The world’s first and most iconic mechanical gaming keyboard undergoes its next game-changing evolution. With the Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro, you’ll enter a new wireless world with 3 connection modes for unparalleled versatility and a satisfying gaming experience that consists of premium switches and full-height keys. Sometimes the best wireless keyboard is one that is small and petite. This makes it great for travel, switching between different systems, and small desks. But what if you want the thrill and functionality of a full-sized, full-featured wireless mechanical keyboard, but just want to ditch the cable.
The Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro has many of the best gaming keyboard features, including a full set of media keys, RGB, and even a high-quality wrist rest. It also supports wireless connectivity with a 2.4GHz USB dongle, Bluetooth 5.0, or a braided cable if you need to charge. A keyboard for gamers who want everything but the cord Despite some forays into sleeker design, Razer is the first name that comes to mind when it comes to gaming PC accessories, and the BlackWidow V3 Pro shows why It is the first of its kind in the marketplace.
It’s a bombastic full-size keyboard with RGB lighting, dedicated media controls, a comfy palm rest in the box, and supposedly gaming-tuned switches. The V3 Pro is also a rare specimen: a wireless-connected gaming keyboard, one of the company’s first in a traditional form factor. Aside from the mass of 108 keys and eye-catching presentation, it’s a high-quality board with a wonderful typing experience. Here are some
Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro review: Design and Setup
Razer knows a thing or two about keyboard design, and the Blackwidow V3 Pro is a solid addition to Razer’s full-size product lineup. It’s not glamorous, with backlit media keys and a pleasant-feeling volume control that doubles as a mute button with a quick press, but it’s all you need. While other brands sprinkle their logos on every available surface or add all sorts of extra RGB bars, Razer’s three-headed snake logo is only embossed on the leather-leather palm rest.
Setup is as simple as plugging in the dongle and switching the solid side to a 2.4 GHz connection if you want to take advantage of Razer’s hyperspeed connectivity. There’s already a bit of charge, but Razer recommends a full charge to get things going. Otherwise, Windows does everything else for you and quickly opens Razer’s Synapse software. You can subscribe to this software to ensure you have a consistent RGB experience across multiple devices, but you can also load it as a guest to tweak your various RGB options. One minor downside is that you should have Synapse automatically launch when you start your PC, as it won’t activate your RGB settings if it’s not open.
Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro review: Connectivity
On the back of the keyboard is a USB Type-C port for wired connections or charging with the included braided USB Type-A to USB Type-C cable. On the left side is the switch for switching between a Bluetooth or 2.4 GHz wireless connection. The bottom of the keyboard is made of plastic with four rubberized squares on the corners to ensure the keyboard sits firmly and quietly on the desk, with two-step folding feet on the top to allow a comfortable angle for typing at six or nine degrees. Finally, a cover in the top center hides the 2.4 GHz USB dongle for low-latency wireless connectivity.
Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro review: RGB lighting
The keycap font, with round, friendly loops and thin letters, strikes a good balance between seriousness and fun, supporting tasty RGB’s mission. Since things like Caps and Shift are written in lowercase, the mood stays light without seeming silly. The thin lettering sets the RGB keys apart from the black, double-bullet ABS plastic keyboards, which look and feel almost as premium as PBT and are well protected against fingerprints after a week of heavy use. RGB glows between the well-spaced keys and provides a continuous glow that lights up the south side of the function bar at brightness settings as low as 20%. Note that you can adjust and turn off the RGB brightness from the keyboard. You can also hold down the FN, Ctrl, and 1-7 keys to toggle between RGB presets.
Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro review: Keys
The BlackWidow V3 Pro has a 104-key layout, not including the four media keys added at the top. The keys are Double-Shot ABS keycaps and show no wear after about a month of testing and tens of thousands of words typed. The Double-Shot process is believed to be effective in preventing wear. Keycaps are easy to replace, and the switches are rated to withstand 80 million keystrokes; some may complain that PBT is not used, but it does not replace the premium feel of these keys.
The linear Razer Yellow switches are perhaps Razer’s more gaming-heavy option. However, we find them to be very comfortable to type on, with solid bounce and a pleasant click without being too noisy, thanks to the newly introduced silicone dampers. Although we work from home and don’t have to worry about disturbing my colleagues, it’s nice to type quietly when we’re on a conference call or just listening to music.
Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro review: Performance
We have been playing with the Razer Green Mechanical Switches, which feature a joyful click and are an acoustic nightmare for anyone around you. Every time you press a button, there’s an ultra-tactile kickback and an exceptionally loud click. So if you want your gaming to feel and sound like a miniature finger explosion, Green Switches are for you. If you share an office and have a sense of self-preservation you should swap them out for Razer’s yellow switches. While not completely silent, these have a smoother keystroke and noise-dampening technology to eliminate excess noise.
Regardless of which you choose, the Doubleshot keycaps feel great with their grippy coating and don’t have any nasty oily fingerprint smudges. And then there’s the all-important wireless performance. The keyboard dims completely when you’re not busy typing, which makes a big difference. We achieved about 30 hours for a glowing glow effect at about 80% brightness. The duration depends on how you play and how you want the lighting. You can always check your percentage in the Synapse software to make sure you don’t get a surprise in the middle of the axe fight in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, as the wireless connection will start to stutter if you drop below 5%.
Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro review: Battery Life
The BlackWidow V3 Pro’s battery life is highly dependent on RGB lighting usage; Razer’s keyboard boasts up to 192 hours when the lights are completely forsaken, but drops considerably when the lights are turned on. With the default rainbow lighting at maximum brightness, Razer says it can get 13 hours, and we have seen slightly longer uptime than that.
However, both the lights and the keyboard itself start to lose performance when the battery power reaches about 5%, so it’s best not to push the limits too much. If you get the battery power down to 50%, Razer says you can work for much longer, up to 25 hours, according to Razer. This is consistent with our experience.
Conclusions
The Razer Blackwidow V3 Pro is an impressively solid full-sized mechanical wireless keyboard from the hardware giant that you’ll definitely want to get rid of. The Razer BlackWidow V3 Pro is a great option for anyone looking to upgrade their keyboard, as long as they can handle some light power management. A brilliant, lag-free gaming and Keyboards for Typing experience makes this keyboard a great all-rounder with compelling RGB lighting options. You may have to plug in more than you think if you’re obsessed with keeping everything lit at 100% brightness.
