Corsair Vanguard Air 99 wireless review: a slim 99% keyboard with useful Stream Deck skills, but a premium price | Tech Radar

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‘So close to brilliant’ — I reviewed the Corsair Vanguard Air 99 wireless keyboard and it was almost everything I wanted

Fast wireless, quiet keys and handy Stream Deck shortcuts make this a compelling 99% board for work or play

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The Corsair Vanguard Air 99 Wireless is a good fit for users who want a premium low-profile keyboard for gaming, productivity and desk-control shortcuts. The OPX switches, aluminum frame, 8K wireless performance, Stream Deck keys, LCD and rotary dial all feel like purposeful, well-thought-out hardware choices. The premium price isn’t necessarily a problem for the target audience, but minor issues like unpolished software leave me wanting more and mean the keyboard is harder to recommend to anyone not already deep in the Corsair ecosystem.

+Useful Stream Deck integration for shortcut-heavy setups

Useful Stream Deck integration for shortcut-heavy setups

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The Corsair Vanguard Air 99 Wireless is a premium low-profile gaming keyboard built for those who want one board for gaming and productivity shortcuts, with enough flexibility to handle use across multiple setups. It uses a 99% layout, so you still get a numpad and function row, but the overall footprint is smaller than a regular full-size board.

Add fast polling over both wired and 2.4GHz wireless, OPX low-profile optical switches, per-key RGB, an LCD screen and six Stream Deck-friendly keys, and it’s clear the Vanguard isn’t aimed at users who just want a simple wireless keyboard.

The Vanguard Air 99 has a slightly compact 99% layout.(Image credit: Future)

The Vanguard Air 99 has the Stream Deck keys on the left edge(Image credit: Future)

The Vanguard Air 99 has a a compact but full numpad on the right.(Image credit: Future)

The Vanguard Air 99 has a range of inbuilt RGB effects.(Image credit: Future)

With the LEDs off, the Vanguard Air 99 blends in even at work(Image credit: Future)

Corsair Vanguard Air 99 Wireless (White) at Amazon for $259.99

The high price feels purposeful, but it does mean the board won't appeal to everyone. At

The physical design and build quality are two of the areas where the Vanguard Air 99 really stands out. The aluminum-topped frame gives the keyboard a more premium feel than many low-profile boards, while the black or white finish keeps the look clean enough for a work desk.

At 26.27mm (~1-inch) high, it’s very slim for a keyboard with a full numpad, and the 99% layout is a sensible middle ground if you need number keys but still want more mouse room than a standard full-size board would leave.

That said, the tighter layout does take some getting used to. A 99% board keeps almost everything, but it compresses the nav cluster and pushes the six Stream Deck keys to the left edge. The layout works well overall, but the Vanguard Air 99 isn’t quite as immediately familiar to type on as the near-full-size spec suggests, and it took me a while to adjust.

The aspect that took longest was avoiding occasional accidental presses of the Stream Deck keys, so you’ll have to bear with it if you’re coming from a conventional full-size keyboard.

The Vanguard Air 99 has loads of customization options (Image credit: Future)

The OPX low-profile optical switches make for a very enjoyable typing experience. They have a short 1.5mm actuation point and 2.5mm total travel, so key presses feel quick without bottoming out too fast.

The switches are linear, pre-lubed and not hot-swappable, which lets Corsair set up the feel but does limit future tinkering.

The combination of the gasket mount and internal sound dampening gives the Vanguard Air 99 a more polished feel than many low-profile keyboards. I find that some (admittedly, much cheaper) designs can sound thin or plasticky, but the Vanguard Air 99 Wireless uses its gasket mount and five internal sound-absorbing layers to make each key press feel solid, smooth and very quiet.

The PBT keycaps, which use a tougher, more wear-resistant plastic, also help the premium impression, and the double-shot molding means the legends are made from a separate layer of plastic rather than printed on top. Be aware that some regional layouts may use ABS keycaps, which are made from a smoother, more common plastic that can develop shine more quickly, so buyers should check the exact version.

