In a crowded world of mechanical-switch gaming keyboards that all use the same handful of Cherry MX key-switch types (or Cherry MX knockoffs), the Logitech G513 Carbon ($149.99) stands out.
Equipped with Logitech's own Lightsync RGB technology, a snug palm rest, and an anodized-aluminum finish that's cool to the touch, this flagship keyboard undercuts the suggested retail price of the Razer BlackWidow Chroma V2 while retaining most of its features.
What's more, it comes in well below the Editors' Choice Corsair K95 RGB Platinum on street price, while carrying much of its charm.
(We saw the G513 for as much as $50 less online, at this writing.) If you're willing to do without the dedicated macro keys and media controls of the sublime K95, it's a strong alternative.
Available in two flavors of Logitech-specific key switch ("Romer-G Tactile," and the newer "Romer-G Linear"), the G513 Carbon's home-grown switches are the core of its identity.
They were developed in collaboration with Omron, the same company that makes the premium button switches tucked inside some higher-end gaming mice, such as the HyperX Pulsefire FPS and the Cougar Surpassion.
To my fingers, the difference between the Tactile and Linear key switches isn't as stark as the distinction between, say, Cherry MX Reds and Cherry MX Blues.
The Romer-G switches are, however, satisfying to the press, making their case as a credible alternative to the Cherry-switch cabal.
Minimalist Looks, Alternative Switches
You can get the Logitech G513 Carbon in a choice of two color schemes, black and silver.
(The silver model is sold exclusively at Best Buy.) The black color scheme looks like a cousin to the Space Gray Apple iMac Pro, but it pushes the aesthetic a bit beyond Apple.
The grey backing plate of the black-keys model that I reviewed is muted, offsetting the darker tone of its smooth, matte-finish keycaps.
The backplate comes scored with grind lines and is accented by a stylized "G" logo at upper right.
The look is coolly industrial and minimal.
Notably absent from the mix are the dedicated macro/media keys and controls found on many gaming keyboards in this price range.
An equivalent to the Corsair K95's volume roller, for one, would have been appreciated in a board at this price.
On paper, the Logitech G513 Carbon is a typical 101-key typer, with 12 additional keycaps available in the box (replacements for the WASD and function keys); these have angled tops for your fingers to distinguish by feel.
But don't judge this keyboard by its key count and specs alone—the G513 Carbon pulls off a sophisticated look with a unique set of key switches that don't quite parallel anything in Cherry's portfolio.
The Romer-G switches aren't as sharp or snappy in their key-press response, but they feel sturdy and make the G513 Carbon a lot quieter to type on than most mechanical keyboards.
Regardless of whether you opt for the palpable-but-subtle bump of the Romer-G Tactile switches or the fluidity of the Romer-G Linear switches, the G513 Carbon's dimensions remain the same, at 5.20 by 17.91 by 1.33 inches (HWD), and weighing in at 2.25 pounds.
For all its heft, the body has a slim profile, though it's not a sawed-off "tenkeyless" model meant for lugging around in a backpack.
If you do end up toting it around, you'll appreciate that stemming from the back edge is a thick rubber reinforcement for the 6-foot braided USB cable, protecting the flex joint where it emerges from the chassis.
On the computer end, this cable is a forked dual-USB-connector design.
The keyboard needs that second USB connection on the computer side because of a USB passthrough port on the back of the keyboard, meant for a mouse or headset.
It's next to the cable reinforcement.
The G513 Carbon's large palm rest lacks the BlackWidow Chroma V2's magnetic connection to the keyboard.
You simply sit it next to the keyboard, and grips on the underside keep it in place.
At 3.46 by 17.52 inches (depth by width), it's similar in size to the wrist rests of the BlackWidow Chroma V2 and Corsair K95 RGB Platinum.
Unlike the K95 RGB Platinum's rest, which is plastic with rubber inserts, Logitech's is padded faux-leather, similar in feel to Razer's detachable cushion.
Your preference—plush versus plastic—may vary; personally, I prefer the Logitech G513's pillow-like escape from the hard surface of my desk.
The G513 Carbon's switches are rated for 70 million keystrokes.
If you game in moderation, that cap would take over 150 years to reach.
Assuming you're a mere mortal, the switches on this keyboard are bound to last well beyond the point that you're tired of using it.
The force required to actuate each key on the G513 Carbon is 45 grams force (gf), the same as the rating for the Cherry MX Brown or MX Speed versions of Corsair's K95 RGB Platinum, but less than the 50gf demanded by the "Green Switch" version of Razer's BlackWidow Chroma V2.
