Performance

The ASUS ROG Strix Flare supports N-key rollover USB out of the box, which tested successfully using Aqua's test. Switch Hitter confirmed no chatter with these keys either.

When first connected to a PC, regardless of whether the software driver is running or not, the keyboard lights up in a multi-color cycle mode that does a good job of demonstrating the lighting. Backlighting is expected these days for a mechanical keyboard in this price range, and as seen above, the ROG Strix Flare adds a unique touch with the lit logo badge (or custom badge) and side/underglow lighting.


Should you not want to use the software driver, there are plenty of onboard controls for lighting. Fn + Left/Right arrow keys toggles between most of the lighting effects in the driver, and many of these can also be configured to the R/G/B channel brightness in eight steps for a total of 256 colors to choose from (as opposed to the full 16.8 M colors in the driver). I set all keys to white to test color fidelity since RGB LEDs tend to have a hard time outputting a true white. Indeed, we have a light pink tone to the white here. Despite the floating keycap design, light bleed is not as bad as on many other keyboards, which is nice to see. The white steel plate reflects back a lot of light, making for an effectively brighter keyboard than average as well. Side and underglow lighting are a nice touch too, although I would have liked separate control over it.

Here are some more of the lighting effects demonstrated, making full use of the hardware and software alike. We end up with a smooth transition between effects, which are also fairly bright and impressive, especially with the logo badge lit up.

For those who prefer to work without a software driver, the onboard functionality comes in very handy. There are dedicated buttons for media playback, a volume scroll wheel, lighting on/off button, Win lock button, and profile switches to switch between six profiles saved on the device. We already briefly discussed the extent of the onboard controls over lighting, and ASUS enables on-the-fly macro recording as well. ROG Armoury will make life easier with more control over all of these, but it is always good to see pre-programmed controls and functions that can be used in a jiffy. The positioning of the dedicated keys above the alphanumeric section is also an inspired touch, enabling users to quickly adjust settings without having to move their hands away from the mouse or WASD area.



The key-assignment options in ROG Armoury allow users to also go with layouts other than QWERTY, and here, I used the source code from an older keyboard review in a layout tester (courtesy of Patrick Gillespie). The results above indicate that QWERTY is not even close to the most efficient layout for me, and very likely you as well. If you are willing, try out Colemak or Dvorak as they will result in lower finger travel and fatigue overall. As such, the driver is a significant tool if you are willing to devote some time to adopting either Colemak or Dvorak. Here is the link to the full results if you are interested, including a detailed analysis on key presses and distances moved.



The ROG Strix Flare is available in six different Cherry MX RGB switch options, and as we saw before, my sample comes with Cherry MX Red RGB switches. We get the usual translucent housing to allow light through, with a linear switch rated at 2.0 mm actuation with 45 cN and a total travel of 4.00 mm. This has quickly become the most popular mechanical switch in use today, no doubt as a result of many keyboards marketed as "gaming keyboards" making use of linear mechanical switches instead of tactile or clicky ones. Aside from the occasional griminess felt in the travel of keys, which is outside of ASUS's control, the actuation and peak forces were well within rated values based on my testing of 20 random switches with a tension gauge.


As always, the sound of a keyboard is based on more than just the switch type. So when comparing sound clips, consider the keyboard as a whole. In this case, I have provided above an example sound clip of me typing on the ASUS ROG Strix Flare sample at ~95 WPM as it comes out of the box. For context, you can find sound clips from other keyboards here, including those with linear switches. I did bottom out, which is not hard to do given the relatively light spring offered with the Cherry MX Red RGB linear switches.