Corsair K70 Rapid Fire Review
Category : Keyboards
Published by Luca Rocchi on 06.07.16
With their K70 Rapid Fire, Corsair offers a new mechanical keyboard equipped with Cherry MX Speed switches. Based on a standard layout and without any additional buttons, this is a high-end product suitable for anybody who likes keyboards with linear actuation force. Apart from that there is a red backlight and the F-keys come with two pre-defined functions.
Today we are going to have a close look at the K70 Rapid Fire keyboard coming from Corsair. This particular model ships with Cherry MX Speed switches, which should allow for even faster typing.
| Page 1 - Introduction |
| Page 2 - Photo Gallery / Delivery |
| Page 3 - Features |
| Page 4 - Closer Look |
| Page 5 - Software |
| Page 6 - Conclusion |
Preview
Delivery
The exterior of the Corsair K70 Rapid Fire features a huge picture of the keyboard itself. The box also highlights the fact, that the K70 Rapid Fire has been equipped with Cherry MX Speed switches. On the back we find additional information about the specifications of this keyboard. Inside the box there is apparently the keyboard itself as well as the warranty statement and a small manual. In addition there are few spare keycaps with different grips and a key puller. In order to gain access to all the customization features you need to browse Corsair's website to download the software, since there is no disk or pen-drive included in the delivery.
| Page 1 - Introduction |
| Page 2 - Photo Gallery / Delivery |
| Page 3 - Features |
| Page 4 - Closer Look |
| Page 5 - Software |
| Page 6 - Conclusion |
Features
| Model number | K70 RapidFire |
| Keys: | Cherry MX Speed |
| Keycaps: | ABS, grip coated |
| Materials: | ABS |
| Interface: | USB 2.0 |
| Cable : | 1.5 m |
| Backlight: | RGB |
| Dimensions: | 436 mm x 165 mm x 38 mm |
| Weight: | 1200 g |
| Page 1 - Introduction |
| Page 2 - Photo Gallery / Delivery |
| Page 3 - Features |
| Page 4 - Closer Look |
| Page 5 - Software |
| Page 6 - Conclusion |
Closer Look
As soon as you lift the K70 Rapid Fire, you realize how sturdy and solid it actually is. Corsair has created a keyboard that gives a sense of maximum quality to the user at any given time. The keyboard is made of different plastic materials and there is also an aluminum faceplate, which is typical for Corsair keyboards. Apart from that the palm rest features a soft-touch surface. A closer look at the keycaps reveals they come with a slightly rough surface, which makes the keys feel very smooth and not sticky even if you should have sweaty hands. The K70 Rapid Fire is one of the smaller mechanical keyboards we've had for testing so far but as we already mentioned, it still features a comfortable, detachable palm rest. The new Cherry MX Speed switches are give silver as color and they feature much shorter key travel. The standard Cherry MX switches come with 2mm key travel, while the Cherry MX Speed activate after pressing them down by 1.2mm. In terms of noise they're similar to the Cherry MX Blue and not as silent as for instance the Cherry MX Brown. This ultra short keytravel is a strenght but also a weakness in our opinion. For a gamer it can be great since you can react faster with movements but if you'd like to use this keyboard for typing it could take you quite a long time until you're used to it. We found ourselves typing way more mistakes than on any other keyboard. Due to the shorter key travel the keyboard is less forgiving. In the end it feels that as soon as you press the key it responds. While typing it can happen rather often that you start pressing a key and in that very moment you realize that you're hitting the wrong one. In a situation like this we noticed that due to the short key travel we've then already made a mistake in a text. I tried the speed writing test on 10fastfingers and on average I scored 120 words per minute with 10 errors. I have done the same test with another keyboard based on Cherry MX Red and the score is more or less the same but with only 1 error.
Back
The flip side of the K70 Rapid Fire is not really special. There is an even surface made from plastic and in each corner there is a stand-off, which in order to change the keyboard angle. Apart from that there are no rubber feet with this keyboard. We actually like it when the keyboard is not glued to the desktop, since we're the type of gamers/typists who like to move the keyboard around every now and then.
| Page 1 - Introduction |
| Page 2 - Photo Gallery / Delivery |
| Page 3 - Features |
| Page 4 - Closer Look |
| Page 5 - Software |
| Page 6 - Conclusion |
Software
As soon as you installed Corsair's software, which you'll have to download from the manufacturers website first, you can start to program macros as well as change the lighting. When it comes to macros you can assign them to any key you like, which means you're not limited to different keys on this device. Therefore you can configure pulse, ripple as well as wave effects. Basically it's only your imagination that could set limits to what lighting effect can be set.
| Page 1 - Introduction |
| Page 2 - Photo Gallery / Delivery |
| Page 3 - Features |
| Page 4 - Closer Look |
| Page 5 - Software |
| Page 6 - Conclusion |
Conclusion
| General | + | - | |
| With the K70 Rapid Fire, Corsair created a high quality gaming keyboard, which has almost no flaws at all. We like the fact, that this keyboard feels very sturdy, which is partially because of the weight as well as thanks to the rather thick aluminum face-plate. Apart from there are the new Cherry Speed switches, which are great for gaming but using them for work will take you quite some time to get used to. Unlike the predecessor this particular model finally features an addition USB port on the rear profile. |
- Weight
- Design - Backlight - USB |
||
| Manufacturing quality / Ergonomics | + | - | |
| The Corsair K70 Rapid Fire gaming keyboard is really comfortable to use, all the keys are well placed and easy to reach so you will not find yourself pressing a wrong key by accident. Regarding the Cherry MX Speed switches we can say, they're precise and linear as usual while providing excellent tactile feedback. Comparing these switches to other models from Cherry we would say they are most similar to the Cherry MX Blue for the noise and much faster than Cherry MX Red. |
- Build quality
- Comfort |
||
| Software | + | - | |
| The software is essential but has everything you need, it is free and fast to get, since it's ony 40 MB you have to download from Corsair's website. We do like the fact, that macros can be programmed to each and every key on the K70 Rapid Fire and apart from that also the backlight is highly customizable. | - Easy to use - Customizability | ||
| Recommendation / Price | + | - | |
| A closer look at the price of the Corsair K70 Rapid Fire reveals that you have to pay 140 Euro in order enjoy this keyboard. For this price you get a gaming keyboard, which features mechanical switches and a very high build quality. In our opinion this product it's perfect for gamers but in the case of office use we're not so sure. |
- Gaming |
- Price | |
| Rating | |||
| The K70 Rapid Fire from Corsair receives good 4 out of 5 stars. | |||
| Page 1 - Introduction |
| Page 2 - Photo Gallery / Delivery |
| Page 3 - Features |
| Page 4 - Closer Look |
| Page 5 - Software |
| Page 6 - Conclusion |