Asus ROG Azoth Extreme review

The ROG Azoth Extreme is a $500 gaming keyboard. You're probably now staring at the screen mouth agape wondering what it is about the Azoth Extreme that makes it worth $500. In many ways, that's how I've approached this review. Because I didn't get it at first, and to be honest, I still don't.

First impressions of the Azoth Extreme were very good. I lifted the lid of the box it arrived in and it unwrapped itself like a cake in a Wes Anderson movie. A great start in trying to convince me it's worth a large sum. Inside the second branded box—truly no expense spared here—sits the Azoth Extreme. I reach in and lift it out, which takes a little more effort than I was expecting as it weighs 1.508 kg.

The first thing to notice about the Azoth Extreme is it's a 75% size—the same as its predecessor, the ROG Azoth. That means no numpad and only a handful of the traditional shortcut keys: Delete, Insert, Page Up, Page Down. It does at least retain the full function row, which means it's not overly reliant on the included Function key, next to which sits the Windows Copilot switch. 

Asus thought to include a spare keycap for the Copilot key, cleverly anticipating my need to promptly remove it, which I do thusly using the included keycap puller-cum-knuckle duster.

The Azoth Extreme's case is hewn out of a block of aluminium and stained to a deep black. The underside has been preened by a CNC machine down to a futuristic military look, with the outer edges milled away into a stepped pattern. For a slab of milled anodized aluminium, it's one of the loveliest I've laid my eyes on. I set about attaching each of the feet—four are included inside the box, two sets of two at differing heights. I pluck out the tallest and swiftly load them onto the board. They're magnetic and snap in place.

Beneath the board sits a conspicuous cutout, inside which sits a Type-A USB dongle and a switch marked 'soft' on one side and 'hard' on the other. No need to overthink its purpose: if I slide the switch to hard mode, the switch feel is firmer, more responsive, bouncier; if it's in soft mode it's flatter, less snappy. The difference between the two is quite minor—as I type this on the Azoth Extreme, I don't remember which mode I've set it in.

The unsightly regulation and waste symbols, serial numbers, and trademarks are covered by a nameplate included within a small envelope in the box. Carefully, without getting my fingerprints all over it, I slot it into place. It's also magnetic and slips almost seamlessly in place with a satisfying snap. Wondering how I ever might get it back off again, I push in on the nameplate and it hinges off so I can grab it between my thumb and forefinger—landing one big fingerprint right in the centre of it that, admittedly, still sits there today. I'll clean it for the photographs.

Nevertheless, I'm impressed. Everything about this keyboard oozes quality and I've yet to type a single sentence. With that, I connect it to my PC.

The ROG Azoth Extreme package includes a product that Asus hopes to sell separately someday: the Polling Rate Booster. This is an extender for the included Type-A USB dongle that greatly increases the polling rate of the device up to 8,000 Hz. That means it communicates with your computer 8,000 times a second, or eight times more than most.

I've tested a high polling rate gaming keyboard before: the Corsair K70 Max. It's not a feature I care much about—I'm not an esports pro and I don't notice the difference between 1,000 Hz and 8,000 Hz. 

Though this does highlight one concern with the Azoth Extreme: who its target audience is. The high polling rate may appeal to some competitive gamers but those same gamers may well prefer a keyboard with more competitive features including analogue switches and rapid trigger, like the Wooting 60HE.

The Azoth Extreme's switches are fantastic for gaming—the linear NX Snow switches inside my review sample are pre-lubed and bliss to game with. Each offers a fast response as I test the board in hard mode: each key press swiftly bouncing back into place as I desperately mash at them in a game of The Finals.

What the Azoth Extreme is best for, however, is typing. I spend my days tapping away at my keyboard and for the past few weeks it's been me and the Azoth Extreme. I come away from that experience feeling the Azoth Extreme is a wonderful way to go about my work. It doesn't matter whether in hard or soft mode, the light clack and springy response of each key is great for rapid, satisfying typing experience.

