Should You Buy The Apex 9 Over the Apex Pro? - Steelseries Review

UPDATE: YOU CAN NOT USE OTHER OPTICAL SWITCHES IN THIS BOARD 🤨😑
STEELSERIES...WHAT THE HECK.
I don't have any on me at the moment to A/B test but thank you guys in the comments for watching multiple reviews, haha. I try not to watch every reviewers review before I do mine as to have my own opinions when I am filming. Subscribers coming in clutch for everyone.
🛒Products Mentioned In This Video
Steelseries Apex 9 TKL(Amazon - Paid Link): geni.us/SSApex9TKL
Steelseries Apex Pro TKL Wireless 2022(Amazon - Paid Link): geni.us/ApexProMiniWireless
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0:00 Intro
0:43 Build
1:30 Features
4:13 Final Thoughts
5:32 Sound Test
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🎵StreamBeats by Harris Heller - / @streambeatsbyharrishe...
Spotify: open.spotify.com/playlist/4kA...
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#steelseries
#Apex9
DISCLOSURES: All Genius links are tied to our Amazon Associate Affiliate Program Account & Amazon Influencer Account, from which we earn a small sales commission indicated by (Amazon - Paid Link). Also partnered with the Banggood Affiliate & MechanicalKeyboards Partner Programs as well. All sponsored links and comments will contain the word "SPONSOR" or "AD." Any additional revenue stream will be disclosed with similar verbiage.

[@TooMuchTech]

UPDATE: YOU CAN NOT USE OTHER OPTICAL SWITCHES IN THIS BOARD 🤨😑 STEELSERIES...WHAT THE HECK. I don't have any on me at the moment to A/B test but thank you guys in the comments for watching multiple reviews haha. I try not to watch every reviewers review before I do mine as to have my own opinions when I am filming. Coming in Clutch for everyone.

[@MekaniQ]

I wouldn't mind, It's a decent keyboard, but the fact the switches are proprietary (Plus they are Gateron WTF?), and there's no screen on them, weird that they've done this. I don't justify the price to be honest, seems like a potential competitor to the Razer Huntsman V2 TKL. Tho glad they've updated the Apex Pro, they even done a wireless one, seems pretty cool 👍

[@teptaylor]

I have this one and despite what they say on the website you can use gateron switches with black bottoms and have the two points, I love it with the blues I have now.

[@StuartSmyth]

I am looking to get this exact keyboard, Apex 9 TKL, I have been looking everywhere I could to find this answer. Are you suggesting that if I wanted, I could remove the included optical switched from the Apex 9 and replace with regular Cherry MX Blues? Or is it limited to Gateron switches only? That is what I wanna do, if possible. Thanks :)

[@teptaylor]

@@StuartSmyth has to be gateron optical! But there's gateron optical clicky blues I use.

[@StuartSmyth]

@@teptaylor Excellent! Thanks for letting me know!

[@datdus5524]

@@teptaylor heey 2 questions, pretty new to the keyboard stuff. Do you know if you can switch the keys on the pro? And what is the difference between all the key collors? Just the sound and travel distance or more?

[@ninjagoprog]

@@datdus5524 apex pro is soldered

[@handledavailable]

The Apex Pro TKL, manufactured by SteelSeries, is a high-performance mechanical gaming keyboard designed with several advanced features for gamers. One of its standout features is the adjustable actuation settings, which utilize SteelSeries' OmniPoint switches. These switches allow you to customize the actuation point, or the point at which a key press is registered, ranging from an ultra-fast 0.4mm to a deeper 3.6mm. This level of customization allows for precise and rapid key presses, making it ideal for competitive gaming or users who prefer different actuation sensitivities. In addition to its adjustable actuation, the Apex Pro TKL also boasts an OLED smart display on the top right corner of the keyboard. This small display can show various information, such as notifications from Discord, in-game stats, or custom graphics. It can also be used to control multimedia playback, adjust volume, and change settings on the keyboard itself, adding convenience and functionality. The Apex Pro TKL features customizable RGB illumination, allowing you to personalize the keyboard's lighting with millions of colors and various lighting effects. Using SteelSeries Engine software, you can create your own lighting profiles or synchronize the lighting with other SteelSeries devices for a cohesive lighting setup. With a compact TKL design, the Apex Pro TKL does not include a number pad, making it more space-efficient and suitable for users who prefer a smaller keyboard layout or have limited desk space. Its durable aluminum frame and double-shot PBT keycaps are designed to withstand wear and fading over time, ensuring longevity and durability. Additional features of the Apex Pro TKL include customizable macros for creating complex key combinations, dedicated multimedia controls for easy audio adjustments, a USB pass-through for convenient connectivity of USB devices, and a detachable wrist rest for added comfort during extended gaming sessions. Overall, the Apex Pro TKL is a feature-rich mechanical gaming keyboard with adjustable actuation, OLED smart display, RGB illumination, compact design, and premium build quality, making it a top choice for gamers seeking high-performance and customization options

[@TooMuchTech]

Lol come on guys

[@ArizerExtreme]

also it's top 5 best latency keyboard mesured by rtings with 0,7ms, the best is corsair k65 with 0,1ms

[@user-pg7dh7xe3b]

Gk61 vs apex 9 vs apex pro vs huntsman v2 vs huntsman te ?