The appeal to gamers is pretty straightforward. The Vanguard Air 99 Wireless supports 8,000 Hz polling over USB and Slipstream v 2 2.4GHz wireless, plus Flash Tap SOCD (Simultaneous Opposing Cardinal Directions) handling for resolving overlapping directional inputs. For most users, 8K polling is more about headroom than making a clear difference in games, but it’s good to see wireless performance has no compromises.

Switch customization is one area where the Vanguard Air 99 lacks flexibility. Many expensive gaming boards now offer magnetic or analog switches with adjustable actuation and rapid trigger-style features. The Vanguard Air 99’s optical switches are fast and consistent, but actuation isn’t adjustable.

Competitive players chasing that exact level of tuning may be better served by one of the best gaming keyboards with analog switches.

The Vanguard Air 99 has a slim profile.(Image credit: Future)

Feet down, the Vanguard Air 99 sits very low. (Image credit: Future)

The arrow keys have semi clear keycaps(Image credit: Future)

The RGB lighting is nice and even.(Image credit: Future)

You can also turn the brightness down. (Image credit: Future)

The Vanguard Air 99 can be connect via cable, Bluetooth or 2.4GHz wireless dongle(Image credit: Future)

The underside of the Vanguard Air 99 keyboard. (Image credit: Future)

The fold out feet on the keyboard have great grip. (Image credit: Future)

Customization control is split across Corsair Web Hub, the Stream Deck app and i CUE support. I like the Web Hub approach because it lets you adjust key assignments, macros, lighting, polling and profiles in a browser without installing anything. This is especially handy if you want to use the keyboard across multiple machines.

For example, you might have i CUE installed on your gaming rig, but not bother with it if connecting to a work laptop. The Web Hub also makes it easier to configure the keyboard on a machine where you are restricted from installing unapproved apps.

The software side still feels like a work in progress, though. That’s important because the Stream Deck keys, LCD, RGB lighting, rotary dial and onboard profiles are a large part of what buyers are paying for.

While the Stream Deck app is great, the keyboard management software feels like it’s playing catch-up to the hardware. For example, i CUE support wasn’t initially available for the Vanguard Air 99, and it’s easy to hit limitations in both the Web Hub and i CUE at times.

RGB control is a good example. You can select from a range of RGB customizations, with different layers for making certain keys stand out, but there’s no proper per-key color and effect control that lets you truly make it your own. You also can’t build your own effects — something even my cheap RGB Christmas lights allow.

The selectable effects only have three speed options, and the slowest setting was still too fast for my taste. For a keyboard at this price, the lighting control is a lot less granular than I had hoped for.

The Vanguard Air 99 keyboard has six customizable keys on the left. (Image credit: Future)

The keycaps are easily removed. (Image credit: Future)

You can fit different keycaps, but they must be low profile.(Image credit: Future)

The screen on the keyboard can be customised.(Image credit: Future)

The rotary dial cover can be removed. (Image credit: Future)

The six Stream Deck keys are the aspect that had me most excited about the Vanguard Air 99, even though they are just normal keys without an embedded LCD. If you already use Elgato Stream Deck, mapping shortcuts for your favorite apps or repeated productivity actions is very useful.

The limitation is that these keys are still physical buttons with static legends (though you can change the keycaps), not full Stream Deck display keys, so the setup works best for a small number of repeat actions rather than constantly changing layouts.

The included keycap sets are a useful touch too. Corsair includes one set of six Stream Deck icon keycaps and one set of six Mac keycaps, and there’s a Windows / Mac switch key to go with them. The caps were easy enough to swap by hand on my sample, but there’s no keycap puller in the box, which feels like an odd omission when replacement caps are included.

The package also includes the Slipstream Wireless v 2 adapter, a female USB-C to female USB-A adapter and a USB-C to USB-A cable. The 2.4GHz receiver magnetically slots into the keyboard next to the buttons and is easy to access, while the little adapter is used with a USB-C cable to help make positioning the receiver more convenient if your desktop is tucked away or the rear USB ports are crowded.

The included USB cable is soft and has a braided fabric shell, but I’d still have preferred a standard USB-C to USB-C cable with a USB-A adapter, which would give more flexibility for port selection.

