Logitech G715 Hands-On: A Powerful Starter With a Polarized Look

In an explosion of color, Logitech today announced a range of PC peripherals covered in subtle shades, wireless options, and RGB lighting, whether you love it or hate it.

Logitech calls it the Aurora suite, and while the gadgets are aimed at gamers, its high programmability and premium features can make it interesting for power users in general as well.

The new series features trendy white colors intensified by RGB LEDs and higher price tags. The series includes the G735 wireless headset ($230), the G705 wireless mouse ($100), the G713 mechanical keyboard ($170), and its wireless version G715 ($200). There are also Aurora PC accessories, including top plates and keycaps for keyboards, and new Aurora colors for some of the previously released Logitech microphones.

And as anyone who’s walked anywhere near my office has noticed lately, I get to get some hands-on time with the wireless keyboard quite a lot.

Divisive design

The G715’s polarized look goes beyond the white polar bear. Let’s start with the tacky cloud-shaped wrist rest.

It blends well with the white body of the keyboard but looks childish, not helped by the faux leather which I would expect will peel off after repeated use.

The wrist rest was surprisingly dense and supportive while typing. I couldn’t feel my hard desk through the wrist rest, even when pressed hard. However, its lump bothered my wrist.

The G715 only comes in white, and as the white PBT keycaps on the white business keyboard and mouse can attest, white computer peripherals can easily and visually get dirty. Keep this in mind when considering this expensive clacker.

Fortunately, the keyboard has dual PBT keycaps, so myths shouldn’t fade (for more information on keycaps and other terms in this article, check out our guide to mechanical keyboards). Plus, they have a delicious texture that offers a better grip than cheap ABS plastic keycaps and looks decent for the price of a keyboard.

White is the primary color here, but I was still immersed in color via per-key RGB lighting which created incredibly bright legends and a glow between the keys.

And the RGB strip around the underside of the G715 created a bright glow on the desktop, especially just south of the keyboard.

RGB elicits strong opinions, and if yours in general are on the positive side, there’s not much to complain about here, other than asking for a program to change RGB settings. You can also customize the LEDs on the underside of the keyboard and use preset effects.

But if you have a negative opinion about RGB or are concerned about preserving battery life, you can quickly turn off the lights (without software). But given the price of the keyboard, you’ll probably love most other things about the terminal if you’re going to forego one of its biggest features.

Mechanical keyboards aimed at gamers tend to have great media keys. And while the G715 has a truncated design, it still has a set of media keys (which can be illuminated using RGB) in a comfortable lavender shade, including a rubber-like scroll wheel. However, the wheel is not the most touching. The best grooved wheels.

Unfortunately, like most G715 keys, the media keys are not programmable.