At first we would like to thank G.SKILL for offering us a sample of their RIPJAWS KM780 RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard for testing and reviewing.

 

 

 

About G.SKILL:

 

“Our History

 

''G. SKILL'', established in 1989 by enthusiasts, is a leading memory module Manufacturer based in Taipei, Taiwan.With traditional strengths, we have built an excellent reputation by meeting market demand and fostering business competitiveness both locally and internationally with our dedications to provide competitive prices, On-Time Delivery, Assured Quality, Customer-Oriented Services and Diversity of Products.

 

Mission Statement

 

We are here to provide superior memory products, with satisfactory services in order to keep pace with our customers' growing needs, and help them by adding value to their purchases. We pledge we will continue to do so and enable both sides to obtain significant competitive advantages in the market segments.

 

Out History: Management

 

Investing in human resources is just one of the reasons why G. SKILL is able to provide such high levels of efficient and cost effective services.

 

G. SKILL is managed as a family, providing a dynamic, challenging and harmonious working environment for all employees. With the open-minded management, each individual with potential talent can be fully developed.

 

With this clear goal of providing satisfactory services for customers, our R&D department is constantly developing the fastest and best performing products; our marketing and sales departments ensure all the information needed is available and presented in a clear and understandable format.

 

Our History: Innovation

 

G. SKILL is able to quickly respond to the changing market conditions and fulfill customers' needs by fully utilizing flexible operating procedures. Our highly skilled teams in areas of research and development, technical support, sales, marketing and make G. SKILL the choice for businesses who recognize the importance of placing customers' cutting edge needs first.”

 

Product Features:

 

100% Cherry MX RGB Brown Key Switches

 

RIPJAWS KM780 RGB uses only genuine Cherry MX key switches with short 2mm actuation distance and durability of 50 million keystrokes for long lasting and quick gaming response. Cherry MX Brown key switches provide fast double tap response for intense play and light tactile feedback for easy daily typing.

 

Military-Grade Aluminum Plate

 

Built and designed with a premium brushed anodized military-grade aluminum plate, the keyboard offers both maximum durability and visual elegance for everyday gaming.

 

Fully Programmable Keys & Per-Key RGB Backlighting

 

Each key is programmable with its own key function or macros, as well as independent per-key backlighting in full 16.8 million colors and lighting patterns options for the ultimate customization experience.

 

Extra Gaming Keycaps, Keycap Tool & Keycap Case

 

Specially designed keycaps allows customization of your most common gaming keys, for fast tactile recognition without looking away from your game screen. To keep your keycaps in one place, a custom keycap tool and specially designed keycap case is also included.

 

On-Board Profile Storage

 

Capable of storing up to 3 complete sets (aka “modes”) of macro, key, and lighting configurations within the keyboard, so your personal gaming experience now follows wherever you and your keyboard goes.

 

Full N-Key Rollover and 100% Anti-Ghosting

 

Accurately register all your simultaneous key presses, so you can execute multiple actions at the same time.

 

Dedicated Macro Control & Mode Selection Keys

 

Packed with on-the-fly macro recording, 6 additional macro keys, easy-access mode selection, these built-in functions gives immediate access to the actions you need right at your fingertips.

 

Windows Lock Key

 

Disable the Windows key, so it doesn’t disrupt your gameplay.

 

LED Backlight Toggle

 

Toggle between 3 levels of brightness or turn off backlighting.

 

Timer Key

 

Making ramen or waiting for a skill cooldown? Remind yourself with the built in timer with lighting notification.

 

Media Control Corner & LED Volume Display

 

Complete with full media control buttons, a die-cast volume roller, and an integrated digital LED volume display, media control is now more convenient than ever.

 

Detachable Soft-Touch Wrist Rest & Five-Level Contoured Keycaps

 

Naturally and comfortably position your fingers to reach each row of keys with a detachable soft-touch wrist rest and five levels of contoured keycaps while you’re gaming or typing.

 

G.SKILL Unified Driver System

 

Unlock the limits to customization and grants you complete control over macros, per-key programming, backlight settings, lighting patterns, and loads of other settings for full personalization.

 

Mouse Cable Holder

 

Don’t let your mouse cable get in the way. Prevent snagged cables with the foldable mouse cable holder.

 

USB Pass-Through & Audio Jacks

 

Convenient USB 2.0 hub allows you to connect your mouse or other USB devices quickly; Audio line-in & Mic out jacks for audio extension easily.

 

Product Specifications:

 

 

Recently we have just taken a look at the brand new gaming mouse from G.SKILL and were quite impressed overall by the product; the company did not only want to make an impression on the gaming mice front, but has also extended to the gaming keyboards area which is also a very competitive segment. By making sure that their product will make a good impression, the KM780 RGB keyboard is using Cherry MX RGB switches, which are meant for high-end gaming peripherals and for some time they were also exclusive to some brands. While we have got a sample with MX Brown switches, the KM780 RGB is also available in variants with MX Red and MX Blue. Since the keyboard is quite large with dimensions of 518mm x 172mm x 48mm, the packaging is too; on the top area, the manufacturer has placed a photo with the keyboard in operation along with some pictograms which represent some of the main product features:

 

 

 

On the top right corner, we are shown the type of switches KM780 RGB comes with:

 

 

 

If we take a quick look on the side, we will get to see the technical specifications, system requirements and also the package contents:

 

 

 

A presentation of the main product components can be spotted on the back side:

 

 

 

After removing the top packaging layer, we will end up with a plain cardboard box of the same size:

 

 

 

KM780 RGB keyboard is also wrapped inside a transparent plastic bag for extra protection:

 

 

 

Documentation along with the rest of the bundle are available on the lower layer:

 

 

 

The Quick Start Guide is accompanied by a Warranty Guide leaflet, a special plastic enclosure, but also one wrist rest:

