Corsair Gaming Vengeance K70 RGB

When it comes to testing gaming peripherals, we put them through their paces in a number of different games and general usage scenarios to see how they perform under a bunch of different conditions, so the same was the case for the Corsair Gaming K70 RGB. As usual though, because these are very subjective to test, we recommend that you test them out before you buy if you have the opportunity.

When it comes to gaming, the K70 does a good job. Red switches are some of the best options for gamers, since they are lighter and require less pressure to actuate, so can often be the fastest of mechanical gaming switches. It is also not as tiring to type on as some of the similarly gamer orientated switches out there, as they are so light to the touch. This can lead to you miss typing a little more often, but that is something that improves with practice.

I also had no problem with key presses not being registered, even in games with lots of simultaneous presses thanks to the anti-ghosting abilities of this board.

There is little else to say about the gaming abilities of this keyboard, because like any other Red Cherry MX gaming switch keyboards, it feels about the same. It plays well, types well and does an all round good job. If you have tried a few switch types yourself and know what you like, chances are you are going to base your purchasing decision from  that, so know that this keyboard is a red switch gaming accessory through and through.

For those that are not quite as versed in mechanical switches, know that red ones like these are the lightest and therefore the fastest. They do not have any tactile feedback however, nor do they have such a loud audible click at actuation, which some people like (offered by blue switches).

The point is, there is a lot of information on different switch types out there and if you do not know what you like, you should figure it out before considering buying a mechanical board.

Of course that could leave this review incredibly short if the Corsair Gaming K70 did not bring something else to the table, but it does: its incredibly deep back end software. I am not kidding when I say that I was quite bewildered by its menu options, that eclipse even some of the most button festooned gaming mice.

After fighting my way through a couple of issues with the backend and firmware installation, this is the first screen I saw. A relatively clean looking interface, which is nice, but it does little to help you figure out what you actually need to do to start customising your new keyboard.

There are some tabs along the top, which again, do not help you too much. Clicking them just leads to similarly bare menus and options.

It was only through plenty of trial and error and some investigation of the reviewer guide and official forums that I was able to work my way through to a point where I really started to appreciate the impressive array of options offered with the Vengeance K70 RGB.

Since I have been playing a lot of KSP lately, I started out by mapping out the most common controls

In that first window for example, you can map out specific colours to individual keys or groups of them, assigning custom lighting profiles to have them produce a solid colour, react when pressed, when let go, fade in, fade out, how long, how quickly. All of these options are at your finger tips, which is part of why it all feels a little confusing initially.

Creating Macros is a whole new level of complication, but you can do whatever you want with them

These can be customised in the profile tab, where in-fact everything can be constructed key by key and group by group. The same goes for macros and actions, which can be as varied as remapping a key to creating an entire lengthy, repeating macro function that triggers its own light show.

However, these functions can also be created in the specific actions and lighting tabs, which show you all currently created ones in their own categories, making it easier to sort them out or customise if you are not quite satisfied with how they came out.

Remapping keys in the profile section was my preference however, as it allowed you to hover over a key to see what its traditional name is and its current function.

There are a few functions that feel (for no apparent reason) hidden in drop down menus, like profile and mode switching, which can not be triggered as part of a macro but only when certain keys are given a specific function. This became a bit more of a bother in practice, as it meant if you want multiple profiles, you needed to assign a specific key to switch between them.

That is of course possible, but bear in mind this is a keyboard without any custom macro keys, so there's almost always a secondary function that you're losing because of the remapping. That is not such a problem in games but this was the first keyboard where I missed having one or two dedicated macro keys.

However all of this fiddling aside, once you get your head around the way the back end software works, it really starts to open up to you. The lighting options are incredibly detailed. For example, when typing, you can have no lighting effects, single key effects that allow the key pressed to fade in and out, or you can even have all keys ripple when you tap away – all of it in whatever colour you want.

The above profile for example, allowed me to achieve this effect for when I was typing: [yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wt9CIrUxZto']

As you can see, in the customising window you can control the intensity of each colour, the order they appear in and much more. If you use a Ripple or Wave effect, the options let you control the trail off length, speed of the transition, how long the effect lasts and loads more. This is easily the most versatile keyboard I have ever used when it comes to customised lighting.

With some more playing, I was also able to come up with the following effects: [yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzJqVQVql7M'] [yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCawU0eEf-8′]

But they are nothing compared to what the real enthusiasts over on the official forums are doing.

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