Logitech G PRO Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Review

If you're a gamer and on the hunt for a new keyboard, you should check out the Logitech G PRO Mechanical Gaming Keyboard.

Published
Updated
Manufacturer: Logitech
16 minutes & 21 seconds read time
TweakTown's Rating: 98%
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The Bottom Line

Logitech G's PRO delivers everything you could possibly need is an sleek looking and compact package! Everything it tuned for performance down to the length of the switches, the input lag time, the aesthetic, and it even offers software with streaming ability built right in.

Introduction, Specifications, and Pricing

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If you happen to be in the market for a professional mechanical keyboard, there are so many options to choose from it would make your head spin. However, in the popularity of eSports and the craze that followed, just about every company slapped some secondary functionality, Macro keys, and fancy lighting on an existing design and called it sufficient. In most instances, for the home gamers out there, this type of product would suffice the grind you will put them through, but there are those that want more through, experience, and functionality from their devices as well. Something more akin to what the paid professional gamers would choose to use when it comes to their tournaments.

This is where Logitech steps into the picture. While many know Logitech for the affordable essential peripherals you can find in any major box store, over the last year or two, they have pushed to be a major player in the gaming scene, and have stepped up to support eSports teams like a few other companies have done as well. However, when the Logitech design team was tasked with releasing a professional gaming design to the masses, they stripped the keyboard down to just the essentials. In the minds of Logitech, they want to deliver what is needed to win the game, and nothing more. What this brings forth is a smaller, more compact keyboard which will fit in any space requirements, yet at the same time keeps the mouse closer to the keyboard as to inflict less fatigue on those who take gaming seriously.

While the Logitech G team is not new to the market, and have come up with some superb ideas in the past, the PRO Mechanical Gaming Keyboard is, and we feel that many gamers out there will appreciate its simplicity. This keyboard is a TKL, which means that the number pad has been removed, yet leaving the arrow keys for use by the left-handed crowd out here. With only a few of the most desired features currently available the clutter is kept to a minimum, but do not let the appearance and specifications fool you into a false sense of limitations of this design. Once you add in the Logitech Gaming Software in with the mix, the capabilities of this condensed design have more to offer than much full-sized and larger gaming keyboards. If you are serious about gaming, maybe have a lack of room for larger keyboards, or are just excited to see what is new in the world of mechanical gaming keyboards, we are firmly urging you to stick around and see what the PRO delivers.

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In the chart we borrowed from the Logitech G PRO product page, the left side of it covers a few things of interest. Not many will ever need to know that the PRO is also known by the 920-008290 product number, but Logitech disclosed it anyway. This keyboard is supported with a two-year warranty, which will cover failures or defects in quality. To run the software, you will need to have an operating system from Windows 7 or newer, but the keyboard by itself will work on any PC with a spare USB port. Another thing you will need, to take advantage of what the UI brings out in the PRO, is an internet connection to download it, as it does not ship in the box. Speaking of what does come in the box, we see that there is the PRO gaming keyboard, a keyboard data cable, and some user documentation.

Physically, the PRO is 153mm from front to back, it is 360mm from side to side, and without the feet extended, it is 34.3mm tall at the top of the key caps along the back edge. Without the cable incorporated in the measurement, the PROI weighs in at 2.2 pounds, and as to that cable, it is detachable, is 1.8 meters in length, and is covered in braided cloth sleeve. What is not explained here is that the color is black, and most of the PRO is made of plastic, which comes in two forms. There is a finely textured plastic used for the frame, but all sides around the PRO are polished and shiny.

The PROI is based on ROMER G switches with white plungers, and these are made exclusively for Logitech by Omron. Each switch boasts a seventy-million click lifespan, and are short throw, with just 1.5mm of total travel. Actuation force is at 45 grams, and the full length of the switches travel is 3mm instead of 4mm like many others. We also see that the connection for this device is handled with a USB 2.0 connector, and the PRO is also an RGB LED product. The last thing mentioned is that this keyboard also comes with programmable Function keys, to deliver ultimate control at your fingertips for any gaming situation.

