Razer Turret
A wireless Bluetooth laptop-and-mouse deck for living room PC gamers.
PC gaming from the couch has always been a bit awkward. I’ve personally been using a wired keyboard and mouse perched precariously on my lap on top of a stack of board games for the last 18 months (finally, a use for that Star Wars Monopoly set I bought last year!). And while couch-style gaming keyboards are out there, they’ve all appeared a bit too cumbersome to both use and store, and the Steam Controller isn’t quite my cup of hot chocolate.
The Razer Turret, while sounding like something GlaDOS may have created for testing purposes, is a beautifully slim wireless gaming peripheral, a far cry from Razer’s mechanical monsters in the BlackWidow series. It’s a black matte keyboard with chiclet-style membrane keys — usefully fingerprint-resistant — highlighted with fluoro green. The keyboard doesn’t have any macro keys or a numpad, but it does have a couple of dedicated Android keys, and the included symmetrical mouse has two programmable buttons down each side. The entire setup, however, means this is for right-handers only.
Out of the box, the keyboard and mouse need to be charged before use and one of the best things about this device is how this is done. The keyboard possesses an integrated magnetic mouse mat that folds backwards on a sturdy hinge, revealing the charging port. This is placed vertically, along with the included mouse, into an intelligent and unobtrusive charging dock that can be plugged into the computer via USB or straight into a power socket. This makes the whole package very conveniently sized and even looks good sitting on a shelf when not in use.
So how does it hold up in gaming situations? At a glance, the mouse mat may look a little small but, thanks to its magnetic nature, the mouse has very little chance of falling off, and you can easily get used to a change in sensitivity, meaning the mat doesn’t need to be any bigger.
Due to its compact and wireless design, the whole thing is easy to pass between friends during a co-op game such as Worms. We experienced no problems with the wireless connectivity, and the anti-ghosting worked well, except the odd instance of typing at great speed.
Speaking of which, this is a very versatile keyboard. It’s comfortable to type on at length, as well as game with, and its grippy underside ensured it sat perfectly still on the lap. However, if you’re a female gamer, be prepared to adopt a rather uncouth leg-spread to get the balance just right. Men... as you were.
As a method of using a mouse and keyboard for couch-bound gaming, the Turret is almost flawless. The only thing we would have liked to have seen is some kind of backlighting for the keys, since (we assume) many people will use it in a darkened room. But that’s a minor niggle, and a non-issue for anyone who can touch-type.
In all, this keyboard-mouse combo is easy to set up, charge and use; it’s also comfortable, attractive and functionally fantastic.
If you want/desperately need a wireless gaming keyboard and mouse but don’t like the chunkier style options that resemble fullblown tables, then we’d absolutely recommend this.