Although mechanical keyboards are seen as the standard for gaming keyboards, Corsair have shown that – when it’s done right – even rubber dome switches can feel responsive and clicky.
The K55 has the usual understated, sleek design that we’ve come to expect from Corsair. A matte black finish on tough, durable plastic is a perfect contrast against the fully customizable RGB effects. Of course, if the lights aren’t to your tastes you can always just turn them off, or set it to a static colour. Our personal favourite is to have two layers, one static white and another set to random colours and typing activated. This has the effect of a simple black and white keyboard when it’s not being used, which erupts into a symphony of colour as each button is pressed.
While it certainly isn’t small, for a full-size keyboard it does feel quite a bit neater than other 100% keyboards on the market. By not having much of a buffer along the outside edges, the K55 has all the usability you could want from a keyboard but minimizes the desktop real estate required. It even cleverly fits media keys, brightness level and lock buttons into the top right corner utilizing existing space in the silhouette. However, in the interest of openness, the media keys are limited to just pause/play, mute, and volume up and down, lacking some of the extra buttons on the K55’s bigger siblings.
While it’s definitely a budget keyboard at just under €50, in this case, budget definitely doesn’t mean sacrificing quality. Heavy enough to feel sturdy while still being light enough to not notice in your bag (you might never use the office keyboard again!), it's also constructed to be resistant to spills up to 300ml. We haven’t accidentally tested this feature just yet, but Corsair have our full confidence for when, not if that time comes.
The K55 is a simple, effective, budget-friendly gaming keyboard that will make a great addition to anyone’s setup. Great build quality, nice features, satisfying keystrokes and classic Corsair styling all come together to make this keyboard a serious contender against some of Corsair’s competitor's mechanical offerings.
