SteelSeries Apex 7 TKL Compact Mechanical Gaming Keyboard – OLED Smart Display – USB Passthrough and Media Controls…
Amazon.com Price: $187.95 (as of 08/05/2021 09:32 PST- Details)
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Clicky blue switches: guaranteed for 50 million keypresses, blue switches are known for their clicky snap action keypresses so you feel and hear exactly when a key registers
OLED smart display: an integrated command center for adjusting settings and tracking on the fly info straight from your game, Spotify, discord, and more
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The Apex 7 TKL keyboard has mechanical switches for 50 million keypresses. Blue switches are known for their clicky snap-action keypresses so you feel and hear exactly when a key registers. An integrated OLED smart display with on-board storage is your command center for on-the-fly info from your game, Spotify, or discord, and provides software-free customization for tweaking and saving your settings. An unbreakable aluminum alloy frame makes it a standout mechanical keyboard.
Make sure this fits by entering your model number.
Clicky blue switches: guaranteed for 50 million keypresses, blue switches are known for their clicky snap action keypresses so you feel and hear exactly when a key registers
OLED smart display: an integrated command center for adjusting settings and tracking on the fly info straight from your game, Spotify, discord, and more
Aircraft grade aluminum alloy: built for a lifetime of durability and stability
RGB illumination: unmatched customization with 16.8 million colors per key
Premium magnetic wrist rest provides full palm support and a comfortable, ergonomic feel
Premium magnetic wrist rest provides full palm support and a comfortable, ergonomic feel
SteelSeries cannot guarantee the quality or authenticity of products sold by non-authorized resellers on Amazon, and they are not eligible for warranty. Authorized retailers: Amazon.com, Adorama Inc, Encore Technology, Spacebound
Connectivity technology: Wireless
9 reviews for SteelSeries Apex 7 TKL Compact Mechanical Gaming Keyboard – OLED Smart Display – USB Passthrough and Media Controls…
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Amazon.com Price: $187.95 (as of 08/05/2021 09:32 PST- Details)
Anni~ –
Keep shopping
There is nothing special about this keyboard. It is hideously overpriced. I wonder about the reviews. For the first time, I did not get an answer to a question I asked (except one clearly bogus answer) and I think that’s because there aren’t real customers.The keyboard has the wave pattern as the default (why???????). The manual (very minimal) does not explain how to change it. To get to a static pattern, press the logo key to the left of the control key on the bottom right of the keyboard and then one of the function keys that lights up (such poor design).The action of the keys is OK but no better than the refurbished Corsair that I wanted but was out of stock at the time I needed to order. I just ordered another Corsair, which is back in stock, and will give this one away. The Corsair has a nicer sound wheel. The one one this keyboard is too small and you have to think about using it. For games, I often change the level of sound so this is important to me.There is no Indication of caps being on (I know it shares this design flaw with other keyboards, but for the money…).This keyboard is kind of a rip off if you ask me.This review, as well as all the others were removed. I’m posting this again.
Sarah Kim –
Best “pseudo mechanical” keyboard
I want to preface this review with why I bought this keyboard. I am a fast typer, and I realized that a membrane keyboard was not for me due to so many missed keys during my crazy typing. When researching keyboards, I started to understand that a mechanical keyboard, most notably the Cherry mx stemmed keyboards were likely going to remedy this issue. The issue was that I did not want a keyboard that was too loud with its clicks (because I am on many school conference calls) and I also did not want to spend hundreds of dollars. This Steelseries Apex 3 was my dabble in a membrane keyboard that mimicked a lot of what mechanical keyboards felt like.Here are my findingsI did not care too much for the RBG function, but quickly realized that I actually had fun personalizing the color and movement of hues. The software to control it is extremely user-friendly and takes no time at all to change whenever I want. You can change it to stay on one color, change colors with adjusted timing, or just turn off the color altogether.There’s a nice roller at the top right that adjusts volume. Next to this roller is a button that controls pause, play, fast forward, and rewind of audio. This was one of my favorite features about this keyboard, as I transcribe a lot of audio. The volume and pause/play features were game-changers in my note-taking daily life.The keys are so comfortable. I had to admit that I had to adjust a little bit to the size of the keys. They are a bit on the skinnier side than I am used to (laptop keyboard) but I quickly adjusted to it and realized I like this size way better. There is a small gap between keys. I know that some might not like this feature and prefer their keys to be closed together. Just something to consider before buying.There’s a little pop-up stand on the back of the keyboard to allow it to tilt. It is lined with rubber, which is nice so it doesn’t scrape against your desk. Also, the keyboard came with a magnetically detachable wrist rest. I never take the rest off, as it is nice and comfortable to have. However, the option of detaching it so easily is pretty convenient.Overall, I absolutely love this keyboard and its build. I believe that it is built with very good design and parts. I will update my review in later months if anything changes.
