Keychron M6 Wireless review: An exceptional-value gaming mouse

Price When Reviewed

49

Best Prices Today: Keychron M6 Wireless

Harking again to once I reviewed the 2023 Keychron M3, I can recall that it impressed me with its gamer-centric design and near-to-pro degree accuracy. But what actually left me with the nice and cozy and fuzzies was the truth that it hit cabinets for simply $49.

Such is the case with the Keychron M6 Wireless, a mouse that may match the newest specs from rivals akin to Logitech or Corsair, however because it too prices simply $49, it is going to additionally maintain a couple of further $20 notes in your again pocket. Sure, its less-than-perfect construct high quality is a slight tradeoff for that worth, however then once more, this mouse has a bucket load of different drool-worthy performance that greater than redeems it as a superb mouse for causal gaming.

Further studying: See our roundup of the best wireless gaming mice to study competing merchandise.

Keychron M6 Wireless design and construct

For RPGs and MORPGs, I sort of like my gaming mice to replenish my entire hand — to present me that sense of no-holds-barred management, so it is smart {that a} mouse just like the Keychron M6 Wireless, with its massive, comfy thumb relaxation, can be on my radar.

That relaxation isn’t as plush as some, in that it dispenses with a rubber grip, but it surely nonetheless feels good and roomy and does an honest job stopping my thumb’s friction on tabletops. Apart from that, the mouse’s most notable design function is its excessive sloping high that properly molds into the middle of my palm. That high-top slides down sharply to the suitable, bestowing my set off finger with an honest quantity of leverage. The mouse’s full dimensions measure 2.96 x 4.82 x 1.96 inches, so it simply accommodates large- to medium-sized fingers.

The M6’s button format ought to impress avid gamers who like a customized command setup. Apart from the 2 primary clicks, and a four-direction mouse wheel, the M6 additionally hides two small buttons on the left and a ‘thumb wheel’ above them — just like the Logitech MX Master 3S. These two buttons are ideally positioned for accessing fast peripheral instructions — I discovered them helpful for these lesser-used spells in WoW; they made caring for foes with a number of assaults so much faster. The thumb wheel can be a pleasant function that synced nicely into my play model — that’s, after I labored out what I may presumably do with it (however extra on that later).

The M6’s button configuration additionally keenly helps its mouse wheel’s dual-mode performance — there’s a small button situated behind the principle wheel that switches between a Standard Scroll Mode and Infinite Scroll Mode. On the mouse’s underside, you’ll discover but extra buttons: a button to decide on connectivity sort, a DPI switcher button, and a polling fee button. An extra button enables you to change between as much as three totally different Bluetooth gadgets when in Bluetooth mode.

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For a mouse with so many options, the Keychron M6 Wireless can be remarkably light-weight. It scores a house run for weighing a mere 2.75 ounces (78 grams). Compare that to different thumb relaxation bearing mice just like the Razer Basilisk V3 (3.56 ounces) and Logitech G502 Lightspeed (4.02 ounces), and consequently, you’ll be able to see how you might comfortably play for lengthy stints with out getting as a lot hand fatigue.

Now to handle the aforementioned construct high quality situation… Really, it’s not all that noticeable, however the principle mouse wheel doesn’t appear to have the soundness and firmness I’ve encountered in different mice. I base that on the truth that once I give the machine a bit of shake, the wheel, and presumably among the different inside elements rattle a bit, one thing that will have an effect on the mouse’s lifespan over time.

Still, with no buckets of money, or a prestigious rating on the road from my gaming periods, for the value being requested, one tiny inconsequential design flaw looks like one thing I’d be prepared to place up with.

Keychron M6 Wireless connectivity

With all three connectivity modes — 2.4GHz wi-fi, Bluetooth 5.1, and wired — supported by the M6’s PixArt 3395 sensor, the Keychron M6 Wireless is kind of a flexible mouse you can take anyplace and connect with nearly any machine. That’s all nicely and good if the mouse’s battery life is as much as scratch, and I’m glad to say that it’s — you rise up to 80 hours runtime, which is kind of beneficiant actually.