Though is it any better than our pick for the best tenkeyless gaming keyboard today, the Keychron Q3 Max? 

What's unfortunate for the Azoth Extreme is I've only recently come into contact with the Keychron Q3 Max and and it's fresh on my mind. I have been happily typing away at it all day in the office, often peering over to our hardware overlord Dave James to make sure he knew just how smug I was about it. He recently 'borrowed' it for a day while I was out of the office and later told me it was terrible, as it made all other keyboards look bad. For two people that frequently use many gaming keyboards, there's really no higher praise than that.

I've switched between the two keyboards these past few days. Any comparison between the Azoth and Q3 Max is extremely tough. My cop-out answer is they're both sublime. I'd happily bash out a 10,000 word essay on why lubed switches matter on either of these bad boys. If I were pushed to make a decision, however, I prefer the acoustics on the Q3 Max.

The acoustics? What is this fluffy nonsense about keyboards? They're a means to an end, right? Well, sorry, no. If you're spending anywhere near $500 on a mechanical keyboard, even half of that, you deserve to take some pleasure in how it sounds. Especially if you're going to use this keyboard in a shared space where other people might hear your keyboard and think worse or better of you for it. Mostly worse, I imagine, going by the glares I receive in the office with a particularly noisy board.

There's a certain joyous thud to the Q3 Max that wins me over. It's much deeper sounding than the lighter clack of the Azoth Extreme. However, I must say the stability of the Azoth Extreme is commendable—there's a little more wobble to each of the keys on the Keychron Q3 Max.

I may prefer the tone of the Q3 Max but I have to stress this isn't a condemnation of the Azoth. It's also fantastic. If I put both keyboards in front of 100 random strangers and asked for opinions I would expect a 50/50 split—personal preference wins out here.

The Q3 Max is half the price, however. I imagine I'd be looking at an entirely different split for public opinion with that factored in.

There are a few other keyboards besides the Q3 Max that are worth considering for pure typing feel. Such as the Ducky ProjectD Outlaw65, a DIY kit capable of being fit with many types of key switches and sounding oh so great. Similarly, the Asus ROG Strix Scope II 96 Wireless uses the same lubed switches as the ROG Azoth Extreme for a lot less money. It's not quite in the same ballpark for overall quality as the Azoth but there's a reason it's our no.1 pick for the best gaming keyboard.

Hell, even the original Azoth appears a bargain by comparison, and it's generally what I'd consider an extremely costly gaming keyboard.

The one feature you really have to love to justify the purchase of the Azoth Extreme, even a little, is the OLED touchscreen.

I like the OLED screen on the Azoth Extreme more than I thought I would. That's saying something, as sticking an unnecessary screen on a peripheral and charging over the odds for it is something of a pet peeve of mine. I like the equaliser function, the way it captures the waveform of the music I'm listening to on Tidal, and how I can flick the screen to switch up the animation. It's neat. Often pointless, but neat. 

Ultimately, the screen alone is not worth the $500 price of admission—nowhere close. The Hyte Q60 I recently reviewed practically comes with a mobile phone attached and costs less.

The OLED panel is flanked by a tactile knob. That's the best way to describe it but I'm no knob expert. It controls volume, multimedia, brightness, and more, all of which is programmable in the Armoury Crate app. The app itself is functionally fine but often oblique. It's not well laid out and features some fairly indecipherable menu icons. Things somewhat improve once you find the Azoth control panel, and it's straightforward enough to get set-up from there.

It's no surprise that I'm not convinced by the ROG Azoth Extreme. It's a fantastic gaming keyboard brought crashing down by a dreadfully high price. By no stretch of the imagination could I see myself spending $500 on it, nor will I recommend anyone else should. The gorgeous construction, fantastic typing experience, and surprisingly neat OLED do little to convince me otherwise.

Build your own keyboard. Buy a Loupedeck. Hey, presto, you've just about secured a similar experience to the ROG Azoth Extreme with maybe money to spare.