are going to have to learn in order
to take full advantage of what is
being offered by the keyboard. It’s
not just a matter setting colours,
but matching specific key functions,
combinations and delays to
achieve the desired effect. In many
ways, depending on the game or
application for that matter, you can
literally assign repetitive tasks
performed via a series of keys into
to a single macro action and attach
it to any key you desire. This is of
course an old function, but it is
better presented here.
Remember that profile key I was
talking about earlier? Well with 8MB
on board memory, the K95 Platinum
allows you to take profiles with you
wherever you go. No longer are you
forced to install the CUE on every
computer you use. Simply plug your
keyboard in and not only do your
colour profiles remain, but that
goes for your programed keyboard
functions as well.
All that aside, that isn’t what
42 The OverClocker Issue 41 | 2017
moved me about the K95 Platinum,
as all of this is can be largely had
with any of the other K70 keyboards
minus several dedicated function
and macro keys. What made me
pay attention to the K95 Platinum
is the build quality. It’s hard to
relate this to someone via text or
even in video. However, when it
comes to keyboards, no mainstream
vendor builds them like CORSAIR.
The weight, it’s distribution and
finish speak volumes. Few (if
any) keyboards competing in
the same space manage to pull
this off. Putting your finger on
it is challenging because it’s a
culmination of things, but it could
be something as simple as how
the keyboard is presented. For
instance, gone is the generic brown
box which all CORSAIR keyboards
were previously packaged. This
presentation has been improved
through simple means. For
instance,the inner box carries an
embossed CORSAIR sails logo which
by itself doesn’t mean anything, but
as you unwrap it all it’s the little
things that make you aware of the
fact that you’ve just bought the
most premium keyboard around.
The entire unboxing experience
feels special in a way that tick
box features couldn’t deliver by
themselves.
I would argue though that this
should be the experience you get
with such a hellishly expensive
keyboard. It’s a $200 keyboard no
matter how you look at it, so every
bit that goes into making it feel
special helps make a case for it.
That said, issues that I had with
previous CORSAIR keyboards have
largely been dealt with even though
the USB issue persists. That isn’t to
say there are connection problems
at all as there are none. It’s that
CORSAIR insists on this super stiff
braided cable, which houses two
smaller cables within that will, of
course, occupy two USB ports. For
all that you get one USB hub, so