So, you’re looking to create the perfect gaming setup. Or, maybe you’re looking to build the perfect area for a home office. Both scenarios May induce the question “what is better when it comes to a wireless vs wired keyboard?”
Now, if you were asking me this question a few years ago then no doubt, hands down, I would say to go with the wired option. However, in recent years, technology has gotten better and better. Nowadays, it seems like wired technology is very much similar to wireless technology in terms of latency. I’m not even sure if there’s even a difference.
However, wireless technology is still pretty new with the gaming world because most gamers want to use wired peripherals in their setups. This is because the wired option has always been known to be better in terms of latency and response time.
I think it is slowly shifting from that. I see more and more gamers preferring the wireless option nowadays. I think the reason for that is the cons of using wireless have almost, if not completely, gone away and now the convenience of having a wireless keyboard is worth whatever cons you may think of.
But, that is up to each individual user to decide. In this article, I will go over the pros and cons of both wireless and wired keyboards and at the end of this article, you should be able to decide for yourself which one you will prefer.
Table of Contents
Pros of Wireless keyboard
Portability
The benefits of using a wireless keyboard are, of course, portability. You can easily move the keyboard from room to room or take it with you if you were going to travel. there are many reasons why you might want to move your keyboard around.
Smart TV ease of use
I think one reason portability is so important nowadays is the rise of smart TVs. It’s so convenient to be able to switch devices, from your computer to the big screen, in seconds. With a wireless keyboard, you could go to your smart TV and easily connect your keyboard and have a better experience using the various apps. If you’ve ever tried to type using the remote, especially if the title of the video you’re looking for is long, then you know what I mean. There’s no denying that’s an amazing benefit of having a wireless keyboard.
Cons of Wireless Keyboard
General Latency
The negative side of a wireless keyboard may be pretty obvious. The first one that comes to mind but may not be as true as it used to be is that wireless technology just isn’t that great. You may be worried about latency. latency is when you press the key and then it takes a second or even milliseconds to respond. This isn’t really a big deal to people just using the keyboard to type up general information. However, the main problem with latency is when it comes to gaming.
Latency for Gaming
Gamers that are really competitive will want every advantage they can get. This includes reducing latency as best as possible. This is why wireless technology hasn’t really been recommended for gaming. However, wireless technology has gotten a lot better and we may be at the point where it doesn’t make a difference whether or not you use wireless or wired peripherals like keyboards.
However, there will always be the possibility of interference. it’s uncommon but it’s possible. It could just be the thing that causes you to lose the game.
When gaming, don’t confuse latency with lag. Did you know that lag switches are real? Try to avoid these players, it ruins the fun!
Battery Life
Another negative of the wireless option is the batteries. you will have to spend money on batteries or, if it comes with chargeable batteries eventually the keyboard will wear out and you’ll have to buy another one. If the keyboard has changeable batteries that are rechargeable then that is the perfect combination. However, in the long-term, you will still end up spending more on your wireless keyboard just to keep the thing alive.
Fewer Options
Another disadvantage of the wireless keyboard is that, since the technology is so new, there is a very limited amount of keyboards that even offer this technology. Especially if you want a mechanical keyboard. There are even fewer options for wireless mechanical keyboards.
Higher Premium
Another very important negative to know about the wireless option is, just having that function enabled in a keyboard significantly increases the price. If you want to get a wireless keyboard for the same price as your wired counterpart, you will have a pretty crummy keyboard. However, if money isn’t an issue then you could spend more on the wireless option if it’s that important to you. It really comes down to the person and what they prefer.
Pros of Wired Keyboard
Now that I’ve gone over the pros and cons of the wireless keyboard I’ll start going over the pros and cons of the wired keyboard.
Reliability
One benefit of the wired keyboard is reliability. There’s no reason why there’d ever be any kind of interference like with the wireless option. Even though the wireless technology is very advanced I still personally believe that the wired is just generally better in terms of latency. This may just be an opinion and may need more testing, but I think wired is better in that aspect.
Price and Quality
Another benefit of the wired keyboard is that since they’ve been around so long, manufacturers have really perfected the style and layout of the keyboard. They’ve also had plenty of time to learn how to cut costs and provide the user with a very well design keyboard for a very competitive price. Therefore, in terms of price and build quality, I think the wired keyboard still wins in this area. However, with time, I’m sure the wired options will only get better.
Cons of Wired Keyboard
Portability
The negative side of a wired keyboard is obviously the portability. Now it’s not so bad, I mean, the cord can easily be unplugged and plugged somewhere else. However, if the cord isn’t that long then you wouldn’t be able to use it from the comfort of your couch or your bed if you wanted to.
The Wire (obviously!)
Another very big disadvantage to the wired keyboard is the fact that if something were to happen to the wire attached to the keyboard, for example, a naughty cat or dog was to chew on the cord (which I’ve had happened before) well, now you have to go and buy a new keyboard. There may be a way to repair it but then you run into the risk of a bad connection or having it stop working in the middle of work or playing a game.
Comparing Wireless vs Wired Keyboard
As you can see there are many things to think about when comparing a wired keyboard to a wireless keyboard. You have things like connectivity, durability, build quality, price, etc. As well as the general quality of life with setting it up and everything.
A wired keyboard is going to be a little bit more work setting up and also if you want to move it around it will be more work than with a wireless keyboard.
A wireless keyboard might cost more money and also whenever you need to change the batteries you’re going to have to spend more money. However with a wired keyboard if something were to happen to the wire then the keyboard is now useless and you have to buy a new one. It’s not recommended to try to repair the wire which is possible however doing this could cause problems later and the inevitable will happen.
Wireless vs Wired a Quick Overview
Wireless Keyboard
Pros:
- Portability
- Smart tv ease of use
Cons:
- Latency
- Battery life
- Fewer options available
- Higher Premium
Wired Keyboard
Pros:
- Reliability
- Price
- Quality
Cons:
- Not very portable
- Keep that wire safe!
Conclusion
It really is up to the user whether or not they want to go with a wired or wireless keyboard. It depends on what they value most and whether or not they’re just typing or gaming. There are pros and cons to both choices and both choices need to be weighed accordingly. Hopefully, after this article, you will be able to weigh your options and decide for yourself which one you will go with.
I personally will stick with the wired option. I never really have to move my set up around so everything stays in place. But, I can see how that may not be the case for everyone else and someone else may choose wireless. For me, the cons aren’t worth it though.