(Note that Cherry rates its key switches in centi-newtons, but the two units of measurement are almost exactly equivalent, close enough for rule-of-thumb comparisons.) The actuation distance of each key, meanwhile, is 1.5mm on both the Linear and Tactile models.
As for its performance, Logitech says that its G513 Carbon mechanical gaming keyboard responds 10ms faster and actuates 25 percent faster than the Razer BlackWidow Chroma V2.
Bold claims indeed, but with no real-world way to put them to the test, the difference is negligible in real-world gaming scenarios.
In our extended gameplay sessions with the G513 Carbon, we couldn't tell a lick of difference.
Comprehensive (but Complicated) Software
Of course, the G513 Carbon being a gaming keyboard and the year being 2018, there would simply have to be an RGB lighting angle.
The G513 Carbon sports not only the option of configuring lighting zones by way of the downloadable Logitech Gaming Software (LGS) utility, but also backlighting customization per-key.
You can make, say, the WASD keys light up as a group, hued as you like, and you also have the freedom to choose among 16.8 million colors on any single key.
The result: infinite customization, according to your favorite game's or application's needs.
That said, the key-lighting colors appear a bit dim versus other RGB keyboards on the market, especially the K95 RGB Platinum.
Even Logitech's own G810 Orion Spectrum seems to shine brighter.
While I prefer the subtlety of the G513 Carbon, some gamers tend to enjoy splashier keyboards—the more ostentatious the lighting, the better.
For those folks, I'd have appreciated the option to crank up the intensity, even if I would have left the level at my review unit's default.
LGS itself hasn't changed much in the two years since last I used it.
It can be overwhelming at first; the interface is a touch difficult to navigate versus, say, Razer's Synapse 3.
On the other hand, it is positively tame compared to Cougar's cumbersome UIX System software used in keyboards like the Cougar Attack X3 RGB.
LGS's most closely matched rival, to my eyes, is Corsair's Corsair Utility Engine (CUE), whose deep functionality and versatility sometimes get in the way of its ease of use.
Most of LGS's functionality is divided into four categories, each represented by a simple icon on the lower right side of the screen.
These are "Customize G-keys" (represented by a G key), "Lighting Settings" (a light bulb), "Game Mode Settings" (a key with a joystick on it), and "Input Analysis" (a heatmapped G key).
The first section, Customize G-keys, is where you can set the 11 media keys in the top row to perform specific actions.
The Logitech G513 Carbon has no discrete media keys; these media controls are subsumed under F5 to F12, as well as Print Screen, Screen Lock, and Pause.
You hold down Fn to activate these alternate functions.
You can select from a variety of commands, such as a single keystroke, a combination of keystrokes, shortcuts to paste entire blocks of text, and the obvious play, pause, stop, and volume controls most folks are used to up in the function row.
In the second section, Lighting Settings, you can select among four different lighting modes: Freestyle, Zones, Effects, and Your Effects.
Links to these are in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen.
Click on any of the four modes, and you will see a detailed diagram of the G513 Carbon south of a pair of arrowheads.
Click on these arrowheads, and you will see a mysterious box labeled "Enable per profile backlighting." It's not clear at first what it does, but upon clicking it, you can swap profiles and implement lighting effects using any one of the four modes we'll talk about in a sec.
The first among the lighting modes you will find in Lighting Settings, Freestyle, lets you set the color of each key individually, though many gamers will find this process tedious.
First, you pinpoint the desired color on a color wheel, then click on keys, one by one, to change their colors.
It's easy enough for changing a handful of keys at a time, but for more complicated arrangements, I wish I could control-click my way to a faster lighting arrangement.
Second to the right, the Zones lighting mode is more convoluted.
Using the Lighting Zones panel at lower right, you can create "zones" (groups of keys to be lit), labeling each with a title of your choosing before selecting a group of keys to assign to that zone.
This process helps alleviate the tedium of per-key assignment, but the process isn't immediately obvious; you have to create a zone before selecting keys to have the keys become part of that zone.
Selecting the keys first won't work.
In Effects, you can pick from a slew of preset, across-keyboard animations, such as Breathing, Star Effect, Color Cycle, Color Wave, Key Press, and Ripple.
You can customize each of these to move faster or slower depending on your preference.
In Your Effects, the last of the G513 Carbon's lighting modes, you can select from even more preset lighting effects, or create your own animations in an interface reminiscent of Garage Band.
Unfortunately, Logitech doesn't provide an in-software tutorial that teaches you how to use the effects creator.
Mastering it means trawling through unofficial online resources.
Next up in the main LGS interface: the Game Mode Settings tab, Give it a click, and you will find a cluster of black boxes, into which you produce and designate profiles for specific games.
