The Corsair K100 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard: A Review

As someone who does a lot of gaming and writing, I was excited to try out the Corsair K100 mechanical gaming keyboard. This keyboard uses short throw linear switches, which are particularly well-suited for gamers who need rapid actuation. However, some enthusiasts may be disappointed to learn that there is no tactile option on the switches available.

The K100 features a unique design with Opex switches from Corsair, which have zero rattle to them. This is a significant improvement over other mechanical optical switches on the market. The keyboard also comes with a range of features that make it perfect for gamers, including a customizable IQ wheel that can cycle through numerous functions such as scrubbing through music on Spotify or running custom macros and switching apps.

One pro tip I recommend everyone do is change the settings of the keyboard within IQ to always show the ring color of the wheel. This makes it easy to identify what function the wheel is set to. There is also a lock key next to the wheel that disables the Windows button, as well as a profile key for quick and easy RGB profile switching. The double shot keycaps come standard on this keyboard, which means that the texture on the individual keys are resistant to shine over time and will outlast their ABS counterparts.

This is especially useful because it means that the legends on the keys themselves will never fade or wear off since they are two individual layers of PBT plastic molded together. The six macro keys continue to come standard, which provides a convenient way to customize the keyboard's behavior without having to use additional software.

The K100 also features a solid build quality and weighs in at nearly three pounds. I particularly like having the keys sit over the brushed aluminum backplate for not only the ease of cleaning it brings but because it makes the colors of the keys pop more. It also makes the keyboard easier to remove the keycaps if needed. The media keys work exactly as you would expect, with their own RGB elements that are in sync with the rest of the keys. The textured volume bar has a very premium look and feel to it, with a smooth glide.

One of my favorite things about the K100 is the premium wrist pad that comes with it. This wrist pad feels very plush and durable, and I can confidently say that it's better than any third-party wrist pads out there. It pairs well with the texture of the pad, creating a comfortable and ergonomic typing experience. The K100 also keeps their infamous X cable routing on the bottom of the keyboard, although this may pose an issue for users who prefer to keep their headset cables nearby.

In conclusion, the Corsair K100 is a top-notch gaming keyboard that offers a range of features and functions that make it perfect for serious gamers. Whether you're looking to upgrade your typing speed or simply want a keyboard without any compromises, the K100 is definitely worth considering. With its solid build quality, premium features, and customizable design, this keyboard is sure to impress even the most discerning gamer.

As I concluded my review of the Corsair K100, I realized that it was designed specifically for gamers who need rapid actuation and precision control over their keyboard. If you're one of those gamers who values speed and accuracy above all else, then the K100 is a great choice. However, if you're not particular about linear switches or don't mind the lack of tactile feedback, there may be other keyboards that suit your needs better.

