Software

The software program for the EVGA Z10 RGB keyboard is aptly called EVGA Unleash RGB, and the installer can be downloaded from this page. There appear to be different versions of EVGA Unleash for different peripherals, as well as the non-RGB Z10, and finding the correct version is trickier than it needs to be, especially since it is not currently listed on their dedicated software page, either. The installer is a mere 4.6 MB in size, which is quite small for even a single device program, and installation is straightforward and minimalist without a skin to make it distinctly EVGA. In vein with the low-on-resources trend of the installer itself, the installed program took up 8.3 MB on my system.


Opening it for the first time with the keyboard connected triggered a prompt identifying a firmware update for the keyboard, and hitting start initiated a foolproof process that took less than a minute. Once done, I got a good look at the EVGA Unleash RGB as it pertains to the Z10 RGB keyboard, and there are definitely some cues taken from other EVGA drivers here when it comes to the user interface. This is a good thing since starting from scratch can be woeful to all parties involved, and my experience using the driver was pleasant. No bugs anywhere to be seen, and things were laid out where I expected them to be. There is room up top for more devices to be shown, if connected and supported, and hopefully, EVGA works on a unifying software across their peripherals and other products soon.

There are multiple settings menus here, including a global one for the software itself with startup and language options in addition to checking for updates. The first menu specific to the Z10 RGB is General Setting, and the options here include changing whether you want Fn and Win mapping to remain where it is by default or go the standard route with Win to the left of the space bar key. You can also select which keys are disabled in game mode, as well as choose between four preset levels for input character repeat delay and speed. There is a place to quickly test them alongside, which is nice to see.

LCD settings get their own menu, and this is probably where I am most disappointed with the EVGA Z10. There is really not much to do here, especially if you do not have a compatible EVGA GPU or motherboard for more options. You can see the current date and time, the profile you are on, game mode status, and a couple of other indicator events but nothing else. For more hardware-specific information, you need to have EVGA products to display the CPU/GPU status, and this is where the original Z10 was found lacking, too.

Lighting takes up a lot of real estate here, and you can use the software for more granular control over the per-key 16.8 M RGB backlighting on offer. There are some preset lighting effects to choose from, each of which have sub-menus for more options. This includes direction and speed of dynamic effects, selecting groups for per-key lighting with individual R/G/B channels in 256 steps (total of 16.8 million colors), and gradients for static or reactive effects. I like the layered approach for custom lighting, which we have seen CORSAIR put to good use, and it allows for selecting multiple different effects to run simultaneously as seen above.

The other two menus are for key mapping and macro recording, and they too have a few options, including a full remap, macro assignment, starting an application, or opening a web link. Macro recording is built in here and works fine. There are five onboard profiles that can be renamed and associated with programs, and each can have its own set of lighting and functionality configured.