Going back to basics, SteelSeries introduces Apex M500

A recent trend in mechanical keyboard manufacturers is the move toward simplicity and more "office" like mechanical keyboards.   I was wondering who might follow suit after Logitech's announcement.   I guess we are coming in full circle in some shape.  It's no surprise that many of the big keyboard makers have at least 2 lines of  mechanical keyboards.  One kept the traditional gamer look while the newer products ascribe to a sleeker image.  Following the lead of Logitech and Cooler Master, SteelSeries recently introduced the Apex M500.

The Apex M500 is positioned similarly to Logitech's G610.  The emphasis is on the clean look and a design that is uncomplicated and not distracting.  Also similar to Logitech, instead of using the proprietary switch SteelSeries employed for the M800, it's back to Cherry MX.  In this case, just MX red.  In many way, the parallel is quite uncanny.  In many respect, the M500 has hit all the right check mark and a price that's quite reasonable, at $100 USD.  It is slightly higher than other offerings from say Rosewill.  I suppose SteelSeries is counting on the integration with its other product lines such as mouse with an unifying controller software.  Wait, isn't this the same strategy Logitech is using?

Anyway, let's see where this lead and see if other keyboard makers follow suit.