What can I say? This is the best keyboard I've ever used. I own the black version of this keyboard with Cherry MX Red switches (light and linear). I've used a friend's mechanical keyboard on many occasions and I was never a fan of the construction of the board itself. Corsair didn't cut any corners on this one.



The main body is cut from a piece of extruded aluminum with a shallow fold in the center that houses the key switches. The brushed, black anodized finish is incredibly done and has a has a beautiful deep-brushed texture. The black anodized Corsair logo is milled into the top of the aluminum frame and oozes sleek looks and how well built the keyboard is. The included wrist rest has a hard rubber finish (great for sliding your wrists around during typing) and snaps on from the back and feels robust for being plastic.The cable for the K70 is very thick and has a beautiful, tight-weave, braided black fabric sleeve that runs the entire length and splits into two red USB plugs (one for the keyboard, the other optional for a USB pass-through from the back of the keyboard). The back has four feet than can be flipped out to raise the board in any tilted configuration you can come up with.



They MX Red switches on the black version that I own are utterly amazing to type with. They are linear and have a very well tuned actuation which feels smooth and precise. The actuation travel happens about 1/3 of the way down and there is no bump or click. The whole actuation feels very smooth and event-less and feels totally foreign to a typical bubble dome key. The MX Reds are no-nonsense, quality keys and typing on them for the first time is really impressive. These switches have many benefits for gaming; the rebound is very quick and quick presses of a key are easily achieved and doesn't tire your fingers. The keys are not too bouncy, which is excellent for typing, but they do return quickly enough for fast tapping or repeated presses.



The main key layout is fairly standard, but the keys themselves sit very high off the aluminum frame which looks great but also allows for easy removal and cleaning; this is probably my favorite aspect of the K70. The keys are all inwardly (concave) curved on one axis (curving side to side) and feel very comfortable on your fingers. The spacebar is outwardly curved (convex) and has a fine triangle texture on it that helps for fps gaming and for accurate, fast actuation in typing. The plastic keycaps feels like they are coated with either epoxy or some other tough resin and have a very subtle 'soft-touch' feel to the material. The font on the keys is easily legible, but is slightly informal for my tastes (just my opinion). There are also optional gaming keys for WASD and numbers 1-5 that have a red, textured finish and heavily exaggerated curving to help you space your hand for WASD control. I don't use these personally, but it's a great option to have. The media keys on the top right are one of my other favorite parts of the K70; they are made from a nice rubberized plastic and are simple in layout and function (in order: Stop, Skip back, Play/Pause, Skip forward). Above the media keys is a mute button a volume roller. The roller is wide and made from black-anodized aluminum with an engraved diamond pattern on it; it's lightly dampened and is incredibly precise and is loads of fun to play with! To the left of the volume rocker are three buttons to control the lighting mode (individual control vs. all keys), a brightness button (Modes: LEDs off, and three levels of brightness), and a windows lock key that lights up when you engage it. There are also three white LEDs just to the right before the volume roller that indicate numlock, capslock, and scroll-lock.



The backlighting on the keys on the black K70 looks fantastic and ominous in its saturated and striking red hue. The three brightness levels are well spaced and on the brightest setting I can easily see them under a bright light (at night this setting is blinding!) The high keys allow for much of the LED light to spill out onto the aluminum frame and glow back at you. Really cool stuff and it helps you see which keys are lit up on the program modes. If you press the lighting mode key you can light individual keys by holding down the button; it will blink allowing you to press buttons and light them individually, then holding the button again allows you to set the keys you have chosen for that mode. Pressing the lighting mode button again will turn on all of the lights. A hidden function of the lighting mode button is to put the keyboard into individual lighting mode and then hold the mode button and the control key for a few seconds: the keys will now light up for about 1/2 second after you press them and then turn off. It's not useful, but it looks really cool! (holding down the same two buttons will disengage this mode).



Overall the key accuracy and feel of typing on the K70 is purely enjoyable on every level. Smooth and precise, comfortable and engaging. Here are my overall thoughts on the Black K70 with MX Reds:



Pros:

- Outstanding build quality, materials, and design

- Very durable and beautiful frame/finish

- Smooth, accurate keystrokes for effortless typing and pressing(even better for gaming!)

- Tall key switches/caps for easy cleaning and a flexible typing space

- Optional contoured gaming keycaps

- Included keycap puller

- Useful and great-looking backlighting

- Lots of lighting modes and interesting possibilities

- Well thought out media keys are the best volume control I've ever used

- Thick, robust cabling with impeccable sleeving

- USB pass-through on the back of the keyboard (single)

- Overall, clean and amazing aesthetics to match the performance



Cons:

- Expensive

- Blacklighting on the number keys isn't quite even (the alternate functions light up brighter than the numbers on the bottom)

- Wrist rest could be slightly larger/taller

- Tall key position might put some people off (this is preference, personally I enjoy this)

- Only backlighting color is red, again this comes down to preference



This is a fantastic keyboard, and one I hope to use for a very long time. Corsair nailed this design and it pulls out all the stops in terms of build quality, typing/usability, and aesthetics. I highly recommend getting this keyboard not only for gaming, but for a fantastic typing experience.