RGB Is Everywhere, And Colorblind Gamers Are Furious.

“I really only see green and blue.” Says Rachel Brown, who is “probably colorblind.” So why should she have to pay a markup on computer hardware if she can’t even see a third of the colors?

Gamers in the colorblind community, many of which have come forward with this same grievance, are banding together on social media, advocating for fair pricing based on their disability, using the hashtag “RGBoycott”

But how much does this really cost the consumer? In this video by popular computer hardware channel Gamers Nexus, they are asked the same question. “It can range from $5-10” they said, after asking representatives from a few component manufacturers. However, based on the part and differences in marketing, this range can be blown out of the water, often reaching as high as 20% of the products overall cost.

Brown reached out to Corsair, one of the leaders in the “RGBification” of the DIY PC industry, to ask for a partial refund for the red LED’s on an RGB keyboard she bought in January, as she is unable to see the light they emit. Corsair declined her refund, and did not provide a reason as to why. That’s when we stepped in. We contacted Corsair’s customer support on her behalf, and gave them the Ultimatum, our lawyers. They came clean shortly after, stating that Brown “hasn’t gotten formal colorblindness testing, so she is probably faking it.” It has been recommended by the company “that maybe we should just sit her down with an apple, a red one though, or like a red stop sign to see if she’s full of shit”

I also sat down with popular children’s entertainer and self proclaimed “practicing pirate”, Jodsh Scurvy. Scurvy suffers from a rare form of monochrome colorblindness, where only the red cone is active. It seems he is only able to enjoy the “R” of RGB. Ironic. Scurvy declined any insight on his condition, probably because our intern kept trying to explain the concept of blowing someone in the past tense, something which Jodsh is incapable of perceiving.

Scurvy himself has invested hundreds of dollars into the RGB-centric Razer computer accessories ecosystem, because he “likes the way they sound and light up and gather dust, like they are all black so it’s really easy to see the dust”, but after he found out that the lights on all of his products are supposed to light up with a full RGB spectrum of color, he was dumbfounded. “I never would have known.” He stated.

Both of these accounts are absolutely tragic, however there still may be a colorful light the end of the tunnel. We happened to interview both Brown and Scurvy in person at the TechFault headquarters in San Jose on the same morning. After hearing about their respective conditions, it turns out Brown and Scurvy complete each other. I couldn’t pass down the opportunity to play cupid, so I promptly explained to either of them that Jodsh can only see red, and Rachel can only see green and blue. A perfect fit!

Jodsh would then not shut up about the things he would do to her, in vivid, monochrome detail.

So cute!