[@Noneya5555]

The Techne did a review of this board, and found that the switches were built differently than regular Gateron optical switches, and when he tried swapping them out, the standard one didn't work in the board. I recently bought the Apex Pro tkl 2023. Another YT reviewer said the 9 and the AP tkl share the same body. The AP tkl has a really light weight, feels cheap and moves around a little on my desk when gaming. I need to exchange it because the left shift key feels as if the keycap or switch is catching on something, and the right shift key feels scratchy. Also, the higher actuation feature makes it too easy for me to activate the wrong key by mistake, and the dual binding feature is wonky when trying to fire weapons while sprinting. I may just end up returning it for a refund.

[@TooMuchTech]

The APEX Pro TKL 23 I am not a fan of. I have it in house and I’m working on a vid but it is just SO expensive for imo, no reason

[@Noneya5555]

@@TooMuchTech Yeah, the wireless one definitely is overpriced. I bought the wireless version, and exchanged it. Hopefully, it'll go on sale for Black Friday, so I get a credit for the difference. But if I have any problems with the replacement, then it's definitely going back for a refund.

[@Pobbatron]

@@Noneya5555 i did what the video from the techne it’s interesting why the gateron optical switches from other boards didn’t work in the apex 9 mini and tkl

[@Noneya5555]

@@Pobbatron It's bad enough that there isn't as much of a selection of hotswappable optical switches. But for SS to have Gateron make a proprietary switch that can't be swapped out with any other optical switch is just dumb.

[@Pobbatron]

@@Noneya5555 that’s fair cause why make a hotswap board and not sell the switch by it’s self and or tactile and clicky’s

[@randyfabian-yn6iw]

If I play on Xbox how would I make it fast if I’m on Xbox and not on pc how do I make the switches faster for games like 0.2 and stuff

[@d3w222]

if you play online competitive games: you don't and stop ximming asshole, if not you have to switch settings in their proprietary app which is only on pc.

[@axult9345]

among tecware phantom and spectre what will be good pick?

[@vlad.7]

i got this keyboard and its very good , i got it for 80 $ is so good for this price

[@ArunasMi]

hey what would you recommend for gaming this, apex pro, huntsman v2 or ducky one3??

[@Izennn]

Ducky one 3 for switch customization (it is hotswappable), huntsman v2 for quiet switches and a good software, apex pro if you can afford it and you want to customize the actuation point.

[@ArunasMi]

@@Izennn I don't want to customize anything just responsive enough to play fps game competively, just good quality out of the box to use and hopefully for long term. Which of those that would be?

[@punanina]

@@ArunasMi apex pro

[@ArunasMi]

@@punanina this is what i bought. I love it

[@punanina]

@@ArunasMi oh nice i just got myself apex 9 mini and this keyboard makes me fast

[@Grimlo9ic]

There's another competitor to this which isn't widely known, but people should consider - the Corsair K70 RGB TKL with the OPX switches, for $160. It's also optical, meaning it's hotswap. I believe Cherry makes the switches for Corsair (they have the sails logo on the top housing). The thing that makes that unique is the AXON processor, which makes 8000 Hz polling rate possible - although in practice because of USB read limits, it's really more 4000 Hz. Battlenonsense did a video on AXON latency before he retired from KZbin, I think it's worth a watch.

[@TooMuchTech]

Interesting

[@nonamesubzero1961]

i have Corsair K70 RGB TKL ( opx switch ) . it can hotswap with Geteron optical switch ( yellow , blue , black , white , red )

[@nicomilord]

how can you hot swap the k70? do you need to desolder?

[@Grimlo9ic]

@@nicomilord It needs to be the optical switch version, which you can just pull out with a switch puller (it's pretty tight at first though). If it's not the Corsair OPX switches, you can't just pull them out, you need to disassemble the keyboard first and then desolder.

[@nicomilord]

@@Grimlo9ic i see, so its hot swappable for corsair switches? im not familliar with keyboards and im currently finding a tkl keyboard.

