| CM Storm Quickfire Rapid Keyboard |
| Reviews - Featured Reviews: Input Devices | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Written by Austin Downing | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Friday, 02 March 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
CM Storm QuickFire Rapid Keyboard Review
Manufacturer: Cooler Master Full Disclosure: The product sample used in this article has been provided by Cooler Master. Although mechanical keyboards have been making a comeback in recent years many of the design are quite bulky in comparison to their rubber dome counter parts. Looking to fill this area of the market Cooler Master designed the Storm QuickFire Rapid mechanical keyboard using the venerable Cherry MX Blue switches, fit into a comfortable 14" x 5" design. This makes the QuickFire Rapid perfect for LAN parties or mobile workers who may want a better typing experience than their laptops are able to offer. Benchmark Reviews will evaluate if the Cooler Master QuickFire Rapid is the perfect pint size keyboard or if corners were cut in order to meet size and price goals. The CM Storm QuickFire Rapid was designed to be a minimalist solution to a mechanical gaming keyboard. In lieu of complicated software, extra buttons, and an extravagant outward appearance, the QuickFire Rapid opts for a subtle design, no software, and a basic and yet extremely functional keyboard setup. Add in full NRKO when using the included PS/2 adapter, a two-year warranty, and the wonderful Cherry MX Blue switches and you have the makings for a wonderful small mechanical keyboard that can be used almost anywhere.
As with any other peripheral it is important look at the CM Storm QuickFire Rapid from a well-rounded standpoint, this means using it in a various situations including gaming (MMO, RTS, FPS), and from a typist standpoint. CM Storm QuickFire Rapid Features
CM Storm QuickFire Rapid Specifications
Closer Look: CM Storm QuickFire RapidAlthough the physical layout of most keyboards is similar, the small differences between products can still take some getting used to. At the same time, many users have a very specific aesthetic quality they are looking for when they buy products. Some companies cater to this greatly e.g. Razer, rather opposite of this the Quickfire Rapid except for a couple CM Storm logos is a fairly non-descript keyboard.
The QuickFire Rapid is an interesting design that is much smaller than many of its contemporary counterparts thanks to its lack of a number pad. For some this may be an annoyance but I found that in its day-to-day use that this was not problematic once I stopped automatically going for the number pad out of habit.
The QuickFire Rapid with its four rubber pads and 2.1lbs weight sits quite stably on a user's desk. For users who prefer a more elevated typing experience Cooler Masters has added a single height adjustment that adds around an inch of height to the rear of the QuickFire Rapid.
With a fully mechanical layout, the QuickFire Rapid tends to have taller keys than its rubber dome counterparts do. Thankfully, this discrepancy is made up for by the fact that each of Cherry MX Blue switches activates half way through its full 4mm of travel.
The Cherry MX Blue switch is what makes this keyboard such a great little device. Preferred by many typists because they provide both auditory and haptic feedback, the Cherry MX Blue switches require a full 60 Grams of pressure to actuate. This helps create a stable platform for typing and gaming as a user does not need to worry as much about accidently activating the Cherry MX Blue switch as with its Red sibling which require only 45 grams of pressure to actuate.
Although the QuickFire Rapid does not come with many frills, Cooler Master does provide its users with some extra keycaps for the WASD key cluster and for each of Windows. Easing the process of switching these keys is a included key cap grabber that allows for easy and safe removal of each of the key caps. Testing & ResultsTesting MethodologyTesting peripherals like the QuickFire Rapid are quite simply a matter of using them in the real world for an extended amount of time. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the product they are no standardized test that can be done but rather it is a matter of personal opinion from the time spent using the product. In order to analyze the qualities of the QuickFire Rapid I focused on looking at the many different realms of work and play that the QuickFire Rapid is expected to be subjected to. This means looking at both its qualities as a gaming keyboard, but more importantly its qualities as a method of input for work and school related projects. Test System
Software Tested
ResultsGaming with the CM Storm QuickFire Rapid is quite an enjoyable experience. The responsive keys and quick actuations make it ideal for fast-paced gaming and accurate movements. During my gaming sessions with StarCraft II I could quickly use many sets of keyboard commands to create units in the most efficient pattern possible. At the same time during long sessions of Battlefield 3 I found that I could play comfortably for hours without feeling strain on my wrists, while at the same time being able to accurately fly a plane or helicopter using the keyboard controls. Again, during my gameplay for Skyrim I found that even after a couple hours of exploration that I was not feeling any pain in my wrists or fatigue in my hands. I was also able to quickly and easily vanquish any enemies that might challenge me, quickly switching between spells and weapons effectively using the QuickFire Rapid. My real experience with the CM Storm QuickFire Rapid was doing schoolwork and working on projects. The small size of the QuickFire Rapid made it a perfect keyboard to bring to school with me and let me test it out in my day-to-day life. I spend a majority of my time working on Cisco switches, ISR's, and Linux Servers. Although I was relatively quick using the rubber dome keyboards that come standard with almost every machine on the market, using the QuickFire Rapid with its Cherry MX Blue switches was like a night and day difference. Along with the increase in speed a much-needed increase in accuracy came with it, as the haptic feedback provided let me feel when my key had activated allowing for more accurate touch-typing. A small but important test for the QuickFire Rapid is testing its NKRO capabilities when using the included PS/2 adapter. I found that using the PassMark Keyboard test that I could activate nearly every key on QuickFire Rapid at the same time with no problems whatsoever. Even better while using the included PS/2 adapter all of the media fuction continued to work, something that I have found to be not true on some of the QuickFire Rapids competitors. CM Storm QuickFire Rapid Final ThoughtsLike all mechanical keyboards, I found that the CM Storm QuickFire Rapid provides a massive benefit to those of us who do lots of typing. The extra feedback both haptic and auditory helps encourage an even, quick-paced flow of typing. When it comes to gaming while the Cherry MX Blues work well I do not see as much of a benefit in their mechanical design as I do in my work. Again, the short travel needed for activation will help with quick movements but I do not find they are substantially better than a good rubber dome keyboard when it comes to gaming.