YuriBoykaIV –
Smooth!
This keyboard is smooth, feels great on the fingertips, super responsive, easy to adapt to within 1 minute of use. Color settings have high customization.The OLED screen can be customized with any image you want (via it’s dimensions),. You can switch to/use discord and custom discord colors without having to alt+tab.Volume roller feels quality and has some friction instead of just being free-floating. On that note, the entire keyboard feels quality. Super solid. Wrist-rest is very comfortable and a nice soft-touch material. It is also magnetic so you don’t have to worry about breaking tabs or having cheap creaking.The USB pass-through is MASSIVELY useful. I use the slot to apply the USB wireless transmitter for the Steelseries 650 mouse.What else is there to say? Just buy it.
SteelSeries –
Great keyboard; feels nice, not overly loud and satisfies most gaming requirements
I’ve been using a smaller mechanical keyboard for a few years now and as time progressed, I really was missing out on the number pad and the extra space the regular size keyboards afford. I tried out a few mechanical keyboards at a Best Buy and this was the one that felt the nicest and had the aspects I was looking for the most. That being said, it is a little pricey and from what I’ve read, spending a few extra bucks for the “better” switches, seems like it would have been a better idea in the long run, though I am very happy with this purchase as is.If it was cheaper, I’d recommend this keyboard to everyone, but, in terms of quality, my expectations and enjoyment from use, I’m still giving this a 5/5.
Egor –
This keyboard lives up to the hype.
The review is about the Apex Pro Keyboard, NOT Apex 7.Adjusting the actuation is great! I can feel the difference in games with their super fast actuation. Typing is just the reverse though, I have a lot of typos with the super fast actuation. Which isn’t a problem at all, because you can switch profiles on the fly and have one of the best typing experiences imaginable with super deep 3.6 mm actuation point. It’s like having multiple keyboards at once, and being able to change them effortlessly to suit the task at hand.Some disadvantages I’d like to point out:- Not waterproof. Be careful with it.- Only the main block uses omnipoint switches. Not a big issue considering you don’t really use the other keys, but that’s a good reason to make a 60% or TKL Keyboard with only omnipoint switches, no? After using TKL keyboards I’ve really appreciate the extra space. I highly recommend the TKL version over the full one, once it actually releases.- O-rings will prevent the 3.6mm actuation point from working properly, and I really didn’t like how O-rings felt on this keyboard. Not really an issue considering that the keyboard is already quite silent even without any O-rings.
SteelSeries –
not even 3 months.
All of a sudden out of the blue this thing just started going bananas. The keyboard starting doing over 13 THOUSAND key strokes a second, opening all type of apps, settings, you name it. After all that my PC finally crashed but the damage this caused was so bad I was forced to reformat my PC.
Joseph Tomlinson –
Best keyboard around 100$
I bought the 200$ Apex Pro from SteelSeries to replace my Logitech G910 and liked it so much I wanted to use it at work (I’m that guy at the office who uses a gaming keyboard for work, but I’m a programmer so people expect it). I didn’t want to move it around and couldn’t justify buying two, so I got this as a middle ground because it’s basically a cheaper version of that one, the only difference between the Apex 5 and Pro is that the 5 uses a plastic frame, doesn’t have an extra USB outlet and it doesn’t have the Apex Pro mechanical switches that let you control the actuation point of each individual key.However, Regardless of the more expansive features of the Apex Pro, I discovered that I liked typing on the Apex 5 more, even if it is cheaper. The clicky feeling of the mechanical like switches are simply too satisfying for their own good and I honestly miss them when using the other keyboard that’s twice the price for typing.Now, one thing I’ll concede on is I haven’t tried them for gaming, and I really like the Apex Pro for gaming because I can make certain keys more sensitive – this one doesn’t have that feature – but I can’t imagine it would be bad if that’s what you’re looking for. It’s also a lot louder than the Apex Pro, but when I brought that up with one of my co-workers who sits next to me, they said they didn’t even notice it.Steel Series makes excellent products in general, so I highly recommend you give this keyboard a shot. Don’t let the fact that it’s not technically “mechanical” bother you, it still feels amazing.