So, for example, if you want to disable the Windows key—but only in Overwatch—you can do that.
Or, if you want to light up just the WASD keys in World of Warcraft, you can do that too.
The opportunities are endless, considering that profiles can be tied to any of the four lighting modes.
Last, the Input Analysis center records and displays which keys you press the most—something of a "stats center" for how you use the keyboard.
Click the play button, then start typing away at an essay or pounding away at a session of Far Cry 5.
Later, if you check back, you can see a Key Press Heat Map (the keys you press the most) and the Key Duration (how long you pressed each key).
These stats will be mere novelties for most folks, but if you were curious which letters you're overusing in your college thesis—or you need to quantify your reflexes at reloading in Fortnite—LGS has you covered.
Good...but Get Your Fingers On It First
The Logitech G513 Carbon combines versatility and minimalism in an appealing keyboard for those who like RGB bling and a conservative look in equal measure.
After a few days of Romer-G pecking, I found the typing experience equally pleasant to the gaming one, and realized that this keyboard is held back only by its lack of dedicated macro or media keys.
The key switches may have special appeal for those who aren't satisfied by the half-dozen or so flavors of Cherry switch in common circulation.
The Romer-Gs aren't for everyone; some seasoned gamers will turn up their noses at anything not made by Cherry, and I didn't find a huge difference in feel between the Tactile and Linear.
But they were both quite comfortable.
Mind you, their spongier feedback takes some getting used to.
(Even the Tactile keys pack a little pushback with their slight bump.) So I suggest, if you can, that you get to a store to try out the Logitech G513 Carbon against the Corsair K95 RGB Platinum (or another Cherry MX-based keyboard) to feel the difference yourself.
It's a Coke-versus-Pepsi choice.
You may realize that Corsair's flagship, with its dedicated media and macro keys, is worth the additional $50 toll.
On the flip side, the Logitech G513 Carbon is a quieter-sounding, stealthier-looking, and trimmer mechanical board that may suit your tastes and fingers better—and if so, save you some bucks to boot.
Cons
Software takes patience to learn.
No dedicated macro or media keys.
Subdued RGB illumination.
The Bottom Line
Though it cries out for media/macro keys, the minimalist Logitech G513 Carbon gaming keyboard justifies its price with custom, RGB-lit mechanical switches that feel great and won't wake up your household.
In a crowded world of mechanical-switch gaming keyboards that all use the same handful of Cherry MX key-switch types (or Cherry MX knockoffs), the Logitech G513 Carbon ($149.99) stands out.
Equipped with Logitech's own Lightsync RGB technology, a snug palm rest, and an anodized-aluminum finish that's cool to the touch, this flagship keyboard undercuts the suggested retail price of the Razer BlackWidow Chroma V2 while retaining most of its features.
What's more, it comes in well below the Editors' Choice Corsair K95 RGB Platinum on street price, while carrying much of its charm.
(We saw the G513 for as much as $50 less online, at this writing.) If you're willing to do without the dedicated macro keys and media controls of the sublime K95, it's a strong alternative.
Available in two flavors of Logitech-specific key switch ("Romer-G Tactile," and the newer "Romer-G Linear"), the G513 Carbon's home-grown switches are the core of its identity.
They were developed in collaboration with Omron, the same company that makes the premium button switches tucked inside some higher-end gaming mice, such as the HyperX Pulsefire FPS and the Cougar Surpassion.
To my fingers, the difference between the Tactile and Linear key switches isn't as stark as the distinction between, say, Cherry MX Reds and Cherry MX Blues.
The Romer-G switches are, however, satisfying to the press, making their case as a credible alternative to the Cherry-switch cabal.
Minimalist Looks, Alternative Switches
You can get the Logitech G513 Carbon in a choice of two color schemes, black and silver.
(The silver model is sold exclusively at Best Buy.) The black color scheme looks like a cousin to the Space Gray Apple iMac Pro, but it pushes the aesthetic a bit beyond Apple.
The grey backing plate of the black-keys model that I reviewed is muted, offsetting the darker tone of its smooth, matte-finish keycaps.
The backplate comes scored with grind lines and is accented by a stylized "G" logo at upper right.
The look is coolly industrial and minimal.
Notably absent from the mix are the dedicated macro/media keys and controls found on many gaming keyboards in this price range.
An equivalent to the Corsair K95's volume roller, for one, would have been appreciated in a board at this price.
On paper, the Logitech G513 Carbon is a typical 101-key typer, with 12 additional keycaps available in the box (replacements for the WASD and function keys); these have angled tops for your fingers to distinguish by feel.
