Question: K70 vs. K70 RGB

D

Daniel_Chang

[H]ard|Gawd
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I've been looking to upgrade from my Logitech K740 (membrane). I had narrowed down my mechanical choices to the Strafe and K70 RGB variants. I was torn because they both offer different things that I would want. The K70 has the aluminum finish and the media controls. The Strafe has the FPS/MOBA textured keycaps (sold separately for the K70 RGB) and the USB pass through. But then I find that the non-RGB K70 also has textured keycaps (sans MOBA) and USB pass through.

So, what are the cons to the K70 over the RGB variant, aside from the lighting? I don't have a use for RGB and would probably just set it to white or red anyway.
 
AFAIK the only real downfall to the K70 Non-RGB (other than being able to set the color and create fancy color profiles) is that they had some issues with ESD killing the LEDs (mostly on the blue LED versions), although my K70 hasn't had any fail in the 6 months or so I've had it. The upshot with the non-RGB is that you can get MX Blue switches, which IMO are the best mechanical switches, Corsair messed up the MX Blue RGB switches and had to discontinue that version.
 
I shock the piss out of my keyboard all the time with ESD, and I've yet to kill any LED's on my K70.
 
i have the k70 non rgb and i love it. i tried the textured key but ended up changing back to standard keys. i found them to be more of a annoyance than anything.

as for cons, i really dont think there is much of a difference other than the rgb lighting.
 
mrluckypants96 said:
AFAIK the only real downfall to the K70 Non-RGB (other than being able to set the color and create fancy color profiles) is that they had some issues with ESD killing the LEDs (mostly on the blue LED versions), although my K70 hasn't had any fail in the 6 months or so I've had it.
Click to expand...

I Google'd this issue after your post and spent all day reading the massive thread on the subject over at Corsair's forums. I left with the following impressions;
  1. You expect a mechanical keyboard to last years if not decades, and this product is apparently the antithesis of that.
  2. What reputable company still charges the customer for warranty service!? (Making you pay shipping even one way). I look at it this way: If your defect rate is truly low, then paying two-way shipping is barely a blip on your bottom line. But if you can't afford to pay two-way shipping, then clearly the defect ratio is a huge burden on your bottom line, and I generally avoid these companies when better alternatives exist.
  3. In that thread, Corsair reps ran a CLINIC on how NOT to treat your customers. Holy crap!

My K740 is still working fine today (purchased October 2009!). The illumination is cheap and inconsistent, as it always has been. The only flaws are that two of the four rubber feat have worn off, and the board is slightly warped from me having more pressure on the left side for so long (the leg warped and the board followed). If a membrane keyboard can last me 6+ years, I expect the same from a mechanical, and intermittent dead LEDs would drive me insane.

I trust Dan_D in that his works fine. I've found that people named "Dan" are uber-trustworthy :D But after reading that thread, I've had to cross Corsair off my list. And Razer was already off my list because of their half-hearted implementations on random products. So, I'm now looking at two alternatives:

I like the Azio MGK1-K. It'a a K70 knockoff. No USB pass-through, no textured keys, LEDs are white instead of red. Front plate is aluminum instead of the whole device. The brown switches (my preference) are Kailh instead of Cherry MX. Due to patents expiring, Kailhs are exact replicas of Cherry MXs, just with lower quality control. This isn't a bad deal for $70. If I decide to go budget, I'll go with this. It's cheaper than what I paid for the K740.

On the other hand, I trust Logitech. Romer-G switches are close enough to MX browns that I can make the adjustment (and hell, any mechanical is better than membrane). The G810 came out this week, and unlike the 910 it looks like a proper keyboard. I don't mind spending $160 if I'm going to get at least another 6+ years out of it.

I'll sleep on it for a bit and pick one of those. But thank you all for the feedback. And thank you Mrluckypants for making me find that thread. I know my luck and I would have definitely had at least one LED die right after purchase, and it would have driven me nuts!
 
K65 RGB is awesome and frees up space to skate my mouse. I have never had any issues with it and it has way more features in the software than anyone would ever use.
 
Daniel_Chang said:
I trust Dan_D in that his works fine. I've found that people named "Dan" are uber-trustworthy :D But after reading that thread, I've had to cross Corsair off my list. And Razer was already off my list because of their half-hearted implementations on random products. So, I'm now looking at two alternatives:
Click to expand...

Oh I didn't say it worked fine. I said, I've shocked the piss out of it with electrostatic discharges and all the LED's still work. I've yet to kill one. The keyboard itself is a piece of shit. While the build quality and the feel of it is nothing short of spectacular with regard to the main 104 keys, the media buttons and keys and or dials feel like cheap shit. The other problem I've had is that sometimes my keyboard will get "stuck" and in game characters end up circling around or moving forward until I hit a bunch of keys simultaneously. This normally involves some shouting, and threatening to take the K70 out into the woods with my .50BMG rifle and put it down.

Daniel_Chang said:
On the other hand, I trust Logitech. Romer-G switches are close enough to MX browns that I can make the adjustment (and hell, any mechanical is better than membrane). The G810 came out this week, and unlike the 910 it looks like a proper keyboard. I don't mind spending $160 if I'm going to get at least another 6+ years out of it.
Click to expand...