CM Storm QuickFire Rapid ConclusionPerformance of a keyboard is about being able to quickly and accurately type and game at all times. Thankfully, because of the fantastic Cherry MX Blue switches accuracy is not a problem that the QuickFire Rapid suffers from. When the QuickFire Rapid is compared to the standard HP keyboard that my school uses I am seeing at least a 20-25% increase in speed and accuracy while working on my studies. The QuickFire Rapid is a good looking keyboard, and although the CM Storm logo is plastered liberally across it I still find that is a more acceptable keyboard to have a in a business environment than many of its gaming brethren. At the same time, the mute greys and blacks allow it to fit in with many other peripherals on the market allowing for a uniform design across a user's workspace. The QuickFire Rapid is a well-constructed keyboard that is backed by a two year warranty from Cooler Master should anything go wrong. They entire keyboard has a very solid feel because of solid steel core which gives it a 2.1lbs weight. Combine that with a full set of mechanical keys and you have a superb feeling keyboard that can take almost anything you can throw at it and keep on ticking. The QuickFire Rapid was designed as a no frills mechanical keyboard that does not compromise on any front. For the most part, it delivers; it provides a superb typing experience, with full NKRO capabilities, and a space saving design. Some people may not like the lack of number pad but once you get used to it I found that for the most part it is not much of an inconvenience. Even better the added functions given by the media keys actually continue to work if a user want use the USB to PS/2 converter that is included. Overall, the functionality of the QuickFire Rapid comes down to providing the great functionality of a keyboard without being bogged down by extra keys, software, or functions. Value for the QuickFire Rapid is an interesting proposition. Priced at $79.99 the QuickFire Rapid is on the lower end of the spectrum for mechanical keyboards but is still priced above 75% of the keyboards on Newegg.com. Overall, the biggest competition that the QuickFire Rapid has is the Razer BlackWidow, which competes almost directly with it on price point but provides a full sized keyboard layout, programmable keys, and some very nice software. Still the QuickFire Rapid is a very nice piece of kit for the price, and should last users at least two full builds if they take care of it. Due to its durability, beautiful mechanical keys, space saving design and two year warranty I would easily recommend the QuickFire Rapid to any of my friends and colleagues and gladly award it Benchmark Reviews Golden Tachometer award. Pros:
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Comments
Nice review, thanks.
Hopefully they will make one with a number pad in the future but I would hope that they continue to make the Rapid also because it to has a place in the market.
It's all personal preference..... I like my Enermax micro-Aurora because it has the scissors-action keys, like a high-end laptop. They have the "snap" like the IBM buckling spring keys, but it's much less force and travel, which I like. Not everyone does. I like the fact that my desktop and laptop have the same feel and general layout.
I am still waiting for a true full sized FPS gaming keyboard. Until this very day nobody has made one. Ideazon came close with their Merc Stealth board, but that also featured a #ed up, shoved together cursor/number pad. I bought it and loved the left hand side with the perfectly arranged FPS keys, but I could not get used to the right hand side mess of that the board.
Now I use the out-of-production Ideazon Fang. It is great, but could use a modern overhaul. And I dread the day this tool dies on me. I won't be able to replace it with an FPS keypad that is just as good. Nobody makes one.
Somehow all these Keyboard makers think that an FPS gaming keyboard does not require more than an extra row of programmable keys and in some cases a virtually useless LCD screen on top. And now we have the latest hype: the mechanical board. I am not against mechanical at all, but a true FPS gaming board needs more.