[@Pobbatron]

but the apex 9 is also a gateron optical tkl idk where else you would buy a tkl that uses gateron tkl.

[@TooMuchTech]

Also true. It’s a unique product which makes it hard to be like “I would buy this instead!!” Because there isn’t anything really like it from competing brands that offer the same thing Doesn’t make it amazing or a value or anything tho.

[@user-pg7dh7xe3b]

Gk61 vs apex 9 vs apex pro vs huntsman v2 vs huntsman te?

[@mvstik]

i got the mini version for $90 is it worth the price?

[@elaguss525]

I think for a gaming keyboard yeah

[@vitusesbensen317]

apex 9 mini for $58 or apex pro tkl for $145?

[@gabitsu-ftw3871]

Razer Huntsman V2 ftw

[@cemitech7638]

Steelseries advertises this as hotswappable but you cant swap in regular optical switches lol Imo this is a garbage gimmick to sell their own version of switches.

[@MekaniQ]

Plus they are gateron, but the are proprietary They just pulled an Apple there lol

[@user-pg7dh7xe3b]

Gk61 vs apex 9 vs apex pro vs huntsman v2 vs huntsman te

[@escaleira7002]

@@user-pg7dh7xe3bapex 9 or huntsman v2, the apex pro is overpriced and the gk61 is too cheap

[@user-pg7dh7xe3b]

@@escaleira7002 Ok apex 9 or huntsman mini

[@escaleira7002]

⁠@@user-pg7dh7xe3bapex 9 for sure, the mini has horrible stabilizerz and the keys feel horrible, at least the apex 9 feels good

[@user-lf8pd2ld2u]

My answer clearly is NO! The Apex Pro is a whole other beast in many ways. BETTER Lighting, better feel, customizable Actuation Time for every single switch (gaming AND office is both a joy) OLED for nice Personalisation and Adjusting the board... all this for just 50 Bucks more.

[@expert8665]

rgb on keyboards over rated

[@MekaniQ]

"sometimes"

[@aflitiatorbinomoril9748]

custom keyboard overrated, buy 100$ very best stabilizer lube omaygot very cumblowing

[@ODIOPOWER]

The sound of those are so plasticky...How a big brand like Steelseries can getting by with this poor quality product?? with 140 freedom dollar you can get a much better keebs now days.

[@TooMuchTech]

So, as much as I want to agree with you, I can only name like ONE board that the all in cost is around the same as this one and would sound better - all the other gaming brands (Razer, Logi, SS, the rest) have equally or worse sounding boards for everything that they have IMO And as much as I would LOVE to compare these to customs, even the cheap ones, they are still way more expensive when it comes to all in cost. Board Barebones: $110-200+ Switches: $30-70+ Keycaps: $60+ Realistically for caps you will feel good about So you are all in for well over $200 at least. It's hard not to compare but we have to be realistic. But I am all for gaming companies to start pushing the envelope in the other direction because these boards all sound like doodoo in comparison to a lot of the customs people are using. The board I was talking about for future people wondering: Nuphy Halo65 - that thing is basically perfect lol

[@suchti9049]

@@TooMuchTech keychron v1 might also be a great shout. Good Review 👍

[@Noneya5555]

@@TooMuchTech The Apex Pro tkl also sounds much better than typical gaming keyboards, and the keypresses are really smooth. The Corsair K70 tkl CE sounds really hollow, the Cherry MX switches are scratchy, and the ping is horrible. The HyperX Alloy Origins 60's keys sound great, with smooth switches, but the stabs on the spacebar are rattly af. 😱 I don't understand why gaming keyboard manufacturers won't spend the extra few cents to add pre-lubed switches and stabs, along with sound-dampening material into their boards. Hell, I'd pay an extra dollar or two for a much better sounding keyboard.

[@ConeTheBoss559]

@@TooMuchTech Akko keyboards, keychrons, etc

[@user-pg7dh7xe3b]

Gk61 vs apex 9 vs apex pro vs huntsman v2 vs huntsman te?

[@placeholder3863]

steelseries fell off

[@MekaniQ]

tbh you aren't wrong They're headsets are actually decent great, after being brought by Jabra All the rest suck tho, mainly cause of price

[@TooMuchTech]

Yeah they need to lower the price on most of these keyboards. I was GOING to have a follow up video ready for tomorrow but my SSD is fried so I gotta figure this out💀

[@michaelthompson9798]

A bit overpriced for what it offers imo ….. but then again, we’ve seen 20% inflation generally across the board which is pushing everything through the roof in terms of pricing 🥵😭. This kb does sound very cheap and plastic-ee 🫢🙄. A definite pass for me.