At first we would like to thank Corsair for offering us the Strafe Mechanical Gaming Keyboard for testing and reviewing.

 

About Corsair:

"Founded in 1994, Corsair has grown from pioneering the high-performance DRAM market to one of the world’s leading providers of enthusiast-grade PC components and peripherals. Our groundbreaking technology and innovation can be found in our high-performance memory, ultra-efficient power supplies, PC cases, PC and CPU cooling solutions, and solid-state storage devices. Under the Corsair Gaming brand, launched in 2014, we provide gaming keyboards, mice, headsets and mouse mats to eSports professionals and anybody who is passionate about competitive PC gaming.

 

Corsair hardware is regularly featured in showcase “dream systems,” and we have earned the adulation and respect of the press, professional gamers and overclockers, high-end system integrators, and PC enthusiasts worldwide by delivering leading-edge technology backed by renowned service and support.

 

Corsair has developed a global operations infrastructure with extensive marketing and distribution channel relationships, and our products are available through leading distributors and retailers in over sixty countries worldwide."

Product Features:

 

Cherry MX key switches

 

Used by the pros and built in Germany. Cherry MX gaming keys feature the worlds’ leading mechanical key switch technology. Gold-Crosspoint contacts, Gold-plated contact closure, and pressure resistant metal alloy springs, give every gamer the competitive advantage.

 

Dynamic Backlighting

 

Brilliant RED backlighting enhances the experience with virtually unlimited lighting adjustability. Choose from six unique presets or craft your own.

 

Endless Programmability

 

The Corsair Utility Engine (CUE) unlocks amazing keyboard programmability. Reassign any key or set up the most extreme macros for outrageous gaming control.

 

Get Connected

 

Positioned for uninterrupted game play, the built in USB pass-through provides easy connection for your mouse, USB drive, or wireless headset adapter.

 

Comfort and Control

 

Textured and contoured keycaps allow for maximum grip and enhanced feel. Personalize your experience by selecting between FPS and MOBA kits.

 

Gaming grade circuitry

 

100% anti-ghosting with 104 key rollover on USB ensure no matter how fast your play, all your keys register.

 

Audio on the fly

 

Enhanced easy-access multimedia keys efficiently allow for on the fly audio changes while gaming. And when you’re not gaming, you can effortlessly play, pause, and skip audio tracks.

 

 

Product Specifications:

 

Corsair Strafe is another interesting product the company has recently launched, which is meant to bring the main benefits of its more expensive siblings at a lower price, by eliminating some of the “optional” features, while keeping the quality level high. The keyboard is shipped in a medium-size enclosure, with a photo of the product in operation, along with a short description of the main features:

 

 

 

 

 

On one of the box sides, we will be able to check out the technical specifications along with the minimum system requirements:

 

 

 

The bottom area of the enclosure details a bit more the main keyboard components:

 

 

 

Corsair also likes to point out that the keyboard was engineered and manufactured in Germany:

 

 

 

Let’s open the enclosure and see what the manufacturer has prepared for us:

 

 

 

As documentation, we will receive one manual, a warranty guide but also a leaflet regarding warranty for Australian customers:

 

 

 

The manual is describing in detail how the installation should be performed, depending on our system setup:

 

 

 

We will also get some extra keys, MOBA and FPS game genres being the focus; we will also get one key puller, which helps us not to damage the switches and keycaps during removal:

 

 

 

These keys have a special contour and texture for additional grip:

 

 

 

Here is also a look on the back of the textured keycap (FPS set):

 

 

 

If we decide to go with the MOBA set, the swap can be done in a few minutes:

 

 

 

As we have said before, Corsair has minimized the costs with this model, while keeping the product really interesting for most users, by using high-quality materials; the aluminum body is now left out and has been replaced by an inner red support plate which has the same color as the switch LEDs; over it we have an additional textured black plastic layer, without a wrist rest:

 

 

 

On the top left side we will clearly see a chromed Corsair logo:

 

 

 

The bottom row keys of the keyboard have a non-standard length so it may be a little bit difficult when choosing a set of 3rd party keycaps for this specific model:

 

 

 

 

The Spacebar key has a similar texture with the replaceable keycaps, which adds extra grip:

 

 

 

The function keys also have multimedia features added to them:

 

 

 

 

The rest of keys to the right have custom fonts and are LED-enabled:

 

 

 

 

There is a decent amount of space on the left and right side of the arrow keys:

 

 

 

Here is also a close look at the built-in numeric pad:

 

 

 

The NumLock, Scroll Lock and Caps Lock LEDs have an interesting design and are considerably bigger than on other models we have tested in the past:

 

 

 

