Alienware Pro Wireless gaming keyboard review: top-tier esports performance
Alienware’s Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard delivers stellar performance in a premium package that will impress casual and competitive gamers alike. It’s one of the first two devices in Alienware’s new line-up of peripherals, alongside the ultra-light Alienware Pro Wireless Mouse.
Alienware’s design team spent over a year working closely with esports pros to develop both devices from the ground up. After putting this keyboard to the test, I can safely say all that development time paid off and should earn it a spot among our best gaming keyboards, but read on to see if it’s the best choice for you.
Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard price and configurations
The Pro Wireless comes in at $199.99 in either Dark Side of the Moon (black) or Lunar Light (white). I tested the Lunar Light model, which is a cool-toned gray-white.
The Pro Wireless has custom linear switches featuring a 40g actuation force and 3.2mm of key travel. It has a few connectivity options including a 2.4 GHz wireless dongle, Bluetooth 5.1, or USB-C wired. It has a 1.1KHz polling rate when connected wired or with the dongle.
Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard design
The build quality of the Pro Wireless is sleek and durable. Everything feels very sturdy, from the case to the keycaps. The top housing of the case is made of aircraft-grade aluminum, which adds to the premium feel of the whole keyboard. It’s fairly heavy, but that gives it a lot of stability on your desk, especially with the help of a rubber strip underneath.
This is a 75% size keyboard, so it ditches the number pad, but keeps the function row at the top. It’s also a compact 75%, meaning the arrow keys aren’t offset. This size and form factor are the sweet spot for a lot of games since you keep the function keys without the keyboard taking up too much space on your desk.
If you don’t have a massive desk you’ll appreciate that 75% size. The Alienware Pro comes in at 12.3 x 5 x 1.6-inches and 1.8 pounds, which is quite a bit smaller than many of the full size battle stations in the gaming keyboard world. You can angle it however you want without it interfering in your mouse space.
Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard keys
The switches on the Pro Wireless are custom linears, similar to a Cherry MX Red. They have a 40g actuation force, which gives them a smooth, light feel for both typing and gaming. If you ever want or need to replace them, the Pro Wireless is hot-swappable and compatible with Cherry-style 3 and 5-prong switches.
Alienware’s switches all feature self-lubricating POM, meaning they won’t lose their smooth performance over time. The top housing of each switch is transparent with a small lens on the north edge which gives the RGB a sleek, cohesive look free of hotspots. The RGB is addressable per-key through Alienware Command Center.
The sound quality of this keyboard is superb. It has two layers of sound-dampening silicone, which eliminates that hollow, metallic sound you get on a lot of gaming keyboards. The stabilizers are also smooth with a nice deep tone, free of rattling or scratchiness.
On top you get lightly-textured double-shot PBT keycaps which are always nice to see on a gaming keyboard. These are very nice keycaps, but if you want to change them, you’re going to be a bit limited. The bottom row has non-standard key spacing, so standard-size keycap sets aren’t compatible with all keys.
Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard performance
I tested the Pro Wireless in a range of games, but where it really shined was in fast-paced, skill-based games like FPS titles. That isn’t surprising considering Alienware specifically designed this keyboard for esports and competitive gaming.
The linear switches are smooth and snappy and never failed to register a keystroke during my testing. The 40g actuation force was also just right.
It’s light enough that your hands won’t be cramping in long game sessions, but it also gives the keys just enough resistance that you’re not going to accidentally actuate one. The switches are also nice for typing so you can use this for work or school as well as gaming.
The 75% size of the Pro Wireless also makes it easy to angle it however you want on your desk without interfering with your mouse space. The weight and rubber strip under the front edge of the keyboard keeps it stable enough that I never found myself accidentally sliding it around during games.
The wireless connection is seamless as well. I never experienced any lagging or delay, even when comparing the Pro Wireless to wired gaming keyboards. Overall, its performance was very responsive and stable.
Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard connectivity and battery life
As its name suggests, the Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard is designed for wireless use with either a 2.4GHz USB-C dongle or Bluetooth 5.1. You can even swap between up to three different Bluetooth-connected devices using a button on the back of the keyboard. That’s also where the USB-C dongle’s built-in storage is.
According to Alienware, when connected via the 2.4GHz dongle, the battery can last up to 798 hours with the RGB turned off or 72 hours with RGB at 50% brightness. With RGB turned all the way up, it goes down to about half of that. So, if you were using this keyboard all day with RGB at full, you would probably need to charge it at least once a week.
If you’re someone who doesn’t like charging your gear often, the battery life on the Pro Wireless could be an issue. Turning the RGB brightness down or completely off helps a lot, but you’re going to want it turned on if you’re playing in a low-light environment, which is ideal for a lot of games. Of course, you can always use it wired with the included USB-C cable.
It does help that the Pro Wireless will give you pop-up notifications on your PC when battery life is getting low. It would have been convenient to have a little built-in screen or LED strip to display your battery percentage, but that would have made this a larger keyboard.
Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard software
You can customize the lighting and performance of the Pro Wireless through Alienware Command Center. If you don’t already have it installed, it should download automatically the first time you connect the keyboard or you can download the latest version from the Dell website.
Alienware Command Center isn’t the best keyboard software I’ve ever used, but it’s not the worst either. RGB customization is pretty straightforward. You can choose from a few different modes like static or ripple. A color wheel allows you to select specific colors for each key, so you’re not limited to a default set.
You can also customize the keybindings and performance profiles for the Pro Wireless. One I recommend taking a look at is the battery saver mode. You can set this up to automatically reduce RGB brightness when the keyboard’s battery starts getting low.
Bottom line
The Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Keyboard is a top-tier option that’s easy to recommend as one of the best gaming keyboards. If you’re looking for a responsive, compact, premium gaming keyboard, this one should be at the top of your list, especially if you play a lot of esports titles.
It’s one of the best-sounding gaming keyboards out there but also gives you room to customize with hot-swappable switches. Battery life could be better, but the performance and build quality definitely live up to the Pro Wireless’s $199.99 price tag.
