Microsoft Wired Keyboard 600, UK Layout - White

Gotta say this is probably my favourite gaming and typing keyboard ever - maybe even more so than mechanical keyboards (and I've tried lots)!First off I just want to say that I've been using mechanical keyboards a couple of years back - I own a Cherry MX Brown switch keyboard and used to have a Cherry MX Red one. I really like my mechanical keyboards, but sometimes I feel like the force you need to press down the keys and the noise made does take away from the experience.I have been trying out rubber dome switches in recent times - I have tried dozens of them. My preference is towards low profile keys that require very little force to press down, making really fast typing and gaming possible, but it also needs to give a satisfying force on each press down and be comfortable to use for extended periods of times.I first encountered this keyboard when I was working full-time as an office assistant, and I had one of these keyboards to use at my desk. I quickly fell in love with this keyboard and how easy it was to type on, as well as the extreme quietness of it.I went and got one for myself for use as a gaming keyboard and I really like almost everything about this keyboard. The keypresses are very quiet if you type with normal force, even if you type furiously it is still much quieter than mechanical keyboards.I can type really quickly on this keyboard, the keys go down very solidly and you know that you won't miss a key because the actuation point is exactly when the key starts to move down.Ergonomically, I really like the slight curve of the keys, it is subtle but you can really notice a difference to how you rest your hand on it. Makes long gaming/working sessions comfortable.My only slight gripe with it is the function keys. The smaller size of the F-keys along the top makes sure you won't press them by accident, and they are pretty satisfying to press, however there are a couple of games that use these keys (namely starcraft 2) and it does make it ever so slightly harder to press them. However it is still manageable as they are positioned well, you just need to get used to them having a different feel.Best thing of all is that this is one of the cheapest keyboards you can get - so even if the buttons wear down slightly after months of use, you can buy 10 or more of these for the price of a mechanical keyboard, so that's almost not an issue.

A £9 keyboard (price at the time of this review) can't really be worth a 5 star rating.....or can it? I've had this keyboard for around a week now and it has massively exceeded my expectations. I have plenty of other keyboards at home for my different computers ranging from as low as 20 pounds (generic plug and play keyboards) and as high as 150 pounds (mechanical keyboards). I purchased this keyboard as i wanted to see what a keyboard would be like for under 10 quid and with all the high star reviews it has i went ahead and bought it.What do you get for your money?You get a plug and play wired USB keyboard. You get a basic UK layout keyboard with a number pad, it also has some function/special keys like pause/play, mute, volume up and volume down. It has lights on the top right of the keyboard to indicate when certain features are on and off like caps lock or number pad is enabled or disabled. I find that is often overlooked for budget keyboards. It also has plastic stands on the bottom of the keyboard if you want to raise the keyboards angle more towards you or you can have them flat so the keyboard is flush on the desk. The keys are quiet, not hard to push, they have plenty of travel, they are responsive and the list goes on. This keyboard is targeted towards people who want a cheap, plug and play USB wired keyboard so majority of people that will be buying this will be doing lots of typing i.e. in a office. However, i have found that it can still be used for the likes of gaming after trying a handful of games, i had no issue and don't think you would be disappointed either. It will never be a mechanical keyboard but that doesn't mean it can't be used for gaming.I can honestly say this keyboard is on par with keyboards around the 30 or 40 pound mark or potentially even more. I wrote this review with the keyboard and had little to no errors when typing. I have also used this keyboard on various windows computers and even on a raspberry pi 4 and they all worked flawlessly. I cannot say how this will fair in the long run but as its from Microsoft I'm certain it will stand the test of time. Buy it!