Best gaming keyboards 2021 | Windows Central

Best
Gaming Keyboards
Windows Central
2021

Best overall: SteelSeries Apex Pro

The SteelSeries Apex Pro is simply unlike any other gaming keyboard you can buy right now. Some go the mechanical route. Others have started building optical switches based on breaking light beams. SteelSeries has gone for a magnetic actuation that you, the gamer, can change on a key-by-key basis to truly customize your experience to how you like to play games.

The Apex Pro makes it possible to adjust the actuation point between 0.4mm and 3.6mm using the onboard control wheel and OLED display or SteelSeries Engine. The software interacts with the magnetic Omni point switches to adjust how each key performs, and you can set keys to different values to save to profiles.

This means you can have different profiles for different games and a mix of instant actuation and, as an example, a heavier actuation on something like a special ability or a grenade to prevent accidental misfires. It’s quite pricey, but there’s absolutely nothing else on the market like it right now.

If you’re shopping on a tight budget, the Razer Huntsman V2 Analog is not going to be your choice. It’s expensive. But it’s one of the most technologically advanced keyboards on the market today, so there’s no brand tax being applied. In fact, there’s so much going on with the Huntsman V2 Analog it’s hard to know where to begin. This is a keyboard unapologetically targeted at gamers.

The heart of this keyboard is Razer’s newest switch. It’s an optical, as on the previous generation Huntsman, but that’s where the similarities end. The Analog Optical switch is linear, so it’s smooth and has no bump action, and has adjustable actuation. Each key can be altered to a value between 1.5mm and 3.6mm.

The other big deal with the switches is the scaling input. For gaming, this is designed to offer an analog feel that you might normally associate with a gamepad. Again, it’s customizable on a key-by-key basis, and since you can lock profiles into the onboard memory, you can use them on any PC, too. It only really loses out to the SteelSeries Apex Pro overall on price, as it’s a good chunk more expensive, but you get a truly mesmerizing keyboard for it.

Havit has released a solid, low-profile keyboard with excellent Kailh mechanical keys. That’s a feat in itself, but to have it combined with such a sound typing experience is the icing on the cake. The Havit KB-395L is one of our favorite low-profile mechanical keyboards.

The switches are still perfectly suitable for gaming, but this is a keyboard that comes into its own for anyone who wants to combine their gaming with a ton of typing for work. It’s almost crazy how good this keyboard is for its low asking price; it’s so comfortable to type on for long periods.

But it’s still got RGB, a detachable cable, superb build quality, and durability, and some useful companion software that allows you to create macros, lockout the Windows key, customize the lighting profiles, and a dedicated “game mode.”

Not everyone enjoys the added noise you get from mechanical switches while still wanting something reliable for gaming. The Razer Cynosa V2 is one of the best membrane keyboards around with a quiet sound and a soft cushioned keypress.

Naturally, this Razer keyboard comes with Chroma lighting and supports a 10-key rollover with anti-ghosting. Thanks to the Synapse 3 companion app, you have additional features like locking out the Windows key when gaming, and you can add other functions or macros to any key using Razer Hypershift.

Perhaps the icing on the cake, though, is that the Cynosa Chroma is spill-resistant, which makes it a good companion for the office, too, since you’ll never have to worry about that inevitable coffee spill!

There was a time when a wireless gaming keyboard would be unthinkable. Not only is it now an option, but thanks to the Logitech G613, it’s a great option with mechanical switches.

Thanks to the company’s Lightspeed technology, you get a 1ms report rate while being able to clack away on Logitech’s Romer-G switches. That’s important because latency without a cable is a thing, but Logitech has worked black magic on keeping it as low as possible.

The wrist rest is permanently attached, and incredibly, Logitech claims it’s possible to get a full year’s battery life from the G613 through general use. For a pretty affordable price, you get all that, macro keys, and, most importantly, no wires, which certainly helps keep your desk a little tidier!

Not all games are designed for controllers. Strategy and simulation games are what immediately come to mind when thinking about genres that are much better with a keyboard and mouse (or on PC). Razer understands this (as does Microsoft to a degree) and came up with the Razer Turret.

This piece of kit combines a sturdy keyboard lap desk with a magnetic mouse pad and pointer for use with an Xbox console. Support isn’t particularly astounding, and there’s certainly work to be done on Microsoft’s (and game developers’) end, but for the most part, it’s exactly as you’d imagine — gaming on Xbox with a keyboard and mouse.

