Testing the Roccat Pyro gaming keyboard
10.1.2022
Translation: Patrik Stainbrook
Roccat Pyro is a moderately priced gaming keyboard. It has RGB lighting, volume control and linear switches from TTC. The test featured my wife gaming with mechanical keys for the first time and an intensely productive writing session on my part.
It looks wonderful in a darkened room – the Roccat Pyro glows in a rainbow of colours. At time of writing, my wife’s nimble fingers are scurrying across the wired gaming keyboard. It’s her first time using mechanical switches. With her friends by her side, she conjures and slaughters a giant frost dragon during a legendary battle in The Elder Scrolls Online. Her eyes are virtually sparkling, and she assures me that it’s never been so smooth.
Roccat kindly sent me a Pyro using a CH keyboard layout for the test:
Our store also features it with a German layout:
Not so beautiful during the daytime: design, layout and functions
In daylight, however, the black keyboard’s exterior doesn’t spark joy for my wife or me. It appears decent at first glance – featuring a classic full-frame layout and making a robust impression. The keys are surrounded by a brushed aluminium plate. As for the rest of the keyboard, however, it’s mostly made of rather cheap-looking plastic. This is more or less noticeable depending on your lighting conditions.
The attachable palm rest is made of the same plastic. It’s grooved for a good grip. Personally, I prefer writing with a soft pad, but I can also manage with the hard one. The keyboard has feet as another ergonomic aid, which allows its angle to be increased from 6 to 14 degrees.
The keyboard is connected with a non-detachable 180 centimetre USB-A cable. It’s configured via the Roccat SWARM software. Not only can effects for key illumination or speaker typing sounds be activated, but key configurations can also be set. More precisely, this includes secondary key assignments as well as alternative keys for every game mode: the scroll button also allows for this feature. Press FN+Scroll to activate a stored gaming profile. At the same time, Game Mode disables the Windows and Caps Lock keys. This is to prevent accidental triggering.
Your usual five media keys – play/pause and co. – share space with F8 to F12 and can be accessed via the function key. The volume can be adjusted on an extra wheel as well. This works, but the material looks and feels cheap. Not really satisfying – still, it’s practical.
TTC Red Switches – how it feels to game and type
How a keystroke feels is largely determined by the switches. The Roccat Pyro comes with red mechanical switches from TTC. They’re linear – meaning they don’t make a clicking sound, nor do they have a tactile release point. Therefore, the keyboard is rather quiet – depending on how hard you’re hitting the keys. What can be heard is the impact of the switch when it’s pressed down.
When you press a key, it goes down smoothly and relatively wobble-free. You need a small initial force of 45 grams for this. It triggers after two millimetres of key travel. The total distance amounts to 3.7 millimetres and requires 60 grams of force.
Since my favourite keyboard – the Keychron K4 with Gateron Red switches – is also mechanical and linear, triggering after two millimetres of key travel too, I immediately feel used to typing with the Pyro. My typing skills and the ten-finger system work quickly as usual. Working with it felt wonderful during the few weeks of testing – although it still couldn’t match my favourite keyboard. The K4 and its switches suit me better.
My wife has been using a non-mechanical keyboard from Razer for gaming. Equipped with DeathStalker Chroma chiclet keys requiring two millimetres of key travel. At long last, I was finally able to convince her to try something new. However, this trial quickly turned into a permanent change. As already mentioned at the start, she plays and conjures better than ever with it. My wife directs her dark elf faster and more precisely through the lands of Tamriel using mechanical keys.
Verdict: a good entry-level gaming keyboard with little to smile at during the day
In terms of price, the Roccat Pyro is in the lower midfield compared to other RGB keyboards with mechanical switches. This also explains why it isn’t convincing through and through. The black plastic used looks a bit cheap – and the volume control also feels that way when used. However, the red switches from TTC are convincing. Typing and gaming is a joy with this keyboard, and the illumination kicks ass anyway.
If you’re looking for a not too expensive gaming keyboard that’s linear and rather quiet, I can recommend the Pyro. Not least because of game mode.
Martin Jud
Senior Editor
martin.jud@digitecgalaxus.chI find my muse in everything. When I don’t, I draw inspiration from daydreaming. After all, if you dream, you don’t sleep through life.
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