The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum features a beautiful design philosophy and slick full-spectrum lighting, but how does it perform? Read our review to find out.

We put the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum mechanical keyboard through the paces, disarming bombs in Counter-Strike, tapping our way through The Walking Dead: Michonne, performing transcription duties, and even macroing our way through Photoshop and Lightroom. The keyboard stood up to the task and then some, providing an elegant software setup, consistent functionality, and a slick design philosophy that favors 'performance driven design' over flair, a decision far removed from the Logitech G19 of years ago. In short, it was a good decision.

Anything with 'Spectrum' in the title must have plenty of lighting options, and the Orion Spectrum doesn't disappoint here. Fans of colorful options will find no shortage of solutions thanks to the Logitech Gaming Software, which provides users with myriad color profile selections. This includes the ability to create color profiles for different programs, allowing the keyboard to automatically change its lighting setup depending on what program happens to be open.

Users can also set up their lighting options by individual key profiles, or even enjoy some RGB color waves in multiple directions. Each key has its own individual light source capable of the entire color spectrum, with no visible color spill pouring in from the keypads' LED onto adjacent keys. It goes without saying that this is a beautiful keyboard, though the lighting is only part of the beauty behind the keyboard.

When focusing on the all important mechanical switch, the Orion Spectrum plays host to Logitech's own in-house Romer-G switch as opposed to the popular third-party Cherry Browns. The Romer-G switch boasts a tight actuation distance of 1.5mm, allowing for an estimated 25% faster keypress than other popular switches on the gaming market. We found the Romer-G more than sufficient in our testing, and the rest of the keypads felt quite adequate as well. According to Logitech, the Romer-G switch is 40% more durable than a standard mechanical switch. On our end, we put it through the paces, and it performed admirably.

Since the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum is minimalist in function gamers won't find any extra macro keys on the board itself. To satisfy the need for custom key functions, the Logitech Gaming Software is capable of mapping different function keys as different commands, which is an ingenious alternative to adding more physical keys. Gamers can easily make set weapon purchases in Counter-Strike or save a few clicks in Photoshop with this setup, and all without changing up the de facto keyboard layout, though this means it isn't a board for those looking for additional physical buttons.

Here's the specifications at a glance:

  • Full spectrum RGB backlighting for each key
  • Mechanical switch actuation of 1.5mm, tested for 70 million clicks
  • Easy-access media control
  • Programmble function keys
  • A design that favors functionality over flair
  • 26-key rollover
  • Three-step angle adjustment

Though the focus of the keyboard is to avoid excessive features, it does have a few unobtrusive system buttons on the top right: a scroll wheel adjusts volume, a master button that toggles all of the backlights, and the standard play/pause type buttons that exist to easily control media. Unlike the rest of the keyboard, these buttons give a very loud 'click' sound not in line with the rest of the mechanical buttons. The lack of a USB pass-through is one of the few downfalls of the keyboard's truly minimalist nature, as one might feel including a USB slot on the side of the keyboard itself wouldn't have been a large sacrifice to the design.

In terms of durability, the matte black design seems to do well to ward off fingerprints, and as one would expect, the USB cable itself is braided to prevent undue wear-and-tear. The bottom of the keyboard features large rubber pads which easily prevent the board from shifting, and gamers can also adjust the incline of their keyboard if they see fit. Whether users are hammering away on the keyboard or delicately typing, the G810 seems to pick up on everything regardless of sensitivity, and the switches themselves have been stress-tested to give them a lifespan of about 70 million clicks.

Though it comes in at a hefty $159.99, we found the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum to be one a solid mechanical keyboard without any unnecessary flair. Users looking for more additional features, though, may want to check out the Logitech G910, which features more bells and whistles for a small price boost. The G810 is a keyboard for users looking for a minimalist keyboard layout bundled with great software, superb build quality, and a 2 year Logitech warranty to back it up.

The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum is available now for $159.99. Interested readers can read more about it here.