SteelSeries Apex 5

SteelSeries Apex 5 Review

The SteelSeries Apex 5 gaming keyboard finds a better way to blend money-saving membrane and snappy but pricey mechanical switches. SteelSeries makes some outstanding gaming keyboards, but its gear tends to be expensive. Now the company has launched some more affordable products that aim to bring its attractive and comfortable designs to a wider audience. The most interesting among these is the $99.99 Apex 5, a per-key RGB backlit keyboard with a "hybrid mechanical" switch that feels and sounds like a mechanical keyboard, but uses the membrane actuation found in budget and laptop boards. In successfully threading this needle, SteelSeries has made one of the better midrange gaming keyboards around. So, What's a "Hybrid" Mechanical Keyboard? For most typists, keyboards broadly fall into two categories, membrane and mechanical. In the former, pressing a key pushes down on a rubber dome, which both activates the signal and provides resistance to return the key to starting position. With mechanical keyboards, pressing each key actually flips a switch that completes a circuit, and the feel of the key comes from a c...

Great keyboard with awesome features

So happy with my purchase. Highly recommend. Great buy

Accessible, beautiful, functional.

I was looking for a full mechanical (or hybrid) keyboard with RGB lighting that would play well with a Mac. After weeks of research and one failed purchase, I settled on the Apex 5, and I'm very satisfied with it. Positives: + Super easy to set up and program with Steelseries software + Excellent build + Key action feels great to this first-time mechanical user + Media control wheel is very useful + Onboard LED screen is a great addition at the price point Negatives: - A bit noisy if working close to others - Quotation key cap is printed upside down - On keys with two characters, the under key lighting only shines through the top - RGB display patterns are somewhat limited