The screen on the Vanguard Air 99 means my dog can judge me all day (Image credit: Future)

The 1.9-inch LCD is best considered as a small status and personalization display rather than a major productivity feature. It’s a 1.9-inch IPS full-color display with a 320 x 170 resolution, 350 cd/m² brightness and 30 FPS image support, so the hardware itself is pretty good. It gives the Vanguard Air 99 some extra visual character, it can show images and GIFs, and it’s useful for quick feedback on remaining battery and modes. It can also be configured to show system data like temperature sensor readouts.

Uploading images or animations is an easy way to customize the look, but note that it has to be done over wired USB, and while the adjustment tool lets you center a picture, the fixed zoom steps are fairly large and make fine-tuning harder than it should be. The screen feels like software upgrades could make it more useful in the future.

The battery life is respectable, but I wouldn’t call it exceptional. Corsair quotes up to 55 hours with keyboard lighting off and the LCD at 20% brightness or 29 hours with both keyboard lighting and the LCD at 20%. I tended to like it brighter, so I only managed about 20 hours, which means this is a keyboard you’ll likely keep plugged in most of the time if you use the RGB and screen heavily. Still, being able to go full wireless is very much appreciated.

There are extra Mac and Stream Deck keycaps included with the keyboard. (Image credit: Future)

A USB cable and adaptor is included in the box. (Image credit: Future)

The 2.4GHz dongle tucks away magnetically in the keyboard. (Image credit: Future)

The little wireless dongle can handle the same 8,000 Hz polling as the wired connection.(Image credit: Future)

Overall, the Vanguard Air 99 looks like a good fit for certain buyers. The keyboard is slim, well built and well suited to fast gaming, but also has enough productivity features to feel more flexible than a typical gaming keyboard.

That software maturity is the main thing that complicates my recommendation. The Vanguard Air 99’s price feels more reasonable when you look at the hardware: the low-profile build, Stream Deck keys, LCD, rotary dial, wireless 8K polling and compact numpad layout all support a specific premium desk setup. But because the software isn’t as polished, buyers may be left waiting to get full value from the keyboard.

Corsair Vanguard Air 99 Wireless review: price & release date

The Vanguard Air 99 competes with low-profile wireless models like the Logitech G915 X Lightspeed TKL and Razer Death Stalker V2 Pro, plus analog gaming boards such as the Steel Series Apex Pro TKL Wireless Gen 3.

Corsair’s advantage is the blend of low-profile design, numpad and Stream Deck-adjacent controls. It isn’t a value-first keyboard, but it is easier to understand as a deliberate premium board for people who want low-profile typing, gaming wireless and desk-control features in one setup.

The arrow keycaps are clear, showing off the RGB LEDs. (Image credit: Future)

Six Stream Deck keys, Elgato key, Web Hub / Stream Deck app / i CUE support

Six Stream Deck keys, Elgato key, Web Hub / Stream Deck app / i CUE support

Low-profile, swappable; PBT double-shot on NA/UK layouts, ABS on other layouts

Low-profile, swappable; PBT double-shot on NA/UK layouts, ABS on other layouts

1.9-inch LCD, rotary dial, six Stream Deck keys, Elgato key, Windows / Mac switch

1.9-inch LCD, rotary dial, six Stream Deck keys, Elgato key, Windows / Mac switch

Up to 55 hours with keyboard lighting off; up to 29 hours with lighting and LCD at 20%

Up to 55 hours with keyboard lighting off; up to 29 hours with lighting and LCD at 20%

Slipstream Wireless v 2 adapter, braided USB-C to USB-A cable, USB-C to USB-A adapter, Stream Deck icon keycaps, Mac keycaps

Slipstream Wireless v 2 adapter, braided USB-C to USB-A cable, USB-C to USB-A adapter, Stream Deck icon keycaps, Mac keycaps

With the brightness turned down, the battery lasts a lot longer. (Image credit: Future)

Should I buy the Corsair Vanguard Air 99 Wireless?

8K wired and wireless polling, LCD, rotary dial, Stream Deck keys and Web Hub profiles give the Vanguard Air 99 a broad, purposeful feature set.

8K wired and wireless polling, LCD, rotary dial, Stream Deck keys and Web Hub profiles give the Vanguard Air 99 a broad, purposeful feature set.

OPX low-profile optical switches are quick and smooth, though fixed actuation means analog rivals still offer more tuning.

