ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile Review – It Has No Business Being This Good

Unboxing the ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile

Starting off our ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile review with the unboxing, it comes in a long box with the brand’s signature black and red color scheme with all the product details listed around the box. I figured given the white color scheme of the keyboard, they would have made a special exception but understandably, they have to keep the branding consistent as much as possible. Inside the box, you can find the following items:

• ROG Omni receiver
• USB extender
• 2 meter USB-C to USB-A cable (braided)
• Protective cover
• ROG stickers
• Documentations
• The ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile keyboard itself

Specifications

Body Material:	Aluminum top plate with plastic base, two-layer silicone foam
Form factor:	65% in a 60% frame, 26.5mm slim profile
RGB:	Yes, per-key RGB lighting, AURA Sync
Keycap:	ROG UV-coated ABS keycaps
USB report rate:	1000Hz
Switch Type:	ROG RX Red Low-Profile Optical Switch (pre-lubed) 1mm actuation point, 40g initial force, 55g total force
KRO:	N-key rollover with anti-ghosting
Anti-ghosting:	Yes
Connectivity:	USB 2.0 (Type-C to Type-A) ROG SpeedNova via ROG Omni Receiver (RF 2.4GHz) Bluetooth 5.1 Windows and Mac supported
Memory:	Yes, up to 6 profiles, including up to 5 custom schemes
Cable:	2m braided cable, detachable, USB
Dimensions	306 x 110 x 26.5 mm, 595g

Key Rollover Test

For our KRO test, we managed to get a whopping 35 keys detected at once via Aqua’s Keytest. Realistically, you’d only be pressing about 3 to 4 keys simultaneously at most so this figure is certainly overkill for most users. In other words, don’t worry about the NKRO, you’ll have more than enough for you to use.

Looking for a more conventional keyboard experience that is also wireless without being too big? Check out our ASUS ROG Strix Scope II 96 Wireless review by clicking right here.

The Good

There are a number of good reasons to consider getting the ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile. For starters, it works great right out of the box. There are no modification or tweaking needed to get it at its best, and the switches are already pre-lubed at the factory. Sure, you can always lubricate it yourself but I would save that for later. The ROG RX low-profile switches used here is linear, quiet and satisfying to use with its speedy debounce and height making it feel like your effortlessly gliding across. Its ideal for typing and gaming given the low travel distance and it’s also surprisingly really quiet, being 60-70% quieter than the ROG Azoth with its NX Red switches.

While I’m typically in favor of PBT keycaps over ABS, I do like the UV-coated ABS keycaps used in the ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile keyboard. It has a soft touch to the fingers and comes with a pleasant sound as opposed to it being hollow and cheap. It also helps that the RGB lighting shines through them well. It’s like a treat for your fingers, ears, and eyes at the same time. With that being said however, this is not intended for those who prefer the thocky sound profiles found in most popular custom builds nowadays.

Like the nature of the keyboard, it’s intended for those who prefer something low-profile. The design itself would make it fitting for those looking for a minimalist keyboard, but the RGB lighting would make it seem anything other than minimalist, but that can be disabled. My only worry is its longevity as ABS keycaps tend to wear out after a while whereas PBT keycaps could go on for long. Once it wears out, I’m not sure if it’s easy to purchase replacement keycaps from ASUS or even aftermarket options for it.

One major attraction point with this keyboard is that it’s really compact. In fact, it’s a 65% keyboard in a chassis that’s typically found on the smaller 60% keyboards. Adding its low-profile nature further adds to its compactness. Admittedly, this did bring me issues in using it at first as I tend to overextend my fingers to certain keys, resulting in a lot of typos but that remedied itself over time as I got used to it. In fact, it feels like I use less energy to type with this compared to most keyboards. Its compact size makes it easy if you want to bring this around, especially since ASUS included a protective cover that is basically a hard plastic shell.

If there ever was something you would want to get used to, it’s the shortcuts involving the Fn key. Given its size, I’m sure you realize that it’s missing a lot of keys, like F1 to F12 most notably but with the Fn key, the entire number row becomes those missing F keys. Furthermore, you also have access to a bunch of other shortcuts like media keys, changing to different Bluetooth devices, checking the battery life, and more. Simply put, the Fn key is your best friend here and it opens up to a ton of things you can do, not only ensuring that you don’t miss out by using a smaller keyboard but also giving you extras while you’re at it.

