Driver

The driver suite works well and is sort of logical to navigate. Getting it to work the way you would want it to is easy once you figure out how Corsair bundled the features.


Every little detail is controllable. The backlights can be customized per button, which I think of as a great feature. This feature is not only for gamers but for people who edit videos and images.

Performance

The K70 RGB performs as you would expect a keyboard with the Cherry MX Red mechanisms to perform. The key mechanisms are, ideally, for gaming due to their medium actuation force and linear feedback. This also makes them quite alright to type on, but they are slightly more fatiguing to use than the nonlinear feedback Cherry MX Browns, a better choice for typing applications. If you are going for the best all-around compromise, Cherry MX Reds are the key mechanisms to get.

Corsair ships the K70 RGB with a brilliant mid-sized wrist wrest, which ups comfort. The fact that the it has two elevation adjusters on the back is great as these give you even more options when it comes to customizing how this keyboard feels. Personally, I just pop the back ones out and am set.

Particularly well-implemented are the media- and light-control keys. These have been placed into the top-right corner, so they do not interfere with anything, but are still easy to get to. The volume scroll is also very convenient as compared to what is featured on a lot of competing products. You can store profiles on the keyboard, which makes it handy for those looking to use it with several rigs. The macro system is well executed and gives you all the option you want. The lighting system can be programmed as well, and several elaborate profiles are already being shared around the web. Corsair also supplied quite a few with the driver suite, but it seems as though they have been outdone by some dedicated gamers and modders.

This keyboard can be set to four different polling rates by shifting a little five-position tab near the cable-entry point. It also sports full n-key roll-over on all settings, but the delay is, of course, reduced when the polling rate is set to 1000 Hz (1 ms). Normally, gamers will want the lowest possible delay, so the other option is probably just there in case of oddities with either the software or the hardware. There is also a BIOS mode, which should be the fail-safe for some BIOS editing.

One thing I noticed while typing up this review is that the K70 RGB is slightly noisier than the other Cherry MX Red keyboards on the desk right now. This is probably due to the stiffer aluminum cover used for the K70 RGB. While a minor issue, it is definitely something to consider if you are very particular about typing noise.