Mechanical Keyboard Sound Isn't That Simple
Figure 1: I couldn't think of a more literal way to represent this article if I tried... Looking back just a few years ago, there’s no doubt that the huge influx of people that joined the hobby at the peak of the COVID pandemic were drawn to keyboards by way of YouTube, TikTok, and other audio-visual content platforms. Even as the output from these content creators has waned in recent months, their collective impact and legacy on the keyboard hobby is rather firmly etched in the history books. As a result of all of their sound tests, build logs, and opinion videos, the message is clear to any new person joining the hobby: mechanical keyboards are all about the sound. Thock this, clack that. Whether it’s keyboards, keycaps, or even singular switches, seemingly everyone new to the hobby meticulously pores over each component of their keyboard not in an attempt to figure out how it will feel in hand, but how it will sound as they’re furiously grinding their way out from...
Mar 27, 2024
One other quality of the Romer-G that I really like which I haven't seen mentioned here yet is that they are extremely quiet. The only other switch I've tried that rivals the quietness is the Matias Quiet Click switches. I might give the edge to the Matias due to the dampening "rubber bumpers" in them, but the Romer-G is very quiet if you aren't just mashing the keys like crazy.
On the topic of sound, I should also mention that like Cherry MX, the Romer-G can be subject to "pinging". My G810 does have some pinging issues, and that is probably the most major knock I have against it.
The other knock against the G810 specifically for me is that it has no on-board profile memory, so you MUST have the Logitech Gaming Software installed. On the bright side, the LGS seems to be fairly non-invasive and lightweight, so that is good, but the annoying part is that if you make a custom lighting profile, then shut down reboot your computer, the keyboard will actually go back to the "stock" epilepsy-inducing rainbow color cycle mode until your computer fully boots and the LGS launches. Same goes for if you move the keyboard to a different computer that doesn't have LGS installed, it will lose your settings and go back to defaults.
There is a slight workaround in that you can press and hold the LED on/off button, then toggle through some of the different basic lighting modes using the number row (not the numpad). If you do this, then the mode you select will actually stay in effect through powering off the keyboard, even without LGS installed. For more info, see this thread:
https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalKeyboards/comments/4912ck/help_for_g810_owners_is_it_possible_to_save_a/
So in summary, I absolutely think that Romer-Gs get an unfair and unwarranted amount of hate from the enthusiast community, which I think stems mostly from Logitech being a generic "Best Buy" gaming-oriented company and from the lack of aftermarket keycap options. If you can overlook those two downsides, they really are a pretty solid switch if you just want to game and type with nice clear backlighting.