 

 

 

The manual gives us more details regarding the keyboard specs and usage modes:

 

 

 

Let’s take a look at the special enclosure which can be easily attached to the KM780 RGB chassis:

 

 

 

Inside we will find replacement keycaps for the usual gaming keys, but also one key puller:

 

 

 

The plastic wrist rest is designed to fit the keyboard perfectly and it is covered by a rubber layer:

 

 

 

A closer look on the bottom reveals its mounting points:

 

 

 

KM780 RGB is sporting a top brushed aluminum plate which gives the product a professional look:

 

 

 

On the sides we will get to see some plastic wings with the G.SKILL logo on them, but also a steel bar around the edge for enhanced durability:

 

 

 

 

On the top left side, we will get to see a MR (Macro Record) button, along with M1-M3 buttons for switching profiles:

 

 

 

Next group of keys do offer the Windows Lock function, a LED brightness button but also a timer configurable via supplied software:

 

 

 

The last group of keys on the right top area are meant for multimedia purposes and here we do also have the Volume rocker:

 

 

Right under the Volume rocker, we do have a LED display for showing the Volume level, but also LEDs for NumLock, CapsLock and ScrollLock:

 

 

Between the F8 and F9 keys we will also get to see the manufacturer logo:

 

 

On the left side of the keyboard, KM780 RGB is featuring six extra programmable keys and considering that we have three selectable profiles on-the-fly, we can count a total of 18 macros:

 

 

A look at the back side of the keyboard will reveal the solid, thick braided cable the product is using:

 

 

If we look a little bit closer we will get to see the USB 2.0 port, the HD Audio pass-through ports but also a switch to jump between NKRO (G) and 6-KRO (S):

 

 

The accessory box can be easily attached to the steel bar:

 

 

 

Here is also a snapshot with the attached wrist rest; with it on, the keyboard will have the following dimensions: 581mm x 228mm x 48mm

 

 

 

A view on the bottom of the product shows how massive it is; we will get to see an assortment of rubber and plastic feet here:

 

 

 

The right plastic foot of the KM780 RGB is also accompanied by one cable router:

 

 

 

 

The keyboard cable has a total length of two meters:

 

 

 

At its end we will find the gold-plated USB connectors along with the 3.5mm jack plugs:

 

 

 

After removing the key caps, we will get to see the body of the included Cherry MX Brown RGB switches:

 

 

 

Since the body of the switch is also made from semi-transparent plastic, the LED light will surround the whole key:

 

 

 

After connecting the keyboard to a spare USB port, the LED light show will begin:

 

 

 

G.SKILL has used a similar looking GUI for the KM780 RGB as we have seen with the MX780 mouse, which is well organized, so the main functions can be spotted right away; the Customize area does feature a profile selector and we also have the option to save them to the keyboard memory. On the right side, the manufacturer has used a photo of the keyboard for assigning custom functions to the keys:

 

 

 

Here is the hint which appears when hovering on a specific key with our mouse cursor (we will be informed the current function of that key):

 

 

 

After opening the Key Assignment menu, we will be presented with the following options:

 

Default Function

 

 

 

Keyboard Key Re-define

 

 

 

Mouse Function

 

 

 

Multimedia Keys Function

 

 

 

Macro Assignment

 

 

 

Windows Shortcuts

 

 

 

Launch Specific Program

 

 

 

Text Sequence

 

 

 

Disable Key Completely

 

 

 

Moving on to the next tab which is named Setting, we will get to set the current Polling Rate, the N-key Rollover function, the Timer setting which we have talked about previously, Repeat Rate Acceleration setting, Repeat Delay but also a Sleep Setting (after a period of inactivity):

 

 

 

The Lighting menu is also similar to the one we have seen along with MX780 mouse and allows us to set each key with a specific color, but also an easier mode to configure all buttons with the same color at once:

 

 

 

 

We can also work with certain effects in the “Effect Lighting” area; some of them are predefined:

 

 

 

For customizing our own modes, we can go to the Lighting Profiles area which is more advanced:

 

 

 

 

The Macros section takes care both of regular Macro sequences but also of the “Text” sequences:

 

 

 

 

G.SKILL RIPJAWS KM780 RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Light Effects

 

G.SKILL RIPJAWS KM780 RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Volume Rocker LED

The KM780 RGB keyboard can be easily paired with the MX780 gaming mouse thanks to the unified software which permits easy switching between the two for easy configuration. The new keyboard from G.SKILL employs one of the most recent switches from Cherry, the MX Brown RGB which permits a more uniform lighting across the keyboard thanks to the semi-transparent housing and we also get the quality and durability of the well-known brand. While other manufacturers have decided to include all extra functions along with the F-keys, G.SKILL saw fit to use separate buttons on top, for an easier access. As with other high-end keyboards, we do get a brushed aluminum top cover and as a novelty item the manufacturer has also used a steel bar around the chassis, which can be used for attaching the accessory box or for working with the cable router.

 

Depending on the titles we do play, we can use a specific set of extra keycaps and for removing them without damaging the switches or scratching the caps themselves, we can use the supplied key puller. G.SKILL has also supplied a removable wrist rest in order to help with the overall comfort.

 

The part which we did not like was the fact that the lighting system animation was not as smooth on some modes as we have seen with products from other manufacturers and when modifying the Volume in small steps, the LED display indicator makes certain “jumps” which shouldn’t be there. Since the keyboard features an upgradable firmware, we guess that small issues like these will be fixed.

 

KM780 RGB keyboard from G.SKILL can be found online for about 168 Euros, which we think that it is quite decent considering what we are offered.

 

G.SKILL RIPJAWS KM780 RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard is Recommended For:

 

 

 

We would like to thank again to G.SKILL for making this review possible!