Steelseries Apex 3

The SteelSeries Apex 3 will get the job done.

The SteelSeries Apex 3 is part of the Danish manufacturer’s new lineup of budget-friendly gaming gear. This membrane keyboard sounds good on paper, with a reasonable price, RGB lighting, water resistance and an included wrist rest. But, like most membrane keyboards, it’s simply not that comfortable for either typing or gaming, and most of its features feel half-baked.

Granted, no one should expect a top-of-the-line gaming keyboard at this price point, and I understand how the Apex 3 could be a good stepping stone for young, cash-strapped gamers who want some of the bells and whistles of a higher-end device. Comparable mechanical keyboards tend to cost between $100 and $120 – but if possible, I’d still recommend saving up for one of those. The Apex 3 will get the job done, but a cheap office keyboard would serve almost as well – and a mechanical-gaming keyboard would serve much better.

As the keyboard is a little on the small side, there’s not much room for extra keys. In the upper-right corner, there’s a volume dial (very handy) and a “multimedia button,” which can theoretically play, pause and skip songs, depending on how many times you press it in rapid succession. In my tests, though, I couldn’t get the button to do anything, even after updating the firmware and trying it out with different media players. However, SteelSeries tried to replicate my issue on a variety of machines, and wasn’t able to, so this could be an issue unique to my system. Either way, the multimedia button is nice to have, but it isn’t a makeor-break feature.

I compared the typing experience on the SteelSeries Apex 3 with cheap membrane keyboards from Dell and Microsoft; the Apex 3 was actually a little more difficult to use. The keys are workable, sure, but they feel stiff at first, and mushy once depressed.

The Apex 3 performed well in-game, from zipping around the battlefield in Overwatch to building up an army in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition. Comfort aside, the keys were responsive and never missed one of my commands. The device is also suitable for a wide variety of games, since you can program macros and assign them to lesser-used keys.

One quibble, however, is that the Apex 3 doesn’t offer a “game mode,” which many comparable models do. These modes disable the Windows key, Alt + Tab and similar commands, so that you’ll never accidentally minimise a game window in the middle of a heated session.

No one should expect a top-of-the-line gaming keyboard at this price point..

It’s usually one of the big reasons to buy a gaming keyboard over an office model, so its absence here is disappointing.

The Apex 3 isn’t the kind of keyboard I’d buy. The keys don’t feel great, it doesn’t have many extra features, and the lighting isn’t very pretty. But for the price, it does what it’s supposed to. In the same price range, you could consider the Razer Cynosa, which has better lighting and somewhat more comprehensive software. But, if you can save for a mechanical selection from our best gaming keyboards instead, that’d be my primary recommendation.