Corsair K100 AIR Keyboard Review

The Corsair K100 AIR has a fairly standard full-size footprint, but it's extremely thin compared to most gaming keyboards. If you're interested in a similar low-profile gaming model but with a much smaller compact (65%) form factor, check out the ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile.

This keyboard has impressive overall build quality. The chassis is very slim and made of plastic, but it feels quite sturdy and isn't flexible. The top of the keyboard frame is made of aluminum and has a stylish brushed metal finish, but it easily shows any fingerprints. On the underside of the keyboard, there are two plastic incline feet and a long rubber strip that do a decent job of keeping the keyboard in place on your work surface. Corsair doesn't advertise what kind of plastic the keycaps are made of, but they feel more like lower-quality ABS rather than PBT. They have a pleasant texture and feel extremely stable while typing. They also have shine-through legends to let you see the legends lit by RGB lighting in darker environments.

Corsair warns users against removing the keycaps as the butterfly switch mechanism underneath is complex, and removing the keycap can inadvertently disassemble the switch below it. We encountered this issue during testing and needed to carefully reassemble two switches after removing the keycaps.

The Corsair K100 AIR has decent ergonomics and is comfortable to type on without a wrist rest due to its low profile. There are also two plastic feet you can pop out to provide two additional incline settings.

This keyboard has full RGB backlighting with individually-lit keys.

The white-only backlighting on this keyboard does have a slightly cold, greyish tone, but the keycaps have shine-through legends, so you can easily see the primary legends in the dark.

This keyboard has a detachable, braided charging cable that retains some kinking from how it's packaged.

Corsair advertises that this keyboard has a battery life of up to 50 hours with the backlighting on and a maximum of 200 hours with the backlighting off.

This keyboard has an array of extra features, including a digital screen on the top that indicates the status of wireless, encryption, battery, and macro settings. This keyboard also allows you to program macros directly on the keyboard or with the customization software. Additionally, it has Full Key (NKRO) and Anti-Ghosting, which means it will register simultaneous keypresses and multiple key combinations held down simultaneously.

This keyboard supports maximum polling rates above 1000Hz, which is standard for most gaming keyboards. Using a higher polling rate means your keyboard communicates more frequently with your computer, ensuring the lowest latency possible. However, it also consumes more power from your keyboard and system resources from your computer. The maximum polling rate on this keyboard using a wired connection is 8000Hz, and the maximum polling rate using a wireless connection is 2000Hz.

• Corsair K100 Keyboard
• USB-A to USB-C braided charging cable
• USB wireless receiver
• User manual and warranty card

This keyboard has great typing quality that feels similar to the experience of typing on good-quality laptop keyboards. The switches provide a very smooth and immediate-feeling actuation after overcoming the tactile bump at the beginning of each keystroke. There's decent spacing between each key, considering the keys on many other low-profile keyboards are typically much closer together. The keycaps themselves are extremely stable. They have a fair amount of grip and don't feel too cheap compared to other ABS plastic keycaps. They don't feel as high-quality as those typically found on other keyboards at this price point. The typing quality is consistent between different keys, although there's a minor rattling sound when using the spacebar that isn't present with other keys. However, this is fairly typical.

The Cherry MX Ultra Low Profile Tactile switches on the Corsair K100 AIR Wireless make this keyboard quieter than many mechanical keyboards with tactile switches but louder than most laptop keyboards with similar designs.

The switches on this keyboard provide a satisfying tactile break to overcome right at the beginning of your keypress. They take a bit more force to actuate than standard Cherry MX Brown switches. Still, they are relatively light to press and feel very responsive once you overcome the initial tactile bump, thanks to their extremely low pre-travel and total travel distance.

This keyboard has exceptionally low latency that's more than suitable for gaming in any genre using either a wired or wireless receiver connection. This test was conducted at the highest maximum polling rate (which is how frequently the keyboard sends information to your computer), as higher polling rates ensure the lowest latency possible. For a wired connection, the maximum polling rate is 8000Hz, while the maximum polling rate for a wireless connection using the USB receiver is 2000Hz.

This keyboard uses Corsair's iCUE software, which is fairly easy to use and well laid out. It offers plenty of adjustable options, including key rebinding, macro programming, and RGB lighting adjustment. The software also has tutorials on how to use many of the configuration options, and you can save your custom settings to the keyboard's 8MB of onboard memory.

Like the software options from other major manufacturers, this software receives criticism for requiring frequent updates and taking up disproportionate system resources. You may find this software frustrating if you prefer more lightweight software options or no software at all.

This keyboard is compatible with all major operating systems. However, the software is only compatible with Windows and macOS. On Windows, Linux, and Android, all keys work as expected. On macOS, the Print hotkey acts as 'F13', while Print Screen and Scroll Lock hotkeys don't work.

On iOS and ipadOS devices, all keys work except for Pause, Print Screen, Insert, and Scroll Lock.