In any case, I hope my review has provided you with a comprehensive overview of the Corsair K100 and its features. If you have any questions or comments about this keyboard, please feel free to leave them in the comments section below.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enat 230 the k100 rgb from corsair makes it one of the most expensive gaming keyboards on the market there are a lot of features packed into this bad boy some of which i didn't even know i needed until i used it plus there's a lot of cutting edge technology under the hood so without further ado let's dive in so yeah the k100 is expensive but you get a lot of bang for your buck here this keyboard comes standard with a full set of pbt double shot keycaps which those alone can set you back 50 dollars if they weren't already included and for the first time ever corsair is using a standard bottom row so if you already do own a pair of custom pbt keycaps then they will fit right in when you upgrade to the k100 not only that but as a creative power user myself this new iq wheel on the top left corner of the keyboard is a very welcomed feature that i just can't live without ever since using it if you're anything like me then you're more than willing to spend a little extra for something that is not only well crafted but has some good engineering behind it and useful features such as that iq wheel i use a wacom tablet and i'm right-handed so i use my left hand to control the wheel to easily scrub through my timelines in premiere pro or maybe zoom in on a photo i'm working on in photoshop this is the first gaming keyboard from corsair to not only rock the new opex optical mechanical linear switches which use infrared light to register a key press instead of physical components but it's also the first to offer 4 000 hertz hyper pulling in 4 000 hertz key scanning which is just okay those are some mind-blowing numbers but what exactly do they mean well i promise i'll touch on the rest of this keyboard's features but first let's just talk about the elephant in the room that 4 000 hertz hyper pulling for those of you that don't know the pulling rate is the rate at which the cpu checks the usb bus for data most gaming keyboards use a thousand hertz hyper pulling by design so if your keyboard uses 125hz polling for example that means that your cpu is essentially asking the keyboard what's new 125 times over the span of eight milliseconds on the other extreme end of the spectrum at 4 000 hertz hyper pulling your pc is checking the usb bus and asking the keyboard so what's new every quarter of a millisecond like whoa this allows for lower latency inputs especially when paired with optical mechanical switches like opx which have zero debouncing algorithm running in the background to increase latency so what makes the k-100 faster than the rest the secret sauce lies under the hood of k-100's new proprietary chip dubbed axon corsair claims that their axon hyper processing technology provides four times the throughput of current gen keyboards this minimal latency benefits gamers the most who rock 240hz monitors and play games like cs go at ridiculously high frame rates the k100 is using some really interesting technology under the hood to prioritize speed definitely making it one of the fastest keyboards that i've ever used and i applaud corsair for pushing the envelope in regards to the engineering behind this keyboard i have personally never felt more in touch with my games until i gamed on the k100 and no that is not an exaggeration let's talk about the rgb lighting because i'll be honest this is without a doubt the best looking rgb lighting on a keyboard that i have ever seen and that is due to a combination of the form factor the new font on the keys and the 44 zone light edge that wraps around the keyboard i won't mention the iq software that much because at this point everyone on earth knows what that is you can also store up to 8 megabytes worth of rgb lighting profiles on the keyboard itself which is a lot of profiles but you will need the iq software to change the hyper pulling to 4000 hertz the k100 currently comes in two variants the new corsair opx switches and the cherry mx speed rgb when it comes to typing the opx feels slightly lighter weight due to a shorter actuation and travel time even though both switches require the same 45 grams of force that short actuation distance means that if this is your first time using a linear switch keyboard you may find yourself accidentally pressing keys a little bit more often than you would like with the opx switches however it is worth noting that the opx switches are rated for a 150 million keystrokes which i mean at that kind of life expectancy who knows how long when they'll really last until they break but i mean it's nice the first thing i noticed using the k100 is that i had much fewer mistypes on it than any other keyboard that i've used in the past especially ones that use short throw linear switches as someone who not only does a lot of gaming but also does a ton of writing the fact that the k100 improved my typing on day one made me a big fan of this keyboard because linear switches have a bit of a reputation for not being very typer friendly i believe this has something to do with the corsair keycaps being less concave along the edges of the keys for an overall flatter surface compared to other keycaps out there that try to hug your fingertips i think it's worth noting that the opex switches from corsair have zero rattle to them compared to some other mechanical optical switches on the market here take a listen this is just another example of what i mean when i say that there's good engineering behind the k100 while i understand that the point of this keyboard is speed some keyboard enthusiasts out there may be disappointed to know that there is no tactile option on the switches right now okay enough about optical switches let's talk about some of the other features on the k100 like the iq wheel that i touched on earlier because i have more to say about it the wheel itself can cycle through numerous functions like scrubbing through music on spotify or running custom macros and switching apps which is just a fancier way to alt tab one pro tip i recommend everyone do is change the settings of the keyboard within iq to always show the ring color of the wheel so that you know what function it is set