Gaming Keyboards?

[bondon]

Hey guys, wondering if you guys could provide any insight into gaming keyboards. I'm pretty clueless when it comes to these kind of things, I know the diff colours have different "clicks" which affects how much resistance your fingers experience when you press on the keys, but aside from that i'm all ???

Anybody have any good suggestions? I would probably be looking for something that's not ridiculously expensive but something that's not so cheap that i'm gonna have to look at replacing it down the road. Max budget would probably be 100-150. I'd be using it mainly to play dota.

[doulos]

Does a big time gaming keyboard really make that much of a difference? (Genuinely curious, I'm not much of a gamer)

[Vanek! at the Disco]

I use this one and I love it, it's not cheap but it's well worth the money for me:

http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-keyb...zer-blackwidow

[Rylant]

The biggest thing you need to ask yourself, is what features do you want on your keyboard? I would highly suggest a mechanical keyboard. Mechanical keyboards use mechanical switches which pair each key to its own spring loaded switch. They are designed to provide superior audio and tactile response. They have a great feel to them, and they are designed to last for hundreds of thousands of pushes. Regular keyboards use silicon dome switches. The result is a keyboard where the strokes feel mushy, and they tend to not last nearly as long as mechanical keyboards.

What kind of backlighting do you want? Some keyboards have swappable key caps, so you can swap out the keys for differently sculpted caps, and some keyboards just offer swappable WASD keys. Some keyboards let you program several keys with macros, which could be helpful playing a game like DOTA.

I personally use a Razer Blackwidow Ultimate which retails for about $140. It has tons of features and feels great when typing. My one complaint would be that the glossy finish collects fingerprints easily. Other good options are the Corsair Vengeance K70 and the Logitech G710. They will cost you about $120 for each.

Rylant

[bondon]

Does a big time gaming keyboard really make that much of a difference? (Genuinely curious, I'm not much of a gamer)

That's a good question, it could just be cosmetic more than anything but from the people that I've talked to it makes a big diff. It's just the little things...the keys are more durable because you're spamming the hell out of the same keys over and over and sometimes you're mashing one button over and over in sticky situations. I've been using a run of the mill logitech keyboard that didn't cost me very much but some of the buttons are starting to not work as well as they used to.

I use this one and I love it, it's not cheap but it's well worth the money for me:

http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-keyb...zer-blackwidow

The biggest thing you need to ask yourself, is what features do you want on your keyboard? I would highly suggest a mechanical keyboard. Mechanical keyboards use mechanical switches which pair each key to its own spring loaded switch. They are designed to provide superior audio and tactile response. They have a great feel to them, and they are designed to last for hundreds of thousands of pushes. Regular keyboards use silicon dome switches. The result is a keyboard where the strokes feel mushy, and they tend to not last nearly as long as mechanical keyboards.

What kind of backlighting do you want? Some keyboards have swappable key caps, so you can swap out the keys for differently sculpted caps, and some keyboards just offer swappable WASD keys. Some keyboards let you program several keys with macros, which could be helpful playing a game like DOTA.

I personally use a Razer Blackwidow Ultimate which retails for about $140. It has tons of features and feels great when typing. My one complaint would be that the glossy finish collects fingerprints easily. Other good options are the Corsair Vengeance K70 and the Logitech G710. They will cost you about $120 for each.

Rylant

The Blackwidow is one that I've been looking at ever since i picked up the Deathadder mouse a few months ago. It looks like it's a pretty standard buy with respect to gaming keyboards similar to what the deathadder was for the mouse.

What's the deal with the different colour caps? I heard there's like brown/green etc. Do you guys have a recommendation on what colour to get because I know they affect the amount of resistance you feel on each push.

[Vanek! at the Disco]

What's the deal with the different colour caps? I heard there's like brown/green etc. Do you guys have a recommendation on what colour to get because I know they affect the amount of resistance you feel on each push.

It's a cool looking keyboard so pick the color scheme you want right off the bat. They recommend you don't remove the caps because it can be hard to get them back in place with the springs. So get the color you want and stick with it, don't eat over it so you don't get food and crap in it and you can keep it clean with a can of air. Everyone has their preferences with keyboards but I really liked this one, I can't see you being disappointed with it, that's for sure

[Nights]

I'd be using it mainly to play dota.

Good man :P

I have upwards of 2000 hours on some Razer Keyboard (nothing fancy, nor mechanical, I don't think...). All I can provide is don't pick one with black lettering on black keys. That's a mistake I have yet to correct after 2 years because I'm lazy.

Bright side, I get much better at typing without looking at my keyboard though...

The mouse is probably more important then the keyboard for Dota, imo. You do have a Deathadder though (my "weapon" of choice).

[Rylant]

The Blackwidow is one that I've been looking at ever since i picked up the Deathadder mouse a few months ago. It looks like it's a pretty standard buy with respect to gaming keyboards similar to what the deathadder was for the mouse.

What's the deal with the different colour caps? I heard there's like brown/green etc. Do you guys have a recommendation on what colour to get because I know they affect the amount of resistance you feel on each push.

