A raptor that isn’t going to try and cut you open and eat your insides while your still alive
The Corsair Raptor is coming up for being a couple of years old now, ever since Corsair purchased the Raptor Gaming name and products. However, it has proved itself as one of the more popular keyboard choices for both gamers and those who require a quality keyboard for long hours in front of the monitor.
The reasons for its popularity are simple enough. For starters, there’s a decent amount of features on offer: adjustable backlighting behind every keycap, six programmable ‘G-key’ macros and three ‘M-key’ profiles (for 18 possible customised presets), anti-ghosting, multimedia controls and a satisfying keystroke that ends with a mechanical-like Cherry Blue click.
The K30 isn’t a mechanical keyboard, though, it uses rubber dome keys. However, in all honesty, unless you had a mechanical keyboard sat next to you it's hard to notice the difference. The keystrokes are accurate, well-spaced and offer a fluid travel across the board with very few mistypes. The G-Keys are located separately to the left of the QWERTY section, but not too far from the positioning of your hands so they can’t be quickly accessed while gaming. The same goes for the M-Keys, arranged in a short strip along the upper left of the keyboard.
It’s also a reasonably priced keyboard, being pitched at around £40 depending on where you shop. It’s fair to say that even mechanical keyboards can be bought for less than that these days, but there’s often some missing element such as backlighting, macros or something else that leaves you missing something you get with this setup.
It does have some niggles, though, although nothing too drastic or terrible. The media keys – play, stop, pause and so on – are located just above the number pad as a long thin strip recessed and close to the surface of the board. While generally fine, from the normal typing position they can be a little tricky to get to without hitting the upper keys of the number pad. Also, despite having four rubber feet on the bottom of the keyboard, there’s no rubber on the extended feet, so the keyboard can skitter around the desk with very little effort.
As we said, however, these are very minor issues, and with the K30 sat in front of you you’ll quickly find a comfortable position and will hardly notice any of the above at all.
Speaking of comfort, the K30 has a very natural feel. It usually takes a bit of time to get used to how a keyboard performs, but not so much with the K30. Whether it’s the slight travel in the keys, or the size and spacing of the keycaps and QWERTY board we’re not sure; it just ‘feels’ easy to get on with and use.
We were quite impressed with the Corsair Raptor K30. It’s one of the better gaming and everyday keyboards we’ve used in a long time, and it manages this with very little fuss or over the top features and style.
There are certainly more capable keyboards out there, and more aesthetically pleasing ones too. The K30, though, is solid, dependable, reasonably cheap, and works well out of the box. A good keyboard for the money. David Hayward
A good choice of keyboard for gamers and non-gamers alike.