Asus ROG Falchion Wireless Keyboard Review

Today we are looking at the Asus ROG Falchion 65% Wireless gaming keyboard. This board has been out for quite some time now and while wireless 65% keyboards are nothing new to the enthusiast, there aren’t many “gaming” brands that offer this spec. I recently reviewed the Corsair K65 Mini and while there was nothing wrong with the keyboard, the lack of innovation and features made me question its overall value.

The ROG falchion, however, brings a boot load of features to the table that gamers are going to love. This is a reliable, high-quality, compact keyboard at its core but it doesn’t stop there, with wireless connectivity and useful little extras that I’ve never seen before, such as an interactive touch panel and status bar, Asus has brought something truly unique into the market.

A few of the keys on the board are unfortunately uniquely sized to this model, which is going to make customization a bit tricky/ not worth it but the fact there are still dedicated arrow keys along with the other features, this could potentially catch a few eyes.

Let’s take a closer look.

ASUS ROG Falchion Wireless 65% Mechanical Gaming Keyboard

Size 65%

Switches Cherry MX RGB

Weight 520 grams

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Hands-on Review

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What's In The Box

The packaging for the Falchion is minimalist yet still quite aesthetically pleasing, with everything you need to know about the product dotted around the black and red box.

Inside we have:

• Asus ROG Falchion 65% Wireless Gaming Keyboard
• 2.4GHz USB dongle
• Detachable, braided USB-C to USB-A cable
• USB desktop extender
• Keyboard cover

Design

The ROG Falchion is, of course, a 65% compact model, meaning you are losing dedicated F-keys and number pad. Normally this would be the same for your function keys and arrow keys but one huge plus to this keyboard is that Asus has kept the dedicated arrow keys and an additional column of four keys on the right.

Visually, the board is compact and that is owed to the fact the keys are grouped together, with no blocking or spacing in sight. The design is quite ‘gamer-esq’, however, I have to say I really like it.

The Falchion features what I would call a floating keycap design with the keys lifted above the frame and shows off the underneath per-key RGB illumination. The caps themselves are ROG’s own double-shot PBT keycaps, meaning they are very durable and will last a substantial amount of time before wearing. The font is absolutely classic from Asus ROG division, with that angry-looking gamer font. This isn’t the usual font I’d go for my setup but it wouldn’t stop me from buying. I quite like it, the only downside for me is the `’Republic Of Gamers” printed on the spacebar, which is a bit tacky.

With the overall dimensions being 305mm x 101mm x 39mm, you are truly getting a board with a small footprint on the desk and I love the inclusion of dedicated arrow keys. Of course, there is a little bit more room to play with compared to a 60% keyboard but with the arrows and four function keys down the right, I can finally use a compact board for work purposes without having to press three keys at once to perform one function.

The Falchion weighs a mere 520 grams, something to be expected from a keyboard of this size, and that is owed to the majority being made from plastic. I have no issue with plastic and there is just enough weight to the keyboard to keep it planted in position. The shape is quite boxy, with rounded off bezels to create an aesthetic that I favor and it really does look great on the desk from every angle.

The underside reminds me of Asus ROG monitors and shares a familiar design to a lot of products in the ROG range. There is a bit of branding underneath along with two small flip-out feet and four rubber pads in the four corners. The feet are very sturdy and don’t buckle when you move this backward, like some models I’ve tested. The top of the keyboard is where we see the USB-C connection and the on/off switch, which are centered for convenience.

Features

The main feature of the Falchion is its 65% TKL (Tenkeyless) form factor. Its compact size means it can not only fit on the smallest of desks but is easily transported too.

Features at a glance:

• Interactive touch panel
• Wireless with 2.4GHz connection, works in dual-mode (wired)
• 450 hours battery life (no RGB)
• PBT Doubleshot keycaps
• Cherry MX switches
• Polycarbonate keyboard cover that doubles as a tray

Wireless Connectivity

A massive feature of the Falchion is its wireless connectivity. This is one of the few, maybe only gaming keyboards of this size to be completely wireless.

The connection comes via a 2.4GHz USB dongle with a 1ms report rate. I never noticed the connection fail once through my testing, giving me a lot of confidence to use this as my daily driver for gaming. Wireless technology has come a long way and, in my opinion, matters slightly less when it comes to keyboards but I can understand why some still favor wired peripherals.

Battery Status Bar

The Asus ROG Falchion is rated for 450 hours of continuous usage. I was unable to put this fully to the test but left it on throughout the week without having to charge it up once. I had the RGB lighting on so it naturally drains much quicker and I should point out that to hit 450 hours Asus do state this would only happen with the lighting switched off. This brings me on to a feature unique to the Falchion – the battery status bar.

The status bar shows you the battery life in real-time, meaning you won’t have to dip into the software to find out your keyboard is about to die. The keyboard puts itself to sleep when not in use and while this has been a tedious feature with some peripherals in the past, it works well here. The lighting shuts off when sleeping but what I love is the fact it responds to the first keypress and doesn’t have to wake up before starting to work. You can also change the sleep settings in the software, prolonging the battery life.

Interactive Touch Panel

This has to be one of the best features of the Falchion, I’ve never seen anything like it on a keyboard as small as this, it’s excellent innovation from Asus. The touch panel is located on the left flank of the board with 9 tactile steps. Out of the box, the touch panel is set up to control your media volume but it doesn’t have to be. You can use the touch panel to create shortcuts for apps, to copy and paste, it can even be programmed as a macro key for gaming.

You can change different aspects of the touch panel through the software, for example, the middle section of the touch panel wasn’t set to do anything, so I quickly set it up to mute media when tapped.

Switches

The Asus ROG Falchion features Cherry MX RGB switch compatibility and while these won’t wow anyone anymore, they are solid, reliable switches that never let you down. The model I have here has the Red variant, something I tend to prefer when looking for a keyboard as I enjoy a linear style switch.

There is a small amount of pinging with the keyboard but much much less than with the Corsair K65 Mini to the point you wouldn’t really notice it or care. These feel and sound of better quality, possibly even lubed as they are certainly smoother.

Keyboard Cover

At first glance, it may seem strange that I’m including a keyboard cover as a feature but here me out, this is great. The included polycarbonate cover is of high quality and can be used as a dust cover when you are away from the desk. The cover also has an alternative use and can flip around to essentially be a keyboard tray.

There is no real reason to use it as a tray but it has been designed well and diffuses the RGB illumination around the edges. Asus has gone one step further and included two small cutouts so you can access the touch panel and rear button/ charge port. We also see four rubber pads on the bottom along with a rubber interior for maximum stability when in this mode.

Final Word

The Asus ROG Falchion is a 65% wireless gaming keyboard that should be grabbing your attention, it’s feature-packed and aesthetically brilliant, as long as you love RGB. This board is completely unique in the world of gaming keyboards but pushes the boundary further giving us innovative features that I now feel I can’t go without.

The wireless connectivity performs as expected and when combined with such a long battery life, this makes it a wireless product I can get behind. Sure, it costs quite a lot of money but the touch panel and status bar is something I’ve never seen before and I’m a sucker for extras like this. The dust cover, whether you use it or not, is another nice-to-have but all of this combined with the fact I get to keep my dedicated arrow keys means I might have to pick this board up.