Razer Huntsman Mini 60% Gaming Keyboard: Fastest Keyboard Switches Ever – Clicky Optical Switches – Chroma RGB Lighting…

This is a seriously badass keyboard setup. With the optical switches, there is a difference. If you play PUBG you will notice with looting and pulling up the menu or even opening doors. This got rid of any input lag that I could notice from my previous mechanical keyboard. It is pretty expensive but worth the money. I am happy to see that Razer has increased the quality on their products, because in previous products they were always harped on for their poor quality control or lack of finish, but I can say this is the perfect keyboard.EDIT: I have owned the Huntsman elite since September 15, 2018 and it has finally given out on me. Multiple driver reinstalls and switching keyboards, the razer is unusable due to multiple keystroke glitches. It was good while it lasted. Great wrist rest.

After loving the wired Viper so much and purchasing the Ultimate, I decided to give Razer another shot with the Huntsman TKL. I have had two of these boards and was not satisfied with either. The first one just seemed odd. I figured it was the actuation force and distance of the optical switches. I returned it. After being disappointed with the keyboard I went with after the Huntsman TKL, I decided to give Razer another shot. I was determined to get used to the switches, because I figured it was best to go with Razer considering Synapse is running on my computer for the Viper Ultimate.I went a good 3 weeks with the second Huntsman TKL. Times when I felt like my character in game was moving without actuating a key, I just brushed it aside and blamed it on my heavy hand. I was wrong. I caught it. Several times my character in game began moving in a direction I didn’t want it to; I pulled my hand completely off the board and my character would keep strafing in one direction (most often to the right and with the D key). Having used Cherry MX Silver switches in the past, I truly believe some people claiming the Huntsman TKL is just really sensitive are having the same issues I encountered. I wouldn’t recommend this board to anyone and I don’t trust it.It is a shame, really. The decision to move to double shot pbt, standard bottom row, and subtle branding on the board are A+ decisions. Where the board goes south for me is in the optical red switches. They went too far. They are too sensitive, and I question their long-term reliability. If you’re looking for a mouse, I can comfortably suggest both Viper models. Both the wired and wireless versions I purchased were perfect, and I have even come to love the side buttons. For keyboards, I can’t recommend the Huntsman TKL.

This keyboard is beautiful. The media controls are perfect. The wrist rest feels luxurious. The laser keys are a neat addition to mechanical keyboards. So where does this product go wrong? I have had several issues where the laser keys were sticking (!!!) – this was seemingly caused by connection errors between the keyboard and the wrist rest contacts separating during use. Disconnecting the rest and connecting it usually fixes the problem. I also experienced an issue where the keyboard was completely unresponsive upon start-up which meant an inability to access the number pad to enter my pin. Disconnecting the keyboard and reconnecting it seemed to reconnect me. Additionally, there are times on start-up where the keyboard is completely unresponsive until the Razer software has finished loading at the desktop. I’m pretty bummed out that this keyboard acts up more than my old second-hand keyboard did. I hardly use it for gaming now, as this was my intent when buying it, because of the aforementioned issues. But hey, it sure is a pretty keyboard – just sometimes it’s as functional as the Commodore 64 Classic.

I really like the feel of this keyboard. Typing and gaming feels great, and the over all build of this keyboard is top-notch. Be warned though – like many mechanical keyboards, typing on this keyboard can be loud. So I wouldn’t recommend this for office use. But for my home use, it’s perfect. I even managed to replace the keycaps with that of another brand.Performance:During long gaming sessions, I found that the keys felt more comfortable than other keyboards I’ve used in the past. I think the reason for this is that I don’t actually have to press as hard for the keys to register. Razer states that the keys on the Huntsman require slightly less force and register quicker than other keyboards. All I can say is that this keyboard feels “broken-in” for lack of a better term. It just feels good, and “fast.” Additionally, the keyboard has 4 media buttons and a moveable dial (one of the 4 buttons is the dial itself – as it can be pushed in, in addition to being rotated) – all of which can be remapped to your liking. By default, they were set to control music playback – in my case, it controls Spotify. I never really planned on using these media controls, but now that I have them – I can never go back. It’s great when I’m playing a game with my own music running, but also being able to pause that music should a cutscene in the game start to play – all by pressing a button.Lack of Macro keys and USB ports:Unfortunately, the Razer Huntsman does not have macro keys like other keyboards in its price range (Corsair’s K95 does have them). Understandably, this would have been nice to have for some users. (Personally I never used macro keys much myself when I had keyboards that did have them.) Also present on other expensive keyboards is a USB passthrough port. Again, the Huntsman lacks this as well.Loud keys:As stated before, most mechanical keyboards are “loud” and can annoy people who maybe sitting relatively close to you. If you are in an office situation, I would recommend using a different keyboard that has “quiet” mechanical keys like Cherry Browns on a Corsair keyboard; or Razer Orange keys on the Razer Blackwidow. Unfortunately, Razer does not offer a more “quiet” version of the Huntsman Elite at this time.Lighting:The keys on the Huntsman are quite bright, even when compared to Razer’s other offerings like the Ornata Chroma. The difference here is that while the letters on the keys of the Huntsman are significantly brighter; the Ornata Chroma’s underlying membrane is also illuminated giving the keys the illusion that they are floating on a “bed of light.” I wish that Razer somehow found a way to also duplicate that bed of light effect on the Huntsman, but I am definitely happy with the extra bright letters. As you can imagine, the lighting on the Huntsman can be customized to pretty much anything you can imagine.Key Replacement:I replaced the keycaps on my Huntsman with Doubleshot PBT Keycaps from HyperX, after seeing a popular Youtube personality replace his. (These Keycaps run about $25, and are meant for HyperX’s own mechanical keboard.) And while not all the HyperX Keycaps were compatible (the larger keycaps for RETURN, SHIFT, SPACEBAR, etc did not fit the Hunstman’s switches), I still managed to replace most of the keyscaps. The over all effect is that the keyboard is now even more illuminated. That’s because the bottom of the HyperX Keycaps (which are made of white plastic) react with the lighting to give a more brilliant glow to the entire keyboard. Since replacing the keycaps on the Huntsman seemed to work; I would assume a fair number of other keycaps types would probably work for the Huntsman as well. But of course please do your own research before purchasing.Software:The Huntsman uses two USB connectors. Once connected, you must download the latest version of Razer Synapse. This is Razer’s all-in-one software for all their PC keyboards, mice, etc. I actually own several Razer products, and after using Synapse for over a year, I’ve gotten used to using it. It’s not hard to use, but it could definitely use some interface improvement. Still, most users can easily get to the most important things such as lighting customization, re-assigning keys, and making macros. Razer does require a login with your information for the software to work. The reasoning I suppose is that you can use the same settings if you use the same Razer products on several PCs. I would assume that most people don’t use this feature – but I actually do. I use Razer products at my home and at my work – so this actually works well for me. Settings that I make at home can easily be assigned at my work and vice-versa.Conclusion:The Huntsman is a pretty pricey keyboard with exceptional build quality. The body is metal, and the keys are stabilized so that there is minimum “wobble.” Add to this the “fast” actuation feel, and you have an excellent high-end keyboard. Gaming, and typing feel really great. If you can forgive the “loud” keys, this is an excellent option if you’re looking for a high-end keyboard for gaming and work.

