Logitech K840 Romer-G Review

[Hyde]

So last week there was a sale on amazon with Logitech K840 so I jumped the gun and bought it.  I've used it for about a week now so I figure now is a good time to write some objective review.



Here the first picture as you can see it's pretty much the same design as Logitech G413 but without the backlight.

But this is meant to be for their office line so the choice of font is nice and clean.



Notice instead of the typical Caps Lock, Num Lock, Scroll Lock, it has simplify to only having Caps Lock and Windows Lock (more of a gaming feature).



Keycap is ABD pad printed, during regular typing you won't notice the raised legends.



But I immediately noticed a fatal flaw.  CHERRY STABILIZERS.

Normally it's not that bad but in this case it feels extra mushy on the large keys also the spacebar is SUPER LOUD as the metal bar would be wobbly and making all kinds of noise on every key press.



So any geekhackers would do, MOD TIME (keep in mind this is my 2nd day owning the keyboard so I'm basically voiding my warranty).



Time to bust out my trusty Gundam clippers and clip those legs.



I'm not sure if you can see here, but in the middle white piece, left and right is their side wall which uses to stabilizer the switch.  But top and down in the middle white stem USED TO (not anymore) have "cushion legs" similar to Cherry stabilizer that is used to dampen the bottom out.  The picture on the right is pulled off Deskthority Wiki and it shows the cushioned leg of the OLD VERSION.

But ever since all the complaint about it feeling like rubber dome, Omron has since taken out those "cushion legs" so now the switch feel as clean as Cherry switches (hard bottom out).

SUMMARY

So what do I think about this keyboard?

New Romer-G feels nice, the old one used to feel a bit mushy but the recent update made it feel nice and clean and less wobble than Cherry switches.  Probably because of the wider stem so there's almost no wobble, the tactile point is also right at the top.  However for my preference I think I still prefer the 4 mm travel (Romer G is 3 mm).  I guess it's mean for gaming so it's shorter travel.

It states 45g activation but this actually feels slightly heavier than MX Brown.  The tactile point is also a bit more pronounced than MX Brown but less so than MX Clear.

I'd say it's probably between MX Brown and MX Black weight, but for me I think I'm used to the 45g weight after typing for a while it makes my finger slightly tired (not as bad as MX Black, but it's still a bit noticeable).

Though overall Romer-G feels nice and sounds "crunchy" so I can still see why a lot of people might like them.

BUT the biggest dealbreaker for me is Cherry stabilizer.  Somehow on this board this feels extra mushy and the spacebar is REALLY LOUD.  Did I say it's really loud?  I mean it's REALLY LOUD.

SO I would only recommend this keyboard if you are either:

1.  Used to the mushiness of Cherry stabilizer and doesn't care (I'm spoiled by Costar, anything less i unacceptable).
2.  Is crazy enough like me who's willing to break the warranty just to clip mod the switch and lube them so it feels acceptable (even so I still prefere Costar stabilizers).

Another small con is that somehow with the keyboard leg down the keyboard feels too flat, and with the keyboard leg up it feels too angled.

I was hoping they'd have a half way height.  Maybe I'm also spoiled by the traditional Filco / Leopold typing angle.

All things considered, if they can update the stabilizers in the future then I'd think it's a solid keyboard for the price and Romer-G switches are actually quite nice after their update.

Though compare to Cherry MX I think they bind a TINY bit and a TINY BIT scratchier but stability is a lot better.  Would I recommend this over MX Brown?  Probably, they're just a bit different I guess.

I can see Romer-G being more solid and precise but takes more force while MX Brown being more of a relaxed typing experience and slides a little bit smoother.  I'd say Romer-G is probably half way between Cherry MX Brown and Clicky ALPS.

Let me know if you guys have any questions and I'll reply to my best ability.

[Duckyreddy]

Thank you for the review! 
Straight to the point and easy to read, all reviews should be like this!  )

[mkb03]

First I was really disappointed, that the Logitech K840 isn't available in Austria (yet?). It seemed like a solid choice for a cheap mechanical keyboard. Now, after reading your text, I'm a bit less sad about it ^^ Still would like to try it out I guess

PS: Great review, thanks, love the pics!

