If you’re a gamer, you’re probably already annoyed by the shoddy little membrane keyboard you have. If you’re a gamer on a budget, well, your keyboard problems are about to end.

Lo and behold, the RedGear MK-881. I’ve been using this keyboard for about eight months now, and I have nothing but praise for it. This mechanical keyboard from RedGear can compete with any other mechanical keyboard in pretty much every aspect. Read on to find out what’s so special about it.

Switches

Since it’s a ‘gaming’ keyboard and a mechanical one as well, let’s talk switches first. The keyboard comes in two variants – Kailh blue and brown. These are Chinese knockoffs of the Cherry MX switches and perform almost identical.

Personally, since I game and type almost equally and I always wanted the clicky feedback of a blue switch, I own that one. The feedback is terrific, and the clickiness is impressive. Typing on the keyboard is like playing the piano.

The brown version also performs excellently. The only difference, however, is that the brown switches are way quieter and less clicky than the blue ones.

Also read: The ultimate keyboard guide: Mechanical vs Membrane

Build Quality

The keyboard has an all metal body. It’s quite sturdy and has a perfect weight to it. There’s very little flex on the keyboard deck as well. The switches are made of moulded plastic and feel quite soft and premium to the touch.

There’s also in-built cable management under the cable. The cable itself is quite thick and braided as well. The USB plug is also gold plated.

One thing though, the keyboard deck is a bit high. I do recommend getting a wrist pad along with the keyboard.

Features

Let’s talk RGB first. Since this is a budget keyboard, you don’t get full RGB on each key. However, there is still plenty of lighting on this keyboard. You get eight predefined lighting modes on the keyboard and six custom profiles.

You have your standard multimedia buttons combined with the function keys. You also get the Windows key lock and ten key anti-ghosting.

There are no macro keys or programmable buttons, however. Also, there are no dedicated multimedia buttons. Considering the price, though, I’ll give it a pass.

Price

For all this, awesomeness, you’ll be paying a mere 2,845 INR on Amazon.in, making it one of the cheapest mechanical keyboards on Amazon right now. The reasonable price tag, however, does come with a bunch of features and continues the RedGear legacy of delivering quality products at a very affordable price.

You can get the RedGear Mk-881 Invador Mechanical Keyboard here

Also read: eSports gear: Do you really need it?