As a long-standing fan of low profile keys, I’ve consistently felt that there just aren’t enough low profile options in the mainstream gaming keyboard market. That might not be an issue any more, however, because I think I may have found my forever keyboard.
The ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile, aside from having an unnecessarily long title, is a 65% form factor board with low-profile optical switches and a very unassuming look at first glance. This thing’s hiding some pretty top-notch features though, and manages to do a lot with a little while also looking pretty stunning.
Starting at the start though, and the ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile is packaged in about the fashion you’d expect from a ROG product – a black and red box containing the keyboard itself, a USB-A to USB-C cable, wireless dongle and extender, some papers and stickers. Like all good wireless keyboards, the tiny dongle slots neatly into a port in the back of the keyboard so you’re less likely to lose it. Most interestingly, it also comes with a keyboard top cover for keeping it protected if you’re carrying it around or just to keep dust off of it.
Once it’s on the desk, it’s clear this is an attractive little device. At its face, it’s simple and elegant with a clean, metallic top plate and bone-white keys embellished only by a thin strip at the top emblazoned with “Republic of Gamers” and some tiny notifiers, all of which mute to a shiny, silver bar when the RGB lighting isn’t whizzing. Aide from the aluminum top plate, the underside is a muted grey plastic and houses the mode-switching keys, USB-C port and a handy little magnetic docking port to safely and securely stow the USB-A wireless 2.4GHz adapter. The only remotely “gamer-y” thing about it might be the protective cover that it comes with, which is an angular, plastic job that might say “There’s a gaming keyboard under here!” if you’re among those with The Knowledge™, but otherwise suits just fine – it actually seems to borrow a little from the design chops of the ROG Ally, if anything.
The Falchion RX Low Profile uses ROG’s low profile optical switches in a red or a blue variety. These were red switches in the unit I received for review and as far as I can tell at most local retailers it’s the red that’s mostly available. The lower actuation point and initial force make red the way to go for low profile switches anyway, giving the keys a nice light feel that fits the overall vibe of a breezy, floating array of keys. The way the keys are mounted is also a nice change, with a secure four-point fit that means these have far less wobble than other low-profile switches.
The sound of the switches is similarly light and actually quite calming with a gentle click that’s reassuring without being overloud. The layout feels roomy enough even with the 65% format squeezed into something closer to a 60% footprint, and so far the accuracy of my keystrokes has been fantastic whether it’s banging out 1000s of words at work or frantically fumbling my inventory of torches and recording gear in Content Warning.
It’s been incredibly comfortable to use the whole time as well, even having come from a full-sized keyboard with wrist wrest. It’s light enough that I tend to just throw it around all of my newfound desk space as I adjust my sitting position throughout the day, and it’s small enough that whatever number pad action my right hand is missing, my left hand is now enjoying from the row above. The adjustable feet offer an extra level of incline if you’d like, as well. The only slight issue I’ve had, which is mostly a user fault due to my tendency to hunch over the desk, is that the secondary functions engraved on some of the keys can be harder to read from a high angle. It’s mostly a result of how little real estate is on the edges of these low profile keys, and because the per-key RGB lighting doesn’t seem to be as strong around the edges.
One of the more interesting features on the Falchion RX Low Profile to help that though, is a touch zone hidden on the back panel of the keyboard, just behind the RGB bar that lines the top of its face. This zone can be used to control media playback and lighting by pressing a button next to it to switch modes and then swiping, tapping and double tapping to perform different actions, with the RGB indicators in the top strip providing feedback on what you’re doing. It took a bit of getting used to using but after a while it’s become my preferred way to quickly change volume settings or play/skip tracks in Spotify while I’m working, and it’s a novel way to offer this sort of functionality when real estate on the top of the keyboard is at a premium.
The great looks and feel are backed up by a good range of connectivity that includes multi-device Bluetooth 5.1, 2.4Ghz wireless powered by ROG’s version of a buzzword wireless technology in “SpeedNova,” and traditional USB wired connection. I’ve never put much stock in different brands’ wireless solutions being functionally better or worse than one another, at least for the average user who isn’t playing in a signal-congested arena at the pro level, but ASUS says theirs is hot shit and it’s worked perfectly for me so far. Battery life is also a plus with the keyboard rated at 400+ hours with the RGB lighting turned off, and although I’m a wired kinda guy, knowing it’s got at least a couple months’ worth of juice on tap is good news.
Tying all of this together is the ASUS ROG Armoury Crate software, which as I’ve said in previous reviews, is about as good as most other hardware vendors’ proprietary software. It’s a bit bloated, both with how many fairly useless menus and features it throws at you as well as how system-intensive it can be, but it’s pretty intuitive when it comes to the features most people would use like RGB/display customisation, macros and individual profiles. I just wish there was a “lite” version that did away with all the game launcher and news type stuff to make it a bit more lean and zippy.
