Corsair Gaming K70 RGB Mechanical Keyboard Review
by E. Fylladitakis on September 22, 2014 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Keyboard
- Peripherals
- Corsair
- mechanical
- RGB Backlighting
After reading the previous pages of this review, you should already know that the Corsair Gaming K70 RGB is one of the most advanced keyboards ever made. It has practically endless customizability options, from macros and key remapping to timers and complex lighting effects. The user can set practically any key to perform almost any input action, no matter how complex it may be. If Corsair introduces the ability to record absolute mouse positions when programming macros, which we hope to see in future versions of the CUE software, then the Corsair Gaming K70 RGB should be able to perform every input action conceivable.
As for the lighting options, the programming capabilities are insane and we can imagine that some users will spend hours creating very complex visual effects. Thankfully, the ability to import profiles, actions, and lighting effects means you can simply visit Corsair's forum and download files that other users have created and potentially save yourself a lot of time and effort.
The only real problem with the Corsair Gaming K70 RGB is that it uses a completely standard layout; there aren't any extra keys to use for special functions. Of course, you can reprogram every single key but you will have to sacrifice at least one key if you want to introduce the manual switching of modes and/or profiles. You simply cannot keep every single key mapped to its original purpose and add advanced functions, unless you maintain a default profile and set the other profiles to initiate automatically once an application has been launched.
In terms of quality, the Corsair Gaming K70 RGB leaves us no room for complaints. The aluminum chassis has outstanding mechanical strength and makes the body of the keyboard extremely robust. Cherry MX switches are known to be of the highest quality and our texture analyzer verified that, as all typical keys required an actuation force between 45cN and 48cN. As with all such keyboards, the larger keys (especially the Space Bar) require less force to actuate, due to their size and weight. And with a 50 million keystrokes rating, these switches will most likely outlast the lifespan of the user, let alone the keyboard. Inside the keyboard, the assembly quality and the soldering job are immaculate, without a single weak spot to be found.
Corsair also seems quite proud of their new Corsair Utility Engine software and they have every reason to be. It is by far the most advanced keyboard tuning software that we have seen to this date. The programming options and capabilities are enormous and, should Corsair add just a few more options such as the recording of absolute mouse positions and on-the-fly macro recordings, it has the potential to become the best software for an advanced keyboard. As it is still an early version, we are hopeful that Corsair will add these options in the future, after addressing the already known bugs and quirks that testers have found of course.
To give you some idea of what's possible, the picture below depicts the gaming mode I have programmed for an online action-RPG. Keys 1-7, CTRL, Tab and Space control basic game functions, F1 to F4 initiate macros, and the six keys to the right of the main keyboard have been reprogrammed to execute quick text inputs of common battle chat messages. Space has also been remapped to L-Shift, as I personally find the combination of CTRL, Tab, and L-Shift uncomfortable. Programming the entire mode, including the macros, took me less than 10 minutes and dramatically increased my in-game performance and gaming comfort, as I no longer needed to juggle between hitting Shift and Tab with my pinky finger while keeping the rest of my fingers on the numeric buttons.
The Corsair Gaming K70 RGB has only one real enemy: its own price tag. Actually, the competition from other companies is minimal, with very few products (such as the still unavailable $170 Razer Chroma, which "ships in 3-4 weeks") capable of coming anywhere near the Corsair Gaming K70 RGB in most respects. The major competition that the Corsair Gaming K70 RGB faces comes from Corsair themselves.
With an MSRP price of $170, the Corsair Gaming K70 RGB is far more expensive than its predecessor, the Vengeance K70, which retails for $112 at the time of this review. The capabilities of the RGB version are on a completely new level of course, but the Vengeance K70 remains a perfectly good product for users that simply want a high quality mechanical keyboard and do not care about advanced programming and lighting features.
For those that do want a very advanced keyboard, the Corsair Gaming K70 RGB has another major adversary; the Corsair Gaming K95 RGB has an MSRP price of $190, just $20 higher. For just $20 more, you get a bunch of extra keys that can be programmed to switch profiles/modes, launch applications, execute macros, and pretty much do anything that your heart desires. Unless desktop space is a problem, we believe that the current pricing makes the Corsair Gaming K95 RGB is a far more sensible choice. But ultimately, the choice is yours: the K70 RGB is available now while you'll have to wait a bit longer for the K95 RGB.
