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EVGA Reveals 4K Hz Keyboards and 8K Hz Gaming Mice

EVGA has just announced a host of top-tier gaming peripherals — including two keyboards and three mice with 4,000... | 12. February 2021

EVGA has just announced a host of top-tier gaming peripherals — including two keyboards and three mice with 4,000 and 8,000 Hz polling rates, respectively! That’s about as top-tier as it gets, and even though they’re not the first to release such cutting-edge products, they’re definitely the first to offer a more broader set of options.

Now, EVGA isn’t exactly synonymous with gaming peripherals. Still, you’d never be able to tell based on these products. They are truly remarkable when it comes to the hardware they’re packing, and they’re not obscenely priced either! For these EVGA gaming peripherals, it’s all about giving players a more precise level of control.

There’s a lot of ground to cover, so let’s begin!

EVGA X-Series Mice

The X17 and X20 share many similarities, at least when it comes to their outward appearance. Their biggest allure, however, is their sensor array — both models are packing three separate sensors. There’s the main optical one (the Pixart 3335 for the X20 and the Pixart 2289 for the X17), along with two LOD sensors (lift-off distance).

With such an impressive array of sensors, EVGA was able to implement their “3-Dimension Array Tech” system which is an algorithm that can detect the position where you first lift the mouse off a surface and put it back down, therefore “achieving the shortest and most accurate lift-off distance.” For MOBA gamers or those into World of Warcraft, this is nothing but pure tech mumbo-jumbo. For competitive FPS players, however, this is an absolutely huge benefit. Although how big of a difference it’ll actually make still remains to be seen. On paper this kind of set-up should allow for the most accurate control — by far.

Let’s Talk Details

The X20 is fully wireless (with on-board Bluetooth support as well), whereas the X17 is wired-only. The latter also comes with an 8,000 Hz polling rate which is a huge upgrade over the industry standard (1,000 Hz). Polling rate, in short, is the number of times your mouse reports to your computer. So 8,000 Hz means it’ll report just as many times per second. Both models come equipped with the standard gaming bells and whistles like programmable buttons, multi-zone RGB, and up to 16,000 DPI. The X17 also supports additional weights, for those looking to add a bit more heft (up to 25 grams).

The X15, on the other hand, comes with just a single optical sensor (Pixart 3389) along with the 8,000 Hz polling rate, but has something unique as well: a bunch of programmable buttons on the side, making it perfect for MMO enthusiasts.

Unfortunately, none of these mice are ambidextrous.

EVGA Z-Series Keyboards

When it comes to keyboards, we have the Z15 and Z20. Both models have a 4,000 Hz polling rate which, frankly, is their biggest selling point. They also have a couple of programmable macro keys on the left-hand side, a dedicated volume wheel on the right, USB 2.0 passthrough, and either optical switches (for the Z20) or mechanical ones (for the Z15). There’s nothing overly special about them (other than the polling rate), but they nonetheless have all the features one might need. This includes a nifty proximity sensor that’ll register when you get up from your computer so that it can shut down any backlighting and therefore preserve battery (like the Logitech MX Keys).

The Z15 is pretty much a watered-down version of the Z20. It lacks the aforementioned proximity sensor and comes with hot-swappable mechanical switches instead of any optical ones. The Z20 will sell for $175, with the Z15 going for a more modest $130.

Overall, these are seriously capable gaming peripherals, and they came from the unlikeliest of sources. Their only downside — and it’s a fully subjective one — is their design. They’re still channeling some of that age-old gamery aesthetic, even though everyone else (including Razer) has decided to move on. It’s 2021, and we’re all in for minimalism and function over form.