Razer today announced three new mechanical keyboards designed to revive the DeathStalker series from a decade ago. But unlike the original DeathStalker, which was close to the feel of a notebook’s membrane keys, the V2, V2 Pro and V2 Pro Tenkeyless have switched to thin optical mechanical key shafts, which promise to be more durable, more tactile and more responsive than the old models.
DeathStalker V2 Pro Wireless
The full-size DeathStalker V2 Pro with wireless design is now available for $249.99 (about 1692 RMB), while the other two models will have to wait until the third quarter of this year.
The DeathStalker V2 Pro Tenkeyless also features a wireless design, but cuts out the numeric keypad for a compact form factor, and is priced at $219.99 (about RMB 1489).
Then there’s the DeathStalker V2 with a full-size layout + wired design for $199.99 (~1353 RMB).
DeathStalker V2 wired model
All three of these keyboards are available with RAZER’s own Clicky or linear low-profile optical key shafts, which have a lifespan of up to 70 million cycles (slightly less than Cherry’s 100 million nominal).
In theory, optical key shafts can help reduce input latency by reducing the “de-jittering latency” of traditional mechanical key shafts. For wireless SKUs, there is also the option to connect via Bluetooth, or the included 2.4GHz USB adapter.
The Bluetooth option can save connection information for up to three devices, while the HyperSpeed wireless adapter offers lower latency performance – officially claiming a high polling rate of 1000Hz with less than 1-ms latency.
DeathStalker V2 Pro TKL Wireless Compact
For reference, Corsair’s Slipstream wireless solution offers a polling rate of 2000Hz and is theoretically more responsive.
In terms of battery life, the Razer DeathStalker V2 Pro / V2 Pro TKL has 40 / 50 hours of battery life respectively.