One shock once I unboxed the machine was that in addition to the ever-present 2.4GHz USB-A Wi-Fi dongle that I normally get with new mice, the field additionally inlcuded a USB-C dongle. This turned out be tremendous useful once I wanted to connect with a laptop computer that solely has USB-C ports — the HP Spectre Foldable being one in every of them.

The M6 helps an ordinary polling fee of as much as 1,000Hz in Wi-Fi mode, which increasingly more professional avid gamers are abandoning in favor of faster 4K and even 8K HyperPolling charges. That considerably reduces its effectiveness for esports, however for quick informal gaming 1,000Hz is completely nice.

How is the Keychron M6 Wireless’ gaming efficiency

On stability, the Keychron M6 Wireless is a quick, clean, right-handed rodent. Its 26,000 DPI sensor tracks motion at a really fast 650 inches per second (IPS) and feels each exact and correct. The indisputable fact that this mouse retains your set off finger so elevated means you’ll be able to milk a bit of extra pace on quick, sharp blasts of your primary clicks than you in any other case would with a flat-topped symmetrical mouse, which I actually appreciated.

Speaking of the buttons, for the M6’s worth, they might presumably be its finest worth function. They boast Huano 80M micro switches and really feel gentle and clicky. They’re additionally rated for an extended lifetime of as much as 80 million clicks.

The M6’s glorious scroll choices additionally make it a pleasure to make use of. If you haven’t but used a mouse with a thumb wheel, it’s a bit of exhausting to say the way you would possibly benefit from it, because it largely will depend on the video games you wish to play. For me, I settled on utilizing it to pick gadgets from secondary lists in video games and to flick via movies when in Windows, for which it proved tremendous helpful.

Also handy was the four-directional primary mouse wheel. I evaluation quite a lot of FPS mice that solely provide the two instructions (up and down), so I discovered 4 clicks an actual deal with in RTS video games, the place I may shortly scroll left and proper quicker via a map, in addition to up or down.

The twin scroll-mode performance, however, was extra of a boon to my work life. I may both use the Standard Scroll Mode to precisely land on pages in paperwork, or else constantly scroll to the top of a doc with the Infinite Scroll performance, which proved an actual timesaver.

What would I alter? Only one factor involves thoughts for efficiency: That is, the mouse’s ft aren’t 100 % PTFE, however somewhat a mix of PTFE and Teflon. It’s a small level but it surely does make a distinction to 1’s play — it implies that you don’t fairly get as fast a glide over surfaces as mice with 100 % PTFE — mice just like the Razer Basilisk V3, for instance. On a steady floor like my neoprene mouse mat that wasn’t very noticeable, however on wooden surfaces, that restriction in motion was all too apparent.

Keychron Engine software program

Keychron’s Engine software program is a simple app that permits you to assign instructions, change polling charges, change DPI settings, select between liftoff distances, and an entire lot extra. With all the wonderful scrolling choices accessible to the M6, I used to be happy to see that the app additionally enables you to tweak and personalize scrolling settings too, just like the scroll pace and scroll route.

One of the best options of Engine is the app’s macros editor, that permits you to create, import, and export macros. It options clear subcategories that assist you to distinguish between your macros, their attributes, and simply assign performance like time delays. It makes the entire course of so much simpler than it might be elsewhere, permitting you to deal with how finest to win your video games.

Dominic Bayley / IDG

Should you purchase the Keychron M6 Wireless?

At $49 the Keychron M6 Wireless is priced very nicely in opposition to comparable, however dearer choices just like the $70 Razer Basilisk V3, and $100 Logitech MX Master S3, which suggests you’ll be able to maintain a couple of bucks in your pocket to purchase one other good little bit of {hardware} — a Raspberry Pi 5 maybe?

What you get for that worth is greater than price it for what you miss out on, particularly when you simply want a quick, light-weight, no-fuss causal gaming mouse… I imply, the M6’s barely less-robust construct high quality is fully price residing with contemplating that you simply get a fast and exact 26,000 DPI sensor, two mouse wheels, and tri-mode connectivity — and all for lower than $50. That reality and the truth that the M6 performs extraordinarily nicely in video games, makes it a category act price placing in your want listing.