When it comes to pricing out this product, we see the same price across the board. It does not matter if you want to buy this keyboard through the Logitech G store, or if you would rather, look to Amazon and Newegg for it instead. Every place has the PRO Mechanical Gaming Keyboard listed, asking $129.99, which is not too bad. However, if you prefer to use Newegg, you will have to potentially wait for stock to arrive, as currently the PRO is listed, but there are no parts to ship. While many of you are sitting there thinking you could buy a 104-key design with all sorts of added buttons for this cost, keep in mind, that very few of them have this level of software control. Nor do they think about what a gamer actually needs versus someone who spends just as much time doing data entry or conversing via social media. When it comes to a keyboard like the Logitech G PRO, it is easy to see where the investment has gone, as this mechanical keyboard may be small, but big things tend to come in small packages.

Chad's Peripherals Test System Specifications

Packaging, Accessories, and Documentation

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The front of the packaging for the PRO from Logitech G is backed with flat black but leaves all the room for a nearly life-sized image of the keyboard. In that image, we find the LEDS lit in an RGB spectrum, and we also see hints at multimedia keys as well as locks and a backlit logo.

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This smaller end of the box has a sticker in place to ensure it has not been tampered with. It is also used to display the specifications on the Romer-G switches and is the first time we see mention of the six onboard lighting profiles.

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One of the longer sides delivers the PRO name, and that it is a Tenkeyless Mechanical Gaming Keyboard, which is followed by an icon showing the Romer-G switches. This panel is also where you will find out what is required and what comes in the box, and further down the panel is a mention of the warranty period as well.

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Just like the blue lettering on the front of the box, this large PRO printed here is done with metallic lettering. While at first, it may appear to be typical printing, as the light hits it just right, the text nearly glows like a reflector.

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The second longer side of the box does not have much use for delivering vitals about the PRO keyboard. Here we find the Logitech G name, which again, is done with reflective letters.

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The back of the box may not be fancy with all sorts of images and explanations, but we do see quite the list of features here in the way they play shiny letters against the matte background. We also see that Logitech has a statement for such a product, and that is "One Purpose Play To Win."

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What we just saw is all contained in a thin layer of cardboard which surrounds the thicker cardboard box we see in this image. The PRO keyboard is wrapped in clear plastic that seals on the underside, and the literature and cable can be found in a niche formed in the bottom layer of cardboard to keep it from moving around. Our PRO was delivered in impeccable condition, and is ready for the abuse we will give it, not that of the courier.

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We have seen cables such as this on a few of the Logitech wireless mice, in fact, it is identical in every way. There is the USB 2.0 connection which plugs into the PC on the left, the cable is carefully packaged as not to kink the cable, and is bound with a strap to ease your travels. The cable is, of course, detachable, and has a Micro-USB connection between two tabs which help to relieve stress off the tiny connector.

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The literature is as basic as it can get too. The guide offered covers how to connect the cable to the PC and the PRO keyboard, and ends things with a link to go to grab the software. The other literature is there to help explain the warranty terms and is also a safety and compliance guide to keep you from getting hurt while using this product.

Logitech G PRO Mechanical Gaming Keyboard

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At the ground floor, we find the lower section of the frame to be concaved in shape to make it easy to grab the PRO. The sides of the enclosed frame are made of shiny plastic, and from this view, we see nothing of the switches or the LEDs. In this position, the first three rows of keys angle way from hands, and the top three rows are either level to the desk to slightly leaning towards the user.

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On top of the PRO, with its Tenkeyless design, we do not see all that much going on, but instead find a clean looking product that will fit well on anybody's desk. Using cylindrical keycaps, a clean and easy to read font, and a matte appearance, we like what we see.

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The F1 through F8 keys are all programmable via software but show no signs of secondary functionality. Here, though, we do find a full assortment of multimedia keys with their functions printed on the leading edge of these caps. Above those, we find the Caps Lock and Scroll Lock LEDs, a Game lockout button, and a button to turn on and off the LED backlighting.

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The right side of the PRO keyboard has its name proudly displayed on the shiny plastic surface. With the feet now extended, only the first row angles slightly away from the user, where all of the following rows of keys are angled for easier access to them.

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Dead center of the back edge of the PRO we find the port which accepts the detachable cable. There are deep holes to either side of the connecting point to accept the wings on the cable, and while this makes traveling with the PRO much easier, it will also be less likely to fail due to excess stress on the port.

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The bottom of the keyboard is not left unfinished either, as angled ribs are running across its width. We also find five generously sized rubber pads. The pads being this big will ensure that the PRO will not move around on you.

