ASUS ROG Falchion Ace HFX Keyboard Review
Conclusion
Conclusion
Evolution is important. We all might enjoy a revolution, or in the current global climate dream of one, but evolution is the way things improve. Just ask Darwin. Or, we suppose, these days just ask AI programmers. The ASUS ROG Falchion Ace HFX is an evolution of an excellent 65% keyboard we looked at a few years ago.
Sliding Into Home
Back then the slider was on the side. Given how tiny a 65% keyboard already is that made it fiddly. Plus it was the first version so it was a bit dopey too. By moving it around the back of the Ace HFX, and redesigning it generally, it’s become a masterpiece. We see many unique takes on hardware here at OC3D, and almost without question they’re underutilised and impersonal. Every game could, theoretically, control your RGB to give live feedback, but only MK11, Hitman, Truck Simulator and a handful of others do. None of them can be setup to your liking.
The bar on the Falchion though, you get four really useful presets and one customisable option. Being able to set it up in the way that you want, to do the thing you want, is so freeing. We’re amazed more companies don’t give us this option. After all, when you’ve spent X million dollars in R&D it seems foolish to limit its use.
Switcheroo
The ROG HFX (magnetic Hall Effect) switches allow for a few tricks. The Rapid Trigger mode lets the keyboard realise the moment you start to lift off a key and cancel it immediately. Perfect if you need to stop in a hurry. Whilst the Speed Tap is potentially game breaking in certain titles, which is why it has its own paragraph below. To compare the HFX switches it’s probably best to think of them as CherryMX Reds. They’re linear, have zero bumps, dents or anything. Plus their actuation pressure and bouncebackability is very much on a par with those switches.
Where the ROG ones win is the same place the Wooting switches and other non-standard ones do, in that you can customise the actuation distance. If you’re the type who prefers your fingers to barely touch the key, you can set it up like that. If, on the other hand, you hit them hard and grow weary of accidentally inputting keystrokes, you can move the actuation point further down and save a lot of headaches.
Caution
The major caveat we have to bring up, and one that needs emphasising in its own paragraph, is to do with the Speed Tap. Being able to have a keyboard automatically realise you’ve pressed two conflicting keys, and this prioritise the newest one, is perfect for high skill FPS games and the like. Indeed it might be the difference between successfully strafing and being dead. Most competitive shooters have already implemented detection bans for this feature. If you don’t want to lose your Counter Strike account, remember to turn it off.
Final Thoughts
There is a lot of cool stuff built into the diminutive form of the ASUS ROG Falchion Ace HFX. You’re paying a steep price for them, but they’re worth it. The magnetic switches are a joy to use, on a par with the smoothest ones out there. Whilst the Rapid Trigger and Speed Tap might be tailored towards high-skill gamers, they also might be just enough to bring you success. Those milliseconds can be all the difference sometimes. We like that ASUS let us pick a side for the cable, and particularly like that we can control our laptops and main rigs from one keyboard. The redesigned slider is the real star. It’s easy to use, easy to customise and has far more scope than you might first imagine.
The combination of all these elements are enough to win the ASUS ROG Falchion Ace HFX our OC3D Innovation Award. We’d love to see a full size version.
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