ASUS recently announced the ROG Azoth, a 75% new gaming keyboard designed for both gamers and customizers to take their gaming capabilities and typing up a notch.
Gaming keyboards have been at a standstill for a long time. Major brands have lagged behind Higround and Wooting, which offer users enthusiast-level features while retaining important gaming capabilities. ASUS directly reacted to this with an option that simply sweeps almost all competitors off their feet.
The ASUS ROG Azoth is a 75% gaming keyboard with a hot—swappable printed circuit board, dense layers of silicone and foam damping, removable screw-in stabilizers, PBT key caps and an OLED multimedia function. It is also equipped with an OLED screen for multimedia control and high-quality PBT key caps. If this laundry list isn’t enough, there’s even more inside.
ROG Azoth also comes with a Krytox lubricated switch lubrication station in addition to a switch opening tool and a brush. From the very beginning, it’s just an impressive effort.
Key Features
- Switch Type: ASUS ROG NX Red (pre-lubricated, hot-swappable)
- Caps: PBT
- Connectivity: Wired (USB-C), Bluetooth, 2.4GHz
- Form factor: 75%
- Lighting: RGB on the north side
- Features: Pre-lubricated, OLED screen, three-position control knob, adjustable feet, silicone and foam damping, silicone pads.
- Battery life: up to 130 hours
- Price: to be specified
- Where to buy: specified
- Included: ASUS ROG Azoth, Switch opener, Cap Puller, Switch Puller, Lubrication station, lubricating brush, Krytox 205 grease, 3 ROG NX switches, 8 stabilizer mats, USB Dongle, USB extension cable, Adapter from USB-C to USB-A. cable.
Design
The ASUS ROG Azoth is very similar to other extended keyboards by 75%, such as the Keychron Q1. With a bronze finish and a metal top frame, the board exudes quality from the moment you take it out of the box. The key caps have a subtle two-tone finish, black and dark gray, and the legend shines through. Although we are not big fans of the ROG label, the board feels incredibly high-quality to the touch, and we are just getting started.
In the right corner, ASUS has placed an OLED monitor with shades of gray, which is configured using their software, in addition to a three-position volume rocker. Our only complaint about the volume rocker here is that it’s pretty easy to activate, and we found that we accidentally turned up the volume instead of turning it off as planned.
At the top you will find a case separated by a plastic bottom, where you can find connection options, including Bluetooth and 2.4GHz mode, which many enthusiast boards lack. You also get a small slot to accommodate your 2.4GHz dongle, and the Type-C port is located entirely on the left.
Inside ROG Azoth
Despite the fact that the ROG Azoth is beautiful on the outside, there are a number of functions inside that we have been demanding in the main gaming keyboards for several months. You get a healthy dose of damping foam that extends even to the gap, while the base of the board is additionally moistened with silicone. This is mainly for acoustics, as well as the complete lubrication of the switches out of the box, which also applies to the screw-in stabilizers.
All the switches and stabilizers are made by ROG itself, they are really serviceable, but you can easily adjust them with the included tools to really personalize your setup.
Here the printed circuit board is mounted on a gasket, although we did not feel any deflection during the assembly of the board. Unfortunately, ROG Azoth uses RGB LEDs facing north on its printed circuit board, which can cause some conflicts with the switches, which is a bit contrary to the self-made keyboard.
Accessories
The accessories included in the ROG Azoth package are simply stunning. In fact, you get a full set of lubricants to improve your typing, as well as a couple of switches for practice. This is unheard of in the main keyboard area. So, ROG Azoth gives us an incredibly long-awaited addition. It turns the ROG Azoth from a high-end gaming board into a keyboard kit made with your own hands.
Performance
Out of the box, ROG Azoth is nothing but fantastic, the acoustics of the board make it smooth, which means that you, in fact, hear only the switches and nothing else. If you decide to change the switches and lubricate another set, you can take it up another level.
We found that typing is simple and easy, although we prefer other switches, and the wireless functionality allows us to use the board on different devices without a single hitch. This also applies to games.
Although the board can’t keep up with games like Wooting, it’s no slouch, and we’ve gone through the games of Civilization, Overwatch 2, and Gundam Evolution without the slightest period of adaptation.
Is it worth buying?
If you are looking for a gaming keyboard with many functions and want to plunge into the world of keyboards with your own hands, there is no better place to do this than ROG Azoth.
We still don’t have an exact price or release date, but if you’re looking for a new gaming keyboard that just has everything, then ROG Azoth is simply irreplaceable. We just wanted it to have a south RGB side.
