Razer BlackWidow Ultimate Mechanical Gaming Keyboard

1. Introduction2. Packaging and Bundle3. The BlackWidow Ultimate Keyboard4. Performance5. Software6. Closing Thoughts7. View All Pages

Bright lights and bling aside, what really makes the BlackWidow special is the Cherry MX Blue switches incorporated.  These are actually very different from the MX Black switches that are used in the SteelSeries 7G as they provide tactile feedback when the key is acuated.  This is designed to simulate the sensation of a mouse click and also makes quite a loud audible noise.  The noise may become a little annoying after a while, though, as this is certainly not a quiet keyboard (much like the DAS keyboard). Unlike traditional keyboards, mechanical keyboards register the keypress half way down the travel of the key rather than at the bottom.

The Cherry MX Blue switches have an actuation force of 50G, which is slightly lighter than the 60g that the black switches in the 7G demand.  The real world difference between the two is noticeable but is overshadowed completely by the difference in feel between the two keyboards as the 7G provides no tactile feedback.  Overall though neither one really performs better, it's more a matter of personal preference. There are a few additional benefits to mechanical switches that are shared by both keyboards such as the improved durability – mechanical keyboards usually last about ten times longer than the everyday membrane versions.

When evaluating the performance of a mechanical keyboard like the BlackWidow, it's very important to get used to it first for the best results.  This is even more important if you usually use a membrane keyboard as the difference is huge!  For most people, it may take around a week of solid use to fully adapt to the mechanical switches.

When gaming, we noticed a slight improvement in performance in most game where speed and agility matters.  This probably won't make a huge amount of difference for casual gamers but for those who are more serious about responsiveness it will definitely prove beneficial.

As a result of the USB interface, the Razer BlackWidow doesn't support N-Key Rollover.  N-Key Rollover is where the keyboard scans every key separately so it can register an unlimited number of keypresses simultaneously.  The BlackWidow can only support up to six simultaneous keypresses which should be enough for most people but may cause the occasional issue for some people.  Most gamers have experienced the Windows key issue when gaming where you accidentally press the windows key and the game you're playing closes down.  To prevent this, Razer have included a ‘Gaming Mode' button which deactivates it.  They have also added five macro keys to the left of the main keyboard.

Even though the Razer BlackWidow Ultimate is marketed as a gaming keyboard, it is also excellent for general typing duties.  We find that mechanical keyboards significantly improve our typing speed over a standard keyboard.

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