This week, game peripheral maker Razer revealed via Twitter that its Orbweaver keypad now sports the company's own gaming-focused mechanical switches. What does that mean for the gamer? Why should gamers be excited about these switches? We asked the Razer team that very question.
A: In a nutshell, this is the first switch that has been designed specifically for gaming. Traditional mechanical switches were originally developed for typing, and not for gaming. We worked extensively with the world's top eSports athletes to develop a switch from the ground up to meet the needs and demands of professional gaming. These switches feature optimized actuation and reset points for blazing fast gameplay, and are ultra-durable that last up to 60 million keystrokes.
Q: How long did it take to bring these switches to the market?
A: We worked on these switches for a long time in order to make sure they were perfect. A select group of the world's top eSports athletes tested and validated these switches extensively for about a year before we got them to market.
Q: What other products use Razer's home-grown switches?
A: All current Razer mechanical keyboards and keypads use the Razer Mechanical Switch, including the latest line of BlackWidow keyboards, and Orbweaver.
Q: What's the next device to receive the switch upgrade?
A: With the Orbweaver, we have completed the entire transformation of porting our existing line up to the Razer Mechanical Switch. The Razer BlackWidow Chroma is the latest flagship to the Razer switch family that features Chroma customizable backlighting. Future mechanical keyboards and keypads will feature the Razer Mechanical Switch as well.
Q: Will there ever be an Orbweaver for left-handed gamers?
A: Not at the moment, but we cannot comment on any future products.
The Orbweaver features 30 fully programmable mechanical keys and a programmable 8-way directional thumbpad. The hand, thumb and palm rests are adjustable, and a braided cable helps minimize wear and tear. The keypad is backlit, making it easy to execute macros in the dark.
The Orbweaver mechanical gamepad made its first appearance back in January 2013. The device is based on the Razer Nostromo and allows gamers to bind an "infinite" number of controls.
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