Sharon Harding
| Specs at a glance: Razer BlackWidow V4 Pro | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| switch | Razer Green (Click) or Yellow (Linear) | ||
| key cap | Doubleshot ABS plastic | ||
| Connection option | USB-A cable | ||
| Backlight | RGB per key | ||
| Size (with wrist rest) | 18.3 x 9.35 x 1.73 inches (466×237.5×44mm) |
||
| Weight (with wrist rest) | 3.37 lbs (1,530 g) | ||
| guarantee | 2 years | ||
| Price (Suggested retail price) | $230 | ||
| other | 1x USB-A passthrough port, removable wrist rest | ||
If you’ve ever wished your keyboard had more buttons, Razer’s BlackWidow V4 Pro might be for you. Extending the full-size keyboard layout to include a row of Macrohis keys and he three non-mechanical buttons on the left edge of the keyboard. The keyboard also has a volume roller and a so-called command dial that lets you tweak your inputs to control zoom, scroll through long spreadsheets, fine-tune Photoshop brush sizes, and more.
Razer is more focused on gaming, but the BlackWidow V4 Pro fits nicely into a work setting thanks to its extreme multi-layer programmability, powerful but imperfect typing experience, and USB-A passthrough port. . It’s easy to dim RGB lighting and manipulate complex key bindings. Launch your favorite apps and sites with a key press, and navigate through programs with the dial.
But many of the BlackWidow V4 Pro’s best features require you to keep Razer’s Synapse app open. This isn’t a new complaint, but the introduction of multifunction dials puts a harsh spotlight on this limitation.
do you have enough keys?
The BlackWidow V4 Pro is marketed as a gaming keyboard, but I’ve spent hours with it. The keyboard’s most useful productivity feature is the extra programmable keys. The 5-key macro bank doesn’t compare to the 2014 Corsair K95’s 18-key macro bank, but it has all the keys you need in a productivity keyboard, plus a few, including the beloved numeric keypad. increase.
This layout has great potential for power users. I often put macros on the function line, but with BlackWidow V4 Pro’s extra keys, I didn’t have to. I used the bonus key bank for everything from launching favorite programs, to typing long text strings quickly, to controlling Photoshop layers. The onboard memory (5 profiles) and the ability to link keybindings to specific apps gave me a lot of options to customize the board to the kind of work I was doing.
However, the three side macro keys weren’t used much. They’re not visible from a typical sitting position, so you’ll have to take your hands off the main row of the keyboard and feel up and down to figure out which button you’re about to press.
Sharon Harding
I also had a tendency to accidentally press the side button. I tend to calibrate the keyboard as I work, and when I lift the left side of the keyboard (my go-to side, since my right hand is usually on the mouse), I press his one of the side buttons. You can get around this by programming the side key to do nothing, but that’s a waste of a key. Like Corsair’s K100 and K95 and Logitech’s G613, we prefer the ‘M6’ key in the macro row over these non-mechanical side pieces.
Sharon Harding
A full set of programmable media keys completes the layout, but their legends are hard to read due to their glossy design and dark gray-on-black style. I also hate the dedicated mute button. Especially if the volume roller is working. A volume wheel that lets you adjust and mute sounds (e.g. push in) is more intuitive and saves space.