OPX low-profile optical switches are quick and smooth, though fixed actuation means analog rivals still offer more tuning.

Slim aluminum frame, 99% layout and two color options feel premium, but the compressed layout and left-side keys take a little getting used to.

Slim aluminum frame, 99% layout and two color options feel premium, but the compressed layout and left-side keys take a little getting used to.

The high price feels purposeful for the target buyer, but current software limits how fully the hardware can be used.

The high price feels purposeful for the target buyer, but current software limits how fully the hardware can be used.

A purposeful premium low-profile keyboard with excellent hardware, useful Stream Deck integration and software that still needs more polish.

A purposeful premium low-profile keyboard with excellent hardware, useful Stream Deck integration and software that still needs more polish.

You want one low-profile board for gaming and work The 99% layout keeps a numpad in a slim body, while wireless 8K polling, OPX switches and browser-based profiles make the Vanguard Air 99 flexible enough for daily use.

You already use Stream Deck shortcuts The six Stream Deck keys and Virtual Stream Deck support are useful for launching your favorite apps or repeated productivity actions.

You like premium low-profile typing The aluminum frame, gasket mount, sound dampening and short-travel OPX switches give the board a more polished feel than cheaper low-profile alternatives.

You want maximum competitive tuning The OPX switches are fast, but they don’t offer adjustable actuation or hot-swap support, so analog boards are a better fit if you want deeper control.

You expect fully mature RGB and LCD controls The hardware is promising, but the current software lacks fine-grained lighting, image adjustment and screen control.

You need long battery life with RGB on Corsair’s top battery figure requires keyboard lighting off and the LCD at 20%, so with bright RGB and the screen on, you’ll want to keep it plugged in.

Corsair Vanguard Air 99 Wireless review: also consider

Linear: 45g, 1.2mm; Clicky: 50g, 1.5mm; 2.8mm travel

Linear: 45g, 1.2mm; Clicky: 50g, 1.5mm; 2.8mm travel

Corsair K100 Air Wireless Corsair’s earlier ultra-thin board is still worth considering if you want a full-size low-profile keyboard with very good battery life and more traditional macro keys. The K100 Air lacks the Vanguard Air 99’s Stream Deck-style keys and 8K wireless mode, but its typing feel and battery stamina remain competitive. Read our full Corsair K100 Air Wireless review

Razer Death Stalker V2 Pro The Death Stalker V2 Pro is a useful alternative if you want a low-profile wireless gaming keyboard with a lighter, more conventional layout and responsive optical switches. The Death Stalker V2 Pro is still expensive, but it’s a proven option for buyers who don’t need a numpad-focused 99% layout or Stream Deck extras. Read our full Razer Death Stalker V2 Pro review

With the brightness up, the RGB LEDs look great, but use a lot more battery power. (Image credit: Future)

How I tested the Corsair Vanguard Air 99 Wireless

I tested the Corsair Vanguard Air 99 Wireless by using it as my main keyboard for two weeks across work, productivity tasks and gaming. I used it on both an Apple Mac Book Air and a Windows laptop, switching between wired USB, 2.4GHz wireless and Bluetooth modes, and I typed this review and other work on it during that period.

I also swapped the included keycaps, checked the magnetic receiver storage, used the Windows / Mac switch and adjusted lighting and profiles in Corsair Web Hub and i CUE. I set up the Stream Deck keys through the Stream Deck app, used the LCD and rotary dial in daily use, and kept the lighting and screen bright enough to compare my real-world battery life with Corsair’s quoted figures.

Lindsay is an Australian tech journalist who loves nothing more than rigorous product testing and benchmarking. He is especially passionate about portable computing, doing deep dives into the USB-C specification or getting hands on with energy storage, from power banks to off grid systems. In his spare time Lindsay is usually found tinkering with an endless array of projects or exploring the many waterways around Sydney.

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Key Takeaways

• News, deals, reviews, guides and more on the newest computing gadgets

• Start exploring exclusive deals, expert advice and more

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• ‘So close to brilliant’ — I reviewed the Corsair Vanguard Air 99 wireless keyboard and it was almost everything I wanted

• Fast wireless, quiet keys and handy Stream Deck shortcuts make this a compelling 99% board for work or play