The Vengeance K95 takes obvious design queues from the K90 before it, and this particular version matches the anodised black of the K70 we reviewed earlier. Common throughout the K-series keyboard range is the aluminium chassis, which in the case of the K70 is of a unibody design. However the K95 includes an additional ABS plastic annex with recessed steel backplate forming the G-Key zone. With the exception of those keys, the layout of the K95 is really quite standard. Only a few other layout tweaks have been made versus a standard mechanical keyboard, accommodating a more high-end set of media controls in addition to buttons for the macro and lighting features.
The G-Key zone, populated by an array of 18 keys labelled G1-18, just as rigid as the main section thanks to a steel backplate. However the finish doesn’t match the beautiful brushed aluminium of the rest of the chassis, which goes some way towards reducing its aesthetic allure. Each of the keys are on a slightly lower plane than the main keys and have slightly different shaped keycaps, differentiating them by touch from the rest. They’re also all underpinned with Cherry MX Red switches, once again a relative rarity even amongst mechanical keyboards.
Aligned along the top-left lip of the Vengeance K95’s aluminium chassis section are the four ‘M’ keys. In tern, these are intended for recording macros and switching between the three key assignment states. Rather than having three different profiles loaded onto the keyboard the K95 has these macro assignment states (or M-States) per Profile, denoted as M1, M2 and M3. Each may have unique assignments for the G-Keys on the left of the keyboard, as well as LED brightness levels and key-by-key backlighting configurations across the whole of the keyboard.
Speaking of lighting, the opposite side of the keyboard is where the LED lighting controls are positioned. These, and the rest of the media keys located in the same area, are identical to that for the K70, including the slightly idiosyncratic means of customising the lighting (see next page). Despite not also being mechanical these switches still have a quality feel, especially in the case of the volume wheel which has a reassuring resistance to movement.
Located on the rear is the USB polling rate switch and passthrough port. A hardware switch for polling is another uncommon solution, indicating just how versatile a keyboard can be even when the software configuration utility isn't installed. We should note that our testing system (an MSI P67 Big Bang Marshall /w Ivybridge Core-i5 CPU) didn’t require the BIOS setting for accessing the UEFI, but it’s a reassuring feature for legacy machines nonetheless.
Finally when it comes to the visible components there’s the extra-long wrist rest. Matching the style of that on previous K-series motherboards, it’s not the deepest design and really serves mainly to shield the user from the edge of the aluminium chassis rather than provide maximum wrist support. Even so, it is soft, comfortable and unlike the K70's is screwed into place.
The floor is probably the one major oversight on the K95. As with the K70 there are few rubber sections to provide a non-slip surface, and none on the extendible feet. More problematically, when the feet are retracted there is a noticeable wobble on the keyboard and marked lack of grip to the desk from the left hand side. This is down to the pad in that section being hard plastic rather than rubber and raised very slightly above the nearest rubber foot (about 5cm away). It’s the one quality failing we’ve seen, and easily rectified if necessary. No doubt Corsair are aware and will be addressing it. That said, with feet extended the K95 provides a perfectly stable typing platform in our experience.
Rounding off the visible features is the USB cable, a double-end design which incorporates both the keyboard's USB signalling connector and a connector for USB passthrough. The entire cable is sheathed in a heavyweight braid which, despite being soft to the touch, is durable and will do an excellent job protecting the more fragile wires inside. The cable entry-point into the keyboard chassis is reinforce with plastic, and so shouldn't cause any appreciable fraying in the long term.
