Another day, another keyboard with Cherry MX Red switches aimed at eSports. SteelSeries announced the Apex M500, which it billed as the successor to its 6Gv2. The two certainly have the same price ($100), and both have Cherry Red switches (although the 6Gv2 has a Cherry Black option) and sport a simple, compact all-black design.
One key difference is that the Apex M500 has lighting whereas it predecessor doesn’t. The M500 has blue per-key LEDs, and there is a modicum of lighting features you can employ in the SteelSeries Engine (SSE3) software, such as brightness and breathing.
SteelSeries also stated that SSE3 affords full per-key programming, unlimited profiles, and the ability to create macros (including on-the-fly).
The Apex M500’s standard layout is designed so that you can swap in aftermarket keycaps, too.
The keyboard is available now from SteelSeries’ website for $99.99 with the promise of free 3-5 day shipping.
| Make/Model | SteelSeries Apex M500 |
|---|---|
| Model Type | Standard, 104-key |
| Switch Type | Cherry MX Red |
| Actuation Force | 45cN |
| Lighting | Blue LED, per-key |
| Additional Ports | N/A |
| Cable Type | 2 meter |
| Key Rollover | NKRO |
| Software | SteelSeries SSE3 |
| Weight | 2.742 lbs (1.241 kg) |
| Dimensions | 5.37 x 17.34 x 1.56 inches (136.43 x 440.56 x 39.52 mm) |
| Misc. | Three-way cable routing |
| Price | $99.99 |
Seth Colaner is the News Director for Tom's Hardware. Follow him on Twitter @SethColaner. Follow us on Facebook, Google+, RSS, Twitter and YouTube.