SteelSeries has been on a roll lately, producing some truly stellar gaming products. Whether it’d be their terrific Ghost Collection or the Prime Minis, they really seem to be checking all of the boxes and then some. Their latest and greatest release, APEX 3 TKL offers a budget-friendly TenKeyLess keyboard that gives users a bunch of the features that the more premium offerings do, at a fraction of the cost.

The APEX 3 TKL also offers users IP32 water and dust resistance that definitely gives an incentive to purchase this for younger or messy gamers. It’s a keyboard that gets the job done while looking good, only compromising a small handful of things.

What’s in the Box

When it comes to unboxing the APEX 3 TKL, it doesn’t take long to get it from box to desk for setup. The cable is hardwired in and there aren’t any additional things to pull out aside from the little instruction manual.

I do have to say that I was a bit disappointed at the fact that a wrist-rest is not included with this keyboard even though last year’s full-sized APEX 3 did. The price difference is only $4.99, with the full-sized being $49.99 and the TKL being $44.99, so I’m unsure why it wasn’t included here. I would have assumed that the price difference was due to the loss of keys, not the wrist-rest, but I digress.

Aesthetics and Build Quality

As per usual, SteelSeries did a great job of making the APEX 3 TKL pop with color. It’s bright, vibrant, and makes me extremely happy to see that there are fantastic budget options nowadays for gamers that can’t afford to go for the top-shelf peripherals. It was tough to find anything close to the quality of this keyboard back when I started PC gaming so this is a total win for gamers needing something that’s within a tighter budget.

Aside from mechanical switches and some minor features frills, you aren’t compromising performance by going with the APEX 3 TKL. Keys have a great amount of feedback to them and definitely show how responsive they are. And even though this keyboard is 100% plastic on the outside, it’s extremely sturdy. You could totally toss this thing in a backpack or suitcase and take it with you to where you gotta go with no worry.

The additional facet that goes with the build quality piece is the fact that it’s IP32 water and dust-resistant. Testing it with some water gave pretty fantastic results, proving that you won’t have to worry about spilling a drink over it. In short: the base of where the keycap attaches to the keyboard itself is a hard plastic that basically acts as a barrier to keep the yuckies away from the internals.

Specs and Features

Aside from the water-resistant greatness, there is a bevy of fun ways to change the keyboard’s lighting and key mapping via the SteelSeries Engine software, plus some really cool multi-media controls that give you the chance to raise the volume, mute, and play/pause.

You also have the option of routing the cable coming from the keyboard across three different paths: left, center, and right. This makes it a bit easier to get the cable to follow the flow of where you want it to go on your desk.

Gameplay

When it came down to brass tax, the APEX 3 TKL delivered better than I would’ve expected it to for being in the price range that it is. As I said before, it’s extremely responsive and you won’t have to worry about any parts of the board failing to deliver for you when you’re playing a game. Even when it comes to using it in daily life, the keyboard is great for writing and doing work.

I would say though that the “whisper Quiet Gaming Switches” could have been made a bit quieter. I’m not entirely sure if it’s the switches themselves or the keycaps coming down on the plastic of the keyboard but it’s not too quiet. I’d say it’s quiet enough, but stating that it’s as quiet as a whisper is a bit of a stretch.

What It Could Have Done Better

I’d say that the inclusion of the wrist-rest would’ve really been a cool addition to this keyboard. There really wasn’t a reason for them not to. Also finding a way to dampen the sound to truly make it a whisper-quiet keyboard would’ve made the design flawless to me. Aside from those complaints though, this keyboard doesn’t have any other weak or blind spots.

Verdict

As you may have guessed, I’m extremely favorable to APEX 3 TKL. It’s a cheap keyboard that doesn’t feel like you’re making concessions by going with a more affordable product. This is the exact type of keyboard I wish had existed in my younger years as I would’ve been all over it, even back then. If you’re a gamer on a budget, a new gamer, or a parent looking for a cheap but extremely versatile keyboard for your young gamer, then this is one that will deliver.