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The PRO comes equipped with two sets of feet on the back edge. The first step up is done with a foot that is 7.5mm from the frame, but keep in mind that the rubber pads are 1.5mm thick, so this only moves the back edge up 6mm.

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The second option is to use the large foot at the back edge, and this is 18mm in height. Factoring in the standard ride height, this raises the back edge 16.5mm to get those keycaps at their optimum angle.

Inside the PRO

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All of the keycaps use a 4-pin system to lock into the outer edges of the Romer-G switches, but for the longer caps, secondary support uses a typical Cherry MX pin. Each cap is made of an opaque shot of plastic into the mold, and once completed, the caps are coated in black and laser etched.

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Each of the Romer-G switches is open in the middle, which allows for the LED to be placed there, and they do not leak a bit of LED light out anywhere but through the legends on top of the caps. The torsion bars are internally housed, and in tiny letters, we found the Omron name on the angled section of the switch covers.

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The feet all have to come off, and a hole has to be poked in the sticker under the keyboard to allow the frame to be opened. In the top section, we see captured buttons for the Game lockout key and the LED switch, and there is a clear section to the right backing the G logo. The lower frame component uses one rib across the span in conjunction with raised cylindrical supports to keep the steel plate from flexing and vibrating.

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The PCB in the PRO is green, and there is no flux residue left on it. All of the solder points are clean, and we find no lack of quality control when it came to making this keyboard.

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This ultra-low power MCU we find in the PRO is the STM32L100R8T6. This is an ARM Cortex M3 processor which has a frequency of 32MHz and a maximum of 128 Kb of onboard storage.

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Before we button things back up with the PRO, we also flipped over the assembly to locate what switches back the Game Mode and LED buttons. Here we located them, but all we can say is they are black pad style switches with no name or identification on visible on them.

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Fully reassembled, we plugged the PRO into the PC and are greeted with a default pattern. Without messing about in software, the PRO's LEDs will be displayed in the full spectrum of colors as they scroll across the board from left to right. The logo will change color but is not in sync with the rest of the keyboard, but the lock indicator LEDs are always that light blue.

Logitech Gaming Software

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After installing the latest Logitech Gaming Software suite, which is 904 KB on disk, not including Overwolf, but that is just 194 MB in size, we are greeted with what is shown here. The PRO keyboard is on full display, and the buttons across the top are pulsing with blue light. If you click on one, you will jump ahead to the next tab, along the bottom of this window

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Along with the ability to choose from various programs on your hard drive which the software detects, you have a list of options at the left to drag onto any of the twelve Function keys. In this list of presets, there are sixty-nine options to choose from, and these will change dependent on what application may be selected at the top.

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Lighting is shown in real-time with the image of the keyboard at the top. On the left are the option to choose single keys, groups of keys, the entire collection of keys, and there is even a section for complete customization. The box at the right in certain modes will allow you to set up effects like the color wave, fixed color, breathing, star effect, color cycle, or key press. This is also where you can adjust its direction of travel and the rate in which the effects are displayed.

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The next option is to move into the Game Mode settings. By default, when used, it eliminates the function of the Windows key, the Function key, and the Menu key. However, in this tab, you can just click on any of the keys in the image, and if they are lit, they function, if they are gray, they do not.

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For those wondering how much they use individual keys or the amount of time each key is used, Logitech offers this Heat Map system. If for nothing else, this is an easy way to look at what you use for games and can be recorded on paper to help program the Game Mode too.

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Overwolf is now included with the software, and no longer requires a separate download to acquire. This is where you can go for apps, skins, utilities, chats, and most important to some, and a way to capture and stream your gaming content. There is the main page of Overwolf on display currently, but there is also a menu system which uses an OSD which we can see left of the large window.

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From the main window, if you click on the gear icon, the Setting menu appears. This allows you to control how the software reacts, is a place to update the firmware, allows control of which profile is the default, is how one addresses Arx Control for mobile connectivity and has information about the developer.

Gaming and General Impressions

DOOM & Battlefield 1

Even though we have a large desk, we tend to gravitate to TKL solutions when it comes to gaming. There is a simple reason for this. Comfort. Without the number pad in play, not only do we save space when we need to move to smaller areas, but it also keeps our mouse closer which relieves some tension in our arm. The Romer-G switches in the PRO are near silent, have a tactile actuation point, and the noise you do hear from them is the switches resetting to the neutral position. The pressure needed keeps you from drifting off by accident, or from pressing any keys while resting fingers not being used.

