Razer Huntsman V2 Optical

amazon Razer Huntsman V2 Optical reviews

Razer is a big name in the gaming accessory industry because they have “initiated” a lot of different accessory trends for gamers, of which, the most notable can be the specialized gaming mice with high signal rates in the late 90s with the Razer Boomslang mouse model, and later the mechanical gaming keyboard models with the Razer Blackwidow keyboard models using buttons Cherry MX Blue switch comes from the famous Cherry MX manufacturer.

This is a typical model for the generations of mechanical gaming keyboards at that time, causing many manufacturers to “learn”, making for a long time, keyboard models using switches Blue of Cherry MX or other counterfeit manufacturers became the mainstream of the gaming keyboard market.

As for Razer, the company has also had many daring experiments to design and manufacture its own mechanical gaming keyboard lines to best meet the needs of high-end gamers with many switch variants made by Razer design.

Even in 2018, the company continued to launch the Huntsman line of gaming keyboards with the application of optical switches to bring an even higher speed of “receiving orders”, serving sports tournaments in professional eSports, where the players actions “fight” each other for every millisecond.

However, in addition to changing the materials and types of switches used, this keyboard line is still heavily influenced by the design style of traditional mechanical gaming keyboards.

So recently, Razer conducted a major upgrade for the Huntsman keyboard line with the Razer Huntsman V2 version with a few upgrade elements borrowed from custom mechanical keyboard products to form Razer’s most expensive, high-end gaming keyboard line on the market today.

With support from Razer, Biareview had the opportunity to test this keyboard model to be able to give readers a detailed look at this high-end gaming mechanical keyboard model.

In general, the Razer Huntsman V2 is packed with the characteristics of Razer product models with a black finish with a green border that is very familiar to fans of “three-headed snakes” with extremely good and sharp print quality, for a clear and impressive image of Razer’s new generation keyboard model.

Overall, from the initial illustration on the surface of the box, it can be seen that this version is not much different from the Razer Huntsman Elite version released three years ago, except for the armrest and knob are designed to be slightly lighter.

Meanwhile, the back is information about the key technologies equipped on this keyboard model, most notably the integrated noise reduction layer and the promised 2nd generation optical switch technology maximum noise compared to the previous generation.

Unpacking the box, it can be seen that the Razer Huntsman V2 is completed with great detail with many small elements being cared for showing the sophistication of the manufacturer.

First, the most obvious is the overall rigidity of this keyboard model when possessing a solid plastic outer shell, the metal keyboard panel brings a certain weight and stability, and at the same time protects the keyboard circuit and switch pins inside.

The footrest area is adjustable with two different heights, ensuring users find the most comfortable armrest position, while the rubber feet have been redesigned for a firm grip on the table surface, it is harder to be deflected when applying horizontal force like the previous generation version.

On the top, the keycap system is also made of thick PBT plastic material with Double Shot molding technology, helping to ensure the quality of the characters is durable even when used for a long time, and does not cause the key to shine, or easily cause hand slip for people with sweaty hands.

Upgrading the keycaps to PBT plastic is also an encouraging plus when most of Razer’s competitors on the market today have begun to “popularize” high-quality PBT keycaps for keyboard products. High-end gaming engines, even some mid-range keyboard models are also equipped with this material keycap, making products that still use ABS material become “inferior”.

Although possessing a separate optical switch system, the switches on the Razer Huntsman V2 are compatible with the standard Cherry MX keycaps, so users can completely “customize” the keycap versions to their liking, including handcrafted artisan keycaps at a hefty price tag.

Talk a little more about the optical switch model equipped by Razer for this keyboard model.

This switch model is specifically designed by Razer’s engineers with a quite special texture compared to conventional “Cherry MX” optical switches with short key travel, super-fast response with durability ( according to Razer ads) up to 100 million clicks.

In addition to the Cherry MX-standard crossbar structure, Razer expands the support frame of the switch wider, with a wider contact area with the keycap, to create a greater balance for fast, similar key presses like the Romer G switch models equipped with Logitech G keyboards or RealForce’s Topre switch.

Razer is even equipped with a small balance bar inside, ensuring that the key can only move vertically, without slipping, misaligning the key in the “keystroke” phase too quickly.

This structure is very effective and fast for the fast actions of players participating in eSports, but with the structure of many bulky components, making the manufacturing cost expensive, not to mention the sound. The noise that Razer’s switches emit is always superior to the switches produced by Cherry MX, causing many gamers to complain about the operating noise of the keyboard.

