Introduction
Razer Huntsman Tournament Edition
Let’s kick things off with the Huntsman Tournament Editon by Razer. Arguably the biggest attraction this keyboard has is the optomechanical key switches it uses. These switches that Razer has manufactured themselves in-house perform very well when it comes to both gaming and typing. Furthermore, the board also has onboard shortcuts that can be used to control certain media features, key functions that can all be reprogrammed and RGB lighting settings that can all be customized as well. However, there’s sadly one thing it lacks that helps greatly reduce its production capabilities. A numpad column. Anyway, while the keys themselves are actually pretty good, there’s no tangible evidence that shows that they’re superior to the more traditional keys used by other Razer products.
Corsair K70 RGB MK. 2
If you’re in search of an almost perfect mechanical keyboard that employs the use of the famed Cherry MX switches then Corsair’s K70 Mk.2 is what you should be putting all your focus on. This keyboard product has a sleek, sophisticated and elegant overall look accompanied by several rainbow-colored backlighting settings. Corsair has put this device through years of fine-tuning and it looks like they’re now just about to reap their rewards. They’ve managed to successfully come up with something that’s pleasing to the eye yet still both innovative and functional. Yes, you might be forced to reach deep into your pockets for this one, however, it’s sturdy, well-built chassis and Cherry MX mechanical switches help make it worth it.
Design
Razer Huntsman Tournament Edition
The Huntsman Tournament Edition is a small, sleek and relatively plain mechanical keyboard that measures around 14×5.5 inches. It’s generally something that won’t need you to create so much room for it on your desktop. You also won’t find any extra key functions on it, which is what helps make it as compact as it is. The plastic, black-colored chassis and Razer logo plastered above its Nav column give the device that authentic Razer look many people are so in love with. Okay, although this particular product doesn’t showcase that flair and pomp most of the products on the Razer roster do, that doesn’t mean that the Huntsman Tournament Edition isn’t able to catch the eye in its own right. It’s good-looking in its own unique way. Also, it has a removable USB cable designed to allow you to store it in your laptop bag or backpack without it getting damaged.
The Huntsman TE’s removable cord has the advanced Type-C connection features and even though it might not really provide the user with an actual functional advantage, the fact the company is trying out new and more efficient features is something we can all smile about. That being said, the cord should’ve had grooves for better management because not having them means you having to deal with harder setup optimization, especially in those times you’re not close to the computer itself. Another major downside the Huntsman TE has is the fact that Razer this time decided not to include a sleek carrying case in the package.
Corsair K70 RGB MK.2
The Corsair Strafe Mk.2 keyboard looks almost exactly like its cousin the K70 Mk.2 RGB. The K70 RGB Mk.2 board, just like its cousin, is a full-bodied keyboard product that’s about 17×6 inches. However, it also comes with a nice, comfortable wrist rest and when it has that on then it measures around 17×9 inches. The board has a very good-looking, black-colored chassis and Corsair ensured that they didn’t waste any space on it. Truth is, it’s, in fact, way smaller than what you’d expect to find on a standard, run-of-the-mill full-size mechanical keyboard. Anyway, even though they ensure no space on the chassis is wasted, they still manage to provide the user with adequate key spacing. However, what really differentiates the Strafe Mk.2 from its cousin is the aluminum top surface found on the K70.
Yes, we know that this alone can’t justify that hefty price tag Corsair has attached to it, but, the aluminum angle definitely helps bring out that durable, refined and clean overall aesthetic they seem to be going for. The board will look just fine whether in a chaotic gaming space or in a more organized office setup. The keycaps on it have been slightly elevated helping give it that much-needed flair one would expect from a gaming peripheral. In addition to all this, you also get USB pass-through functionality, extra button features to change brightness and Game Mode settings as well as discrete media keys. Also, if you’re a competitive, high-octane first-person shooter or MOBA player, you’ll absolutely love its textured keycaps.
Keys
Razer Huntsman Tournament Edition
Razer’s optomechanical switch type might just be why many people will opt for the Huntsman Tournament Edition. While the ones on its cousin, the Hunstman Elite, are more on the tactile and loud side, the ones it uses perform similar to there Cherry MX Red counterparts. If you want the command you send to be recognized and accepted, a complete depressing of the keys will be required first. Furthermore, the keys on the TE are a lot less noisy and they rarely produce the machine-gun click sounds you get from the more tactile key switches out there. That being said, it’s not a completely silent switch and the little noise it does produce might prove disruptive office setups.