to there is also a lock key next to it which disables the windows button and a profile key for quick and easy rgb profile switching since those double shot keycaps come standard that means that the texture on the individual keys are resistant to shine over time and will outlast their abs counterparts that means the legends on the keys themselves will never fade or wear off since they are two individual layers of pbt plastic molded together the six macro keys continue to come standard and that's nice you won't experience any flexing in the frame with its solid build quality and the keyboard itself is quite hefty weighing in at nearly three pounds i really like having the keys sit over the brushed aluminum backplate for not only the ease of cleaning it brings but because it makes the colors of the keys pop more and it's just easier to remove the keycaps if you want to the media keys work exactly as you would expect and they even have their own rgb elements that are in sync with the rest of the keys plus the textured volume bar has a very premium look and feel to it with a nice smooth glide there is a redesigned status center with indicators that light up to show you when caps lock num lock and other keys are currently enabled and it all looks very sleek at the top of the keyboard one of my favorite things about the k100 is the premium wrist pad that it comes with to quote the great lebowski they just tied the room together man or in this case the keyboard i'm not exaggerating when i say it's better than any that i've used before on corsair keyboards and it's certainly better than any third party wrist pads that you might buy it feels very plush and durable plus the material pairs well with the texture of the pad i can't help but think that this wrist pad will last a long time before finally wearing out corsair has kept their infamous x cable routing on the bottom of the keyboard i should mention that the wrist pad will kind of get in the way of your headset cable which i found odd because the k95 has a dedicated slot on the wrist pad for cable routing i went ahead and set up my condenser mic next to my keyboard and here's a little sound test wow i covered a lot in this video all of that said should you buy the k100 well if it helps you sleep better at night knowing that you have the fastest keyboard in the world then you'll probably want this keyboard in games where every millisecond matters if money isn't an issue and you simply want a keyboard without any compromises then this keyboard was made for you especially if you're already familiar with linear switches the only cons i can honestly think of is that this keyboard does not come in a tactile key switch option nor does it have a detachable cord but i wouldn't let any of those factors get in the way of your purchasing decision unless maybe you just really hate linear switches for a device that is intended to live on your desk and never move again not having a detachable cord is that big of an inconvenience and shouldn't be a deal breaker anyways that does it for me now i want to hear from you guys are you guys thinking of picking up the k100 or are you perfectly happy with your current keyboard let me know down in the comments below i'll also be hanging out around there to answer any questions you guys might have about the k100 so i'll see you guys thereat 230 the k100 rgb from corsair makes it one of the most expensive gaming keyboards on the market there are a lot of features packed into this bad boy some of which i didn't even know i needed until i used it plus there's a lot of cutting edge technology under the hood so without further ado let's dive in so yeah the k100 is expensive but you get a lot of bang for your buck here this keyboard comes standard with a full set of pbt double shot keycaps which those alone can set you back 50 dollars if they weren't already included and for the first time ever corsair is using a standard bottom row so if you already do own a pair of custom pbt keycaps then they will fit right in when you upgrade to the k100 not only that but as a creative power user myself this new iq wheel on the top left corner of the keyboard is a very welcomed feature that i just can't live without ever since using it if you're anything like me then you're more than willing to spend a little extra for something that is not only well crafted but has some good engineering behind it and useful features such as that iq wheel i use a wacom tablet and i'm right-handed so i use my left hand to control the wheel to easily scrub through my timelines in premiere pro or maybe zoom in on a photo i'm working on in photoshop this is the first gaming keyboard from corsair to not only rock the new opex optical mechanical linear switches which use infrared light to register a key press instead of physical components but it's also the first to offer 4 000 hertz hyper pulling in 4 000 hertz key scanning which is just okay those are some mind-blowing numbers but what exactly do they mean well i promise i'll touch on the rest of this keyboard's features but first let's just talk about the elephant in the room that 4 000 hertz hyper pulling for those of you that don't know the pulling rate is the rate at which the cpu checks the usb bus for data most gaming keyboards use a thousand hertz hyper pulling by design so if your keyboard uses 125hz polling for example that means that your cpu is essentially asking the keyboard what's new 125 times over the span of eight milliseconds on the other extreme end of the spectrum at 4 000 hertz hyper pulling your pc is checking the usb bus and asking the keyboard so what's new every quarter of a millisecond like whoa this allows for lower latency inputs especially when paired with optical mechanical switches like opx which have zero debouncing algorithm running in the background to increase latency so what makes the k-100 faster than the rest the secret sauce lies under the hood of k-100's new proprietary chip dubbed axon corsair claims that their axon hyper processing technology provides four times the throughput of current gen keyboards this minimal latency benefits gamers the most who rock 240hz monitors and play games like cs go at ridiculously high frame rates the k100 is using some really interesting technology under the hood to prioritize speed definitely making it one of the fastest keyboards that i've ever used and i applaud corsair