INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   As far back as i can remember keyboards have always been my favorite PC peripheral followed closely by speakers and not mice as some of you would expect. Still since back in the 90's we practically had to count on Microsoft and in smaller part to IBM for new keyboard models i never expected that the time would come when there would be a virtually infinite number of models in the market by both large and small manufacturers from all over the globe. The same of course goes for all the features we've seen introduced since then and I’m not necessarily referring to mechanical switches since they've been around for too long already. What really surprised me was that instead of sitting around idly and just using what's already there some manufacturers took it upon themselves to further improve mechanical switches and backlight illumination for gaming and professional use and one of them is obviously Logitech with their Romer-G switches which we first encountered when we reviewed the G910 Orion Spark and the G410 Atlas Spectrum gaming keyboards a while ago. With us today we have the latest gaming keyboard to also feature their Romer-G switches called the G810 Orion Spectrum.

   Focused on innovation and quality, Logitech designs personal peripherals to help people enjoy a better experience with the digital world. We started in 1981 with mice, which (new at the time) provided a more intuitive way of interacting with a personal computer. We became the worldwide leader in computer mice, and have reinvented the mouse in dozens of ways to match the evolving needs of PC and laptop users. Since those early days, we have expanded our expertise in product design beyond the computer mouse, with a broad portfolio of interface devices that are the “last inch” between you and your computer or your console game, digital music or home-entertainment system. With products sold in almost every country in the world, Logitech’s leadership in innovation now encompasses a wide variety of personal peripherals (both cordless and corded), with special emphasis on products for PC navigation, gaming, Internet communications, digital music and home-entertainment control. For each of our product categories, we study how our customers use their digital devices, and then our designers and engineers set their sights on how we can create a better experience with those devices – richer, more comfortable, more fun, more productive, more convenient, and more delightful.

   As mentioned already exactly like the G410 and the G910 before that the G810 uses Logitech's proprietary Romer-G switches which they developed jointly with the well-known and respected Japanese OMRON. With the Romer-G switches Logitech wanted to create the world’s fastest gaming switch (just like SteelSeries and their QS1 Switches) without sacrificing endurance and so they set them to actuate at 1.5mm (3mm travel distance) with just 45g of force (unfortunately at the cost of tactile feedback) and made them last for up to 70 million keystrokes. Another thing Logitech wanted to improve on was LED backlight design and their solution to that was to place a RGB LED pipe directly at the center of the Romer-G switches which could then focus the light more evenly through the etching on the keycap thus minimizing light bleeds. The G810 Orion Spark also features dedicated media controls, individual key RGB lighting, 26-Key rollover (does not support NKRO), dual height-adjusters (4 and 8 degrees angle), macro-recording and is compatible with Logitech’s ARX Control (although it doesn't come with a smartphone dock like the G910/G410 models).

 

 

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The G810 arrived inside a long box with most of the front taken by a product picture and a sticker informing us that there's a game key included inside.

 

 

Logitech has placed the specifications list at the bottom and left side of the box in 8 languages.

 

 

A few words about the Romer-G switches and the media controls of the G810 are placed at the rear of the box in 4 languages.

 

 

The keyboard is wrapped inside a plastic film and placed inside a formed piece of cardboard.

 

 

Inside the box you will just find the G810 Orion Spark, user’s manual, warranty information paper and the game key (providing you're lucky enough to find one with it now).

 

 

THE G810 ORION SPECTRUM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Since the G810 doesn't feature any extra macro keys or a detachable wrist rest it's not as large as its brother the G910 and so it's black matte painted enclosure measures 443.5mm in width, 153mm in length and 34.3mm in height.

 

 

The Logitech Gaming logo is placed on the upper left corner and is actually part of the RGB lighting system.

 

 

These two round keys are used to enable gaming mode (turns the Windows key off) and turn on/off key illumination.

 

 

Next to them we find the dedicated media controls (mute audio, play/pause, stop, previous/backwards, next/forward) and a rather long volume control knob.

 

 

The lock LEDs are placed right over the F9-F11 keys and i was surprised to find out that these are also part of the RGB lighting system.

 

 

Just like the arrow keys the numpad keys also has arrows printed on them.

 

 

Checking the base of the G810 we find 5 large rubber feed and a total of 4 height adjusters.

 

 

These height adjusters can raise the top end of the keyboard 18mm and 8mm from the desktop (4 and 8 degrees angle).

