The mechanical keyboard market has undergone a profound transformation. Where gaming peripherals once commanded premium prices justified by innovation and performance, today's landscape reveals a striking paradox: the companies spending millions on marketing, sponsorships, and esports partnerships have ceded meaningful value leadership to obscure Asian manufacturers like Keychron, Aula, and Wooting. This isn't a manufacturing quality issue, it's a structural problem baked into how gaming brands operate, and nowhere is this more evident than in the Indian market.

India Market Pricing: The Value Collapse Quantified

The magnitude of the value gap becomes clear when comparing equivalent feature sets with actual India market pricing. At ₹18,487-20,420 on Flipkart, the Razer Huntsman V2 TKL costs approximately 2x more than the Keychron V3 at ₹9,499. For this price premium, users receive a plastic case instead of aluminum, ABS keycaps instead of PBT, and proprietary switches that cannot be upgraded. Meanwhile, the Aula F75 at ₹5,500-6,448 on Amazon offers hot-swappable switches, PBT keycaps, triple connectivity, and aluminum case options for 1/3rd the price of Razer. ​

The sentiment from India's mechanical keyboard community is consistent. On r/mkindia, users discussing the Aula F75 regularly confirm sub-₹5,500 pricing through strategic shopping—one documented purchase at ₹4,600 with card discounts. By contrast, gaming brand keyboards maintain rigid MSRP pricing through distributor agreements, unable to compete with the direct-to-consumer pricing flexibility of budget brands. ​

The Economics of Gaming Keyboards: Why Gaming Brands Lose

ABS Keycaps Over PBT

Gaming brands standardly ship with ABS keycaps, which cost significantly less to manufacture but degrade visibly within weeks of use. The plastic acquires a glossy sheen from finger oils and the surface coating scratches easily. By contrast, budget competitors like Keychron and Aula include durable PBT keycaps—superior material at equivalent or lower price points—because they prioritize long-term user satisfaction over manufacturing margins.

• Example: At ₹9,499, the Keychron V3 includes PBT OSA profile keycaps that would cost ₹2,000+ to purchase separately.
• Comparison: Razer charges ₹18,487 for an inferior alternative.

Proprietary Switches and Dead-End Customization

Razer's optical switches are fundamentally Kailh clones rebranded; Corsair uses its own OPX optics; ASUS employs proprietary NX switches. While this sounds innovative, it actually locks users into the ecosystem and prevents cost-effective upgrades.

Gaming enthusiasts cannot swap in superior third-party switches without replacing the entire keyboard. By contrast, Keychron and Aula embrace hot-swappability with standard switch formats, giving users hundreds of options for under ₹1,000—a customization depth that gaming brands cannot match without cannibalizing their own switch revenue.

Bloated Software

Gaming brands have built heavyweight software ecosystems—Razer Synapse, Corsair iCUE, ASUS Armoury Crate—that consume system resources and introduce reliability issues. Users report performance degradation, profile conflicts, and auto-startup annoyances.

Keychron keyboards use lightweight web-based VIA software or open-source QMK, which are faster, less intrusive, and community-maintained. For casual gamers, this software overhead adds zero value while increasing system burden.

Plastic Cases at Premium Prices

The SteelSeries Apex 7 TKL review highlighted this clearly: "The main body is plastic while the plate under the switches is matte aluminum." At ₹10,500 equivalent, this is reasonable. But the Razer Huntsman V2 at ₹18,487 also features a plastic case. The ROG Azoth starts at ₹20,020 and prominently uses plastic construction.

By contrast, Keychron's Q-series keyboards—which retail at ₹15,000-18,000—offer full aluminum CNC cases, superior stabilizers, and QMK programmability. ASUS and Razer's plastic construction at premium price points represents pure branding overhead.

Soldering and Quality Control Issues

Users report that Razer keyboards suffer from inconsistent quality control, with individual units exhibiting "significantly lower quality than the other." The soldering quality has been documented as substandard, and RGB failures on individual keys are common. Budget brands like Aula have largely moved past these QC issues through hot-swappable designs and modular components, which are inherently more forgiving of manufacturing tolerances.

Regional Distributor Agreements Trap Gaming Brands

Razer, Corsair, and ASUS sell through established Indian distributors and e-commerce partners who maintain MAP (Minimum Advertised Price) agreements. Price undercutting risks distributor relationships, making aggressive price competition impossible.

Keychron sells primarily direct-to-consumer through its own website (keychron.in) and authorized resellers, eliminating middleman margin requirements. This structural difference is decisive:

• The Inversion: During Amazon's Great Indian Festival 2025, the Aula F75 saw only marginal discounting (10-15% off), signaling healthy demand.
• Liquidation: By contrast, the Razer Huntsman V2 appeared in "Super Deals" with 70% markdowns, suggesting poor sell-through at MSRP.

YouTube & Community Validation: Big Channels Calling Out Gaming Brands

The sentiment has reached mainstream tech audiences:

• Linus Tech Tips (16.7M subs): Systematically compared budget mechanical keyboards to gaming brands, highlighting cost-to-value inadequacy.
• TechSource (4M subs): Praised boards like the Keychron K3 Pro and Aula F75 while noting gaming brands command "unjustifiable premiums."
• Reddit Communities: Experienced users on r/mkindia state that Razer keyboards are "very mid, if not low" in terms of longevity and QA, calling the branding "marketing hype."

India-Specific Challenges: Import Duty Assassinates International Competition

Wooting's 60HE, the technical superior to all gaming brand keyboards, becomes economically unviable in India due to import duties. A user who imported it via UPS paid approximately 42% customs duty, totaling ₹27,000+.

This customs barrier artificially protects domestic gaming brands from direct competition with innovation leaders. Users face a false choice between overpriced gaming brands and unavailable premium alternatives.

Comparative Value: Where Gaming Brands Still Compete

• The Corsair Exception: The Corsair K70 RGB Pro (₹13,774-14,898) is surprisingly competitive with PBT caps and Cherry MX switches, though it still lacks hot-swap and lightweight software.
• The SteelSeries Outlier: At ₹32,696, the Apex Pro TKL is the most expensive. While it has adjustable switches, serious players would prefer a Wooting 60HE for actual performance gains.
• ASUS ROG's Schizophrenia: The ROG Azoth pricing shows a 48% variance (₹20,020 to ₹29,900). At the lower end, it approaches value; at the higher end, it is "indefensible."

Why This Matters to Indian Consumers: The Recommendation Framework

What Gaming Brands Would Need to Fix This

To regain value leadership, gaming keyboards would require:

1. Switch to PBT keycaps and standard switch formats.
2. Switch to aluminum cases or price plastic models at ₹6,000-8,000.
3. Simplify software, migrating to lightweight alternatives like QMK/VIA.
4. Accept lower per-unit margins for brand rehabilitation.
5. Differentiate through performance (Hall Effect), not aesthetic gimmicks.

Conclusion: A Market Correction Already Underway

The gaming keyboard era is ending for informed consumers. The verdict from the market is clear: ₹9,499 Keychron V3 > ₹18,487 Razer Huntsman V2. Gaming giants face a choice: restructure their strategy to regain credibility, or continue to dominate the casual, RGB-obsessed segment while ceding the technical market to alternatives. Based on recent escalations, they have chosen the latter.