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Membrane keyboards offer quieter usage, water and dust resistance, and durability. Due to the cheaper manufacturing process of all the keys connecting to a circuit board through a rubber membrane instead of individual switches for each key, they cost less.
Though you may not get the premium feel of typing on a mechanical keyboard and may have to lose out on the best responsiveness, membrane keyboards do have features that make them worth buying. Additionally, some of the top companies produce membrane keyboards that try to emulate the feel of a mechanical keyboard to maximize sales.
Membrane keyboards are cheaper, quieter, and lighter
1) HyperX Alloy Core RGB - $29.99
This is the most affordable membrane keyboard that is fully functional for gaming and has RGB for that added touch. It also has dedicated media control keys, including volume controls, mute/unmute, play/pause, rewind, and forward. According to HyperX, the keyboard can withstand 120mm of liquid. The downside of this device is that it cannot record macros and is not compatible with the company's software.
It is designed for plug-and-play, and it is the best keyboard for budget builds as it gets the job done and is also flashy enough for those RGB builds.
2) Corsair K55 - $49.99
The best feature of Corsair K55 is that it is IP42 water resistant, which makes it durable and removes any worry from the user's mind about accidentally spilling a drink on the keyboard. It is a full-sized keyboard with dedicated media control keys for extra convenience.
It also features macro keys on the left that can be remapped through the Corsair software. In the Corsair iCUE app, RGB can also be customized; however, it only has three lighting zones and a few presets, making it limited. The K55 comes with a removable wrist rest, which is a handy option for users to have.
3) Logitech G213 Prodigy - $49.99
Logitech has manufactured a keyboard that combines both membrane and mechanical keys and has created a unique mech-dome key type. It is designed to mimic the feel of mechanical keys by having four millimeters of travel distance that requires a 50-gram actuation force. It does not completely feel like a mechanical keyboard but it is as close as it can get.
The device has customizable RGB, but it is limited to five zones. Additionally, it has macros as well; however, they are limited to the function keys only. It comes in one color, all-black, and has an attached wrist rest for added comfort.
4) Razer Cynosa V2 - $59.99
Although it is Razer's entry keyboard, it does pack a punch with per-key RGB lighting that is fully customizable in the Razer Synapse 3 app. The all-black design of the keyboard does not come with a wrist-rest but is thin enough to not require one. It has dedicated media control keys on the top right, which makes things more convenient for users. Razer advertises to have a spill-proof design but does not have a rating.
It also has an on-the-fly macro recording feature that is fully programmable in the Razer app, which is a necessary feature for gaming keyboards. Taking all the features into consideration with the price, it is a competent membrane gaming keyboard.
5) Razer Ornata Chroma - $99.99
Razer has manufactured a unique keyboard that combines the mechanical keyboard feel and the durability of a membrane one and named it a mecha-membrane keyboard. The durability is rated at 80 million clicks, which will last years before getting worn out. The RGB lighting is fully customizable with multiple presets available in the software.
The keyboard has a short travel distance, which can take some time to get used to, but it is fast and accurate. In Razer Synapse 3 software, macro keys can be programmed, and multiple keys can be combined to create complex macro actions. It also has an anti-ghosting feature so you can press multiple keys at once without it failing to register them.
Disclaimer: This article is subjective and solely reflects the writer's opinions.