 

 

Here we see the Romer-G switches (notice the light shaft at the center).

 

 

The 1.8 meter long braided cable ends on a typical USB plug with the Logitech G logo on it.

 

 

LOGITECH GAMING SOFTWARE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Typically since the keyboard doesn't come with a software CD you will need to download the latest firmware and drivers/software package from the official Logitech support page.

 

 

Updating the firmware only takes around a minute so i don't recommend skipping it.

 

 

The Logitech Gaming Software GUI is exactly the same we saw with the G910 and G410 keyboards so once again the main screen shows you a picture of the keyboard and all the available options/tabs right beneath it.

 

 

You can remap all of the keyboards keys from the first tab or you can also use one of the ready profiles the software may (or may not) have already loaded for compatible games installed in your system (after that you can save your settings for use later on) and of course you can also choose which keys you want disabled when gaming mode is on.

 

 

Again there are three lighting modes available, freestyle, zones and effects. Freestyle allows the end user to select individual keys to illuminate, zones allows you to group keys together while the effects mode can be used with several custom presets including color wave, color cycle, breathing, star effect and key press (you can also change direction and speed).

 

 

Personally i like the Freestyle and Zone modes since i like grouping keys together and changing their color.

 

 

The key press heat map is also available and again although i don't consider this to be important i hear that it can be really useful for people who are looking for ways to improve the speed of their gaming.

 

 

It may not look like it since it lacks a smartphone/tablet dock but the G810 also supports Logitech's Arx Control.

 

 

Here we’ve placed some of the available illumination modes and effects for all of you to see.

 

 

ARX CONTROL INTEGRATION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In order to use the Arx Control you will first need to install the app in your Android or iOS smartphone and then connect it to the same network as the PC that has the G810 and the Logitech control panel installed.

Once you do that you can use the app to switch between game profiles and different G-key settings, check the status of your system (CPU, GPU and RAM) and control media running on your system.

 

 

AUDIBLE FEEDBACK

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Many people ask my opinion on what keyboard they should get for their needs. Some want a “silent” model for use in their living room or even in their bedroom while others ask for a model with good audible feedback for use in the office or for gaming. Because of this I decided to test keyboards by placing our ExTech HD600 vertically over each keyboard (5cm distance) and typing NikKTech a total of 6 times with each (after that the max recorded number - max hold - is placed in the graph). I have to admit that this may not be 100% accurate but it does give a good idea on what you can expect from each model since aside the type of switches used keycaps and keyboard material also matter.

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   If you’ve read our previous reviews of the G910 and G410 gaming keyboards then you know that although we believe that the Romer-G switches are very good for gaming the lack of tactile feedback and their softer feeling in general make them less suitable for typing and at least for me that’s their only “drawback”. That being said the LED illumination is once again one of the strongest we’ve ever seen with an RGB keyboard and largely thanks to the Logitech Gaming Software they show their full potential via the various lighting effects. Build quality may not be the highest we’ve ever seen with a keyboard but it’s still very high and the keyboard feels very sturdy/solid although the hard plastic enclosure may not fit on everyone’s desk (especially since there are quite a few aluminum models in the market already). Also you may not notice the lack of a wrist rest during the first hours of use but as time goes by you will miss it and again although this may not be a deal breaker for most people nonetheless it’s something that needs to be taken into account. The Arx Control Integration was a surprise since I too didn’t think it was featured with the G810 (due to the lack of a dock) but again I consider this feature to be primarily for show (not that this is a bad thing).

   With a current price tag set at USD129.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and at 141.40Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) the G810 Orion Spectrum RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard by Logitech certainly has its hands full. This is not only due to the fact that the more “complete” G910 costs roughly the same but also due to the fact that Logitech makes the G610 (cut-down version of the G810 without RGB illumination) which features Cherry MX Red and Brown switches that costs roughly 30% less. Price of course is not everything and since thanks to the Romer-G switches and the good number of features the G810 Orion Spectrum is a great keyboard for gamers it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Solid Build
- Size (Compared To The G910)
- Full RGB Key Illumination (16.8m Colors)
- Available Effects
- Individual Key Illumination
- Romer-G Mechanical Switches (70M Actuations/Reduced Actuation Force By 25%)
- 26-Key Rollover
- Arx Control Integration

 

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- No USB Ports
- Does Not Support NKRO (N-Key Rollover)