My wife hates this keyboard.
Clicky, loud, with a black finish that goes with nothing else on my desk, and enough glow (with or without the wrist rest) that it can be seen across the house, the latest Huntsman Elite keyboard from Razer is the kind of polarizing hardware that can end relationships.
A Less Civilized Weapon
If you’re a Razer fan, this is going to be your deck of choice. With an aluminum case, individually lit keys, Underglow lighting, Razer’s new purple switch (an opto-mechanical hybrid marvel), macro recording, onboard storage (so your macros travel with the keyboard), 10-key rollover with anti-ghosting, and dedicated media controls (on the Elite), the Huntsman keyboards are blessed with every gift in Razer’s voluminous bag of tricks.
The Elite’s leatherette wrist rest even glows! Held in place by satisfyingly solid magnets and powered by a contact point at the front of the keyboard, it’s nice to have a wrist rest that doesn’t break the aesthetics of your Underglow keyboard. Incidentally, if you don’t like the Underglow, you can either disable it from the Synapse 3 software or not plug in the second USB connector. Yes, this is one of Razer’s power-hungry keyboards that require multiple USB slots.
The media controls on the Elite are a joy to use. Having a dedicated volume wheel and mute button is a simple pleasure that I’ve found myself employing almost constantly since I plugged it in. You can change the function of the volume wheel to switch to different weapons in game (among other things) with the Synapse 3 software.
Mac Attack Lack
Speaking of, you can plug the Huntsman Elite in to your Mac, but you won’t be able to control the Synapse effects. For that you need a PC with the latest Synapse 3 software. It’s an odd choice, given the recent release of the Core X with Mac support, you’d think Razer wouldn’t forget that Mac fans like their hardware too.
But here’s the thing. Despite the lack of Mac support. Despite the fact that it is a blingy, ostentatious beast. I keep finding excuses to use it. The new purple switches are the most satisfying that Razer has ever produced. Actually, they’re the most satisfying that I’ve experienced on any mechanical keyboard. My previous favorite, Razer’s yellow switches, have nothing on the tactile feedback of the Huntsman Elite’s purple switch. And with the optical laser technology, the 1.5mm actuation point is among the lowest you’ll find on retail shelves (the yellow switch has a lower 1.2mm actuation point, but no optical components).
Everything’s Better With Lasers
Actu-what? Actuation is the amount of travel a key has to make and force you have to apply before the keypress is registered. On most mechanical keyboards, that actuation point is accompanied by a satisfying tactile “click.” On some it’s silent while others provide a nice amount of audible feedback. Then there’s the Huntsman, that goes one step further, providing an almost metallic ping at the actuation point. If you’re not used to a loud keyboard, the effect is a bit startling. Also, if you’re the type of person who doesn’t want everyone to know if you are or aren’t working, you might be better off getting one of the silent keyboards in Razer’s lineup. The auditory feedback of the Huntsman is the kind that inspires gamers to refer to their keyboards as “weapons.”
What were we talking about? Right! Actuation! Comparing the various switches in Razer’s lineup (employing the handy switch tester Razer sent along with the Huntsman Elite), you can instantly tell that it takes just a little less “oomph” to get to that telltale tactile point of contact. More than that, with Razer employing lasers to register the press, it happens even faster and eliminates the dreaded “de-bounce” (which, just like the name suggests, is when the mechanical key bounces back and registers as another press).
Do you need to remember any of that to enjoy the Huntsman? No you do not. The takeaway is that the Huntsman and Huntsman Elite both are seriously fun to type on and have the kind of performance that gamers are looking for in a keyboard. Along those lines, the purple switch is rated for 100 million keypresses – just about double the amount of every other switch on the market.
How Much Does It Cost?
So what does this technological marvel of a keyboard run you? The regular Huntsman will set you back $149. The Elite model that adds the media controls and wrist rest is $199. That bumps it above even the $169 Blackwidow Chroma V2. But honestly, if I had to choose between the two, I would pay the extra $30 for the Huntsman Elite. The purple switches are that good.
Razer has done it again, creating a keyboard that will have people doing double takes, asking you exactly what it is, and have your kids constantly walking by the computer desk, poking at the keyboard “just because.” You can learn more (and pick one up) over at the official Razer site.
Just don’t blame me if you end up sleeping on the couch.
Thanks to Razer for sending a Huntsman Elite to test out. Opinions are my own.
