The SteelSeries Apex 5 is a keyboard with a lot of features and hybrid mechanical switches that are made by SteelSeries. These switches are similar to Cherry MX Blues in that they have a short pre-travel distance and a light operating force. They also give satisfying tactile and audible feedback. But even though its switches are responsive, its latency is pretty high for a wired keyboard, which could be a deal-breaker for serious gamers who want the lowest input lag.
It has an OLED screen that you can change to show almost anything you want, and its software is easy to understand and use. Every key can be set up to do a macro, and there is full RGB backlighting for people who like to play at night.
Specifications
- Top Material: Aircraft Grade Aluminum Alloy Frame
- N-Key Roll Over: 24-Key
- Anti-Ghosting: Gaming Grade
- Illumination: Dynamic Per Key RGB Illumination
- Weight: 2.04 lbs
- Height: 40.5 mm
- Width: 442.8 mm
- Depth: 139.2 mm
Where to buy SteelSeries Apex 5 Keyboard?
After using the Apex M500 and Apex M750, the Apex 5 looks like a SteelSeries keyboard should. It’s made of aluminium like its siblings, and it has a clean look with a simple drop at the front and back. The bottom of the keyboard has a handy three-way cable routing, a structural reinforcement that makes it very sturdy, and two small legs that can be used to change the angle.
SteelSeries added a wrist rest, which is a nice surprise at this price. It has a soft-touch coating that makes it feel good, but not fancy, and magnets make it easy to put on and take off. Both the keyboard and the wrist rest have rubber feet that keep them from moving around.
On the Apex 5, things get interesting when you use the keys. For $99, it’s impressive that they come with per-key RGB lighting, especially since SteelSeries lighting effects are stunning. Watching the Audio Visualizer effect is a lot of fun. But SteelSeries still doesn’t seem to know how to make key switches with LEDs that can light up the whole keycap, no matter how good its products are. All of the secondary symbols are dim, and characters that are taller fade near the bottom. It could use a little polishing.
You don’t have to make all of your adjustments on the OLED panel. Instead, you can use the SteelSeries Engine software to change the keybindings, illumination, OLED, and settings. In the keybinding section, you can change everything from your function keys to your number pad. In the Illumination section, you can also change the RGB lighting for each key and choose effects like breathing or colour shifting. On the OLED and Settings tab, you can change the image or animation that will show up on the screen and set how it will look.