Gaming
PC gaming peripherals
Keyboards and mice for PC gaming — a different decision from the console controllers elsewhere in this section. Sourced from independent lab testing (RTINGS, Tom’s Hardware) rather than gathered by us directly, since those are the publishers with the equipment to measure actuation latency and click response objectively.
What actually matters here
Picksights methodology
- Polling rate and click/actuation latency matter more for competitive play than a big DPI number on the box.
- Hall-effect (magnetic) switches let a keyboard read exactly how far a key is pressed, enabling adjustable actuation points — a standard mechanical switch can only report pressed or not pressed.
- Modern LIGHTSPEED/HyperSpeed-class wireless is not the compromise older wireless peripherals were — independent testing finds it indistinguishable from wired in practice.
- Weight matters most for fast-flick-heavy competitive shooters; for most other games it's a smaller factor than sensor accuracy.
Rankings in this category
Best Gaming Keyboard
Hall-effect performance, flagship build quality and genuine budget value, ranked.
Read the ranking →Best Gaming Mouse
Two wireless flagships and a budget pick, ranked on sensor, weight and battery life.
Read the ranking →Also worth a look
This is a new section of Picksights — we launched it with three keyboards and three mice, each with a clear reason for being here, and have since expanded the keyboards to four, rather than assembling a wide catalog from affiliate roundups.