These days it’s trendy to make keyboards as small as possible, with 75% and 60% boards being all the rage. But Razer is bucking the trend and making big boards again, starting with the BlackWidow V4 Pro. In addition to all the bells and whistles seen in its more recent designs, the V4 includes two programmable dials, seven media keys, and five macro keys. It’s like something straight out of 2005, with all the mechanical goodness of today.
In addition to the smorgasbord of extra dials and buttons, the V4 Pro gets the top-tier treatment from Razer’s parts bin. We’re talking a full aluminum deck, magnetic wrist rest included in the box, Chroma lighting on each key, and underglow strips around both the board and wrist rest. The design eschews wireless in favor of a dedicated USB-C cable plus a pass-through USB port—something that hasn’t been seen on a gaming keyboard for a long time. 8000Hz polling should be able to keep up with the twitchiest eSports players.
Even mechanical keyboard nuts might be impressed with a few of the more advanced features. Razer’s custom hall-effect switches come in tactile and clicky varieties, though the board is not hot-swap capable according to the spec sheet. The stabilizers are pre-lubricated, the case is filled with sound-absorbing foam, and it can remember up to five dedicated profiles in the board’s memory. The only real bummer in the specifications is that the doubleshot keycaps are cheap ABS plastic…the better for Razer to upsell you on its sold-separately PBT caps.
Razer
Perhaps the most surprising thing about the BlackWidow V4 Pro is the price. At $230 it’s no impulse buy, but it’s not Razer’s most expensive board, either. It’s shipping today from Razer’s online store, delivery expected next week.
Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer
Michael is a former graphic designer who's been building and tweaking desktop computers for longer than he cares to admit. His interests include folk music, football, science fiction, and salsa verde, in no particular order.