It used to be that when you needed a keyboard for your PC, you’d swing down to the shops and grab the cheapest input device on the shelf. These days though? There has been an evolution over the last few years, with various manufacturers trotting out new technology that shaves milliseconds off of response times while packing in a substantial amount of style to that substance.
Physical specifications
- Height: 34 mm
- Width: 361 mm
- Depth: 153 mm
GX Blue clicky switches
- Actuation distance: 2.0 mm
- Actuation force: 50 g
- Total travel distance: 3.7 mm
GX Brown tactile switches
- Actuation distance: 2.0 mm
- Actuation force: 50 g
- Total travel distance: 3.7 mm
GX Red linear switches
- Actuation distance: 1.9 mm
- Actuation force: 50 g
- Total travel distance: 4.0 mm
Other features
- User-swappable mechanical switches
- 1.8 m detachable cable
- 12 programmable F-keys
- 1 ms report rate
Enter Logitech, whose Pro series of peripherals have been rather fantastic so far. The company’s back with a new device on the block, in the compact but hefty shape of the Logitech Pro X Gaming Keyboard. At first glance you might be wondering why a small board that doesn’t even include a numpad is worth considering not just for your gaming pursuits, but also for your day to day work and loafing around on the PC.
The G Pro X isn’t even Logitech’s first tenkeyless keyboard, but its refocused attention on providing an excellent esports input partner hasn’t just made it a knockout option on the competitive world stage, it has transformed the keyboard into an essential part of everyday life. For a device that looks a heck of a lot like its 2017 predecessor, that’s a heck of a statement to make.
It’s still a great visual design though, and despite it feeling heavy enough to inflict blunt force trauma on the head of a burglar caught unawares, the G Pro X still looks the business. Simple matte black, a compact forma factor and physical prompts for the functions that actually matter most. The one downside here is that the detachable micro-USB cable is front-facing, making it slightly awkeard when you’re using the keyboard as a replacement for your laptop when you’ve spent years turning its keyboard into a collection of marshmallow inputs. For PC gamers, it’ll likely be a non-issue though.
The big difference here are the hot-swappable GX blue switches, which finally allows for customisation if you’re prepared to shell out extra for the additional switches.
For the uninitiated, a GX Blue clicky uses a traditional mechanical design, and is functionally identical to that of a Cherry MX Blue. That makes it ideal for typing with its separated slider construction that provides a high level of tactile feedback albeit with a layer of hysteresis. Long story short, blue switches provide not only a distinct feel when struck, but they also deliver a delightful audio response and they’re rated to last for 70 million keystrokes per key.
Depending on your tastes, you can cycle in smoother Clicky Red or even more Tactile Brown Clicky switches. If you’re an absolute madman, you could even mix and match keys, which is easily done with an included switch remover. A word of warning though, the 92 keys are locked into place so annoyingly tight, that it might be easier to remove Excalibur from its stone prison instead.
But once you’re locked in and ready to roll? The G Pro X is pure tactile bliss with every finger-hammer you bring down on the keys. It’s hard to describe a mechanical keyboard in words, it’s simply something that has to be felt over several games or even through the simple act of composing an email. That feel, that tactile resonance, and the sound of mechanical switches being depressed and instantly springing back up to life is a sensation unique to this genre of keyboards, and the G Pro X captures that moments beautifully with every press of the key.
Thanks to its sturdy construction, the G Pro X also feels like it can take a substantial amount of abuse during even the most intense gaming sessions. Heck I’ve been using it for the last two weeks just to type out several thousand words a day and it feels as sturdy as the day I ripped the plastic off of it. One aspect of the design that does concern me though is that the slim space between keys means that cleaning it may require setting aside an afternoon, as you’ll have to pry each one of the sturdy inputs off to get to any built-up gunk and hair that may pile up over the weeks and months.
There’s also a minimal setup of extras to go along with its compact keyless design. Function keys for your caps lock and scroll lock, a button to switch the RGB lighting off and gaming toggle button is all that you’ll get in addition to the necessary keys, but then again that’s all that you really need. Your mileage may of course differ.
Using Logitech’s software G-Hub, you can also program the keyboard’s RGB lighting to illuminate itself with a variety of different animations. From a standard static teal to more exotic presets that range from rhythmic breathing through to each key uniquely lighting up to mimic the starlight of the natural sky, you can even cycle between the rainbow of LEDs and watch the keyboard light up with a gradient flow. Rather nice stuff, that makes an understated design stand out even more. Plus at least you’ll know where you are in your room when the lights have gone out.
Logitech’s G Pro X is an admittedly expensive piece of hardware with a singular focus on gaming, but there’s no denying that it’s a superb piece of hardware for anyone who’s a fan of feeling their gameplay through their fingertips.
Last Updated: March 29, 2021
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Logitech’s G Pro X is an admittedly expensive piece of hardware with a singular focus on gaming, but there’s no denying that it’s a superb piece of hardware for anyone who’s a fan of feeling their gameplay through their fingertips.
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