Corsair K40 RGB Backlit Gaming Keyboard
Linus Tech Tips
·Linus Tech Tips
·2014-05-07
·
1,212 words · ~6 min read
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with its Factory tuning and data center DNA an Intel 730 series SSD is an
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amazing choice for gamers and performance
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enthusiasts the corer K40 spec list has
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got some pretty good stuff going for it it's got a 16.8 million color
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customizable backlight with cycling and pulsing modes it's got n key rollover
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and anti- ghosting over USB which is no mean feet and it's six programmable G
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keys with three different layers of functionality can be configured through
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software or on the Fly using the Mr Button just press it select a g key type
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in your combo and press Mr again and on
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top of all that Corsair software which I just mentioned has gone from needs work
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to actually pretty good in the last few years and now we're at the point where
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changing the color scheme managing the profiles on the PC and the one saved to
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the keyboards on on board memory and programming the keys with alternate
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functions or macros is Legree and happens in real time without any weird
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Behavior the backlight configurator is especially fun to play with since it
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changes the colors and settings as you dink around with it but honestly I
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didn't find the backl itself to be that amazing sure you can set it to whatever
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color you want but it isn't super bright and like I mentioned in my Corsair RGB
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mechanical keyboard coverage at CES it's one one of those Lighting systems that
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is theoretically capable of 16.8 million colors but in reality you can only
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achieve a handful of distinct vibrant
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colors now the keys themselves are not as linear like an MX black or red but
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reminded me of Browns if Browns were spongier less tactile and generally more
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membran honestly it was a little weird going back to a rubber Dome keyboard
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since I've been using mechanical for so long I'm not used to needing to bottom
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out anymore so that was an adjustment um
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it didn't slow down my typing much which surprised me but my wrists are
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noticeably more tired having used it for about a week at work I'm not sure if
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that's directly related to the switches but it's an observation nonetheless the
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keyboard looks quite attractive like Corsair's other offerings but uses a
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matte black and silver plastic body instead of a metal body with a shiny
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Corsair logo the layout is solid I don't really have any complaints here and
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includes dedicated medium keys to go
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along with a dedicated Windows key lock as well as a brightness key that goes
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from off to a thir to 2/3 to full strength on the backlight but one
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problem with the layout that I actually didn't even notice when just looking at
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the keyboard is that I found the F keys are too close to the number Row for me
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it actually took me a couple days to figure out why I'd been mashing f11 and
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F12 all week when I was reaching for the backspace all right so it's competitive
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landscape time in this price range there's some generic stuff like the
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Gigabyte Ava gkk 8100 which I actually
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used for a while and kind of like it's not a terrible keyboard there's some
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unique stuff like the Razer death stalker with its lowprofile chicklet
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keys and some downright goofy stuff like that cooling fan for your left hand on
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the tte sports challenger but in my mind
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some of the biggest threats to the K40 actually come from Corsair's own lineup
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and from the fact that no matter what checkboxes it ticks on a product Matrix
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it is still a membrane keyboard and
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single color backlit mechanical keyboards like the quickfire Pro and
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Poseidon can be had for a mere $10 more
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I mean guys the keyboard is all right the feature set particularly the RGB
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backlighting is competitive if you like membrane Keys which some people do but
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while I can't complain about this product I guess if I had to complain
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about something I have a bit of an issue with the design philosophy here normally
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I wouldn't even mention this kind of thing in a review but kind of like the
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coach's son on a baseball team I've got to make an example of course there once
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in a while to prove I'm not favoring them for being a longtime sponsor the
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K40 feels like a very corporate driven skew from the ground up it is low risk
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it slots into a small Gap in the product stack between the k30 and k50 it likely
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improves profitability at that price point compared to the K65 Compact and it
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tis all the right boxes on the aord mentioned product Matrix against its
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competition but that's not supposed to be the Corsair way Corsair is supposed
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to be a bunch of enthusiasts who build the coolest thing they possibly can and
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then price it at whatever they need to to support their business and the K40
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just doesn't seem Enthusiast driven to me with that said I can't go too hard on
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them because they are innovating in the category metal finished keyboards
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weren't mainstream until Corsair did it and their new RGB backlit mechanical is
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a Quantum Leap past what everyone else is doing for backlit keyboards so maybe
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that's the problem I mean if it seems like I came into this review with a bit
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of a grumpy mindset that must be the underlying issue I'm sitting here
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waiting for the RGB mechanical and they send me this to review in the meantime
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honestly it's fine but you give a hungry dog a pat on the head and you might
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appreciate the pat on the head it might be an excellent pat on the head but he's
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still waiting for his bone give me my bone Corsair I cannot wait you are
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sitting over there on the most amazing keyboard I have ever seen and I want it
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now guys we should start like a chant in the comments demanding the Corsair RGB
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keyboard I know their PR guy watches these videos so you know yeah I'm on to
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you let's get it going anyway guys like
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and share this video if you liked it dislike it if you disliked it and leave
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a comment on the line is Tech tips Forum Linked In the video description if you
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want to discuss this product or if you have constructive criticism for me and
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videos it helps us out a whole bunch oh and as always as if I'm just remembering
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to say that except that I've done it over 2,000 times thanks for watching and
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