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Razer just opened the floodgates for its ‘cheating’ Snap Tap feature

Razer Blade 14 sitting on a coffee table.
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends

Razer is expanding support for its Snap Tap feature, which rolled out a few months ago alongside the Huntsman V3 Pro keyboard. It allows much quicker inputs between two keys, particularly when it comes to strafing in games like Valorant, Apex Legends, and Rainbow Six: Siege. Now, the vast majority of Razer’s gaming keyboards are getting support, along with Razer Blade laptops — some of which are among the best gaming laptops you can buy.

Originally, Snap Tap was billed as a feature enabled by the Hall Effect (magnetic) switches, but this latest update proves that’s not the case. Snap Tap allows you to switch between two keys without fully lifting your finger when switching between them. In the case of strafing, for example, you’re able to bounce back and forth between your A and D keys, and Snap Tap will prioritize your most recent input. That’s true even if your finger continues pressing down on the previous key, allowing for very fast, precise strafing.

Razer still says Snap Tap works best when used in conjunction with its Rapid Trigger feature available on Hall Effect keyboards, but traditional mechanical keyboards like the recently released Black Widow V4 Pro 75% Wireless can use Snap Tap as well.

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The vast majority of Razer devices support Snap Tap now, including keyboards released more than a decade ago. Any keyboard or laptop that’s supported by the new Razer Synapse 4 will have access to the Snap Tap feature. You can see a full list of supported devices on Razer’s website.

Although Snap Tap has been a hit in competitive games, it’s also drawn a lot of controversy. Valve banned the use of any input-automation feature, including Snap Tap, from official Counter-Strike 2 servers last month. A few weeks after Valve’s announcement, the ESL banned Snap Tap features from its competitive Counter-Strike 2 events. Razer has been on the forefront of the esports-focused tech, along with boutique keyboard brand Wooting.

There’s been no shortage of personalities calling the feature “cheating,” as well. Valorant player Ethos called it “basically cheating,” as did PC hardware reviewer Optimum.

Snap Tap was originally introduced with the Huntsman V3 Pro, and Razer says the feature is built into the keyboard’s firmware. You’ll be able to use it even without Razer Synapse 4 installed. That’s not the case for other devices. If you want to use Snap Tap on a Razer Blade 14 or a Black Widow V4, or any other Razer keyboard, you’ll need to install Synapse 4.

Jacob Roach
Lead Reporter, PC Hardware
Jacob Roach is the lead reporter for PC hardware at Digital Trends. In addition to covering the latest PC components, from…
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