Razer BlackWidow V4 evaluate

Key Takeaways

Extremely customizable with three change sorts.
Loads of macro keys for work and play.
Lack of customizable attributes for the worth.

Making a one-size-fits-all efficiency and gaming keyboard appears nearly too lofty of a objective, however Razer determined to offer it a go anyway. The BlackWidow V4 Professional is billed as the final word battlestation mechanical keyboard, and I had the possibility to go hands-on with it over the previous few weeks. Whereas there are many apps and programs that may improve your expertise, some new, shiny {hardware} is tough to beat. A keyboard designed for work and play appeared proper up my alley as an avid and a work-from-home enterprise proprietor, and I wished to share my impressions on this evaluate.

Beneficial

Razer BlackWidow V4 Professional

The BlackWidow V4 Professional is Razer’s is a piece laborious, play laborious keyboard, designed to carry the very best of each worlds collectively in a nicely rounded mechanical keyboard.

Execs

Extremely customizable
Three distinct mechanical change sorts to select from
Loads of macro keys

Cons

Actuation ranges can’t be custom-made

Value, availability, and specs

The complete-sized Razer BlackWidow V4 Professional is the highest-end model within the BlackWidow lineup and configuration that I’ve examined. It retails for $230 and is on the market from Amazon, BestBuy, and instantly from Razer on-line.

Razer BlackWidow V4 Professional

The BlackWidow V4 Professional is Razer’s is a piece laborious, play laborious keyboard, designed to carry the very best of each worlds collectively in a nicely rounded mechanical keyboard.

Model: Razer
Wi-fi: No
Backlight: RGB
Media Controls: Sure
Battery: No
Num Pad: Sure
Change Kind: Mechanical (3 Sorts Optionally available)
Replaceable Keys: Sure
Wired operation: USB-C
Materials: Aluminum Alloy Prime Case
Keycaps: Doubleshot ABS Keycaps
Wrist relaxation: Included
USB Passthrough: Sure, requires two USB cables
Polling charge: 125Hz- 8000Hz

The BlackWidow V4 Professional is a completely mechanical keyboard with doubleshot ABS keycaps, per-key RGB lighting, and a slew of customizable macro keys. Patrons have the selection of three totally different switches that provide different ranges of journey distance, actuation factors, and change sound profiles. The keyboard connects to your PC by way of USB-C and includes a second USB-C connection via which customers can allow USB pass-through.

The BlackWidow V4 Professional carries RGB in spades.

Utilizing Razer Synapse, in addition to onboard shortcuts, customers can cycle via a variety of preset profiles and arrange customized profiles that may be saved within the onboard storage. Razer has introduced the keyboard into the polling charge dialog, and the BlackWidow V4 Professional will be set to a spread of polling charges from 125Hz to 8000Hz, although why I would want my keyboard to speak with my PC 8,000 instances per second is a bit misplaced on me.

The BlackWidow V4 Professional carries RGB in spades. On prime of the per-key lighting, which is extremely customizable via Razer Synapse, the keyboard has underglow RGB beneath the primary chassis, in addition to extra underglow within the included wrist relaxation.

What I favored in regards to the BlackWidow V4 Professional

Extraordinarily well-rounded efficiency

The BlackWidow V4 Professional is a surprisingly well-rounded keyboard, and I used to be totally impressed when utilizing it for each work and productiveness, in addition to throughout lengthy gaming periods throughout totally different genres. The mannequin I examined featured the inexperienced switches, which Razer describes as “tactile and clicky.”

Despite the fact that the inexperienced switches have the longest journey distance and loudest clicks of the three switches, every keystroke was nonetheless easy and responsive with out feeling exhausting to make use of over lengthy durations, not like a few of Razer’s gaming-specific keyboards with deeper switches. The keys are delicate sufficient for exact gaming, but not so delicate that productiveness duties are suffering from misinputs.

Then there have been macros on macros. Razer’s BlackWidow V4 Professional options 5 devoted macro buttons that run alongside the left aspect of the keyboard, in addition to three macro aspect buttons on the left aspect of the BlackWidow chassis. The abundance gave me ample alternatives to create them for each in-game use and work. I set the aspect macro buttons to shortcuts for Nvidia’s Overlay, Home windows Job Supervisor, and the Home windows display screen seize instrument. The 5 macro buttons have been excellent for remapping necessary talents in Future 2 or keybinds in FPS video games.

What I did not like in regards to the BlackWidow V4 Professional

Lack of customizable attributes

For a keyboard that prices over $200, and one with the phrase “Professional” proper within the title, I discovered that the BlackWidow V4 Professional was sorely missing in customizable features and consumer expertise. Essentially the most customizable function on the keyboard inside Synapse is the command dial, which will be set to regulate or modify a couple of totally different features, like lighting brightness, switching apps, zoom, scrolling, and switching browser tabs.

I’d have favored a richer consumer expertise.

Apart from that, and altering the polling charge, there aren’t any different substantial options to fine-tune. Whereas I perceive this line just isn’t meant to cannibalize market share from Razer’s extra gaming-focused keyboards just like the Huntsman, I’d have favored a richer consumer expertise for such a dear peripheral, notably when gaming.