So Razer has improved the optical switch model on the Razer Huntsman V2 to the second generation with better components, and more carefully lubricated (lube) to provide somewhat quieter operation than the first generation.

Razer also integrates into the panel a sound-absorbing foam pad to help reduce vibrations and noise to the maximum.

This makes the Razer Huntsman V2 emit an extremely low noise level, even lower than some keyboard models using a rubber dome mechanism, almost becoming a “black hole” in terms of the sound motion.

This is an extremely impressive highlight of this keyboard model because the noise of the mechanical gaming keyboard is always a headache for many gamers when they have to use the keyboard in a crowded environment or in a house with people. For the elderly and children, the measures using the O-shaped master washer can partially solve the noise but do not give the feeling of pressing the key at the end of the journey.

Therefore, the feeling of typing, whether playing games or editing documents, is extremely comfortable with the fast response and accuracy of mechanical keys, but still keeps noise to a minimum.

In addition, the palm rest is also designed to be lightweight with an “overflowing” PU leather padding with the ability to connect to the keyboard thanks to the attraction of the magnet, eliminating cumbersome power supply connections and lights around. Hands-on the previous generation are inherently unnecessary, helping to reduce a power supply USB cable, as well as all installation and operation operations, become much easier and simpler.

This is a rather small detail but shows Razer’s meticulous and delicate care for its new generation of gaming keyboards when bringing maximum convenience to users.

When connecting the keyboard to a PC, the keyboard’s built-in memory will “suggest” the user to download the Razer Synapse driver to get the most out of the keyboard’s features.

Thereby, users can control intensive backlight effects to each button at different brightness levels, and create and store keystrokes in memory, a feature that only exists on keyboards high end on the market today.

The multimedia content control keys are systematically designed in the upper right corner, making it easy for users to control the volume, skip, pause/play music in the most convenient way.

Overall, in addition to inheriting the advantages already of the first-generation Huntsman product line, Razer has listened to user feedback to bring about small, but extremely useful improvements for Razer Huntsman V2, making this keyboard model able to satisfy the requirements of even the most demanding users.

As a high-quality mechanical gaming keyboard model with many factors meticulously cared for by Razer, there are still a few factors that you need to consider before “spending” on this Razer Huntsman V2 keyboard model.

First of all, although the switch structure is quite similar, it can be replaced with the keycaps manufactured for the Cherry MX standard, but with certain keys using a stabilizer design. The two sides such as the Space Bar, and the Enter key … are different from the usual standard design.

So if you want to change the keycaps for this mechanical gaming keyboard model, surely finding a replacement for these large keys is extremely difficult, otherwise, you will have to keep them to use in conjunction with the new keycaps to ensure the keyboard’s functionality.

However, Razer’s “zin” keycaps are of very good quality, so users can directly use them without having to worry about “upgrading” as with the previous generation.

Second, the price of the Razer Huntsman V2 is now one-and-a-half times higher than the Razer Huntsman Elite version of the previous generation, making Razer’s loyal fans also “deceive”.

The features equipped with “extremely high-end” such as signal scanning speed up to 8000Hz, 8 times higher than conventional gaming keyboard models, are very difficult to feel in the context of Razer’s optical switch. Super-fast response times, making Razer’s “peak” features become “minor upgrades”, not making too much of a difference in the eyes of users compared to the product’s outrageous price.

Although the noise cancellation design for the mechanical keys of this keyboard model is extremely unique, providing a new and convenient typing experience for those who use the keyboard in a crowded place, for the fans of the “three-headed snake team”, the noise level of the key is an inherent characteristic.

This makes this keyboard model seem built to be a product aimed at a new user group rather than a veteran Razer fan group, however, for new users, this price is quite high to start getting used to the mechanical gaming keyboard.

In addition, although equipped with a USB cable covered with anti-cutting and gold-plated fabric, Razer is still consistent with the connecting cable, which also makes this keyboard model lose more or less “fashionable” look by “cutting” the extra USB cable to power the backlight, Razer also removed the convenient connection port equipped on the side of the movie table for USB flash drives when quick access is needed.

However, this minus point is very small, and does not significantly affect the user’s experience with the product.

where can you get a Razer Huntsman V2 Optical online

Razer Huntsman V2 Optical Gaming Keyboard: Fastest Linear Optical Switches Gen-2 w/Sound Dampeners & 8000Hz Polling Rate – Doubleshot PBT Keycaps – Dedicated Media Keys & Dial – Ergonomic Wrist Rest: Buy it now