Asus has unveiled a successor to its original Claymore keyboard at CES 2021. The novelty offers a modular structure, as is familiar from the predecessor, with which the numpad partition of the keyboard can be detached. Unlike its predecessor, however, the Claymore II is wireless, in addition to which it brings with it Asus ’own optical ROG RX Blue switches. A model with the ROG RX Red switches presented earlier is also available.

The Asus Claymore II uses the USB Type-C connection for charging, through which it can also be used as a wired one, unless the 2.4 GHz wireless connection interests the user. Data is also transferred via the Type-C connection, which has made it possible to add one USB Type-A connection to the keyboard, for example for USB sticks. In wireless mode, the keyboard is powered by a 4000 mAh battery, which according to the manufacturer offers 40 hours of battery life. In addition to the traditional number buttons, the detachable numpad section has four media buttons that are customizable and a volume wheel. The keyboard also comes with a magnetically attached wrist rest.

The Claymore II is the first keyboard on the market to use Asus’ new optical ROG RX Blue switches. In the past, Asus’ own optical switches have been seen on the manufacturer’s Stris Scope RX keyboard, among other things, but at the time they were linear ROG RX Red switches. With the optical mechanism, the filtering delay of the switches is practically non-existent. The structure of the ROG RX Blue follows the structure of the reds seen earlier, including X-stabilizers, hollow square joints for key caps, and more rGB backlighting in the center.

The difference between the ROG RX Blue switches and the red ones comes from their feel. Instead of a linear trajectory, Asus blue offers a clickable tactile response like Cherry’s MX Blue switches. ROG RX Blue switches have a connection depth of 1.5 mm and a pressing force 65 grams. Asus promises a familiar 100 million keystroke lifespan for the switches.

Asus has not yet announced the date or price of the launch of Claymore II

.Sources: Asus, TechPowerUp