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Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum review — Romer-G done right
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Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum review — Romer-G done right

by June 5, 2016
Positives

+ Low profile looks appeal to just about anyone
+ Huge grippy feet keep the G810 Orion Spectrum planted on any desk
+ Romer-G offer faster actuation and also shorter maximum travel distance
+ Sturdy build quality
+ Excellent dedicated media controls and volume control scroll
+ Logitech Gaming Software offers an easy way of customizing the keyboard

Negatives

- Cable is non-detachable; no cable management features

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Pokde Rating
Appearance
9.0
Features
9.0
Materials
8.0
Performance
5.0
Portability
7.0
Value
9.0
Bottom Line

The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum is a great RGB keyboard featuring the exclusive Romer-G switches which offer excellent performance and also superb RGB illumination.

7.8
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We have reviewed the Logitech G310 Atlas Dawn, which was a great looking keyboard but not really any good otherwise. I did not hate on the Romer-G switches in the Logitech G310 Atlas Dawn, but rather the overall experience of using the keyboard left me wanting more from the Swiss company. I knew Logitech can do better with their exclusive Romer-G switches, and here we are with the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum.

 

Unboxing

Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum-16

The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum features a simple packaging, with liberal use of blue, pretty standard for Logitech. The front features a top-down view of the keyboard and almost nothing else.

Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum-1

Flipping it over to take a peek at the underside, big highlight points about the exclusive Romer-G switches, customizable RGB lighting capable of 16.8 million colors and also the media control are found.

Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum-2

Opening it, I found another box inside the outer packaging. The inner packaging is plain black, pretty appropriate since there is no point printing anything here where it will not be seen by potential buyers.

Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum-3

Finally after opening this box, I laid my eyes on the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum, wrapped in clear plastic. A reusable fabric sleeve would have been preferable here, but since this isn’t really meant for LAN parties with its huge size and what not, it is forgivable.

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And the complete contents of the package. There isn’t much to see here.

 

Appearance

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The keyboard looks pretty standard, except being deeper than many keyboards due to the extension above the F keys. The flat black finishing here looks awesome. Also notable is the departure from the multi-faceted keycaps used in the G310 Atlas Dawn (thank God!) for more conventional cylindrical keycaps. When not backlit, the legends are silver, which improves the visibility wtih the backlight off.

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Under the keyboard, HUUUGEEE rubber grip pads are found. The entire bottom surface feature grooves that seem to serve no function except to improve aesthetics, but I am not complaining here. No cable routing channels are found here.

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The edges of the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum are glossy, contrasting the matte finishing on the top and bottom of the keyboard. Here on the right we see the G810 label done really nicely, with the text in matte on the glossy background. Generally glossy surfaces will mean more maintenance, but Logitech placing them on the edges actually increases the appeal while reducing the need for frequent cleaning as no one really touches the edges of keyboards.

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The USB cord exits the keyboard from the top edge of the keyboard, biased to the right side. A thick stress relief here protects the cable from damage and the sleeved cabling improves durability. The connector isn’t gold-plated, but the grip is pretty nicely done with an engraved keyboard symbol on one side, and the Logitech Gaming “G” logo on the other.

In general, the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum definitely targets a different group of consumers. While the Logitech G310 Atlas Dawn and to a certain degree, the Logitech G910 Orion Spark, target gamers who prefer a more garish appearance to make sure that anyone looking at their keyboard will know they are a “gamer”, the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum targets a wider spectrum, if you may. The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum would look right at home on an office desk or a gamer’s table.

 

Specifications

Body material Plastic, with metal backplate
Keycap Laser engraved ABS keycaps
USB report rate 1000 Hz
Switch type Romer-G
Microprocessor N/A
Cable 1.8m, non-detachable, sleeved
Weight 1180 g (w/o cable)
Included accessories Quick start guide, warranty information

 

User Experience

The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum is quite hefty. The official specifications lists the weight at 1180 grams, but that is without the cable, which means you will be carrying more than that when you lug it around in a bag. With that said, this is a full length keyboard with a non-removable cable, which means it wasn’t really meant for the road anyway.