If you have The Sims 4, Surviving Mars, or even Terraria loaded on your Xbox, you may want to give something like the Razer Turret a try to see whether you fare better without the gamepad. This kit also works flawlessly with a PC, so you can use the same peripherals, regardless of which room you happen to be gaming in.

A ten-keyless (TKL) keyboard is one without the numpad. If you don’t find yourself using that portion of the keyboard, a TKL would be worth considering to save desk space. The Roccat Vulcan TKL Pro is a fine example of a gaming TKL keyboard.

This keyboard is right up there with the best gaming mechanical keyboards. It has responsive switches for both typing and gaming, a striking and sleek-looking design, solid build quality (as we’ve come to expect from Roccat), and has some useful features like a physical volume control knob.

It’s on the pricey side, especially for a smaller keyboard. The keycaps can require some time to grow accustomed to them and there’s no included wrist rest. The latter point can be solved with an aftermarket solution, and really none of our criticisms were a deal-breaker.

Razer is a brand that has numerous spots in our collection of best gaming keyboards simply because they make the best keyboards out there. The Razer BlackWidow V3 Mini HyperSpeed is an excellent example of this with its Razer Green and Yellow switches, compact and clean design, and awesome Razer Chroma support.

We’re massive fans of this wireless 65% keyboard, which puts it somewhere in between TKL and 60% keyboards. You get a compact keyboard with some additional keys that let you get more done through the day. It’s expensive and the RGB lighting will destroy the battery life, but this is one of the best gaming keyboards available.

The Razer Hunstman Mini is the most compact keyboard on this list and is what is known as a 60% keyboard. This premium keyboard has everything you’d expect from a high-end Razer product, including optical switches and Doubleshot PBT keycaps.

There’s a removable Type-C cable to power the keyboard, which is brilliant since many options out there still rely on older connections. It can be purchased in either black or white, but regardless of the color, the Huntsman Mini will look spectacular on your desk. It’s a little pricey, but if you don’t want unnecessary keys or prefer a more minimalistic look, this is the keyboard to get.

And fear not if your game uses function keys as more compact keyboards like the Huntsman Mini come with a function key on the bottom row that turns the number keys up top into function keys.

But what happens if you cannot pick from our suggested gaming keyboards? There is a healthy (and growing) community of DIY keyboard enthusiasts who prefer to customize their peripherals to their exact specification preferences. That’s precisely where something like the Drop CTRL comes into play.

It’s a fully functional keyboard, but you can extract the switches and customize the keyboard to your liking. You can buy the keyboard with switches and keycaps already installed, or you can buy the barebones version that requires you to go out and pick your own supported switches and keycaps.

How deep you go down this DIY modding keyboards rabbit hole is entirely down to you. You can have different switches for specific keys, different style keycaps for striking designs — it’s down to how wild your imagination can be.

Choosing the best gaming keyboard

There are a lot of great gaming keyboards out there right now, and PC gamers are spoiled. If the price doesn’t put you off, the SteelSeries Apex Pro is the one to get right now. It brings something genuinely new and innovative to the table with its use of magnets to allow customizable actuation points on a key-by-key basis.

No other gaming keyboard does this right now, and it’s one of those features you didn’t know you wanted until you try. SteelSeries has top-notch build quality, too, and a decent companion application that really will help you get the most from your keyboard. Whether you’re typing or gaming, you’re in excellent hands with the Apex Pro.

If you don’t fancy such functionality and want the best gaming keyboard for competitive play to help you score big online, look no further than the Razer Huntsman. It’s compact, amazing to type and game on, and is a little more affordable. There are some excellent choices out there for gaming keyboards, and this guide is a solid place to start.

Credits — The team that worked on this guide

Richard Devine is an Editor at Windows Central. A former Project Manager and long-term tech addict, he joined Mobile Nations in 2011 and has been found on Android Central and iMore as well as Windows Central. Currently, you’ll find him covering all manner of PC hardware and gaming, and you can follow him on Twitter and Instagram.

Rich Edmonds is a staff reviewer at Windows Central, which means he tests out more software and hardware than he cares to remember. Joining Mobile Nations in 2010, you can usually find him inside a PC case tinkering around when not at a screen fighting with Grammarly to use British words. Hit him up on Twitter: @RichEdmonds.

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