Two large buttons are also placed on the top right side, one which operates the light intensity and the other blocks the Windows key:

 

 

 

The lateral sides of the keyboard are made from shiny black plastic and are also accompanied by a red LED light strip:

 

 

 

For plugging in extra low-power devices, we also have available one USB port:

 

 

 

Let’s take a look at the bottom area of the keyboard, which also presents itself with a slightly textured black plastic surface:

 

 

 

In the middle, we will get to see a sticker with the product input rating, and here we will also spot a confusion: “Made in China”. This statement is really interesting since we first thought that we were dealing with a product “Engineered and Manufactured in Germany”:

 

 

 

Each corner of the keyboard comes with a small rubber foot and on top we have an additional set of feet for keeping the keyboard at an angle:

 

 

 

 

The bottom red layer seems to amplify the LED light effect, while the lateral strips, while looking quite nice, they are not able to light up the desk in order to create an additional effect because they are placed quite high:

 

 

 

 

Here are some sample photos with the keyboard in operation:

 

 

 

 

 

The keyboard cable is quite thick and is split in two near the end, for two USB connectors to be used:

 

 

 

 

Corsair Strafe is accompanied by the Corsair Utility Engine (CUE) software, which is one of the most advanced on the market concerning peripherals. The Assignments tab from the Profiles menu allows us to set a different functionality to each key:

 

 

 

To be more precise, this is the menu which opens when clicking on a key:

 

 

 

The Actions Editor opens up in a new window; here we can program macros with custom details like double macros, macro termination, action repeat and so on:

 

 

 

We can also assign text to a single key, with a high level of customization:

 

 

Keystrokes are next, with the option for action repeat and delay between action repeats:

 

 

 

Shortcut to different applications can be also set up:

 

 

 

Mouse DPI will be also adjusted from the next menu:

 

 

 

What we haven’t seen from other manufacturers is the ability to set timers:

 

 

 

Mouse actions can be also set for each key:

 

 

 

We can assign multimedia functions to the keys of our choice:

 

 

 

CUE does allow us to fully customize the lighting system for this motherboard; the only limitation versus the K70 RGB is the fact that the keyboard can only deliver red lighting so we must stick to it:

 

 

 

Several effects are pre-programmed and we can jump to them really easy:

 

 

 

We can also adjust the speed of the current lighting effect:

 

 

 

If the pre-defined modes are not enough for us, we can always go into the advanced mode and create our own:

 

 

 

Inside the Performance tab, we will be able to set some custom options:

 

 

 

New actions can be defined from the next main menu, but we can always import or export actions from or to different files:

 

 

 

The lighting setup can go even into more detail:

 

 

 

The Settings tab will allow us to select the current device layout, polling rate or update the firmware to the latest version:

 

 

 

From the Program sub-section, we can choose the update the CUE to the latest available version, adjust on-screen display settings, add compatible media players or reset disabled messages:

 

 

 

The Support sub-section allows us to contact the manufacturer online, go to the forums for more details and here we will also see some system information details:

 

 

 

View on YouTube

We have reviewed quite a bit of Corsair gaming keyboards in the past and we can say that while they are a bit more expensive, the quality is top-notch and the experience is quite unique. With the Strafe, Corsair wants to introduce its premium products to more budget-conscious people, by eliminating some of the elements like the aluminum layer, the wrist rest or using a single-color LED for the Red/Brown Cherry-MX switches. The product is accompanied by the powerful CUE (Corsair Utility Engine), which offers the same levels of customization as on the more expensive variants and within it we can also update the keyboard firmware to its latest version. For added value, Corsair has also included two sets of keycaps, which are meant for MOBA and FPS players; these keycaps have a slightly different shape and special texture in order to add extra grip and comfort during longer gaming sessions.

 

We have tested Strafe with titles like League of Legends, Neverwinter Online, Serious Sam BFE, The Talos Principle, Cradle and Wolfenstein Old Blood; the keyboard has a nice feeling to it, we did not miss the wrist rest at all and we really did enjoy the lighting system, even if it has a single color available. We would also like to mention that the keyboard is noticeable more silent than the CM Storm NovaTouch TKL .

 

Corsair Strafe gaming keyboard is now available online for about 120 Euros, which we think that is a fair value for what is offered.

 

As always, Corsair is not standing still and they have also presented at Gamescom 2015 some new versions of the Strafe keyboard, the Strafe RGB but also the Strafe RGB MX Silent, with the latest Cherry-MX engineered switches, so stay tuned for the next articles while we will check this out too when samples will become available!

 

Corsair Strafe Mechanical Keyboard is Recommended For:

 

 

We would like to thank again to Corsair for making this review possible!