for pushing the envelope in regards to the engineering behind this keyboard i have personally never felt more in touch with my games until i gamed on the k100 and no that is not an exaggeration let's talk about the rgb lighting because i'll be honest this is without a doubt the best looking rgb lighting on a keyboard that i have ever seen and that is due to a combination of the form factor the new font on the keys and the 44 zone light edge that wraps around the keyboard i won't mention the iq software that much because at this point everyone on earth knows what that is you can also store up to 8 megabytes worth of rgb lighting profiles on the keyboard itself which is a lot of profiles but you will need the iq software to change the hyper pulling to 4000 hertz the k100 currently comes in two variants the new corsair opx switches and the cherry mx speed rgb when it comes to typing the opx feels slightly lighter weight due to a shorter actuation and travel time even though both switches require the same 45 grams of force that short actuation distance means that if this is your first time using a linear switch keyboard you may find yourself accidentally pressing keys a little bit more often than you would like with the opx switches however it is worth noting that the opx switches are rated for a 150 million keystrokes which i mean at that kind of life expectancy who knows how long when they'll really last until they break but i mean it's nice the first thing i noticed using the k100 is that i had much fewer mistypes on it than any other keyboard that i've used in the past especially ones that use short throw linear switches as someone who not only does a lot of gaming but also does a ton of writing the fact that the k100 improved my typing on day one made me a big fan of this keyboard because linear switches have a bit of a reputation for not being very typer friendly i believe this has something to do with the corsair keycaps being less concave along the edges of the keys for an overall flatter surface compared to other keycaps out there that try to hug your fingertips i think it's worth noting that the opex switches from corsair have zero rattle to them compared to some other mechanical optical switches on the market here take a listen this is just another example of what i mean when i say that there's good engineering behind the k100 while i understand that the point of this keyboard is speed some keyboard enthusiasts out there may be disappointed to know that there is no tactile option on the switches right now okay enough about optical switches let's talk about some of the other features on the k100 like the iq wheel that i touched on earlier because i have more to say about it the wheel itself can cycle through numerous functions like scrubbing through music on spotify or running custom macros and switching apps which is just a fancier way to alt tab one pro tip i recommend everyone do is change the settings of the keyboard within iq to always show the ring color of the wheel so that you know what function it is set to there is also a lock key next to it which disables the windows button and a profile key for quick and easy rgb profile switching since those double shot keycaps come standard that means that the texture on the individual keys are resistant to shine over time and will outlast their abs counterparts that means the legends on the keys themselves will never fade or wear off since they are two individual layers of pbt plastic molded together the six macro keys continue to come standard and that's nice you won't experience any flexing in the frame with its solid build quality and the keyboard itself is quite hefty weighing in at nearly three pounds i really like having the keys sit over the brushed aluminum backplate for not only the ease of cleaning it brings but because it makes the colors of the keys pop more and it's just easier to remove the keycaps if you want to the media keys work exactly as you would expect and they even have their own rgb elements that are in sync with the rest of the keys plus the textured volume bar has a very premium look and feel to it with a nice smooth glide there is a redesigned status center with indicators that light up to show you when caps lock num lock and other keys are currently enabled and it all looks very sleek at the top of the keyboard one of my favorite things about the k100 is the premium wrist pad that it comes with to quote the great lebowski they just tied the room together man or in this case the keyboard i'm not exaggerating when i say it's better than any that i've used before on corsair keyboards and it's certainly better than any third party wrist pads that you might buy it feels very plush and durable plus the material pairs well with the texture of the pad i can't help but think that this wrist pad will last a long time before finally wearing out corsair has kept their infamous x cable routing on the bottom of the keyboard i should mention that the wrist pad will kind of get in the way of your headset cable which i found odd because the k95 has a dedicated slot on the wrist pad for cable routing i went ahead and set up my condenser mic next to my keyboard and here's a little sound test wow i covered a lot in this video all of that said should you buy the k100 well if it helps you sleep better at night knowing that you have the fastest keyboard in the world then you'll probably want this keyboard in games where every millisecond matters if money isn't an issue and you simply want a keyboard without any compromises then this keyboard was made for you especially if you're already familiar with linear switches the only cons i can honestly think of is that this keyboard does not come in a tactile key switch option nor does it have a detachable cord but i wouldn't let any of those factors get in the way of your purchasing decision unless maybe you just really hate linear switches for a device that is intended to live on your desk and never move again not having a detachable cord is that big of an inconvenience and shouldn't be a deal breaker anyways that does it for me now i want to hear from you guys are you guys thinking of picking up the k100 or are you perfectly happy with your current keyboard let me know down in the comments below i'll also be hanging out around there to answer any questions you guys might have about the k100 so i'll see you guys there\n"