Corsair Vengeance K95 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Review
Looking Closer at the Vengeance K95
The Corsair Vengeance K95s 18 macro keys expectedly make for a wide keyboard. Be mindful of tabletop space with this keyboards total dimensions of 19.75(L) x 6.5(W) x 1.5(H) inch / 460(L) x 166(W) x 38(H) mm. Attaching the wristrest increases the keyboard width to 8.25 inches. Like the older K90 (image), the K95s mounting plate consists of two zones: brushed aluminum under the main 104-keys and plastic under the macros.
The K95s thick braided USB cable terminates in two USB plugs; one which powers the keyboard and the other for USB passthrough. This means that only one USB port is needed to use the K95 keyboard as a keyboard.
A slider switch near the USB passthrough controls the keyboard polling rate. By default, 1 is 1000 MHz and goes down to 750 MHz, 500 MHz, abd 250 MHz. Sliding the switch all the way to BIOS will put the keyboard into a compatibility mode for BIOS that may not recognize the K70.
A set of media keys are located on the top right corner of the K95 over the numpad. There are buttons for Mute, Stop, Next, Previous, and Play/Pause. A scroll bar controls system sound volume.
To the left of the Mute button and the Lock Keys are three buttons. From left to right is a toggle for key-by-key lighting, brightness setting, and Windows key lock.
Like the older Vengeance K90, the K95 has 18 customizable macro keys. Unlike the K90, the K95s macros are mechanical keys with the same backlighting implementation as the rest of the keyboard.
The macro keys sound different from the other 104-keys because of the plastic at the keys base. The tactility also feels slightly different, feeling like a softer bump bottoming on the plastic than bottoming on the aluminum.
The macro keys are laid on a flat array and do not follow the ergonomic contour of the 104-keys.
The K95 has folding risers on all four corners giving more height adjustability than other keyboards with two risers.
An included wrist rest can be attached to the K70. The wrist rest is secured by sliding and snapping the tabs into the slots on the underside and can be removed by pinching the tabs.