Update 11/28/19 I deleted a bunch of the review that wasnt relevent as I have learned more about the keyboard/ software and lighting since owning it.I am able to keep a static color now that i uninstalled Synapse. On the 11/13/2019 update below(I deleted that update) I still had Synapse installed and at times I would open it and then disable it and that is why it was changing my colors. If I keep it deactived or uninstalled the keyboard remember my color even after a restart or waking from sleep.Update 11/11/2019 I found you can change colors via the Keyboard only using the FN and CTRL keys(hold both down) along with keys 1, 2, 3 and 4 keys(use these to change colors, strobe, etc). the #2 key(press FN and CTRL keys first, holding both down) is the one you use to cycle thru the static colors. It is not very intuitive but you will figure if you play with them. I happened to come across this watching a YouTube review and someone in the comments mentioned it. If Razer talks about how to do this I seemed to have missed it in the manual.After finding this out I would give the Razer KB a 5 and recommend it over the Steelseries TKL Omipoint. The Steelseries is nice but I prefer the Razer and the price of the Razer was $80 less when I purchased each one. The Razer was listed as used and in Acceptable shape with damage. But the damage was only on the packaging and the keyboard was like new inside the box. I have found a lot of products on Amazon listed as damaged it is only the packaging that is damaged and the product is in perfect condition. I have saved $200 EACH on some items like motherboards, GPU’s and monitors buying the “damaged” item and inside it a like new product.Initial review: Very limited time with these devices so just some quick initial impressions. I have the new Viper Ultimate mouse and the Huntsman TE Keyboard and am having issue after issue with the software(Synapse). This will be kind of random as I will add feedback as I use the devices.I do really like the mouse and keyboard overall, they feel like high-quality materials it is just the software and not storing color profiles that is a BIG negative for me. I also have the new Steelseries Apex Pro TKL with the Omipoint switches and the switches are quite a bit smoother feeling to me. The Steelseries is MUCH quieter than the Razer, the Razer keyboard is LOUD. The Razer sounds cheap/clanky/hollow but feels very solid when typing or gaming on it. Also, the Steelseries can be used without any software installed and you can change settings directly via the keyboard.The Razer keycaps are much better quality “feeling” to me. They have a slightly textured and heavy/weighty feel verse the Steelsires smoother keycaps and light/hollow feel. If you are OK with having the Razer software installed and a REALLY LOUD keyboard I would go for the Razer over the Steelseries considering the price difference. To me, the Razer feels just as “fast” as the Steelseries with the Ominipoints adjusted to .4mm activation point. Both are very sensitive and you have to be careful if you rest you fingers on keys it is easy to “set them off”.I am adding my review of the mouse here because Amazon won’t let me post a review saying”Amazon has noticed unusual reviewing activity on this product. Due to this activity, we have limited this product to verified purchase reviews.” I purchased the mouse directly from Razer’s online store.But you need to install the software to deactivate the lights on the mouse and charging base. One big drawback is without the software you will have no way of telling the battery level without the software installed, not that I can see anyway.For comparison, I also have a g903, G203, Model 0 and Model 0-. I prefer them in this order Razer Viper Ultimate, G203, Model O-, Model 0 and G903 for gaming. For general desktop use, the G903 is hands-down the best/my favorite with the “hyper scroll”.