A new variant of the venerable Razer BlackWidow with low-profile switches combines gaming prowess with some handy productivity features to make an impressive, if expensive, gaming keyboard.<\/b>
\nRazer’s BlackWidow V4 75% and BlackWidow V4 75% Pro are two of our favorite gaming keyboards. They offer excellent performance, gorgeous RGB lighting, game-enhancing features, and hot-swappable key switches for those who want to dabble in DIY keyboard modding. They’re now joined by the BlackWidow V4 Low-Profile HyperSpeed ($229). It marks the debut of Razer\u2019s low-profile mechanical switches, while keeping trademark features like HyperSpeed Wireless (and also, alas, Razer’s habitual high price). While the newcomer doesn’t top the other BlackWidows we’ve seen, it’s no slouch. Still, our favorite gaming keyboard remains the Editors‘ Choice-winning BlackWidow V4 75% Pro.Design: Laying Low
The low-profile BlackWidow comes in two different flavors. In addition to the full-size keyboard (the subject of this review), Razer also offers a smaller TKL variant ($199), with the number pad lopped off. Design-wise, the new keyboard closely resembles the older BlackWidow V4 Pro, except that it’s far slimmer. The low-profile BlackWidow is 1.37 inches tall at its highest point, while the older BlackWidow V4 Pro comes in at 1.7 inches.
The keyboard feels sturdy and high-quality. From lubricated stabilizers to two sound-dampening foam layers beneath a stainless steel plate, the board’s components seem built to last. A large volume roller sits on the top right corner of the board, near four dedicated macro buttons and a few other function controls (which we\u2019ll explore later in the review).
This is one of the lowest-profile gaming keyboards we’ve seen in PC Labs, though it’s not the first. Corsair attempted a low-profile wireless design a few years back with the Corsair K100 Air Wireless, which is even more expensive than the BlackWidow (if you can believe it) and has a height of just 0.67 inch. In my analysis of the Corsair, the biggest issue was the uncomfortable low-profile keys.
Razer\u2019s low-profile key switches and keys used here are far more agreeable. You’ve got three key-switch types to choose among: Green (clicky), Orange (tactile), and Yellow (silent). I\u2019m a sucker for the Orange switches, which have an actuation force of 45g, an actuation point of 1.2mm, and key travel of 2.8mm. They are louder than I prefer, but they\u2019re satisfying to type on, probably because the brand-new low-profile textured PBT keycaps mimic the excellent key feel of the BlackWidow V4 Pro 75%. However, unlike the V4 Pro 75% switches, these low-profile switches are not hot-swappable.
The keyboard is heavy, at 2.2 pounds, which should help hold it in place during intense play sessions, although I do wish there were a bundled wrist rest for a keyboard this low. Turning the board over, you\u2019ll find two feet that add a touch of height to the board, as well as a small door that hides a storage niche for the 2.4GHz HyperSpeed Wireless USB dongle.Software: Stimulating Synapses
Razer\u2019s handy Synapse software utility allows you to control RGB lighting, macros, and a ton of other options across five onboard profiles. Synapse 4, the latest version, is one of the best keyboard utilities out there, and I find that it\u2019s quite user-friendly. Poking around the utility, you\u2019ll find plenty of familiar Razer features, like Snap Tap, which can detect when two opposing keystrokes are pressed and arbitrate between them. Gaming Mode disables keys that could be disastrous to accidentally hit during an intense game session, while HyperShift mode allows you to have a secondary set of functions on top of your existing button assignments.
One of the big recent additions to the utility is the AI Prompt Builder, which works with several different peripherals, including the low-profile BlackWidow. As we noted in our Razer Pro Click V2 mouse review, the prompt builder can help you craft a document, rephrase it, or summarize it on the fly, using either ChatGPT or Microsoft Copilot. You can also build your own prompts, setting modifiers like length, tone, and complexity, to craft the end product.
The main difference between the AI implementations on the keyboard and the mouse is that the former has a dedicated button. (The keyboard also has a Microsoft Copilot button.) It\u2019s not much different than Logitech\u2019s AI prompt builder (and perhaps too much AI on a keyboard), but it does make the BlackWidow a solid productivity daily driver even if it\u2019s a gaming keyboard first.Connectivity: Rate Increase, Please
True to its name, the BlackWidow V4 Low-Profile HyperSpeed offers HyperSpeed wireless connectivity via the aforementioned 2.4GHz USB dongle, which enables the maximum 1,000Hz polling rate. That’s the speed at which your device sends your keystrokes or other inputs to your PC, so a rate of 1,000Hz means that information is sent to the keyboard once per millisecond.
That\u2019s fast enough for casual gaming, but it’s still rather low for a keyboard that costs this much. Plenty of gaming keyboards (including many from Razer) reach up to 8,000Hz, including the Corsair K70 MAX RGB Magnetic Mechanical Gaming Keyboard. Now, most gamers won’t even care about polling rates any higher than 1,000Hz, but if you’re spending this much cash, you may expect a little more polling-rate headroom.
You can sync up to two Razer devices to the USB dongle, and pair up to three more via Bluetooth.
Rounding out the keyboard\u2019s feature set is the 980 hours of rated battery life\u2014with power saving mode activated, that is. That’s an impressive figure for a wireless gaming keyboard, even though we’ve seen higher numbers from keyboards like the ROG Strix Scope II 96 Wireless, for which Asus claims a whopping 1,500 hours of battery life.
You activate the power-saving mode with a long press of the dedicated Battery Life button. Turning on the mode locks the keyboard to a 250Hz polling rate, switches the lighting off, and pauses communication with Razer Synapse. If you give the Battery Life button a quick press, you can check the battery life via the lighted number row. Each number lit up represents 10% of the battery\u2019s remaining life.<\/p>\n