Steelseries has kicked off its CES 2013 event with two new gaming keyboards, the Apex and the Apex RAW. Featuring quite a few unique enhancements including the low-profile keys, novel design, raised macro-rows for quick access, the Apex line will most certainly end up on quite a few gamer's shopping lists.

Both the Apex and the Apex RAW keyboard feature pretty much the same design and layout except for a slight change in the amount of macro-keys. Both keyboards come with raised macro-keys on the left and top part for easier, faster and more precise macro-combinations, two small tactile bumps on the "W" key for faster WASD cluster detection, superior anti-ghosting with up to 20 key presses, massive space bar and two diagonal direction keys, Steelseries key for on-the-fly brightness adjustment and Windows key disabling, as well as two swappable feet for keyboard angle adjustment.

The Apex is a higher-end model that features Steelseries ActiveZone illumination. In addition to 16.8 million colors, the Activezone illumination also allows independent color customization with up to 8 levels for each of the five separate zones. It also comes with the ability to program each and every key, include 22 macro-keys as well as an independent media and volume keys.

The Apex [RAW] on the other hands ditches the color customization and sticks to a rather interesting white illumination with eight levels of intensity. It still retains the maximum programmability including 17 (one row less on the left side when compared to standard Apex) and can have two layers per key as opposed to four on the Apex.

Both keyboards will be available to consumers in early Q2 2013 with a price set at $99.99/€99.99 for the Apex and $69.99/€69.99 MSRP for the Apex [RAW].