CM Storm Trigger Z Keyboard Review

Conclusion

The movement away from membrane style gaming keyboards towards mechanical ones, and therefore the prevalence of Cherry MX switches is extremely good for the consumer and not much fun for us.

In a lot of ways it’s the same as the ubiquitous Omron+Avago 9800 mouse issue. When the underlying hardware is the same, in this case Cherry MX switches in every mechanical keyboard available, then the feel in use will be identical across a raft of products and thus the only reason to choose one over another is brand loyalty, additional features, and price.

Brand loyalty is almost certainly the biggest reason as to why most people would choose a certain model over another. If you have a CM Storm mouse it makes perfect sense to have a keyboard from the same company. Whilst only Roccat harmonise the keyboard and mouse in software, there is still something nice about having the same logo on your peripherals. Additional features of the Trigger Z are largely the 64-key rollover and the 5 dedicated macro keys to the left of the main 105. Although the Trigger Z isn’t the first keyboard to provide some macro keys separate from the main keyboard, the ease of assigning things to them with the software certainly puts them a cut above many offerings we’ve seen.

Finally there is price. Nearly all high-end mechanical gaming keyboards are over the £100 mark, so it is a score for the CM Storm Trigger Z that it’s only £90. Given that the build quality of the chassis is extremely robust, the software easy to use, an included wrist rest to save you from the dreaded RSI and the bombproof reliability of the Cherry switches, the price seems even more of a bargain.

In fact the only downside we can think of is that the lighting colour is reliant upon the colour of switch you’ve chosen, which is a minor niggle at absolute best. Great build quality, the delight of Cherry switches and a very competitive price mean that the CM Storm Trigger Z wins our OC3D Gold Award.

     

Thanks to CM Storm for supplying the Trigger Z for review. Discuss your thoughts in the OC3D Forums.