Speaking of shortcuts, there is one major feature that feels like a gimmick at first but I fell in love with it instantly; the interactive touch panel. It’s located on the opposite side of where the USB-C port, power switch, and mode switch are, and it basically lets you adjust the volume, media track, and keyboard brightness by default. However,. you can also assign a custom function on it over 3 specific gestures; swipe left, swipe right, and tap. I’m not gonna be overdramatic and say I can’t live without it, but it adds another layer of convenience and for a keyboard of this size, it’s a godsend.

There are 3 different ways for you to use the ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile; USB, 2.4GHz wireless via the ROG OMNI receiver, and Bluetooth 5.1. This gives you versatility in how you want to use the keyboard, as you can easily connect it to smartphones and tablets if you wish. While you won’t be able to tell the difference with USB and 2.4GHz wireless, you may occasionally face a small bit of delays with Bluetooth, but that’s just limitations with the technology. Whenever you’re not using the 2.4GHz connection, you can easily store the dongle in the magnetic storage hole in the rear.

Given how light and small this keyboard is, you might be thinking that it would have a bad battery life as they would have sacrificed battery capacity to keep it this way. According to ASUS, it can go up to 430 hours over 2.4GHz wireless. Normally, I would give my own input on what sort of battery life I would get, and from the initial full charge as soon as I received this all the way to the end of the 3rd week of using, I’ve yet to have it die on me. This is also with RGB lighting set to the Rainbow effect at 25% brightness, which is insane to think about. It lasts long enough that I can’t get a proper figure by the time I had to write this review.

Lastly, it’s compatible with Mac OS. There is a mode switch right next to the power switch which allows it to be used in either Mac or Windows layouts. You can technically use either switch for either operating systems but basically, the Windows key will result in different actions as the Macs have the Cmd key.

The Bad

As good as the ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile is, it has its fair share of drawbacks. For starters, we have the Armoury Crate software, which certainly needs improvements. Being bombarded with updates before you can even customize anything is kind of annoying. Like most of my ROG peripherals, I tend to only update it once, and then proceed to never use the software ever again. In this specific case, you only really need to use if you’re pairing the ROG OMNI receiver with other products, for firmware updates, and to properly customize it at least once. Once everything is set, you can skip it afterwards.

Next up, while I find the keyboard mostly comfortable in terms of size and is mostly a matter of getting used to it, there is one thing I’ve yet to get used to and that is the size of the shift key. To be precise, the right shift key, which is about half the length of the left shift key. Even after my accuracy has improved dramatically after a couple of weeks, I find myself still accidentally pressing the “/” key instead of shift given the smaller size. I understand that this might not be something that can be fixed given size limitations, but it’s a pain point that I’m sure many will face with this keyboard.

Lastly, and this shouldn’t be a surprise, is that the ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile is pricey. It’s currently retailing for RM800, with the cheapest I’ve found online thus far being RM756. Sure, it might not be the most expensive ROG keyboard, and it pales in comparison to a lot of custom builds out there, but RM800 is still quite the investment to make. To me, it’s worth getting as you’re getting a pretty solid keyboard, and options for a low-profile wireless gaming keyboard is quite limited as is. Logitech’s version feels outdated at this point since it still uses microUSB, so this is practically your only good, up-to-date option around.

ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile Verdict

The ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile is a big surprise, not just by how good it is but how good ASUS managed to make a low-profile keyboard feel and perform. If I ever need to buy a mechanical keyboard, especially a wireless one, and I don’t want to go the custom route in any form or fashion, I would go for this with absolutely zero hesitations. At RM800, it’s not cheap but given what you’re getting, it’s worth every cent. Just keep in mind that low-profile isn’t meant for everyone.

At the end of our ASUS ROG Falchion RX Low Profile review, I award this mechanical keyboard with our coveted Gold Pokdeward.

Big thanks to ASUS Malaysia for sending us this gaming mouse for the purpose of this review.