When comparing Razer BlackWidow Chroma vs Razer BlackWidow, the Slant community recommends Razer BlackWidow Chroma for most people. In the question“What are the best gaming keyboards with headphone jack?” Razer BlackWidow Chroma is ranked 1st while Razer BlackWidow is ranked 2nd. The most important reason people chose Razer BlackWidow Chroma is:
Razer uses Kailh switches that actuate at an optimal distance giving faster response.
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Pros
Pro Mechanical switches
Razer uses Kailh switches that actuate at an optimal distance giving faster response.
Pro Fully customizable backlighting
Utilizing 16.8 million different LED color combinations the BlackWidow Chroma has an almost endless amount of key color options.
Pro Ports on the keyboard
The keyboard has a USB port as well as a headphone jack. This makes frequent plugging/unplugging of peripherals easier, expands the number of available ports, and can allow for better cable management.
Cons
Con Razer Synapse
Like all Razer products, in order to get the full function of the BlackWidow Chroma Razer Synapse needs to be used. This means longer boot times and an always online DRM.
Con Razer switches
Razer makes their own switches - Orange (similar to Cherry MX Brown) and Green (similar the Cherry MX Blue). They aren't held up to the same QA processes switches from other manufacturers are and there are many claims that switches aren't uniform (pressure and actuation distance is different between keys). They are a bit worse for typing - the actuation distance is a hair shallower - although this is preferred for gamers.