Corsair K70 RGB MK.2
Corsair puts a lot of thought into the type of switches they going to use on their keyboard products, and the same care and consideration were put into the K70 Mk.2 as well. That being said, most of the time they end just using Cherry MX mechanical switches and the K70 Mk.2 was no exception. The only difference here is that instead of giving you the standard option of picking between two types of Cherry MXs, with the K70 they decided to give users a chance to choose from f different kinds. They wanted to make sure you get exactly what you’re looking for. We can’t overstate this point enough considering most products out there will only allow you to pick between two types of switches at most, especially when Cherry MX switches are involved.
Features
Razer Huntsman Tournament Edition
Razer has its very own software product they manufactured in-house known as the Synapse. This is what drives the Tournament Edition keyboard. Yes, sometimes it’ll need you to reinstall it for it run effectively and other times it won’t, but in the Tournament Edition’s case, nothing of the sort will be required. It runs just fine from the get-go. Anyway, this software is what’ll help you come up with interesting RGB backlighting settings. It’s also what you’ll use to reprogram all the board’s key functions if you want, in turn, ensuring it works exactly how you want it to.
The Tournament Edition also allows you to program alternate key command functions, which is something many folks in the eSports community will be very excited about. While extra key functions are things you won’t expect to find on the board, you have the ability to reprogram all the keys if you want and the command functions you come up with can be brought up when certain keys are long-pressed. This is a feature that can also help make it easier for you to create macro key functions, which can then be placed on the Fn key features located towards the top of the board.
Corsair K70 RGB MK.2
If you’ve used keyboard products from Corsair before, then there’s a high chance you might have used their iCUE software as well. No? Anyway, Corsair’s Utility Engine, also commonly referred to as iCUE, is a software product that Corsair manufactured in-house and it’s what they use to power their K70 Mk.2 RGB keyboard. Yes, the opacity of this software has been greatly criticized by many, however, it also has numerous helpful feature sets that have equally been praised. It might take you a little time before you can use it without having a problem, but when you do, it’s a joy to use.
Honestly speaking, though, Corsair could’ve spent some more time in the innovation stage as far as its overall layout is concerned. Anyway, once you’ve completely figured out how to use the software, there are so many interesting things you can do with the device’s RGB backlighting profile settings. Furthermore, it’s also what you’ll use when you want to completely restructure all the key functions on the board. All in all, the Utility Engine is what helps set this device apart from its competition and it’s arguably one of the keyboard’s main attractions as well.
Performance
Razer Huntsman Tournament Edition
You can expect your Razer Huntsman TE keyboard to run games such as For Honor, Final Fantasy, Hitman, Final Fantasy and Overwatch with relative ease. We mentioned these titles specifically because they happen to be some of the most popular RPG, RTS and FPS games out there. Just like many of the other keyboard products on the Razer roster, the Tournament Edition will provide you with fantastic gaming experiences and the commands you send out through it will be accurately and instantly parsed. Whether you’re swinging Viking axes in For Honor or gunning down enemy combatant in the title Overwatch, you won’t have to worry about command transmissions.
Although, as much as Razer’s optomechanical key switches parse commands extremely well, it isn’t really something you can definitively test in real-time. Razer themselves say that since light rays are what these switches use to transfer data, no other mechanical switches can work faster than these ones do.
Corsair K70 RGB MK.2
World of Warcraft, Fortnite, Final Fantasy, For Honor, Hitman and Overwatch are all titles that the K70 Mk.2 board can run without any problem. In fact, most of the popular titles out there shouldn’t be a problem for it. The Cherry MX mechanical key switches work incredibly well, which really isn’t a surprise considering they known to be high-performance mechanicals. Slaying Samurais with your Viking axe in For Honor has never been sweeter and murdering foes in Overwatch and Call of Duty has never been easier. Furthermore, its discrete media key functionality helps make it easy for gamers to play soundtracks and podcast materials during gameplay.
Unfortunately, hardcore massive multiplayer online gamers might not like it so much because it doesn’t have macro key features. But, since you can use the Utility Engine to create your own means that you can somewhat bypass this disadvantage.
Verdict
If you’re looking for a compact gaming keyboard that has very fast mechanical key switches, then you’ll not find many out there that provide better than the Razer Huntsman TE. Its optomechanical switches are simply out of this world and are definitely the future of mechanical keyboards. That being said, Cherry MX switches are not too shabby themselves either. In fact, most people in the eSports gaming community are often scrambling to get their hands on such. The K70 gives a relatively wide variety to choose from.