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Stephen Barrett - Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - link
I received a you-should-be-fired email to me and Anand on my second article. I bet I set a record.Stephen Barrett - Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - link
Anand and IFail
DPUser - Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - link
Anand and me.Fail Failed.
Evil_Sheep - Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - link
Oh god this is hilarious. Is there anything funnier than a would-be pedant who fails the most basic grammar test?Anyway, for this tempest in a teapot, I've spent a lot of time reading and writing academic articles...there's nothing wrong with this one. I don't need florid prose, this isn't the fucking New Yorker. Functional writing serves fine thank you and I just care about the content. Which is great as usual. Move on haters.
Dustin Sklavos - Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - link
The local yokels desperately fear change. ;)just4U - Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - link
I want to say you had a almost lazy approach that worked well for you because you developed it. (A compliment) Going to miss reading your articles here but nothing wrong with E's. Should never let the "to critical" get under your skins. Fact is he's engaging the readership in the feedback section and does some pretty detailed reviews. Styles are different is all and while they may be emulated I'd rather see the diversified approach everyone has.. I think most of the readership would agree on that.Bobs_Your_Uncle - Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - link
@llias78: Please bring (back?) a modicum of respect & civility to your comments.Sorry llias78, but your critiquing skills are simply lacking. I have read the entirety of your comment above, and you frankly display no penchant for structured reasoning or contextual rhetorical formulation. Further, you fail to provide even the 1st shred of evidence upon which the greater readership might find hope for you to develop & display any cognitive or stylistic improvements at anytime during the upcoming year.
While you are undeniably entitled to embrace any opinion you "feel like" embracing, & are entirely within your rights to express such "feelings" (consistent, of course, with any prevailing forum rules or guidelines), none-the-less, I dont think that you are well suited for the job of interpersonal communications.
While I'm arguably no more "Sorry" than you advised that you were, I do find it regrettable that I was unable to arrive at any conclusions other than those I've noted above. So ... Sorry, but those are the conclusions I arrived at every time i reread your review comment.
Rob94hawk - Tuesday, September 23, 2014 - link
When you can do better Illia78 and actually have something published under your name get back to us. Till then go drink a glass of shut the fuck up! I'm so sick of whiney ass pussies behind a keyboard that have nothing good to say.AppleCrappleHater2 - Monday, September 22, 2014 - link
For the second time this year, I am left out in the cold waiting for another Corsair rebate. It may come eventually - who knows ... How long will this one take though? The first one was nearly 4 months late and now this one is late also.I know that rebates are a gamble but nonetheless I have the right to be annoyed when one doesn't come.
Get your act together Corsair.
I suspect I will get it but every time it's the same process with Corsair (obvious attempt to defraud the customer):
- rebate delayed by 1 month to 1 year
- rebate finally processed successfully and they claim payment sent
- payment does not arrive by due date; phone call results in being told to "give it 6-8 more weeks" (they suggest it is the post office's fault)
- another phone call results in them supposedly re-mailing the payment and telling me to wait another 8-10 weeks
- sometimes it comes within 3 months. other times I have to repeat the previous step
It is usually 8-12 months after the rebate was submitted by the time I actually get the prepaid credit card.
I called Corsair today and as usual they gave me a song and dance. I asked at what point they would concede that my rebate is "lost" and send another. She outright refused to answer and kept repeating "I apologize for the delay." She then said that it's Visa's fault for not sending me the prepaid card and "out of our control."
She then told me to wait another week and see if the card comes. I replied "ok, so I should call back in a week if it doesn't come?" She told me not to call back because it may take a week or a month and she reiterated the bit about it being Visa's fault and still refused to give me a definitive point when or even if they would send out another card.
These people are crooks, plain and simple.
JarredWalton - Monday, September 22, 2014 - link
Off topic, much? I never know what to think about posts like this. Mail-in rebates are always a bit of a risk, but I'm guessing your post is just trolling of a company that at one point irritated you. Case in point: http://www.overclockers.com/forums/archive/index.p...-------------------
Ach3r0n, 07-22-09, 12:28 AM:
For the second time this year, I am left out in the cold waiting for another Corsair rebate. It may come eventually - who knows ... How long will this one take though? The first one was nearly 4 months late and now this one is late also. I know that rebates are a gamble but nonetheless I have the right to be annoyed when one doesn't come. Get your act together Corsair.
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So are you the same person posting the same starting text a full FOUR YEARS after being burned by Corsair? I find that highly unlikely, but I'll leave the comment with this post just so others can see that while you've added something to the original text, at least some of what you've said is from years ago.