The Razer BlackWidow has been one of the most iconic
gaming keyboards of the last decade. This month, Razer revealed its latest version, the BlackWidow V3 Pro, that officially brings HyperSpeed Wireless to the classic keyboard, as well as a suite of other improvements that aim to make it the best yet. Retailing for $229, should this arachnid crawl its way onto your Wish List?
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Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro – Design and Features
The Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro is a major upgrade from last year’s release and redefines the quality of the BlackWidow line. Though it has been popular, the series has been challenged by increasing competition in recent years, even from within Razer’s own line-up. Its Huntsman Elite and Huntsman Tournament Edition optical gaming keyboards, for example, may have come to acclaim from its excellent switches, but also its aluminum top plate, wrist rest, media controls, and, at least since the Tournament Edition, PBT keycaps.
With the BlackWidow V3 Pro, many of those features have trickled down and the entire keyboard is better for it. Instead of being entirely plastic, it now has a rigid aluminum top plate. It’s a change you can feel both when you first pick it up and with every keystroke since it makes the board feel more dense and less hollow. In fact, the top shell is entirely absent, exposing the switch housings under the keycaps. It’s cool when viewed from the side, but from above, the keycaps do a good job of isolating the light to just the legends – at least on medium brightness. On high brightness, there is definitely some glow around each key, but it’s far from the wash of light on boards like the Steelseries Apex Pro.
The keycaps have also been upgraded. They’re made of thick ABS plastic and have doubleshot backlit legends. This means that the legends are made of an entire second piece of plastic and will never chip or fade. The legends are also thin and consistent, and the plastic around them is slightly textured to avoid shining. Keyboard enthusiasts have known for ages how much difference keycaps can make in your typing experience, and this is as good as it comes without jumping to more expensive PBT.
Underneath those caps are Razer’s patented Green (clicky) or Yellow (linear) switches. I tested the green version and found them to be both louder and more tactical than Cherry MX Blues. I’m not usually a fan of clicky switches but these definitely have a satisfying typewriter-esque clack about them. The board will also be available in Razer’s linear Yellow switches, which Razer says are even more quiet this time around. Both versions are rated for 70 million keystrokes, which is impressively high compared to Cherry’s 50 million click lifespan.
The V3 Pro also features dedicated media controls complete with Razer’s multi-function dial. Above the number pad are tall buttons for play, pause, and skipping tracks, as well as a nice knurled volume wheel that hangs just over the edge of the keyboard for easy access. This whole section appears lifted directly from the Huntsman Elite, including the sleek backlighting on each of these controls. Like that keyboard, the volume dial can also be programmed to control different functions in games, like swapping weapons or triggering skills.
I also really like that Razer included a wrist rest this time around. It’s a plush leatherette that feels comfortable to use and is angled to exactly match the bottom lip of the keyboard, but isn’t magnetic, which is a bummer. Even in my relatively cool office at work, I noticed my wrists sweat after a while, so it may not be practical in warmer climates, but enhanced the experience nonetheless.
The defining feature here is clearly the wireless functionality. Razer has been building its stable of HyperSpeed Wireless peripherals for quite a while now, so it was only a matter of time before that tech made its way to the BlackWidow line-up. Like the Razer Viper Mini, it connects to the PC with a small USB dongle and offers responsiveness that is indistinguishable from the best wireless peripherals I’ve tried. Over HyperSpeed, it’s able to offer full 1000Hz polling, right up there with the Razer Huntsman Elite and Corsair K95 Platinum XT. If you’re playing less intense games or need to type out a quick email on your tablet, it also supports Bluetooth pairing with up to three devices and, of course, wired connectivity.
Battery life is great with the lights off and only decent if you like to turn up the RGB. With no backlighting at all, Razer claims 192 hours of actual use time. If you turn the brightness all the way up and just let it cycle colors, that drops to only 13 hours, which is less than two days of use for me. RGB lighting is always a big drain on keyboard batteries, but it still left me careful to plug in every night, which gave me flashbacks to the early days of wireless peripherals.
Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro – Software
Like other programmable Razer products, nearly all of the customization is done through Synapse, the company’s proprietary software engine. Synapse has come a long way over the years and allows you to easily program in any array of macros, Windows shortcuts, mouse functions, and more just by selecting your key and picking from a drop-down menu. It’s very intuitive, and thanks to HyperShift, every key can also be programmed with a secondary function. As an MMORPG player, that allowed me to turn my entire numpad into a big macro pad, which is great for quickly accessing skill rotations. With five profiles of onboard storage, the remap possibilities number into the hundreds.
Synapse is also where you’ll control the keyboard’s lighting, which is plentiful. Every key can be illuminated with a custom color. Or, if you prefer, you can choose from a set of Quick Effects to make it look good without the fuss of creating your own static layout. With the program’s Chroma Studio, however, you’re given the ability to create truly unique lighting schemes, layering effects and synchronizing them between your other Chroma-enabled devices.
Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro – Performance
I’m a shooter fan, so wasted no time putting the board through its paces in Call of Duty: Warzone using the HyperSpeed dongle (which was used through all of my gaming tests). If you’re worried about gaming on non-Cherry switches, don’t be. The Razer Greens actuated just as fast (and technically faster with a 1.9mm actuation point versus Cherry’s 2mm), and were reliable and consistent over several hours of play. I swapped between CoD, Apex Legends, and Battlefield V and there was never a time when I felt like the BlackWidow was holding me back. Like the best peripherals, it got out of the way and let me focus on the game.
In World of Warcraft, I really appreciated the ability to remap so many keys. Using only the number pad and modifiers like shift and control, I was able to map four separate skill bars to my number pad alone. For running dungeons, this wasn’t as practical since I keep my fingers locked to the movement keys, but with a mix of in-game remaps and HyperShift, I was able to map my most-used skills to the left side of the keyboard. Paired with the Razer Naga, Synapse let me customize my inputs so much that I had every tool I needed right at my fingertips while still being able to stay nimble and move around the boss fight without any downtime.
I also have to say, in normal use, the keycaps may have been the most impressive of all. My harshest criticism of past BlackWidows was that the keyboards would pick-up finger oils and look old within mere days of use. It was their most off-putting feature. The finish and feel of these caps is so much better that it elevated the entire experience.
Throughout all of this, the biggest drag was purely needing to plug in every night. I didn’t encounter the low battery warning, but I would have had I forgotten and still wanted to enjoy my RGB.
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Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro – Purchasing Guide
The Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro retails for $229 and it’s available from Amazon, Best Buy, and from Razer directly.
