Today’s mechanical keyboards are offered in a variety of switch types that vary according to several factors, but one of the main distinctions is in actuation distance, or how far a key needs to move before triggering a keypress. High actuation switches can activate with barely a touch, making them generally coveted for gaming while lower actuation models that require a full press are often preferred for everyday activities, like typing. But what if you could have one switch that offers the best of both worlds?Steelseries newest keyboard, the Apex Pro (See it on Amazon), is attempting to offer just such an experience, with special switches that allow you to change the actuation distance whenever you want on the fly. It’s a bold idea that addresses one of my personal peeves with picking mechanical keyboards, while giving players a real chance to feel the advantage of the mechanical keyboard in every aspect of their computing life.
SteelSeries Apex Pro Gaming Keyboard – Design and Features
Even if you didn’t know about its groundbreaking tech, you can see that the Apex Pro is a premium keyboard just by looking at it. The Apex Pro has all the bells and whistles. USB passthrough? Check. Fancy, textured volume roller? Check. Cable management on the bottom of the board? Check The detachable wrist rest is rubberized, which doesn’t provide much padding but is designed to provide comfortable slope up to the keys. It also connects magnetically, so there’s no dealing with annoying clips or tabs to take it on or off.
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Then there’s what I call the SteelSeries Special; an OLED screen in the top-right-hand corner of the board. It isn’t that helpful: It will show you settings change as you make them, but you can also see them on your monitor, so why bother looking at the keyboard? It is, however, very cool to go and download a small image or gif that serves as a cool mini screen saver or logo to accentuate your keyboard’s look. The Apex Pro definitely has a swagger to it. Large, clear lettering on the keycaps and gaps between the keys maximize the amount of LED lighting that shines through as well.
At 436.7mm wide x 139.2mm long x 40.3mm high, it’s relatively compact for a full-size board, which also enhances the lighting and generally gives you the sense that it’s a no-nonsense device, even though it has so many luxurious features. (There’s also an even smaller tenkeyless option).
While looks are important, the most defining characteristic of a mechanical keyboard is its feel. The easiest way to describe how it feels to type or play games using an Apex Pro is… unique. The keys have a light touch, which makes sense since the switches are based on SteelSeries linear red switches. But there’s an unusual springiness to the keys – it often feels as if there’s a small of resistance as you press each key down. It’s almost as if there’s a magnetic force pushing the key back against your finger.
I generally like the feeling, as I appreciate having to apply a little force when I type, but I wonder if it might psych out some people who are looking for the absolute lowest touch-to-type threshold. Which makes sense when you look into SteelSeries OmniPoint Switches, which allow you to adjust your actuation via software. According to SteelSeries’ explanation, OmniPoint keys use a magnetic field to track the position of the keycap relative to the switch below it.
When you adjust the actuation, you change the level at which the switch registers the keypress. I can’t tell you for sure whether the magnetic element of the keys creates the resistance I felt, but, for what it’s worth, I noticed it before looking into the switch design. On a mechanical level, it works like a charm. According to SteelSeries, the actuation distances that are available range from 0.4 millimeters on the lightest setting, to 3.6mm on the heaviest. On a low actuation setting, each key has a hair trigger: You barely need to feather it to get a response. On a higher setting, you need to push harder. I found that, practically speaking, it helped most creating different profiles for different tasks, but you can also find some value in adjusting the actuation on individual keys to optimize for certain kinds of games.
While it’s technically successful, I did find myself wanting a little more out of the ability to change actuation. While you can change how hard you need to press the keys, the literal feel remains the same regardless of your settings. I had no reason to expect it, but I was definitely looking to feel a tactile change to match my adjustments under the keys. Keyboards with Cherry Red and Cherry Brown keys don’t feel the same – they create their distinctions by requiring different amounts of force. On the Apex Pro, all the different actuation levels felt identical aside from the actuation distance.
In some ways, it’s a boon: The easily pressable Red-switch-style key with a slightly higher actuation is a “best of both worlds” scenario for someone like me, who write and games in equal measure. Still, changing actuation on the fly takes some getting used to, and I still find myself longing for a little more visual or tactile feedback to, if nothing else, remind me what keys need a big push versus a slight one.
SteelSeries Apex Pro Gaming Keyboard – Software
The Apex Pro uses SteelSeries’ Engine 3, the company’s proprietary configuration software. It works very well and is generally very logically organized. The keyboard can store up to five onboard profiles that you can bring from device to device, as well as an unlimited number of configurations on your PC or Mac – that’s par for the course for most gaming keyboards at this juncture.
As I mentioned earlier, the Apex Pro’s lighting is one of its strong suits. It offers per-key RGB lighting along with a handful of presets, and I found SteelSeries’ limited number of lighting designs and reaction effects to be fun and impressive relative to pre-made options from other keyboard manufacturers. Some of them, like the Pac-Man-inspired “Chasing Ghosts,” are genuinely clever. Others, like the wildly colorful “Vapor Dreams,” simply exude a nice ambiance. All of the options are accentuated by the keycaps and keyboard design, which allows a lot of light to shine through and reflect off the dark aluminum of the keyboard’s surface.
SteelSeries says more lighting options will be coming to the Apex Pro over time: I’m generally skeptical of the company’s ability to support its products with new software long-term – It has not done a great job providing individualized game integrations for OLED-enhanced devices, such as the Rival 710 gaming mouse – but I hope they do make time for it, because I like what they’ve made so far.
Lastly, there are the actuation controls. Unlike the lighting, you can individually select and adjust the actuation levels for each of the 61 primary typing/gaming keys. You adjust them using a simple slider, which ranges from very sensitive (1) – to a very long press (10).
It’s very simple, which makes the adjustment process comfortable, but doesn’t quite give you enough information to make a determination. You’ll just need to try the settings and find what works for you in different situations.
SteelSeries Apex Pro Gaming Keyboard – Gaming
The Apex Pro performed admirably when playing a wide range of games, including Rage 2, Mordhau, XCOM 2, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, and others. Across every game, the magnetic springiness of the keys made me feel connected to the keyboard. I could feel the key return to position with my finger; as it always does on any good keyboard: That doesn’t provide a technical advantage, but I found it made me feel like I had slightest bit more control.
Personally, I found the Dynamic actuation most striking when simply switching from non-gaming to gaming mode. At the quickest actuation, each key needs just a very light touch, so going from heavy handed typing to light-tapping gaming felt like going for a run after taking off ankle weights.
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Using the dynamic actuation for more specific configurations seemed like more trouble than its worth, though. In theory, you can optimize your set up by setting frequently used keys to light actuation to make you faster and rarely used keys to heavy actuation to prevent mispresses, which are more common with light switches.
It may be that I just tend to press down hard regardless of my settings, but I didn’t find this kind of strategy helped or hurt my game. That isn’t to say that it isn’t meaningful, but it wasn’t so outrageously helpful that I’d recommend the keyboard specifically for the pleasure.
Purchasing Guide
The SteelSeries Apex Pro keyboard is available now through the SteelSeries website and major retailers such as Amazon and Best Buy. The full-size version costs $199.99, and the tenkeyless model goes for $179.99. If you like the design of the Apex Pro, but aren’t especially thrilled by the ability to change your keyboard’s actuation distances, there’s a SteelSeries Apex 7, which is identical to the Apex Pro, except that it comes with traditional Red, Brown, or Blue switches instead of adjustable OmniPoint switches. The full-size Apex 7 costs $159.99, and the tenkeyless version costs $129.99 at the SteelSeries website and major retailers.
