CORSAIR K70 vs K70 MAX: What’s the difference?

The CORSAIR K70 MAX is our newest addition to the K70 lineup of gaming keyboards. It’s a full-size, premium, mechanical gaming keyboard. However, we’ve made a lot of those, so what sets it apart from the rest of them? Let’s take a closer look and see what’s new.

The biggest change between the K70 MAX and previous K70 boards is the implementation of our all-new CORSAIR MGX key switches. With the older K70 PRO RGB you had the choice of Cherry MX Red, Blue, or Brown, in addition to our own OPX switches (Region dependent).

However, the MGX switches available on the K70 MAX are a little more special. These are magnetic, which creates many advantages over traditional key switch design.

Instead of actuating when two copper pieces make contact, there’s a sensor at the bottom that tracks how close the magnet in the stem is. As the key moves down, the magnet gets closer to the sensor. When it reaches a pre-determined distance, the key is actuated.

Those of you keeping up might realize that moving away from a purely mechanical system toward a software-driven way of doing it creates the potential for some new fun. You’d be right, of course, as you can use iCUE to change the actuation distance (sometimes called pre-travel.) This can be set anywhere between 0.4 and 3.6mm in 0.1mm increments.

You can set the actuation point for every single key individually, too. Check out our full CORSAIR MGX key switches article for a more in-depth look at this new technology. For now, though, let’s take a look at what else sets the K70 MAX apart from its predecessors.

At first glance, the frame looks the same as the previous K70 RGB PRO and you’d be forgiven for failing to notice some changes, but we have updated it with some subtle touches that make for a more premium-looking gaming keyboard.

First up is the color. Where the previous K70 RGB PRO was a stealthy black, the CORSAIR K70 MAX has more of a gray graphite vibe. This makes it look a little more modern and a lot cooler. Additionally, the texture used to be horizontally brushed aluminum, now it’s a more even, diffuse texture, which as a bonus, repels fingerprints far more effectively.

Casting our eyes to the edges of the frame, we’ve now beveled the edges. The frame of the K70 RGB PRO neatly cut off at the edges, creating a sudden, aggressive shape. With the beveling of the edges of the K70 MAX, you get a more rounded edge and a peak at the shiny raw aluminum which creates a nice highlight, too.

Moving up to the forehead, we’ve added a bit of CORSAIR flair. Instead of plain aluminum, we’ve now etched a funky pattern of triangles, like the triangles you can see by looking closely at the grippy sections of a lot of our gaming mice, most recently the DARKSTAR and the NIGHTSABRE.

The included wrist rest is also a little more luxurious. The one included with the K70 RGB PRO, for example, was solid plastic. This was very supportive, but some customers wished for a more cushy solution. So, for the K70 MAX, we’ve included a memory foam wrist rest, which is just as supportive, but far softer to the touch.

Another way that we’ve made the feel of the keyboard better is the addition of two layers of dampening foam within the case. This helps to reduce the sound signature and create a softer physical sensation while typing.