Razer's Xbox One Keyboard And Mouse Now Up For Preorder

It wasn't long ago that Microsoft and Razer partnered up to create Xbox One mouse and keyboard combos. Now we're seeing the first fruits of that relationship in the form of the Razer Turret, which is now available for pre-order on Microsoft's website.

First, we feel compelled to address the really expensive elephant in the room. The Razer Turret is priced at $249.99, and there's no way that isn't bonkers. The Xbox One S is selling at a lower price than that right now thanks to Microsoft's holiday sale. What could possibly make this keyboard worth that much money?

Both the keyboard and the mouse look comparable to some of Razer's best stuff. But a quick scan over at Amazon seems to suggest that you could nab a similar keyboard and mouse pair (albeit wired, not wireless) for about $100 less. The big selling point of the Turret here is that you can use it with your Xbox One while playing on the couch, and the keyboard features wireless connectivity and a slide-out mouse tray to make that possible. Is that worth an extra Benjamin? You'll have to be the judge of that.

Otherwise, the Turret does what you'd expect an upper-tier keyboard and mouse duo to do. Both feature Razer's Chroma RGB lighting, which works with Microsoft's Dynamic Lighting to change colors during games. And the Turret advertises a "dedicated Xbox key," which presumably performs the same way the Xbox button does on a gamepad.

But wow, that price. It would be understandable if the Turret did more to take advantage of the console it's built for, such as, say, using Microsoft's proprietary Xbox wireless protocol. But the keyboard and mouse connect using a simple wireless USB dongle, which means you'll have to explore some other avenue for voice communication. If playing with a keyboard and mouse means you have to keep a headset-connected controller alive at all times, or you have to upgrade to a far more expensive wireless headset, that's either an added inconvenience or an added cost.

We'll have to see how the public takes to the Turret when it arrives in March 2019.