I would gladly pay 200 bucks if someone would give me a board that looked like this:
Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000
with detachable Ideazon Fang-like FPS pad and detachable Numeric keypad.
The Fang-like FPS pad and the numerical pad should be interchangeable (comparable to the Microsoft Sidewinder X6 functionality).
The FPS pad has to be programmable.
The board has to be back lit and should offer a choice of multiple colors. The lighting strength can be controlled and switched off.
The board can be mechanical or non-mechanical (I do not care at all about that).
Or.... Microsoft could simply build an Ideazon Fang-like FPS gamingpad that can be attached to their Sidewinder 6 Keyboard. That would do the thing for me too.
I payed about $130 for this Razer BW Ultimate and it's worth every penny. I use it for typing, and I use a Logitech G13 for gaming. I wish they would make a Merc Stealth with Cherry Blue key switches. I'd pay $200 for that.
The CM keyboard is for people that don't use the numeric pad at home. I personally don't. I've gotten used to the numeric keys at the top for home use on my Sidewinder x6. At work however, I can't live without a numeric pad. With the CM keyboard, you can simply buy a usb numeric pad if you are so in need of it. At that point it would make things no different than a regular keyboard. Infact, I would gladly buy the CM Quickfire and sell my sidewinder x6 IF the Quickfire had LED backlit since I do need that because I type in the dark hehe. Since it doesn't have LED backlit, then I will have to pass. The main reason why I'd buy it is because it shrinks the gaming surface down by 2" being overall 14" compared to my vs my Sidewinder X6 at 16" without numeric pad. Also the Quickfire just like the Sidewinder maintains the fullsize keyboard with the exception of no numeric pad.
The benefit of the mechanical keys is that you can use 1 design of a board and have different variations of keys on the same type of model to suit multiple fans without redesigning the board. For instance, this Quickfire comes in different models having a silent, medium or Hard keystroke. There are other mechanical keyboards that follow the same principle. You simply won't find this luxury with other popular non-mechanical keyboards since they are only 1 type of keystroke. My Sidewinder X6, old G11 and other Saitek I've had only came with 1 type of keystroke. No option
"I see absolutely nothing different from your Ideazon Fang vs the Sidewinder x6 or this CM Quickfire keyboard except that the Fang as well as the G13 and Belkin all shrink the gaming area even further."
Perhaps I misunderstand. The Fang is not intended to be used as a normal keyboard and has a radically different and improved layout for FPS use. Compared to the Fang a normal keyboard is very awkward to use.
The difference between the Fang and the G13 and the Belkin is that the Fang features all the FPS keys you will ever need. And because it is programmable you can also change layouts for games with fixed keys (usually bad console ports). Most of the time, for most games, you do not even need to program the Fang because of the smart standard layout it has.
I tried the G13 and I own a Belkin. They are inferior to the Fang. At least that is how I feel about them.
The only thing I do not like about the Fangs layout is the space/jump button on the sides. The Ideazon Merc Stealth is better in that respect. And it is backlit of course, which I would love on a next gen Fang.
I am totally indifferent about the advantage you mention about silent, medium and hard keystroke models of mechanical boards. I simply do not care about that at all. If that is all there is to it then I pass. I do not perceive this as a luxury, like you, but as completely superfluous.
I have many keyboards and had never complaints about the keystrokes. I simply adapt to the keyboard I use. At the moment it is the Sidewinder X6. The keystrokes feel fine to me. I also have a basic Logitech, an Ideazon Merc Stealth, a Microsoft Natural. None of them made me feel there was something wrong with the keystrokes.
But I would buy a mechanical in an instant if it had the features I mentioned in my previous comment. But to spend extra money on a keyboard just because it is mechanical is out of the question for me.
I wasn't intending the Fang to be used as a keyboard. The Fang, G13, Belkin are supposed to be for FPS games since they are all programmable keys and fit the layout which is good for some that are ok with it. The thing I was mentioning was that it's thin which decreases the width that the player would normally play at when using a regular wide full size keyboard. So instead you would use a specialized pad such as those so you can play at a more comfortable level. This Quickfire is another option at least for those that don't want to have to switch between devices every time they play a certain game since you obviously aren't going to have your Fang in the same position when you are doing normal computer work. There are also other options in modernized minimalist keybaords like: Deck 82, Filco Majestouch Tenkeyless, Leopold FC200R, Topre Realforce 86U, Happy Hacking Keyboard Professional II, KPC Poker.
This Quickfire is just coping an idea that's already been done and proven to sell since the market likes it.
You may want to check out this page....
##overclock.net/t/491752/mechanical-keyboard-guide
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