have not used all of them) and they have a very nice feel. I have zero complaints about the keyboard.I personally have not overrun its anti ghosting limit. Although this really depends on the games being played. I also have no issue with the F-Key locations, I use them very regularly. There is a larger gap between each set of four than the keys in each group. So you can easily feel the gap between F4 and F5.
SirGCal - Thursday, August 6, 2015 - link
I hit the F keys out of muscle memmory, when they are offset like that, I'll be hitting the wrong ones. It's not about feeling a gap as much as nailing the right key where you expect it to be blind-folded and without any 'feel'. And I actually do type fast enough that the last 12 key anti-ghost actually had issues now and again. My 20 key and N keys have never had any issues. Although I do prefer the black and brown keys myself for speed. I like to hear the keys a bit. I don't like ultra-quiet keyboards. But also I have a pile of black and brown (and some red and blue even) cherrys for replacing. Just a quick solder job or less depending on the board.I have Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis which has since attacked my hands also. They are, while always in pain, effectively numb. Without the muscle memory, I'd never be able to type which I do for a living and can do very very fast. Also with the type of work I do I use a lot of complicated key combinations which can also include the F keys. They have to be standard placement or the keyboard is junk for me. My situation might be rarer then an average gamer obviously but on that note I also see no reason in spending the budget on high-end mechanical hardware just to pew-pew... I do game sure but as an afterthought to work. I buy a keyboard for speed and accuracy while speed typing and programming. Everything else is 2nd seat or lower.
xenol - Thursday, August 6, 2015 - link
Do you have more than 12 fingers or type faster than 1000WPM?teiglin - Thursday, August 6, 2015 - link
While I agree that the software is woefully inadequate for anything beyond the most basic macros, my (2013 I think) blackwidow ultimate stealth's macro recorder does pick up mouse clicks, but not mouse movement. It's odd that they would step backwards for a newer product.SpeedMan88 - Thursday, August 6, 2015 - link
Anybody tried the Logitech G910 keyboard? I'm not overly impressed by this Razer keyboard, but wondering how it compares to other keyboards in the gaming segment.