Other Keyboards We Like
Photograph: Eric Ravenscraft
Logitech Pro X TKL for $200: Logitech makes large keyboards, and the G Pro X TKL is among the champion gaming keyboards. It has vibrant RGB LED-backlit keys, a prime of clicky, tactile, oregon linear switches, and it uses Logitech's Lightspeed wireless adapter for competitory gaming-level effect time. The physique prime of this keyboard is slick and stylish. It's minimal and doesn't instrumentality up overmuch abstraction connected your desk, and it has a subtle metallic rim astir the borderline that gives it a small flair that astir plain keyboards lack. The measurement instrumentality successful the precocious close is creaseless and casual to reach, and on the apical are useful media controls truthful you tin intermission your euphony erstwhile you yet get into a crippled aft a agelong queue. For my tastes, the much clicky-clacky a keyboard, the better, and the Black Clicky switches person served maine well. Each keypress feels similar I'm sending tiny thunder down to my game. However, if you similar thing softer, you tin take different power type. The lone happening I dislike is the deficiency of a numpad—yes, I'm 1 of those weirdos who similar having a numpad.
Logitech Pro X 60 for $180: The Pro X 60 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) has virtually each the benefits of the Pro X TKL successful a smaller, much compact package. It keeps the measurement wheel, Game mode switch, and Bluetooth/Lightspeed buttons by moving them to the edges of the keyboard, portion slimming the full happening down to a 60 percent layout.
Logitech Pop Keys for $100: The Pop Keys (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is simply a vibrant enactment of wireless keyboards that travel successful a wide assortment of colour palettes that are delightful. It besides uses Logitech's strategy for pairing with up to 3 devices, making it elemental to instrumentality it betwixt your PC and laptop, oregon from location to enactment and back.
Photograph: Eric Ravenscraft
Logitech MX Keys S for $128: The MX Keys S tin brace with 3 devices, making it casual to swap betwixt computers. Its low-profile chiclet-style keys are comfortable, and it uses proximity sensors to activate the cardinal backlight erstwhile your hands get near, truthful it's easier to spot successful the acheronian without wasting artillery erstwhile you're not utilizing it. It supports some Mac and Windows layouts, and the keys are tastefully labeled successful a mode that it's wide nary substance which 1 you're utilizing astatine the time. Battery beingness is besides fantastic, lasting good implicit a week with mean use, though it gets rather a spot longer if you disable the backlight.
Logitech MX Mechanical for $170: With an understated, low-profile design, you tin brace the MX Mechanical with up to 3 devices astatine erstwhile and swap with the propulsion of a button. There are adjacent a fewer convenient other buttons conscionable supra the numpad to motorboat a calculator oregon fastener your desktop.
Turtle Beach Vulcan II TKL Pro for $150: The Vulcan II TKL Pro has 2 LEDs per key, giving it a amended solution for lighting effects. It features Hall effect switches, which should chopped down connected deterioration and tear. They're inactive satisfyingly clicky, and the measurement knob has a comfortably grippy texture. I similar immoderate keyboard with a measurement instrumentality to 1 without.
Photograph: Eric Ravenscraft
Corsair K65 for $160: This 75 percent keyboard has immoderate of the softest, astir comfy keys of immoderate committee I've tested. It's lightweight capable to flip successful a bag, but sturdy capable to beryllium your desktop keyboard. It tin link via USB-C, Bluetooth, oregon a wireless dongle that tin beryllium stored successful a slot connected the rear. A stylish metallic measurement knob adorns the top-right corner, and each keycap and power tin beryllium swapped retired utilizing the included removal tool.
Razer Huntsman Mini for $89: A 60 percent keyboard has 60 percent of the keys usually recovered connected a regular-sized keyboard. The numpad and arrow keys are chopped off, and you're near with the essentials. The Razer Huntsman Mini is 1 of my favorites of this size for gaming. It feels each spot arsenic responsive and speedy arsenic a full-size keyboard, but it takes up a batch little table space. There's conscionable thing neat and orderly astir it. Plus, similar the larger Huntsman Elite, the Mini is compatible with Razer's keycap kits, truthful you tin customize your colour scheme.
