Glorious GMBK 75% Review: The Affordable Gaming Keyboard Revolution!

The Glorious GMBK 75% gamer keyboard is a budget-friendly model that opts for membrane keys. Unlike the premium models that have helped build the brand’s reputation, this compact and more affordable keyboard primarily targets gamers on a tight budget.

While it skips mechanical switches, it features full and customizable RGB lighting, as well as a volume control dial. Compatible with the Glorious Core driver, it benefits from extensive customization similar to its higher-end siblings.

It is offered at a recommended price of 60 euros, which might be its main drawback, given the current market is flooded with mechanical models at similar prices.

Technical Details

Light as a Feather

Upon unpacking, the Glorious GMBK 75% impresses with its extreme lightness. Weighing just over 500 g, it is one of the lightest gamer keyboards we have tested in recent years. Entirely made of plastic, the GMBK 75% does not exactly exude quality, with a rather average assembly, a very flexible chassis, and discouraging noises when twisted.

Although the materials used betray its price positioning, the keyboard is far from ugly visually. Very compact thanks to its 75% format, it sports a discreet and monobloc design, with some curves on its edges that give it a bit more presence.

The use of membrane keys allows Glorious to integrate backlighting directly into the chassis. The result is quite convincing, even if the symbols cut out on the ABS plastic keys are not sufficiently illuminated compared to the chassis. The chassis also incorporates a light strip synchronized with the rest of the lighting on its edges.

Glorious has introduced an “innovation” to this keyboard… This innovation lies under the keycaps. Although it is a membrane model, the keycaps are in the MX format, with a cross-shaped stem to hold them. This means that they can be easily replaced, just like on (almost) any mechanical keyboard. A removal tool is also provided in the box.

With its format, the GMBK 75% leaves room for the mouse to move. It skips the numeric keypad and sticks to the essentials, retaining the arrow keys and a few additional buttons. The set is completed by a series of shortcuts accessible with the “Fn” key, as well as a volume control dial, also entirely made of plastic.

Already thick enough, the chassis is equipped with retractable pads allowing the keyboard’s tilt to be adjusted at three distinct angles. The connection to the PC is provided by a non-braided but detachable USB cable.

A Keyboard that Strengthens the Fingers

Equipped with membrane keys, the GMBK 75% obviously does not aim to compete with mechanical keyboards, although it has some features to offer. The sensation under the fingers is quite unique, with a very noticeable bump from the first few millimeters of descent. The idea here is to offer a feeling similar to tactile mechanical switches, and very resistant.

Unfortunately, this initial resistance is significant enough to be frankly unpleasant during the first minutes of use. I feel I have to force the keystroke to properly activate the keys. After a few hours of getting used to it, things improve, but the overall feeling remains very average. We also find the very soft end typical of membranes.

However, the typing experience is one of the best we’ve encountered so far on a membrane keyboard. Keeping things in proportion, the keys quickly return to place to allow effective chaining of keystrokes. The keycaps also benefit from very decent stability thanks to their MX format design. Finally, despite the membranes, the GMBK 75% remains a particularly noisy keyboard.

Comprehensive Features with Glorious Core

The configuration of the GMBK 75% is managed by the Glorious Core driver, compatible with most of the brand’s peripherals. This tool offers a simple and efficient interface to adjust the different elements of the keyboard, whether it’s the RGB lighting or the assignment of different keys.

For lighting, several presets are offered, but it is also possible to adjust the ten zones of the chassis individually. As often with membrane keyboards, it is impossible to modify the lighting of each key independently. Note that each key assignment layer can benefit from its own RGB lighting settings.

These layers are accessible thanks to the traditional Fn key, which can then trigger the Fn2 key. Three layers are thus accessible, for as many shortcuts for each key. These keys can be reassigned with keystrokes related to the keyboard, the system, or with macros that can be recorded directly within the driver.

A final tab allows you to adjust the polling rate of the keyboard, its latency, and the sensitivity of the dial. A sleep mode is also offered, as well as compatibility with macOS. All the mentioned settings can then be saved in profiles, directly on the internal memory of the keyboard. However, it remains impossible to assign them to games or applications.

Price and Availability of the Glorious GMBK 75%

The Glorious GMBK 75% keyboard is available at a recommended price of 60 euros.