Review of mechanical gaming keyboard Logitech G413 Carbon / Overclockers.ua

An interesting trend can be traced in the history of the development of Logitech mechanical keyboard lines. The first models looked like colorful spacecraft control panels – with a non-standard design, many additional keys, wheels and light bulbs. A striking example of this is the G710+, G910 or G410. Then the company moved on to a more classic and restrained design – the G610, G810 and PRO saw the light of day. And finally, in the final, or rather, in the current product range, the “skeletons” G413 and G513 appeared, representing the pinnacle of practicality and minimalism. Such an evolution cannot but please “conservatives” like me, and since these models have finally reached our steppes, let me tell you more about them. And the subject of this review will be the Logitech G413 Carbon keyboard.

Specifications

Contents of delivery

The product packaging is dominated by black color and the text is in blue and white font. On the front of the box there is an image and the name of the keyboard, in addition, the type of switches used and the presence of Russian engraving are mentioned here. Specifications are given on one of the sides of the box, and the four main advantages of this device are listed in textual and graphical form on the back.

There are practically no dampers in the package, not counting the cardboard inserts at the bottom and top. A plastic bag is provided to protect against moisture and dust.

The delivery set includes concise instructions for use, a sheet with information about the warranty, 12 interchangeable “gaming” keycaps with a specific surface relief and a plastic key for dismantling the caps.

Appearance

The main design element of the Logitech G413 is the one-piece metal plate of the top panel, made from ground 5052 aircraft-grade aluminum alloy. In addition to its elegant appearance, its thickness of 1.5 mm is enough to give the product close to absolute strength. Nothing creaks, flexes or staggers even with the most intensive use. The key mechanisms sit on top of this base plate, making it easy to remove all keycaps and quickly clean the surface of the device. In general, all the advantages of the “skeleton” are here on the face.

The keyboard layout is slightly non-standard. In addition to the fact that the F1 key is shifted to the left above the number “2”, a combination of schemes from ANSI and ISO standards is used here. In particular, the long Shift keys are borrowed from the first, and the double-row narrowed Enter from the second. Game lovers will definitely like this option. Thick Latin and thin Cyrillic engraving is applied close to the center of the keys and located diagonally from each other. In principle, this option is not bad, the symbols are well highlighted and do not merge with each other.

Keycaps are standard, with a cylindrical recess. But for connoisseurs of beauty, Logitech has included 12 spare specific tactile caps with trapezoidal edges inclined inwards. I didn’t like them on the G910, and now nothing has changed. You can replace the numbers from 1 to 5, and the buttons Q, W, E, R, A, S and D.

The digital and pointer block is standard. An engraved G logo is located in the upper right corner. The indicators are oval, there are only two of them and they are located above the Num Lock key. The first indicates that Caps Lock is on, and the second indicates that the game mode is activated, which disables user-defined keys to prevent accidental activation.

The keyboard uses Logitech Romer-G mechanical tactile switches (custom made by Omron). By the nature of the operation, they are similar to Cherry MX Brown – at the activation point, the user feels a small return, the mechanisms work quite quietly. The peak force required to press the button is only 45 grams. The activation height of the keys is 1.5 mm, the full travel is 3.2 mm. The MTBF for these mechanisms is stated at around 70 million operations. It’s no secret that the main goal of introducing Romer-G was to improve the quality of the backlighting of the keys, thanks to the location of the LED lens exactly in the middle. Of the obvious shortcomings, they can only be distinguished by very thin mounting legs on the caps. The caps themselves are made of ABS plastic, painted black. The stabilizer mechanisms are good, they are hidden behind the thrust plate. All long keys are pressed evenly and without distortions.

The overall height of the keyboard is small. It is convenient enough to use without a palm rest.

The sides and base of the case are made of plastic. Folding legs allow you to change the angle of the device, if necessary. In profile, the rows of keys have a slight slope towards the center, in order to improve ergonomics.

The cord is fixed in the keyboard case on the right side, at the entry point it is equipped with a massive kink protection.

In addition, on the right side of the back there is one pass-through USB 2.0 port, into which you can easily connect a flash drive or a mouse connector by touch.

The signal cable is massive, but, despite this, quite flexible. It is completely wrapped in nylon braid. The total length of the cord is 1.8 meters, towards the end it is divided into two connectors. One of them is used to connect the keyboard itself, and the second – to provide a pass-through USB port. The corresponding pictograms are printed on the connectors themselves.

