I've had a Razer Blackwidow Stealth for a good while now, but the day has finally come: it's dead. Like, dead-dead.

It seems like Razer has kind of enshittified since I started using their stuff though, so idk if I want to get another of their products to replace it. Got that one on the advice from a mechanical keyboard enthusiast, and I honestly kinda miss the lighter touch and quieter input of a membrane switch. Fighting words, I know... my bad!

I am kind of intrigued by the magnetic switch mechanicals though - if there's a model of those that operates quietly and has short range to bottom out, I'd be interested. Kinda shooting for the feel of like an old school Lenovo laptop keyboard - hair trigger, if that makes any sense.

The rest of my feature wish list:

• Backlit. Idgaf about RGB, but some faint red glow or something not too glaring: I just want to be able to glance down when it's dark and see which key is which.

• Wrist rest. The Razer' was only like an inch, but the trash temporary one I dug out of my bin-of-electronics has none, and even that little difference is driving me nuts. I've seen models with a much wider area for the wrists to land on - would gravitate toward those. Edit - built in wrist rest. The ones that sit on the desk separately from the keyboard won't work - my computer chair is the living room couch, so the rest and keyboard would have to move together as one unit.

• Programmable keys. Low priority on this one, but if it's an option, I'd get some use out of it. If not, that's not a deal breaker.

• Wireless? I've always thought these weren't good for gaming due to a noticeable delay in keystroke vs the action it's supposed to cause, but I've been told that's not really a problem anymore. If it doesn't impact performance, wireless would be great! My computer chair is the living room couch lol, so the less cable clutter the better.

• Price... I know some peripherals get pretty crazy pretty fast. Shelling out hundreds of dollars for one of these seems insane to me, especially after forking it out for the Blackwidow and not really loving it. If there's a $150 option that checks all the boxes, I'd be pretty tempted: if there's a $50 option that gets close, that's probably what my cheap ass will go for.

Anyway, if you've got any recommendations, please hit me with em!

Thanks all!!

I've had a Ducky keyboard for 3 years now which I'm super happy with. I see they do wireless ones too so may be worth a look.

No idea about other brands as my previous keyboard was Razer too. One of the arrow keys on it never worked from the day it was delivered. I'll never buy Razer again.

I'm a fan of the keycron brand. They aren't cheap and probably close to your max but meet all of your requests.

Kinda shooting for the feel of like an old school Lenovo laptop keyboard

If you're specifically set on that, there used to be a USB-attached version of those. Dunno if they still make them. Wasn't really interested myself, since I don't like low-key-travel keyboards if I can avoid them, but I distinctly remember seeing them.

searches

Apparently it was called the "Ultranav". I don't see new ones on Amazon (other than someone trying to sell one at an exorbitant $400), but there are used ones:

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=ultranav

EDIT: Well, some of those say that they're new. shrugs

I got the Keychron K10 a couple years ago and it's been rock solid the whole time, both wired and wireless. Just checked the price, around $70. No macro keys on it, I prefer those on my mouse

Keychron is very good.

I like Keychron. They used to fill the niche of "good quality keyboards for mid-end prices." Now I think they're more "high end keyboards for high end prices." But you could probably still find something to fit your budget and needs.

Get a Realforce.

I absolutely swear by separated keyboards now that I’ve had one for a couple years. Life changing for my shoulders. I have the non RGB version of this, without the tent or wrist rest. https://kinesis-ergo.com/keyboards/freestyle-edge-rgb/

It’s great too because I can just push them to the outside for lunch, put up YouTube and eat my soup and if someone hits me on Teams I just reach a little wider.

It’s not got the switches you like but they’re pretty light and reasonably quiet.

If you're going to go split you should really go ortholinear. Check out zsa moonlander or zsa voyager as good intro options.

Wooting is really nice https://wooting.io/wooting-two-he

• Analog hall-effect switches
• Adjustable actuation point
• Programmable keys with some wacky features
• Silicone wrist rest https://wooting.io/product/wooting-wrist-rest?Size=Full-size

Seconding keychron. I have the K2 HE and it seems to have everything you're looking for (except a wrist rest but I think you can just buy one separate??? Idk I don't use one).

Keys and backlight are both reprogrammable from a browser through their website.

Wireless is possible with either Bluetooth or a 2.4ghz USB dongle, which has a functionally identical latency to wired

Normally goes for about $150 but it's currently on sale for $112 on their website and Amazon

They also have a "base" version, about $10 cheaper that doesn't have any wood accents but I believe is otherwise identical

I bought a Womier RD75 pro last year, after getting scared away from keychron because of the many horror stories. Been really happy with it so far. The only thing it's missing from your list is a wrist rest, but you could always find one separately. It does have rgb backlighting but i will say it is pretty dim. I decided to turn it off on mine since the keycaps don't let any light pass through anyway. Also has wireless support, both bluetooth and 2.4ghz. The keys should be programmable with VIA.

I just noticed after typing this that you use your keyboard on the couch? Is that correct? In that case i don't think i'd recommend the Womier to you because it's a fucking brick, weighs like 2kg or something lol. It's nice on a desk, but probably not desirable when you have it on your lap and you keep moving it around.

I got this one on a marketplace for a fraction of the new price - US$20 range I think.

Those were on the list. I should keep an eye out, thanks for the reminder.

This may be out of your price range, but I've been very satisfied with my Logitech G915. It's a wireless, backlit, low profile (so no wrist rest necessary), mechanical keyboard with some programmable buttons on the left side. You can also adjust how bright the back light is.
I've been using it for around 5 years now and have little to complain about it. There are also three different switch choices so if you don't like the clicky sound, you can pick one of the others. I went with linear.
Again, I know it's pricey (it was $250 when I bought it), but I have had no need nor desire to look for another keyboard since.

I just noticed after typing this that you use your keyboard on the couch?

Yeah it's kind of a weird set up... Tower is on the floor to my left, keyboard in my lap (or ontop of the tower when not in use), to my right there's a center console thing with cup holders and a little storage area for remotes and such: I rigged up a mousepad on that, and the cord feeds in through that storage area then between the cushions and around the back of the couch into the tower. Monitor sits on a coffee table in front of me. Right of the center console is my wife's comfy spot, and straight across from that is a wall mounted TV.

I don't give a rat's ass about tv shows, and she doesn't give a rat's ass about videogames, but this setup allows us to be plopped down next to each other but doing our own thing on screen.

And the couch is the most comfortable computer chair ever!!

I'm on the fence between the K2 HE base model and the Gamakay TK75HE V2, which came up in a related video when looking for reviews.

They look pretty similar, but the 'phoenix' switches used in the Gamakay seem some of the most silent on the market. The Nebula switches in the K2 don't seem bad though - kind of just a 'thud' when they bottom out - still much quieter than mechanicals are known for.

Any insight on Gamakay?

No insight sorry. I'm not a keyboard person and just wanted to get one that (based on reviews) I knew would be pretty good and that I wouldn't have to upgrade for a long time for. If the Gamakey has all the same features as the keychron, or at least the ones that are important to you, then I would just grab whichever is cheaper

I really like my RK S98, had it for awhile now.

You can get a fantastic keyboard far better than what any gamer brand offers for well under $100.

I got a Womier RD75 Pro for 110 bucks, and I've loved it. Keychron is the most well known and safest choice, but there is other good brands out there. My advice is to make a checklist of features that you need in a keyboard, and compare the equivalent offerings of these different high end brands.