Closer Examination

Yet more plastic covers here, with a final one on the keyboard itself. Taking the keyboard out, we get our first good look at the K68 and, well, Corsair, we need to talk. The K68 is numbered such that I expected an aluminum frame and a volume wheel to go with the K65 and any keyboard above it. Instead, we get an ABS plastic case and membrane keys for volume control. Your naming scheme really needs to be worked on, and it's not as if it is future proof either. The design tells me that this is more of an updated STRAFE keyboard than anything else, so naming this the K68 is confusing and potentially even misleading.

As we saw already, the K68 is a full-size keyboard, and I have here the 104-key ANSI layout version. Other languages are supported given the global brand that is Corsair, but all have the same black on black color scheme with single color backlighting. Note that this units shipped with blue LEDs in some regions, but most of the world gets red LED backlighting here. The other color we see is what appears as a red base plate, but, as we will see on the next page, it is actually a rubber mold to help with the keyboard's spill resistance.

The bezels are not the smallest or the largest, making this an average-sized keyboard overall. We see dedicated media buttons and a button to control backlighting brightness and lock/unlock the Windows keys, in the top-right corner as seen from the front. The Num Pad has secondary legends etched in below the primary ones, and these correspond to standard Windows OS functionality for when Num Lock is off. The alphanumeric keys have the same typeface for the legend font as we have seen with all recent Corsair keyboards - a larger font size coupled with a more "gaming" style font to where more backlighting goes through the keycaps to make the keyboard appear brighter. Their reception has been mixed, but with Corsair continuing to do so, it appears that the purchasing minority agrees with this decision even if I personally may not.


There are four rubber pads on the corners in the back to help keep the keyboard from sliding around on the desk, and there are two feet at the top to optionally help elevate the keyboard, which unfortunately do not have rubber pads, making this another cost-saving measure. There are also several small openings in the back that act as channel outlets to help spilled fluids safely exit the keyboard, and this is part of the design change that has been incorporated to aid with spill resistance. The non-detachable cable emerges from the middle, is the usual 6' long, and terminates in a male USB Type-A connector. USB 2.0 will suffice here because the single-color LEDs are not as demanding on current draw as most RGB LEDs. No USB pass-through port here, which I would have liked to see in this price range. There is also a Corsair logo sticker at the middle of the top, with a plastic cover on top, and this sticker is not in line with the keyboard's surface, jutting outwards slightly.


The keycaps have an OEM profile, and the various rows are thus sculpted accordingly. They have a floating design, which allows for easier cleaning, but causes more light bleed, which may or may not be a good thing for you. The keycaps themselves are thin ABS plastic with an average wall thickness of 0.94 mm, so expect them to develop a shine due to finger oils with use. The legends are laser etched, which will have these wear out quicker relative to other application techniques, including dye sublimation and doubleshot molding. Adding to the complexity, the bottom row has a non-standard spacing scheme, which makes this keyboard incompatible with a vast majority of aftermarket keycap sets. These are not new complaints from me, and until I see Corsair's doubleshot keycaps become a reality at stock, these will remain a con.


The larger keycaps use Cherry stabilizers, meaning it is easy to remove and install these as well, but at the expense of a slightly mushy and unsatisfying feeling when pressing them down normally. This can of course be a subjective feeling, but the space bar in particular felt quite mushy to me. This has a lot to do with that red rubber mold over the switches, as seen above, which is here to provide that IP32 rating against dust and water at an angle for a limited time. The switches on the Corsair K68 are not visible as is, but are Cherry MX Red switches, which get dampened by the rubber mold as well when typing. As such, the K68 is a quieter keyboard relative to most other Cherry MX Red keyboards, and that alone will make it an attractive option to some potential customers. The switches have an opaque black housing since, as with all non-RGB-backlit keyboards today, the single-color LED is located above the actual switch itself.


Here is a look at the keyboard with the wrist rest installed. The entire package looks good in my opinion, but make sure you have room for it on your desk.