I also use a Deathadder for my mouse. I assume that you are using their software, Razer Synapse? The best thing about going with the same manufacturer for mouse and keyboard, is that the software runs both pieces of hardware. I used to have a Razer keyboard and a Logitech mouse and needed to run Razer Synapse and Logitech Setpoint in order to drive both devices. It is redundant and uses your computer's resources. Choosing a Blackwidow Ultimate would mean that you could just have Razer Synapse and wouldn't require a second software to run your keyboard properly.

As far as using the different caps, I am not completely familiar with them. I have never swapped out my keyboard caps. I am happy with the default caps and I like the green backlighting that I get on the Deathadder, Blackwidow and Orbweaver that I use daily.

Rylant

[bondon]

So after taking all of your suggestions into consideration I ended up picking up the Blackwidow Ultimate Stealth. Got it for like 33% off too because Canada Computers had a big sale on it and I got Bestbuy to price match it down even further.

The keyboard is absolutely incredible. Feels great and the green backlighting makes it so much more enjoyable to play in the dark.

[Rylant]

So after taking all of your suggestions into consideration I ended up picking up the Blackwidow Ultimate Stealth. Got it for like 33% off too because Canada Computers had a big sale on it and I got Bestbuy to price match it down even further.

The keyboard is absolutely incredible. Feels great and the green backlighting makes it so much more enjoyable to play in the dark.

It is a great keyboard. A friend of mine bought the "Stealth" version after using my Blackwidow Ultimate. He liked the idea of the keys not making quite as much sound, but still having a great feel as you type. I also love the green backlighting on my Blackwidow Ultimate, Deathadder and Orbweaver. I have tried his Stealth, and although I like it, I think that softening the sound makes the typing a little stiffer. It's still a great keyboard, and I am glad that you like it!

Rylant

[mister_mcgoo]

Buddy of mine is huge into the gaming scene, those keyboards sure as hell ain't your grandma's "came with the puter" keyboards...they get expensive quick!
Only luxury I give myself these days is my Logitch trackball mouse but that's mainly because I used to get carpal tunnel

[JagrBomb]

So after taking all of your suggestions into consideration I ended up picking up the Blackwidow Ultimate Stealth. Got it for like 33% off too because Canada Computers had a big sale on it and I got Bestbuy to price match it down even further.

The keyboard is absolutely incredible. Feels great and the green backlighting makes it so much more enjoyable to play in the dark.

cant go wrong with the blackwidow. a little pricey but worth every penny...a few cheaper alternatives with similar functionality but i'd rather pay the extra $$ and stick with razer. plus it looks badass.

[Rylant]

Buddy of mine is huge into the gaming scene, those keyboards sure as ain't your grandma's "came with the puter" keyboards...they get expensive quick!
Only luxury I give myself these days is my Logitch trackball mouse but that's mainly because I used to get carpal tunnel

Oh no question about it. If you aren't into gaming or you don't spend 5 + hours on a computer a day, there is really no reason that you would spend over 100 dollars on a keyboard. However, the gaming industry is growing at a pretty huge rate; it's not just a small niche anymore. I read a stat that said that the average age of a North American gamer is 31 years old now. Men now outnumber female gamers by a slight 52% to 48%, and that number is closing. Americans spent 21.5 Billion dollars on gaming last year. Grand Theft Auto 5 has sold 35 million units and is approaching 2 billion dollars in sales. To put that into perspective, that is higher grossing than any Super Hero movie including any Batman, Spiderman, Iron Man movie, or The Avengers, and is just under what Titanic pulled in. For a game that cost 270 million dollars to make, that's a pretty nice profit. With the release of GTA5 on PS4, XBox One and PC soon, that number will grow significantly.

The gaming industry just can't be taken lightly anymore.

Rylant

PS Love the trackball McGoo. I used to use one for my day-to-day computer use and found that it was awesome once I got used to it. Sadly, my trackball is in the closet collecting dust now since it is difficult to game with a trackball.

[Nights]

The gaming industry just can't be taken lightly anymore.

Not to mention the growing e-sports scene. Dota 2 had a 10 M$ USD tournament this summer. From what I know, a lot of other big scenes are stepping their games up as well. Starcraft in Korea is basically a religion. It has it's own TV network. I believe that before a FIFA World Cup match, the Korean soccer team were visited by top level Starcraft players as a morale boost. Yes - the gamers were the celebrities, not the soccer players. (Note : I know this story to be true, but am not 100% of the country.) It's pretty huge there, and getting big attention in the USA - I believe MSG is hosting a tournament right now called ESL One New York for Dota 2.

It's slow, but it's getting some popularity.

[bondon]

Not to mention the growing e-sports scene. Dota 2 had a 10 M$ USD tournament this summer. From what I know, a lot of other big scenes are stepping their games up as well. Starcraft in Korea is basically a religion. It has it's own TV network. I believe that before a FIFA World Cup match, the Korean soccer team were visited by top level Starcraft players as a morale boost. Yes - the gamers were the celebrities, not the soccer players. (Note : I know this story to be true, but am not 100% of the country.) It's pretty huge there, and getting big attention in the USA - I believe MSG is hosting a tournament right now called ESL One New York for Dota 2.

It's slow, but it's getting some popularity.

You bet! The finals for the tournament is going on right now. I think first prize is over 100k.