The base of the keyboard has a relief in the form of diagonal stripes, and the grooves in them are glossy. Five large rubber feet are glued in the corners and in the center. There is also a sticker with a serial number, next to which lies one straight and one U-shaped channel. Theoretically, they are needed for laying a cable, for example, from headphones, but in practice it is unlikely that even the thinnest cord can be fixed here.

The legs unfold to the sides with a proud click and add 16 mm to the height of the keyboard, while simultaneously increasing the angle of its inclination. It makes sense to lay them out if the level of the table is higher than the user’s elbows. Elastic bands are glued on the supporting edges of the legs.

The keyboard has single-color backlighting of all keys and LEDs with five fixed brightness levels. Depending on the model, the backlighting can be rich red (if the color of the keyboard is Carbon) or bright white (for the color of the Silver case). The backlight perfectly copes with its main function and all both Latin and Cyrillic characters are well read both in the light and in the dark. The Caps Lock and Game Mode LEDs are also clearly visible and won’t dazzle your eyes in low light.

Functionality

Basically, the Logitech G413 is designed to work with a driver, however, even without installing software, it supports some settings in combination with the Fn key. We have shown in the table below the functions that we were able to reproduce.

Software

The Logitech G413 keyboard can use two types of software – Logitech Gaming Software or Logitech G Hub. We will consider the capabilities of the latest, version 2018.10.3041, since it is the most relevant today for new products. It supports full import of settings from LGS, without reinstalling, you can select any of 20 languages, select the current profile, configure settings for auto-launching the application, backlight activity and transferring data about your usage.

On the start screen, you can switch your profile, get into the program settings, view up-to-date information about updates, or register in the program. From here you can also download the most popular profiles or visit the official website of the company. To go to the device settings, you need to click on its image.

All profiles are configured with reference to the current active application.

This is what the registration window looks like.

In the backlight synchronization settings, you can choose the mode of completely turning off the glow, constant backlighting with a certain brightness, breathing mode, or, most interestingly, the sound visualization mode in which the keyboard diodes will blink to the beat of the current sound track. Individual customization of each key is not supported.

Only function keys from F1 to F12 are available for remapping. You can hang any necessary action on them, including macros. They will work without pressing Fn. There is also a G-Shift mode that allows you to set alternative commands to the same buttons that will be executed while holding a certain key. In addition, there is access to a very convenient and logical macro editor.

In the game mode settings, you can select the keys that will be disabled when this mode is activated. Unfortunately, there is no way to disable keyboard shortcuts like Alt+F4 or Alt+Tab.

Ergonomics and testing

The Logitech G413 is a very simple and easy to use keyboard. The low height of the case allows you not to get tired of it even without a palm rest. The keyboard body is firmly attached to the table, both with the legs unfolded and with the legs folded. Thanks to the metal plate, the device withstands any blows of fate without deflection. Its high rigidity contributes to improved tactile sensations, both when typing and in active games. Although the key layout is not the most standard, there are no problems getting used to it. Only avid CS: GO players can have problems, who sometimes press F2 instead of F1. For those who know the touch typing technique, it will be enough just to put their hands on the keyboard and they will remember everything themselves, without adaptation. Romer-G tactile switches also contribute to the pleasure of typing, which allow you to accurately determine by touch the moment the mechanisms actuate. All long keys have excellent stabilization.

Separately, it is worth noting that the case and keyboard keys are easily cleaned of dirt. And the built-in USB port is easy to grope blindly.

The backlight does its job perfectly, all characters are read without problems, both in the dark and in the light. Due to the specific design of the keys, there is practically no stray light on the background under the caps.

Logitech software has undergone a number of positive changes, both in terms of graphic design and functionality. G Hub, while not yet out of testing, looks and works a lot better.

Anti-ghosting in this keyboard is supported in the form of any combination of 26 keys pressed simultaneously in an arbitrary combination. This is certainly not the cherished NKRO, but it will be enough even if you use the device in four hands at the same time.

Results

The Logitech G413 is the benchmark for what I think a gaming keyboard should be. Simple, reliable, with a minimal but sufficient set of functions. The G413 has a very solid metal skeleton body, fast Romer-G mechanical switches that provide not only precise actuation but excellent character illumination, support for 26 rollovers, and a USB port in case something needs to be connected quickly. to PC. All this is complemented by intuitive software. The only thing missing is a palm rest, but this moment has already been fixed in the G513, which we also hope to see sometime in our testing.

The Logitech G413 mechanical keyboard has no visible flaws, and can be recommended as one of the best devices in its class for those who do not need RGB lighting and other frills. Let me remind you that there are two lighting options to choose from – red in the color of the Carbon body and white in the color of Silver. In addition, before buying, it is worth flipping the switches on this device to determine if they suit your tactile sensations.