Having profiles to choose through helps out when it comes to those who jump from FPS to MMO or MORPG styles of gaming, and each can have a custom LED profile so that only what you use is lit, and everything else on the keyboard can be functionally off using the Game Mode menu. Our time gaming with the PRO has been nothing but a pleasure, without all the clutter of many other options, but with all the features and functionality.

Windows and Productivity

As a daily driver, even while marketed and intended to go to the gaming crowd, the Logitech G PRO has been a trooper. We do favor TLK layouts as we do not do much in the way of data entry, and the force required in the switches feel nearly the same as the blue switches we find a lot, just without all of the noise. We do not find that our fat fingers were pressing multiple keys at once, and nowhere on the layout did we find a switch that did not function or was erratic in any way.

While not intended to be used solely just to type away on the PRO all day, we feel there is no reason that those who are light gamers, or even those who just love a solid TLK with lighting options use it. Logitech has come through with a great universal solution that is ready to take on any game with a full set of features, yet at the same time, is a keyboard with a polished and professional appearance.

Final Thoughts

We thoroughly like the direction in which Logitech has moved in the development of the PRO. Logitech has been a trend setter for years with things like LCD screens for vital information, are the masters of adding keys to a standard 104-key keyboard, and have designs that run the gamut when it comes to style and functionality. However, this time around, Logitech is offering a keyboard that looks terrific, it is compact for all the right reasons, it is a robust and extremely usable keyboard under any conditions, and delivers features on a level that only a select few can compete.

The Romer-G switches made by Omron have a shorter throw to them which will tend to speed up movements and typing, but we were also made aware in a conversation with Logitech that this keyboard is proven to be up to ten times faster in response than other keyboards out there. In gaming, this can mean life or death, as any bit of lag, whether from the device or the server, will do nothing but to try to make you fail. At least with a product such as the PRO, you can be certain when you blame lag for your failure in the game, it is one the server or ISP side, not that you are in any way at fault.

Included with the Logitech PRO Mechanical Gaming Keyboard, which we can find no faults in, we have yet to add in all of the possibilities the Gaming Software affords its users. Of course, many will enjoy the LED lighting, and while RGB is all the rage, allowing for full customization of the lighting is where it's at. This allows for the construction of effects and limitations to what is lit up. This is good to help teach future gamers how to get associated with the proper keys, and also is less distracting to those who game in the dark.

With various profiles, the fact that the F-keys can all be used for a dual purpose, to do just about anything one can contrive, and the addition of Overwolf as part of the package, the abilities of what is possible with the PRO jumps right through the roof. OF course, many streaming gamers have their preferred methods of approaching the masses, but having it built right into the software makes life simple and delivers everything an aspiring eSports player will ever need.

Initially, we though the price point seems a touch on the expensive side, but at this point we find it to be worth every penny. There are a select few products on the market that think about all aspects of the gaming lifestyle, and the PRO covers them all. One does not always have a ton of space to work with, and not everyone enjoys using a number pad. When it comes time to travel, we like having profiles and settings stay on the keyboard, and many keyboards have died from having the cord stressed from having to wrap an attached cable around the keyboard.

Usually, gaming keyboards tend to be flashy and have fancy features which gamers may not even need, but in the Logitech G PRO mechanical keyboard, you are delivered elegance and complete functionality. To alleviate all of these issues with the keyboard, you are using now. Currently, we do not feel that the $129.99 pricing is any reason not to have one of, if not the best mechanical gaming keyboard we have seen in quite some time.

Chad's Peripherals Test System Specifications

TweakTown award
Performance 100%
Quality 98%
Features 96%
Value 99%
Overall 98%

The Bottom Line: Logitech G's PRO delivers everything you could possibly need is an sleek looking and compact package! Everything it tuned for performance down to the length of the switches, the input lag time, the aesthetic, and it even offers software with streaming ability built right in.

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Chad joined the TweakTown team in 2009 and has since reviewed 100s of new techy items. After a year of gaming, Chad caught the OC bug. With overclocking comes the need for better cooling, and Chad has had many air and water setups. With a few years of abusing computer parts, he decided to take his chances and try to get a review job. As an avid overclocker, Chad is always looking for the next leg up in RAM and coolers.

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