Razer Turret Keyboard Review – In Your Lap

My initial thought about a Razer keyboard for Xbox One was, “Why?” Consoles and PCs are supposed to occupy two different and distinct spaces. One using controllers and the other using keyboard and mouse. However, in recent years, the gap between consoles and PCs has grown smaller. I mean, the PS4 and Xbox One are essentially PCs in a console shell.

That being said, games for consoles are still designed primarily to be used with a controller. Is there even a need for a keyboard and mouse on Xbox One?

The answer is, not really but it’s still a great piece of hardware and one that can be plenty of use to the right kinds of players.

Razer Turret Keyboard Review

First things first. The Razer Turret keyboard is not small by any stretch of the imagination. It’s not huge, but it’s definitely bigger than your average keyboard. It’s also way more solid and heavy.

This is thanks to the extended lip at the bottom and the retractable mouse mat. The extended lip is your wrist rest since you’ll be using the Razer Turret on your lap rather than on a desk in most instances.

It’s actually surprisingly comfortable to hold and to use. I thought that it was going to be difficult at best and uncomfortable at worst but I was wrong. I was easily able to sit on the couch and use the Razer Turret for extended gaming sessions; no problem.

Retractable Mouse

The retractable mouse mat is also a nifty piece of engineering design. It slides into the main keyboard housing when not in use to save space and it is also magnetic to help keep your mouse in the right place.

Honestly, Razer products are generally well designed, but the Razer Turret is exceptional. It’s ergonomic, just the right level of weighty, solid and easily packed away when not needed.

The Razer Turret comes with Razer mechanical green switches, which are the most tactile and clicky of Razer’s switches. The response time is fast and just as responsive as any PC keyboard.

As for the included mouse, it’s a 16,000 DPI optical Razer mouse with mechanical mouse switches and an ergonomic design to sit comfortably in your hand. The mouse even comes with a tiny USB cable which connects to the keyboard so you can charge the mouse while you play.

Charge it up

The keyboard itself is wireless and comes with a USB-C charging cable. The wireless receiver simply plugs into your Xbox One (or PC/PS4) and connects automatically. Using the Razer Turret is incredibly simple, intuitive and comfortable.

However, here’s the one issue I have with it.

There aren’t all that many games on console that make use, or good use of mouse and keyboard. According to Razer, you can use the Turret with Fortnite, Warframe, Minecraft, DayZ, Strange Brigade and a handful of indie games.

Gears 5 is in the coming soon column so that’s a bonus but unless you’re a dedicated Fortnite or Warframe player, I’m not sure you’re going to get a tonne of use from the Turret.

Me, on the other hand, I’ve been using the Turret with my PS4 to play Final Fantasy 14. Let me tell you, now that I’ve played it with mouse and keyboard, I don’t ever want to go back to using a DualShock. Square did a decent job of making an MMO work on a controller, but it’s infinitely better with mouse and keyboard.

So, for me, the Razer Turret is definitely worth the price of admission. And it will likely be the same for you if you play a game regularly that has mouse and keyboard support. If not, then maybe you’d best stick with the controller.

Overall, it’s not hard to recommend the Razer Turret keyboard. As long as you have the games it works with.

Razer provided PowerUp! with a Razer Turret Keyboard for the purposes of this review.