In an era long before I became the “Keyboard Guy” at NAG HQ.
Long before I was soldering key switches back to juice-riddled PCBs.
Long before the AI key took over from the OS key.
I used to use a full-sized, low-profile mechanical keyboard for everything. Playing games, writing news pieces, and stirring the sauce for the pasta dinner I was making that evening.
It was the greatest keyboard I had ever used, and I used it so hard that no soldering could ever fix it. So it now sits in my cupboard gathering dust. Never to be thrown away because of all the memories.
Sure, that story has nothing to do with the review, but the point is, I’m someone who enjoys a low-profile mechanical keyboard, even though I’ve grown out of using one.
In my opinion, a low-profile keyboard looks professional, with its sleek, thin design and keys as close to the desk as possible. And the Razer Blackwidow V4 Low-profile Tenkeyless Hyperspeed Keyboard (which I will now be referring to as the Blackwidow V4) is no different.
Its aluminium and plastic shell combination makes it look like a typical Razer product on your desk, with highly refined edges, and that Razer Green RGB shining through the key caps.
For a TKL keyboard, it’s quite a chonker, thanks to that aforementioned aluminium top, so I wouldn’t be popping this bad boy into my backpack to take it with me wherever I go. But the heft does mean it sits tightly on your desk and offers a more premium feel.
The keyboard also comes in at a height of 18.5mm, which is smaller than most coins, as the website will show you.
Even though Razer has already chopped off the whole Numpad, the keyboard layout is actually quite minimal. There are your standard keyboard keys, the Function keys, a couple of those helpful worky-work keys, like Delete, Home, etc., and the arrow keys.
As well as those, you also get a roller on the top right-hand corner, which is a breeze to use, with each bump in the scroll feeling nice and tactile, and then there are three “multi-function” buttons beneath it. The first button, which cannot be remapped, is for music control.
Play/pause, next and previous track are achieved here. The third button, which also cannot be remapped, shows you how much battery life is left in the keyboard.
The second button, which you can remap, even if it has an “AI” symbol on it, by default brings up an AI prompter on screen that you can use to create images, rephrase text and the like.
This is in addition to the Co-Pilot key, which you still get next to your right-hand Ctrl key.
Aside from using Razer Synapse to configure the keyboard, Razer has built-in shortcut keys that you can use to change up a few of the keyboard’s settings. RGB levels, styles, gaming mode, and connection options are a few things you can do, but for Macro configuration and key remapping, you will need to download the software.
The Blackwidow V4 supports different connection options as well, from a braided USB-C cable for wired mode to up to three Bluetooth connections for quick connectivity between devices.
It also comes with a Razer Hyperspeed 2.4Ghz dongle, which supports a 1K wireless polling rate, upgradeable to 4K with a separately sold dongle.
Cool, so it has pretty much everything you’d expect from a premium gaming, low-profile, wireless keyboard. But how exactly does it feel under the fingies?
Well, Razer have opted against hot-swappable switches on this keyboard, which means you have to really know what kind of typing and gaming experience you want from the board before buying it.
The Blackwidow V4 comes in three flavours: Crisp and Clicky Green switches, Tactile and Quiet Orange switches, or Smooth and Silent Yellow switches.
For our review unit, we were tasting the Smooth and Silent flavour.
It was quite an experience to go from a full-height keyboard back to a low-profile keyboard. Typing work on a low-profile keyboard is much more enjoyable if you’re someone who types with a bit of speed. Because the keys don’t get in the way of your fingers, you can quickly tap as many letters as possible.
And the Razer Yellow switches offer just enough bounce back that you don’t feel like you’re just pressing the key down and forgetting it was there. While they aren’t 100% silent, they are buttery smooth and have a pretty good key-press feel beneath them.
The keys are actually so nice to use for work that this keyboard even had me considering my current choices in favourite keyboard. But things did go back to normal when I switched out from writing these cool reviews you all so enjoy, to kicking some butt online.
Don’t get me wrong, the Blackwidow V4 is a great gaming keyboard. The low-profile switches, similarly to when I was working, offer quick keypresses, making for the perfect setup for high-action gameplay. Razer even has Snap Tap on this keyboard, meaning you can press two keys at the same time, and the keyboard will switch to the latest input and then back again once you release them.
This is great for FPS games like Call of Duty or Highgaurd, where movement plays an important role.
For long hours of gameplay, however, I started to miss the fuller keypress I would get from my older, full-height keyboard. This is just personal preference. The Blackwidow V4 never underperformed while playing games.
We can expect the keyboard to hit South African stores sometime in March, with an RRP of R3,999. That does feel a little pricey for a keyboard, but it’s to be expected when you’re picking a brand like Razer.
To be honest, it feels like a keyboard you would use for years, and with its sleek aesthetic, minimalist design, and a battery life that goes well over 900 hours, you can’t really ask for more.
If you favour low-profile keys for the many hours you spend working on your keyboard, and enjoy the same feel for gaming, then the Razer Blackwidow V4 Low-profile Tenkeyless Hyperspeed Keyboard is definitely a top competitor for your attention, if you have the spare change.
However, my personal preference still remains with a keycap that sits nice and thicc.