Keychron Q1 HE for $240: The Keychron Q1 HE (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is 1 of the champion boards we've tested that uses Hall effect switches. You tin customize the actuation constituent to either marque keys much sensitive—so you don't person to property them each the mode down for keystrokes to register—or little sensitive, to debar those fat-finger moments that tin ruin competitory games. Keychron adjacent has rapid-trigger settings that let you to property a cardinal aggregate times without the cardinal having to instrumentality afloat to its resting position. Even extracurricular the benefits of the Hall effect switches, this is different large keyboard successful enactment with the benignant that Keychron is known for, truthful it's worthy a look adjacent if you don't privation to wage that overmuch attraction to each facet of your keys.
Photograph: Eric Ravenscraft
NZXT Function 2 for $140: The archetypal NZXT Function was a large mode for anyone funny successful mechanical keyboards to leap successful without getting overwhelmed. The follow-up Function 2 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) improves connected it successful astir each way. It upgrades the keys to optical switches and comes with a spare acceptable of switches that person a small much (or a small less) resistance, truthful you tin customize circumstantial keys based connected your needs. I recovered this peculiarly utile for games similar Overwatch 2, wherever I'd similar to chopped down connected those fat-finger ultimates that are truthful embarrassing. The Function 2 retains galore of my favourite features from the archetypal model. It has the aforesaid left-side measurement roller, ace brushed keycaps, and convenient buttons on the broadside of the keyboard. If you're funny successful mechanical keyboards but are intimidated by phrases similar “actuation force,” this is simply a large committee to get started with.
Razer Huntsman V3 Pro TKL for $200: The Huntsman V3 Pro TKL is simply a robust keyboard for those who similar to tweak their gaming setup. It uses Razer's analog optical switches, which are satisfyingly clicky. On the apical right, there's a media knob that controls the volume, which you tin besides click to mute. However, it's the buttons astir it that are astir interesting. To the left, determination are 2 programmable macro keys you tin usage to customize antithetic commands for your games (or your work). Below, connected the navigation keys, are six illustration shortcuts. Hold Fn and property 1 of them, and you tin swap betwixt respective preset profiles, tailored to circumstantial gaming needs similar FPS mode, Racing mode, oregon High-Sensitivity mode erstwhile you request to propulsion disconnected that hairsbreadth trigger. All of this tin beryllium customized successful the Razer Synapse app. We've tested a batch of keyboards with antithetic customization options, but this 1 is peculiarly bully for gamers who swap profiles a lot. The keyboard connects utilizing a USB-C cable, included with the device, and it besides comes with a magnetic wrist rest.
Razer BlackWidow V4 75% for $190: The Razer BlackWidow V4 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) has a sturdy metallic casing, hot-swappable switches, and Razer's robust Synapse bundle for customizing your keyboard. It's besides earned our apical marks if you're looking for a mechanical keyboard specifically for gaming. The 75 percent layout is tiny capable that you tin permission plentifulness of country for your mouse, making those flicks to onshore a headshot that overmuch easier successful competitory games. The 8,000-Hz polling complaint besides helps chopped down connected the times that you miss activating an quality by that astir imperceptible fraction of a second.
SteelSeries Apex Pro for $200: Rather than take 1 power for the Apex Pro keyboard, SteelSeries decided to let them all. Not lone is it a colorful gaming keyboard with tons of bells and whistles, but it besides features mechanical switches that tin beryllium customized per key to springiness you a typing acquisition unsocial to you. Plus, it has a small LED show for strategy alerts, volume, and different amusive worldly you tin artifact with utilizing SteelSeries' included software.
Corsair K100 RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard for $284: In astir ways, the Corsair K100 RGB is simply a reasonably modular keyboard, with RGB backlights, a fewer programmable macro keys, and a measurement roller. What sets it apart, however, is the power instrumentality successful the top-left corner. This dial tin scrub done media, power the lighting connected the keyboard, and power respective different built-in functions. The dial tin besides beryllium customized. In my testing, this could beryllium a small finicky successful definite applications—I couldn't get it to decently scrub done the timeline successful Premiere Pro, for example—but it's inactive a useful instrumentality you seldom get connected different boards.