The Logitech G710 had exceptional build quality, but it was built with Cherry MX Browns or Blues. I don't know how the other, newer models are. I didn't care for all the extra keys and Logitech software is hit or miss for me. I will probably buy a Deck keyboard now that they offer them in smaller foot prints with Cherry MX Blues. I have one with Cherry MX Blacks, and after several years it shows minor wear on the spacebar, but that's it. No other mechanical keyboard has held up as well. I've had a number of them over the years and its held up the best. I'd still be using it, but I just don't like the Cherry MX Blacks all that much.
 
Do you guys expect mechanical keyboards to come down in prices? I feel like it's a hot new trend, but the Cherry switches especially are always a lock to be well over $100 it seems.

IMO a "gaming" keyboard should be, by default, TKL and with backlighting. Having extra USB ports and macro keys would be nice. This is not an easy combination to find and anything that gets close is a ton of money, and for me, dropping $150 on a keyboard means it needs to have absolutely everything.
 
You can get much cheaper mech keyboards.
Its going to be a while before the high end keyboards drop imo.
RGB mech keys havent been out for long, per key lighting and its software control is pretty new.
They are so new, we dont have decent reliability stats on the RGB keys

I want a keyboard like the G810 that gives a tactile feedback, preferably no noise and software that does pretty patterns to music at a reasonable refresh rate.
And reliable lighting !
The G810 fits nearly all of my wish list, it has media keys, a nice rolly volume and good software generally.
I'm going to hold out getting an RGB mech to see if they will fill my bucket.

GSkill have lost a sale by not releasing their high end RGB keyboard in the UK, I would have been compelled to get one.
Too late, the competition is hotting up.
I've seen what else I can get now, bad luck :p
 
ZeqOBpf6 said:
Do you guys expect mechanical keyboards to come down in prices? I feel like it's a hot new trend, but the Cherry switches especially are always a lock to be well over $100 it seems.

IMO a "gaming" keyboard should be, by default, TKL and with backlighting. Having extra USB ports and macro keys would be nice. This is not an easy combination to find and anything that gets close is a ton of money, and for me, dropping $150 on a keyboard means it needs to have absolutely everything.
Click to expand...

It may be a hot new trend, but they aren't coming down in price anytime soon if ever. The last mechanical keyboard I bought in the 1990's was $50. Adjusted for inflation, that's probably about like they are now. Differences of opinion on what a gaming keyboard should be are why the market has so many choices. I fucking hate 10-keyless boards for gaming computers. I can't stand logging into things like MMOs with secure tokens via the number row. I prefer a 10-key. I also do more, a lot more with my machine than just game. So a keyboard needs to be a multipurpose device.

Nenu said:
You can get much cheaper mech keyboards.
Its going to be a while before the high end keyboards drop imo.
RGB mech keys havent been out for long, per key lighting and its software control is pretty new.
They are so new, we dont have decent reliability stats on the RGB keys

I want a keyboard like the G810 that gives a tactile feedback, preferably no noise and software that does pretty patterns to music at a reasonable refresh rate.
And reliable lighting !
The G810 fits nearly all of my wish list, it has media keys, a nice rolly volume and good software generally.
I'm going to hold out getting an RGB mech to see if they will fill my bucket.

GSkill have lost a sale by not releasing their high end RGB keyboard in the UK, I would have been compelled to get one.
Too late, the competition is hotting up.
I've seen what else I can get now, bad luck :p
Click to expand...

Where have you been? These are not "new". Mechanical keyboards never went out of production. They've been for sale in commercial markets where durability and longevity were paramount. It's only recently that they got the Darth Vader makeover and all the lighting, USB hubs, volume controls and other bullshit. By no means are mechanical switches "new." Backlighting them is relatively new, but the switch data (LED longevity aside) should be the same as it is for standard Cherry MX switches. Obviously, other choices beyond Cherry Corp and ALPS are less known quantities as they are newer to market.

Again the competition is what it is due to the vastly different opinions on what makes a good keyboard. For me, it's simple: Cherry MX Blue switches, backlighting, simple layout, 10-key, small form factor, no bullshit media keys, volume controls, USB jacks or headphone plugs. I've pretty much always had to settle for one reason or another. None of the ones I've owned were what I wanted.
 
I said ""RGB"" mech keys.
And specifically covered per key lighting.

My post is centred around ""RGB"" mechanical keyboards.
 
Nenu said:
I said ""RGB"" mech keys.
And specifically covered per key lighting.

My post is centred around ""RGB"" mechanical keyboards.
Click to expand...

Again, the design of the switch isn't really any different from a mechanical perspective. The keys themselves should last as long as the standard ones do. How long the LED's last is another matter entirely.
 
Dan_D said:
Again, the design of the switch isn't really any different from a mechanical perspective. The keys themselves should last as long as the standard ones do. How long the LED's last is another matter entirely.
Click to expand...

I was talking about LED reliability.
I specifically covered it in the next paragraph.
 
I settled for the Logitech G810. It arrives tomorrow, so I'm looking forward to that. I'll likely pawn the game to recoup some of the cost. Not a fan of the genre.
 
It didn't arrive today. Newegg claims to have shipped it on the 10th via Ontrac (first warning sign). Of course, they're only telling me what their systems are telling them, the same thing that I can see from my order history. Ontrac insists that they haven't even received the package from Newegg, going by their "real-time" tracking. Ontrac tracking has never been real-time, and whenever they're used for one of my orders, it says that they haven't received it from the vendor until about a week after they deliver to me.

So most likely Ontrac has it, has misplaced it, and I should get it within the next 2-60 days. /joy
 
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