Adam Cohen –
Little to No Support, Constantly Malfunctioning
I really wanted to love this keyboard. It checked all the boxes I wanted: A TKL keyboard, a pass-through USB (which, annoyingly in this age of USB 3.0’s massive throughput, still requires two USB ports, though this could be to avoid driver issues), RGB lighting, and a little screen.I was really let down though, because within a couple weeks the keys were malfunctioning. The right arrow key doesn’t register all the time. If I give it a really heavy press, maybe it’ll register, or it double clicks, or it just ignores me for a couple seconds. The W key is now starting to do the same. As a programmer, I use my right arrow key often, and would like it to work every time I push it. As a regular computer user, I’d really like to have a W key that works too.The above is enough to put me off it and pack it away as a lost cause, since sending things back in the time of COVID is not easy. Lesson learned to not buy from SteelSeries.But hey! Maybe you weren’t put off by malfunctioning keys, or want to roll the dice and bet your product will be better than mine. Dear reader, let me put you off ever more.The screen is very half-baked. Aside from being able to display some pre-made .gifs, the screen otherwise has little to no utility. It is coplanar with the deck of the keyboard, so is largely outside your sight line depending on where you sit and your desk/chair height. If it were inclined slightly, you would be able to register it better. Equally oddly, there are next to no pre-built functions for it. There are some weird indie games, a Tidal (the music service nobody uses?), Discord, and a couple other apps, but here are some thing it can’t do out of the box:1) Show you CPU usage like the old Logitech G132) Show you what song is currently playing on Spotify or any other music service3) Indicate the volume when you use the volume wheel4) Display the system timeIt literally, without downloading a third-party app by a random guy, can’t serve as a clock. Also, when Logitech, Saitek, and Razer were putting touchscreens in everything 7 years ago, including an OLED screen that isn’t full-color is inexcusable. The screen on my Swiftpoint Z is better than this.For all the power of the SteelSeries Engine (you can do literally almost anything with these RGB key customization options, including make a little Pac Man chasing ghosts across your keyboard as your day to day backlighting), it is wildly lacking when it comes to reprogramming this keyboard. Let’s say you’re like me, and your audio is controlled on an auxiliary interface. I’d like to rebind that audio wheel to “skip song”, as there are no dedicated media keys. Well, too bad chief, you can’t do that. The volume wheel and the play-pause button are just those, may they never be anything else. In a $130 keyboard (and I assume the same for $180) with 5 separate per-key parameters for RGB, including a PER KEY option that changes colors based on period of inactivity, I can’t rebind the play-pause button?I could write a whole paragraph on the macro system, but I’d lose your attention.TL;DR It feels like this keyboard has so much it could be, and just doesn’t deliver. The screen could be cool, but it is instead just one more piece of flair like your RGB scheme. The keys are comfortable, but don’t always work. There are baffling choices in what can and can’t be rebound. Everything that would make this keyboard fantastic is instead a hurdle you must overcome to enjoy it.
Mazin Recine –
Great Keyboard with Cool Features
I have owned a Steelseries keyboard in the past and was greatly disappointed with the switches it used. I had a m750 with the qx2 switches, and they just felt off to me. Not really sure how to explain, but they just felt off. Im not generally a fan of linear switches ( as a gamer, blasphemy I know) as I tend to have a heavy hand and accidentally hold shift or ctrl by accident, which messes up my movement and gets me killed. Not only that but I feel I mess up more when typing essays for college and have to go back to revise more frequently. I needed a new keyboard that would allow more space for my mouse, as I play on a low dpi, and was looking at TKL models from various companies. Originally I was planning on the G Pro from Logitech to go with my G Pro Wireless, but then I realized they had Romer-G switches. I tested them out and found them alright, but lack of customization and after market keycaps was a turn off for me. The new Apex Pro TKL came out with their OmniPoint switches, which are linear switches that you could change the actuation point of to fit your preference. Again, I am not a fan of linear, so this disappointed me as the rest of the keyboard caught my attention. Luckily with the Apex 7 they allow you to choose your switches out of the 3 options they provide. I chose the browns as I wanted something fast but with some feedback. When it arrived 2 days later, I was impressed with the size and beauty of it. The nicest keyboard I owned so far. The switches feel nice, and there are a few features you won’t find on a some other TKL keyboards like the OLED display (mostly a gimmick but cool nonetheless), usb passthrough, cable routing, and dial. The magnetic wrist rest isn’t plush, more like a flat rubber surface to prop up your hand. That isn’t to say it’s not comfortable or soft, but it is a pain to clean as it is a dust magnet. They keycaps feel cheap and are my main gripe for a premium keyboard, however I Luckily had higher quality shine-through keycaps from previously. Overall I am satisfied with the keyboard and would recommend to anyone thinking of purchasing.