Buying a mechanical Keyboard can be challenging especially when you haven’t used one before. A mechanical keyboard can be useful to anyone whether you are a gamer, a writer or a programmer. Even casual users can enjoy a better typing experience with it when compared to the membrane ones. The Redgear MK881 Invador is a budget-friendly Mechanical Keyboard with lots of features and a solid build. I’ve been using this for more than a month and in fact, I’m typing this article using the same. I just keep asking myself the same question over and over again, “Why didn’t I purchase it a few years back?”.

For someone who sits in front of their PC the whole time, this keyboard is a lifesaver. It’s not just about the ‘clicky’ sound, it’s about comfort and that feel while pressing the keys. It not only improves the typing efficiency but gives a great typing experience. Once you’re used to a mechanical keyboard, there’s no going back. Check out this link to know more about why mechanical keyboards are better than the membrane ones. Before we move onto the other technical details and review, here’s a list of pros and cons to help you decide.

    Technical Specification

Brand	RedGear
Model	MK881 Invador
Type	Mechanical Keyboard
Power Consumption	40mA-120mA
Switch	Kailh Blue
Keystrokes Life Span	70 Million
Weight	860g
Number of Keys	104
Backlit	Yes
Anti-Ghosting	Yes
Windows Key Lock	Yes
Wrist Rest	No
LED Modes	8
LED Profiles	6
Custom LED Profile	Yes, 3
Colour	Black
Size	442 x 138 x 39 mm

The Redgear Mk881 Invador is a Mechanical Keyboard for Gaming. It has the Kailh Blue Switches which are similar to the Cherry MX Blue switches. The lifespan of keystrokes in 70 million and that’s definitely a huge number. The weight of this keyboard is slightly on the higher side with 860g. This can make it a bit difficult for carrying but the weight shouldn’t bother you much as long as you’re not moving it often. It has 104 keys and that included a function key that enables you to choose the multimedia keys, change LED Profile and enable/disable the Windows Key Lock feature.

This keyboard has a dimension of 442x138x39 mm and it comes in only black color. Some other features include RGB Lightning Effect, 6 LED Profiles, Windows Key Lock and Full Anti-Ghosting. You can also create custom LED profiles in which you can select those keys in which you want to enable the LED lights. Sadly, there’s no wrist rest but that’s not a big issue as it already has some great features for a budget mechanical keyboard.

    RedGear MK881 Features

Here is a brief overview and explanation of the features supported by this keyboard.

Anti-Ghosting

Ghosting is a situation when multiple keystrokes fail to get registered because the keyboard is unable to work on so many signals simultaneously. It becomes a serious issue if you’re playing games that require multiple key presses at the same time. This keyboard comes with the Full Anti-Ghosting Technology that supports simultaneously pressing of all the keys.

Windows Key Lock

The Windows key can become another issue as pressing this key minimizes the game. Accidentally pressing this key is a serious problem in online gaming or when you are on the brink of completing a difficult mission. In this keyboard, pressing the FN Key with the Windows Key enables the Windows Key Lock feature.

LED Profiles

This keyboard has 8 different LED Modes and 6 different LED profiles. It also supports creating your own LED Profile. The process of creating a custom profile is explained in the next section. To use the LED Modes, press and hold the FN Key and then press the PS/SL/PB/INS/HM/PU/DEL key for the desired effect. For LED Profiles, press FN+ Number Key (6,7,8, 9). Pressing FN+END turns off the LED lights.

Custom LED Profiles

Yes, you can set up to three different LED Profiles on this Keyboard. That’s awesome, right?To create a custom profile, follow these steps:

1. Press FN+PD Key
2. Press FN+1 or FN+2 or FN+3 for the desired profile number
3. Now start pressing the keys one by one that you want to be included in this profile
4. Once, you’re done, press FN+PD to save this profile
5. Now, you can activate these profiles by pressing FN+1 or FN+2 or FN+3

Keycap Puller

There’s Keycap Puller included with the package. It is used to remove the keys so that they can be cleaned or replaced. Even though you can remove the keys on the sides just by using your fingers but the same cannot be done for the other keys.

Multimedia Buttons

There are no separate multimedia keys but you can use the function key (FN) for the same. Press FN+F1 to F12 to perform the desired action. It includes multimedia features such as opening the My Computer, Internet Browser, Calculator, Music Player, Play/Stop/Pause, Search, Lock, and Email. Sadly, there’s no volume control button.

    RedGear MK881 Review

As I’ve already mentioned before, I’ve been using this keyboard for more than a month and now I feel that I’ve used it enough to give a proper and detailed review. I’ve used this mechanical keyboard for content writing, gaming, and programming and I found it useful in each case. In my opinion, this keyboard should make typing easier and faster for any kind of general computer user. But for work and gaming, I will highly recommend you to get the RedGear MK881.

Build Quality & Design

The design and build quality are some of the advantages of this keyboard. It has a sleek and compact design and the keyboard is not too large in size. The aluminium faceplate makes it look even better. Even the wire of USB connector is of very high quality.

LED Lights

The LED Lights looks great and it includes 6 LED Profiles, 8 LED Modes, and 3 custom profiles. However, the colours of individual keys are fixed and it cannot be customized. You can only turn on/off the light of a particular key. There are 6 key rows in this keyboard and each of 4 different colours. Two rows are red in colour, one in green, one in blue, one in orange and one in pink/light purple. Honestly speaking, the ones in orange and pink colour don’t look that great while the Red/Green/Blue lights feel more premium to look at.

USB Connector

The USB Connector of this keyboard is gold plated and has a braided wire which looks premium. The wire of the USB connector is strong and unbendable. There are three separate sections below the keyboard for the come out, this makes cable management neat and easier.

Switch

This keyboard has the Kailh Blue Switches which are suitable for gaming. The Kailh Blue Switches are almost similar and as good as the Cherry MX Blue switches. The feedback it gives after pressing the key makes it much easier to type when compared to the membrane ones. The click sound of the switches is slightly on the louder side. For you, this sound may feel good to hear but it may annoy the people around you. So, need to keep that in mind before you purchase this.

Final Ratings

    Where to Buy RedGear MK881?

You can buy this keyboard from Amazon at a very decent price. Here’s the link to Purchase it:

• RedGear MK881 Professional Mechanical Keyboard

    Final Suggestions

I’ll recommend this Keyboard to any computer user who either needs a mechanical keyboard for professional work or to any kind of user who wants to move on from the traditional membrane keyboards. If your budget is higher than this, then you have many other better options. But, if your budget is not too high, the RedGear MK881 Invador will the perfect choice for you. I hope this review helps you out in choosing a good mechanical keyboard in low-budget. For any kind of queries or feedback, please post your opinion in the comment section below. Want to assemble a Low-Budget Gaming PC? Check out: Build a Nvidia GT 1030 Gaming PC for just $350.

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