Key Takeaways
- Highly customizable with three switch types.
- There are plenty of macro keys available for work and play.
- Lack of customizable attributes for pricing.
Performance and gaming for all your needs keyboard It seems like an incredibly lofty goal, but Razer decided to give it a go anyway. The BlackWidow V4 Pro is billed as the ultimate battlestation mechanical keyboard, and I’ve had the chance to go hands-on with it over the past few weeks. Apps and program Nothing beats shiny new hardware to enhance your experience, and a keyboard designed for work and play seems to suit my tastes as an avid work-from-home business owner, so I wanted to share my thoughts in this review.
Recommendation
Razor Black Widow V4 Pro
The BlackWidow V4 Pro is Razer’s perfect keyboard for both hard work and hard play, designed to be a mechanical keyboard that balances the best of both worlds.
- Highly customizable
- Choose from three different mechanical switch types
- Extensive macro keys
- Activation levels cannot be customized
Pricing, Availability and Specifications
The full-sized Razer BlackWidow V4 Pro is the top-end version in the BlackWidow lineup and configurations that I tested. It retails for $230 and is available to buy from Amazon, BestBuy, and directly from Razer’s online store.
The BlackWidow V4 Pro is a fully mechanical keyboard with double-shot ABS keycaps, per-key RGB lighting, and a host of customizable macro keys. Buyers can choose from three types of switches that offer different levels of travel, actuation points, and switch sound profiles. The keyboard connects to PCs via USB-C and has a second USB-C connection that allows users to enable USB passthrough.
The BlackWidow V4 Pro is loaded with RGB.
Using Razer Synapse or onboard shortcuts, users can switch between a number of preset profiles or set up custom profiles that can be saved to the onboard storage. Razer brings up the topic of polling rate with the keyboard, and while the BlackWidow V4 Pro can be set to a polling rate ranging from 125Hz to 8000Hz, I’m not sure why the keyboard needs to communicate with the PC 8,000 times per second.
The BlackWidow V4 Pro is packed with RGB: in addition to highly customizable per-key lighting through Razer Synapse, there’s underglow RGB underneath the main chassis of the keyboard, with additional underglow on the included wrist rest.
What I like about the BlackWidow V4 Pro
Very well-balanced performance
The BlackWidow V4 Pro is an incredibly versatile keyboard that thoroughly impressed me when I used it for work and productivity, as well as for extended gaming sessions across a variety of genres. The model I tested came equipped with green switches that Razer describes as “tactile and clicky.”
Although the green switches have the longest travel and the loudest click of the three, each keystroke is smooth and responsive, and doesn’t tire your hands even after extended periods of use. This is different from the deeper switches found on some of Razer’s dedicated gaming keyboards. The keys are sensitive enough for precision gaming, but not so sensitive that they lead to lots of mistypes during productivity tasks.
Then there were macros on top of macros. Razer’s BlackWidow V4 Pro has five dedicated macro buttons on the left side of the keyboard, and three macro side buttons on the left side of the BlackWidow chassis. The abundance of buttons gave me ample opportunity to create macro buttons both in-game and at work. I set the side macro buttons to shortcuts for Nvidia’s overlay, Windows Task Manager, and the Windows screen capture tool. The five macro buttons were perfect for remapping important functions in Destiny 2 and keybinds for FPS games.
What I didn’t like about the BlackWidow V4 Pro
Lack of customizable attributes
For a keyboard that costs over $200 and has “Pro” in the name, I felt the BlackWidow V4 Pro was noticeably lacking in customizable features and user experience. The most customizable feature on the keyboard within Synapse is the command dial, which can be set to control or adjust several different functions, including lighting brightness, app switching, zooming, scrolling, and browser tab switching.
I wanted a richer user experience.
Other than that, and other than changing the polling rate, there aren’t any significant features you can tweak. I understand that this line isn’t intended to take market share from Razer’s more gaming-focused keyboards like the Huntsman, but with such an expensive peripheral I would have liked a richer user experience, especially when gaming.
Should I buy the BlackWidow V4 Pro?
The verdict is…
The BlackWidow V4 Pro is a truly great work keyboard. I have always found this keyboard to perform extremely well when playing FPS and RPG games. It’s not the best gaming keyboard I’ve ever used, but of course that’s not its purpose. I was thoroughly impressed when using the BlackWidow for work, especially when writing emails and articles. The easy press of the keys, smooth operation, full size, NUM pad and multimedia controls make it a very versatile tool for productivity tasks.
The BlackWidow V4 Pro offers top-level performance in both areas.
This is the closest thing to a versatile keyboard I’ve seen to date. If you’re a remote worker, writer, programmer or other heavy keyboard user who’s also an avid gamer in your spare time, the BlackWidow V4 Pro is a top performer in both areas.
Recommendation
Razor Black Widow V4 Pro
The BlackWidow V4 Pro is Razer’s perfect keyboard for both hard work and hard play, designed to be a mechanical keyboard that balances the best of both worlds.