The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum’s cable leaves the keyboard from the top edge of the keyboard. I believe it won’t affect most gamers with desktop PCs, but as I use a laptop on a rather cramped desk, it gets in the way and pushes against my laptop’s edge. I hope Logitech will make their next keyboard with the cable under the keyboard with cable routing channels for better cable management. Detachable or not, that is not really an issue here, really.


The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum features not one, but two flippy feet on each side to raise the keyboard by 4° or 8°, respectively, giving a total of three levels of tilt, including no tilt at all. The flippy feet feature slim strips of rubber, but sufficed for all practical purposes as it didn’t slide around my table at all, even with furious key spams during intense gaming sessions or rage-fueled typing. The huge rubber feet here also helped to keep it planted on my desk.

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As mentioned already, the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum feature their exclusive Romer-G switches. I didn’t really care for them in the G310 Atlas Dawn, but here I think I may start falling in love with them. Every keypress on the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum feels solid, unlike on the G310 Atlas Dawn. This can be attributed to the metal backplate incorporated into the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum, which the G310 Atlas Dawn sorely lacked. I really enjoyed typing and gaming on the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum. The faster actuation can be important to some, but I didn’t actually notice the difference. Much more apparent was the shorter travel distance as well as the lower noise levels upon bottoming out when compared with standard Cherry MX switches. Shorter travel distance means less fatigue, while lower noise levels simply mean you won’t annoy the guy sitting next to you, or the person you are gaming with when you are using open mic. Seriously guys, no one wants to hear you clicky keys. We have our own.

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Romer-G switches were also developed with more than just pure performance in mind; it was developed so that Logitech can produce RGB keyboards while Corsair was hogging all the Cherry MX RGB switches. Each switch actually feature a lens that combines and focuses the RGB light. The focused light will pass through the legends smack dab in the center of the keys, unlike in the case of backlit Cherry MX switches which have the LED offset and also often uneven backlighting of the legends. As the light is focused to pass through the legends, there is also no glow effect around the keys.


When we talk about RGB keyboards, we must definitely consider the customizability. Logitech Gaming Software is in charge of this and offers several cool modes, including a nice reactive mode where you can set separate backlight colors when the keys are pressed and also when the keys are at rest. You can even select large swathes of the keyboard to configure the lighting faster. Aside from customizing the lighting, you can also reprogram the F keys with macros or other functions, and also link them to profiles so that they only activate when a certain game or application is running. Pretty nifty stuff. The gaming mode also offers the option of choosing which keys to disable when gaming mode is active via the dedicated button.

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Media controls on the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum are pretty much as good as it gets. A volume scroller, dedicated buttons for play,pause, next, previous and even a mute button. Over on the left of the media controls are two more buttons. The button with the joystick legend activates the gaming mode, while the one with the legend that looks like the sun toggles the backlighting.

 

Conclusion

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The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum is extra appealing to me simply because of its minimalistic design. While the Romer-G switches were great, the design of the G310 Atlas Dawn and G910 Orion Spark limited their target demographic to those 1337gaymers. The G310 Atlas Dawn also featured a plasticky feel, leaving a bad impression for the switches which are actually pretty great. I believe the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum is suitable for anyone, irregardless if you are a gamer or not. If you are a gamer, you will benefit from the gamer-centric features like fast actuation and short travel distance, but if you aren’t, you will also enjoy the short travel distance and relatively quiet keys. The quality of the RGB backlighting on the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum is definitely the nicest I have seen yet, but then that is what you would expect from a keyboard built with switches that were designed from the ground up to show off RGB illumination. Couple that with the great build quality here, and Logitech have themselves a winner.

Pricing wise, the RRP at launch was a steep RM799, but can now be gotten for as low as RM631 on Lelong.com.my. The pricing is pretty inline with other keyboards featuring Cherry MX RGB switches. Personally, I find the Romer-G switches to be a perfectly valid alternative to Cherry MX switches, and even has a few advantages over them. Therefore, I award the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum a Gold Pokdeward!

Pokde-Gold

About The Author
Vyncent Chan
Technology enthusiast, casual gamer, pharmacy graduate. Strongly opposes proprietary standards and always on the look out for incredible bang-for-buck.

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