[Hyde]

LOL omg thanks guys.

For a while I was actually wondering if anyone's even reading my review.

Thanks for the encouragement.

Thank you for the review! 
Straight to the point and easy to read, all reviews should be like this!  )

But yeah I hate wall of text so I try to space out my review so it's easy for the eyes to read.

Good to know this worked out for you. 

First I was really disappointed, that the Logitech K840 isn't available in Austria (yet?). It seemed like a solid choice for a cheap mechanical keyboard. Now, after reading your text, I'm a bit less sad about it ^^ Still would like to try it out I guess

PS: Great review, thanks, love the pics!

Thanks and hopefully they'll see it in Australia soon.

I was gonna say you can probably import it in but then it will probably defeat the point of "nicely priced keyboard". 

[ander]

Hey Hyde: Thanks for the great review. (It's always entertaining to see someone else void their warranty, LOL)

I'm sure some of you are tired of hearing this, but: Quality pad-printing isn't that big a deal, as long as you remember to wash your hands before typing (which you should do anyway, IMHO). I have pad-printed keebs I've used for years that don't show any sign of wear yet. Clean fingers are much less abrasive than dirty ones.

And BTW, Hyde, "jump the gun" means to do something prematurely. Maybe you were thinking of "pull the trigger" (make a significant decision). Cheers

[mikehotel]

Great writeup, ty

[Landcaps]

wow why they use cherry stab??

btw, nice review simple and clear

[Prothrin]

Nice straightforward review. Thanks.

[Exothermic]

I was looking into these switches, so I actually searched and found your review. Nice review! I'm far less.... extreme.... about keyboards than many others on this website, so I have a question. How specifically does one identify stabilizers as being Cherry's, and what are the benefits of modifying them?

[tp4tissue]

Costar is King.. !!

[mogo]

I was looking into these switches, so I actually searched and found your review. Nice review! I'm far less.... extreme.... about keyboards than many others on this website, so I have a question. How specifically does one identify stabilizers as being Cherry's, and what are the benefits of modifying them?

I can't speak to the benefits of modifying them, as I've never done it.

[Exothermic]

Thanks for the help!

[Elrick]

Costar is King.. !!

Filco and WASD are the ones to own if you want ready made keyboards  .

[daerid]

Costar is King.. !!

finally, something we can agree on 👍

[Hyde]

I was looking into these switches, so I actually searched and found your review. Nice review! I'm far less.... extreme.... about keyboards than many others on this website, so I have a question. How specifically does one identify stabilizers as being Cherry's, and what are the benefits of modifying them?

Show Image

I can't speak to the benefits of modifying them, as I've never done it.

COSTAR STABILIZER

The benefit of Costar is that it feels "clean".  You just feel the switch feel and that's it, drawback is that sometimes you can hear the metal bar hitting the plastic parts and also it's a little bit harder to change out keycaps.

Solution is that lubing the connection joint will completely eliminate the noise and make this the best stabilizer ever.  As for removing keycaps you get used to it after a while, it's actually not that bad.

CHERRY STABILIZER

The benefit of this is that you can pretty much pull keycap straight out to get it off, slap it back on directly to put it back on.  Real simple when changing keycaps.  However there are tiny plastic "legs" at the bottom to cushion the bottom out, and while make it feel "mushy" and defeats the point of getting a mechanical keyboard.  Because if you want mushy feel you already get that from rubber dome.

Solution is to clip off the "legs" as demonstrated.  First you need to desolder all the switches with stabilizers on them (7 for full size keyboards, 4 for tenkeyless).  After that you can press on the tiny tabs behind the mounting point behind the stabilizer mount and rotate towards you to get the plastic mounts off the metal plates.  The metal wire can slide through the gap on the plate.  Dessemble the wire, get the stems out, clip them, then reverse the process to get everything back in.

Feel free to let me know if you're actually gonna do it then I can give you more detailed instructions.