But don't judge this keyboard by its key count and specs alone—the G513 Carbon pulls off a sophisticated look with a unique set of key switches that don't quite parallel anything in Cherry's portfolio.
The Romer-G switches aren't as sharp or snappy in their key-press response, but they feel sturdy and make the G513 Carbon a lot quieter to type on than most mechanical keyboards.
Regardless of whether you opt for the palpable-but-subtle bump of the Romer-G Tactile switches or the fluidity of the Romer-G Linear switches, the G513 Carbon's dimensions remain the same, at 5.20 by 17.91 by 1.33 inches (HWD), and weighing in at 2.25 pounds.
For all its heft, the body has a slim profile, though it's not a sawed-off "tenkeyless" model meant for lugging around in a backpack.
If you do end up toting it around, you'll appreciate that stemming from the back edge is a thick rubber reinforcement for the 6-foot braided USB cable, protecting the flex joint where it emerges from the chassis.
On the computer end, this cable is a forked dual-USB-connector design.
The keyboard needs that second USB connection on the computer side because of a USB passthrough port on the back of the keyboard, meant for a mouse or headset.
It's next to the cable reinforcement.
The G513 Carbon's large palm rest lacks the BlackWidow Chroma V2's magnetic connection to the keyboard.
You simply sit it next to the keyboard, and grips on the underside keep it in place.
At 3.46 by 17.52 inches (depth by width), it's similar in size to the wrist rests of the BlackWidow Chroma V2 and Corsair K95 RGB Platinum.
Unlike the K95 RGB Platinum's rest, which is plastic with rubber inserts, Logitech's is padded faux-leather, similar in feel to Razer's detachable cushion.
Your preference—plush versus plastic—may vary; personally, I prefer the Logitech G513's pillow-like escape from the hard surface of my desk.
The G513 Carbon's switches are rated for 70 million keystrokes.
If you game in moderation, that cap would take over 150 years to reach.
Assuming you're a mere mortal, the switches on this keyboard are bound to last well beyond the point that you're tired of using it.
The force required to actuate each key on the G513 Carbon is 45 grams force (gf), the same as the rating for the Cherry MX Brown or MX Speed versions of Corsair's K95 RGB Platinum, but less than the 50gf demanded by the "Green Switch" version of Razer's BlackWidow Chroma V2.
(Note that Cherry rates its key switches in centi-newtons, but the two units of measurement are almost exactly equivalent, close enough for rule-of-thumb comparisons.) The actuation distance of each key, meanwhile, is 1.5mm on both the Linear and Tactile models.
As for its performance, Logitech says that its G513 Carbon mechanical gaming keyboard responds 10ms faster and actuates 25 percent faster than the Razer BlackWidow Chroma V2.
Bold claims indeed, but with no real-world way to put them to the test, the difference is negligible in real-world gaming scenarios.
In our extended gameplay sessions with the G513 Carbon, we couldn't tell a lick of difference.
Comprehensive (but Complicated) Software
Of course, the G513 Carbon being a gaming keyboard and the year being 2018, there would simply have to be an RGB lighting angle.
The G513 Carbon sports not only the option of configuring lighting zones by way of the downloadable Logitech Gaming Software (LGS) utility, but also backlighting customization per-key.
You can make, say, the WASD keys light up as a group, hued as you like, and you also have the freedom to choose among 16.8 million colors on any single key.
The result: infinite customization, according to your favorite game's or application's needs.
That said, the key-lighting colors appear a bit dim versus other RGB keyboards on the market, especially the K95 RGB Platinum.
Even Logitech's own G810 Orion Spectrum seems to shine brighter.
While I prefer the subtlety of the G513 Carbon, some gamers tend to enjoy splashier keyboards—the more ostentatious the lighting, the better.
For those folks, I'd have appreciated the option to crank up the intensity, even if I would have left the level at my review unit's default.
LGS itself hasn't changed much in the two years since last I used it.
It can be overwhelming at first; the interface is a touch difficult to navigate versus, say, Razer's Synapse 3.
On the other hand, it is positively tame compared to Cougar's cumbersome UIX System software used in keyboards like the Cougar Attack X3 RGB.
LGS's most closely matched rival, to my eyes, is Corsair's Corsair Utility Engine (CUE), whose deep functionality and versatility sometimes get in the way of its ease of use.
Most of LGS's functionality is divided into four categories, each represented by a simple icon on the lower right side of the screen.
These are "Customize G-keys" (represented by a G key), "Lighting Settings" (a light bulb), "Game Mode Settings" (a key with a joystick on it), and "Input Analysis" (a heatmapped G key).
The first section, Customize G-keys, is where you can set the 11 media keys in the top row to perform specific actions.
