Logitech has unveiled the G Professional X 60, its newest mechanical gaming keyboard. Just like the peripheral maker’s G Professional X TKL from final yr, it is a wi-fi mannequin geared toward competitive-minded avid gamers at the start. In contrast to that gadget, it has a smaller 60 p.c format, which implies it lacks a devoted perform row, quantity pad, arrow keys and nav cluster however takes up a lot much less house on a desk. This is usually a boon for video games as a result of it leaves extra room to flick a mouse round whereas retaining the most typical motion keys. Naturally, it’s additionally extra transportable.
The G Professional X 60 is up for pre-order right now for $179 within the US or €229 in Europe. It’s obtainable in three colours (black, white or pink) with both the linear or tactile model of Logitech’s GX Optical switches. The corporate says it’ll be obtainable at main retailers in “late April.”
I’ve had the keyboard available for a couple of days previous to right now’s announcement and have principally been impressed, although I’d have a tough time calling it an amazing worth.
Let’s begin with the nice: This factor is well-built. Its aluminum high plate is surrounded by a plastic body, nevertheless it all feels sturdy, with no actual flex or give while you press down. Its doubleshot PBT keycaps are pleasingly crisp and will keep away from any of the shininess that’d develop with cheaper ABS plastic over time. The legends on the keycaps are neatly printed and clear, so any RGB backlight results you set will come by means of cleanly. All of the keys are angled comfortably, and there’s a set of flip-out toes on the again.
I’m not loopy in regards to the side-mounted quantity curler — when you’ve blessed your keyboard with a full-on rotary knob, it’s arduous to surrender — nevertheless it’s simple to succeed in along with your pinky, so you may alter quantity with out having to elevate your different fingers throughout the warmth of a recreation. There’s additionally a devoted change for flipping on Logitech’s “recreation mode,” which deactivates keys you may in any other case hit by chance; these embody the Home windows and Fn keys by default, however you may add others by means of Logitech’s G Hub software program.
The keyboard can join over a removable USB-C cable, Bluetooth or a 2.4GHz wi-fi dongle. Per regular with Logitech gear, the latter’s connection is rock stable; I’ve had not one of the hiccups or stuttering I’ve seen with some wi-fi keyboards from much less established manufacturers, notably when waking the gadget from sleep. There are buttons to swap between Bluetooth or the two.4GHz connection constructed into the board, in addition to a helpful compartment for stashing the adapter itself. You can too join the G Professional X 60 and sure Logitech mice concurrently utilizing one dongle. Logitech charges the battery life at as much as 65 hours; that sounds about proper based mostly on my testing to this point, however the actual quantity will fluctuate based mostly on how vivid you set the RGB backlight.
The most effective factor in regards to the G Professional X 60 may need nothing to do with the keyboard in any respect — it’s the truth that Logitech features a arduous carrying case within the field. Extra corporations ought to do that! It makes the gadget a lot simpler to move.
Alas, this in all probability is not a keyboard you’d wish to take to the workplace. The linear GX Optical switches in my take a look at unit really feel completely nice: They’re quick sufficient for gaming, and so they come pre-lubricated, so every press goes down easily. Since they’re optical, and thus not reliant on any bodily contact factors, they need to additionally show sturdy over time.
However they aren’t precisely quiet. Logitech has match a pair layers of silicone rubber contained in the board, however there isn’t the wealth of sound-dampening foam you’d discover in another choices on this value vary. To peel again the curtain a bit: I acquired the G Professional X 60 simply after testing a bunch of mechanical keyboards for an upcoming shopping for information, so I’m just a little spoiled on this level. Some folks could like the apparent clack of every press right here, too. I can’t think about their coworkers or roommates being as thrilled, although, and a few modifier and nav keys like Alt, Ctrl and Tab sound hollower than others.
Moreover that, my points with the G Professional X 60 are extra about what’s lacking than something the keyboard does mistaken. For one, its switches aren’t hot-swappable, so you may’t simply take away and change them with out desoldering. Sure, it is a area of interest factor, however so are $180 gaming keyboards as a complete. With the ability to pop in new switches isn’t only a plus for long-term repairability; it’s half the enjoyable for some keyboard fanatics within the first place. Swapping keycaps is simple, although.
Taking a step again, a rising variety of the G Professional X 60’s friends have some form of analog performance, which implies they will reply to various ranges of stress. The highest choose in our gaming keyboard purchaser’s information, the Wooting 60HE+, is an efficient instance: Its magnetic Corridor impact sensors allow you to set customized actuation factors, so you may make every key additional delicate whereas taking part in a quick FPS, then make them really feel heavier and extra deliberate whereas typing. In addition they allow a “speedy set off” characteristic that allows you to repeat inputs sooner, which may be useful for, say, strafing forwards and backwards throughout an in-game shootout. Different fashions from Razer and SteelSeries present comparable performance. However the G Professional X 60 lacks any form of adjustable actuation or speedy set off mode. That’s in all probability not a dealbreaker for most individuals, however the individuals who would use these options are the type of hardcore avid gamers Logitech is focusing on with this gadget.
What’s here’s a new remapping system referred to as “Keycontrol.” Via G Hub, this lets you assign a number of totally different instructions or macros to every key, with three separate management layers. This can be a handy solution to get round a number of the design’s lacking keys: I made it so holding Alt quickly turns WASD into arrow keys, for instance. However it additionally enables you to base totally different actions on whether or not you press, maintain or launch a key, so you possibly can tie complementary actions in a recreation — casting a few buffs in an RPG, maybe — to at least one press. A number of the analog keyboards famous above can work like this, too, and you want to have G Hub open for some bindings to remain energetic. Nonetheless, it’s higher to have this form of flexibility than not. Logitech says extra of its keyboards will obtain Keycontrol assist sooner or later however declined to provide extra particular particulars.
All of this makes for a keyboard that’s stable in a vacuum however faces some stiff competitors. Rival gaming keyboards just like the Wooting 60HE+ and SteelSeries Apex Professional Mini Wi-fi are just a little richer with performance-focused options, whereas a barely bigger choice just like the ASUS ROG Azoth sounds higher and gives extra customizable {hardware} for keyboard geeks. There are many nice non-gaming keyboards that value a lot much less, too. However the G Professional X 60 isn’t a nasty alternative if you need one thing compact and wi-fi, so it is perhaps worthwhile throughout a sale.
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