The SteelSeries Apex 100 Gaming Keyboard has a fixed blue backlight, so you cannot change the color, but you can change the apex 100 brightness and turn the light on or off. If you were hoping for RGB effects or a different hue, that isn’t possible on this model; your control is limited to adjusting the intensity of the blue glow and managing when it is active. For a keyboard that does support full color customization, you can change keyboard color on asus tuf gaming laptop models with per-key RGB. For any of these adjustments, you’ll use either the keyboard’s built-in function keys or the free SteelSeries GG software, which is the only official tool that recognizes this device.
Can you change the apex 100 keyboard color?
No. The backlighting color on the SteelSeries Apex 100 is permanently blue and cannot be altered to any other shade. What you can do is adjust the brightness of that blue light, turn the illumination completely off, or set up lighting behaviors like a reactive effect when you press a key. All of these options are managed through the SteelSeries GG application, which you must download and install to access the keyboard’s settings. If you’re looking for a keyboard with full RGB customization, the Apex 100 is not that product, but for those who just want to tame the blue glow, the steps below cover everything.
How to adjust backlight brightness using keyboard keys
The quickest way to change the apex 100 brightness is without opening any software. The keyboard has a dedicated SteelSeries Function Key (labeled with the SteelSeries logo) that you hold down while pressing another key to trigger a secondary action.
- Locate the SteelSeries Function Key on your keyboard, it’s typically in the bottom row near the spacebar.
- Hold down the SteelSeries Function Key and keep it pressed.
- While holding it, press the F11 key to decrease the blue backlight brightness.
- Still holding the Function Key, press the F12 key to increase the brightness.
- Release both keys once you reach your preferred level.
This method works immediately and doesn’t require any software running in the background. If you want to go darker than the lowest brightness setting, you’ll need to turn the illumination off entirely, which is covered further below.
Controlling the blue backlight with SteelSeries GG software
For more precise control, or if the keyboard shortcuts aren’t responding, use the SteelSeries GG application. This is the official software suite that manages all SteelSeries devices, and it’s the only way to access the Apex 100’s illumination settings beyond the basic brightness keys.
- Download and install SteelSeries GG from the official SteelSeries website.
- Open SteelSeries GG and go to the “Engine” tab in the left-hand menu.
- Your connected Apex 100 keyboard should appear in the device list; click on it to select it.
- Look for the “Illumination” tab in the keyboard’s settings panel. If the Apex 100 supports illumination adjustments, this tab will be present.
- Toggle “Live Preview” to On so you can see changes on the keyboard in real-time as you adjust sliders or toggles.
- Use the brightness slider to fine-tune the blue backlight intensity, or adjust any other available illumination options.
- Click “Save” to apply your changes to the keyboard.
Unlike the keyboard shortcuts, the software lets you set a specific brightness level and also configure how the light behaves during idle time or when you press keys. The Live Preview feature is especially useful because you don’t have to guess, what you see on the keyboard is exactly what you’ll get after saving.
How to turn off the illumination completely
If you want no light at all, not even the faintest blue glow, you can disable the backlight through SteelSeries GG. This is different from lowering the brightness to minimum, which still leaves a visible light on the keys.
- Open SteelSeries GG and navigate to the “Engine” tab.
- Select your Apex 100 keyboard from the device list.
- Go to the “Illumination” tab.
- Click “Save” to apply the all-off configuration.
One important warning: if you have other RGB-control software running at the same time, such as motherboard lighting utilities or apps for other peripherals, they can interfere with SteelSeries GG and cause the backlight to turn back on or behave unexpectedly. Close any competing software before making these changes, and keep them closed if you want the “Off” setting to stick.
Limitations and software tips
The Apex 100 has a few hard limits you should know about. The “Prism Early Access” feature in SteelSeries GG, which enables advanced multi-device RGB synchronization, does not support the Apex 100. So even if you enable that experimental mode, this keyboard won’t appear in it or respond to its settings. Stick to the standard Engine tab for all Apex 100 adjustments.
Also, avoid running multiple RGB-control programs simultaneously. If you have software for another keyboard, a mouse, or RGB RAM, it can conflict with SteelSeries GG and override your brightness or off settings. For the most reliable results, make SteelSeries GG the only lighting control app running, and always click “Save” after any change, otherwise, the keyboard may revert to its previous state after a reboot or when the software closes.
If you’re coming from a different brand and were trying to figure out how to change the color of an Aula gaming keyboard, the process is entirely different because that model likely has multi-color options. Similarly, if you searched for how to turn on the keyboard light on an Asus TUF gaming laptop, that’s a separate device with its own shortcut key, usually a function key combo, and has nothing to do with the Apex 100. For this SteelSeries keyboard, the blue backlight is the only color you’ll ever get, but brightness control and full shutdown are fully within your reach.