The Logitech G513 Carbon has no discrete media keys; these media controls are subsumed under F5 to F12, as well as Print Screen, Screen Lock, and Pause.
You hold down Fn to activate these alternate functions.
You can select from a variety of commands, such as a single keystroke, a combination of keystrokes, shortcuts to paste entire blocks of text, and the obvious play, pause, stop, and volume controls most folks are used to up in the function row.
In the second section, Lighting Settings, you can select among four different lighting modes: Freestyle, Zones, Effects, and Your Effects.
Links to these are in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen.
Click on any of the four modes, and you will see a detailed diagram of the G513 Carbon south of a pair of arrowheads.
Click on these arrowheads, and you will see a mysterious box labeled "Enable per profile backlighting." It's not clear at first what it does, but upon clicking it, you can swap profiles and implement lighting effects using any one of the four modes we'll talk about in a sec.
The first among the lighting modes you will find in Lighting Settings, Freestyle, lets you set the color of each key individually, though many gamers will find this process tedious.
First, you pinpoint the desired color on a color wheel, then click on keys, one by one, to change their colors.
It's easy enough for changing a handful of keys at a time, but for more complicated arrangements, I wish I could control-click my way to a faster lighting arrangement.
Second to the right, the Zones lighting mode is more convoluted.
Using the Lighting Zones panel at lower right, you can create "zones" (groups of keys to be lit), labeling each with a title of your choosing before selecting a group of keys to assign to that zone.
This process helps alleviate the tedium of per-key assignment, but the process isn't immediately obvious; you have to create a zone before selecting keys to have the keys become part of that zone.
Selecting the keys first won't work.
In Effects, you can pick from a slew of preset, across-keyboard animations, such as Breathing, Star Effect, Color Cycle, Color Wave, Key Press, and Ripple.
You can customize each of these to move faster or slower depending on your preference.
In Your Effects, the last of the G513 Carbon's lighting modes, you can select from even more preset lighting effects, or create your own animations in an interface reminiscent of Garage Band.
Unfortunately, Logitech doesn't provide an in-software tutorial that teaches you how to use the effects creator.
Mastering it means trawling through unofficial online resources.
Next up in the main LGS interface: the Game Mode Settings tab, Give it a click, and you will find a cluster of black boxes, into which you produce and designate profiles for specific games.
So, for example, if you want to disable the Windows key—but only in Overwatch—you can do that.
Or, if you want to light up just the WASD keys in World of Warcraft, you can do that too.
The opportunities are endless, considering that profiles can be tied to any of the four lighting modes.
Last, the Input Analysis center records and displays which keys you press the most—something of a "stats center" for how you use the keyboard.
Click the play button, then start typing away at an essay or pounding away at a session of Far Cry 5.
Later, if you check back, you can see a Key Press Heat Map (the keys you press the most) and the Key Duration (how long you pressed each key).
These stats will be mere novelties for most folks, but if you were curious which letters you're overusing in your college thesis—or you need to quantify your reflexes at reloading in Fortnite—LGS has you covered.
Good...but Get Your Fingers On It First
The Logitech G513 Carbon combines versatility and minimalism in an appealing keyboard for those who like RGB bling and a conservative look in equal measure.
After a few days of Romer-G pecking, I found the typing experience equally pleasant to the gaming one, and realized that this keyboard is held back only by its lack of dedicated macro or media keys.
The key switches may have special appeal for those who aren't satisfied by the half-dozen or so flavors of Cherry switch in common circulation.
The Romer-Gs aren't for everyone; some seasoned gamers will turn up their noses at anything not made by Cherry, and I didn't find a huge difference in feel between the Tactile and Linear.
But they were both quite comfortable.
Mind you, their spongier feedback takes some getting used to.
(Even the Tactile keys pack a little pushback with their slight bump.) So I suggest, if you can, that you get to a store to try out the Logitech G513 Carbon against the Corsair K95 RGB Platinum (or another Cherry MX-based keyboard) to feel the difference yourself.
It's a Coke-versus-Pepsi choice.
You may realize that Corsair's flagship, with its dedicated media and macro keys, is worth the additional $50 toll.
On the flip side, the Logitech G513 Carbon is a quieter-sounding, stealthier-looking, and trimmer mechanical board that may suit your tastes and fingers better—and if so, save you some bucks to boot.
Cons
Software takes patience to learn.
No dedicated macro or media keys.
Subdued RGB illumination.
The Bottom Line
Though it cries out for media/macro keys, the minimalist Logitech G513 Carbon gaming keyboard justifies its price with custom, RGB-lit mechanical switches that feel great and won't wake up your household.
