Dell's Latest Keyboard Innovations: Silent KM555 and Wired Collaboration KB525C

Dell Silent Keyboard and Mouse (KM555) Review

If you think it's impossible to replace your worn-out keyboard and mouse for under $50 total with wireless models that are halfway decent, think again. Dell's $49.99 Silent Keyboard and Mouse combo (KM555) squeaks under the price bar and can do the job. Slim and quiet enough that they almost live up to their name, Dell's newest peripherals are solid daily drivers for office productivity, delivering surprising functionality for the bucks. They're not without flaws, such as the keyboard's gummy-feeling membrane switches and some wireless-connection glitches. But this set is a perfectly capable option for anyone looking to save a buck without sacrificing too much comfort or too many features. Design: A Value-Rich Combo Platter The unassuming KM555 is your typical general-use keyboard in most ways. Not quite a full-size keyboard but a little too big to be a true 75% model, the KM55 is fairly compact and surprisingly lightweight, thanks in part to its plastic frame. Dell claims the combo uses 64% post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials. However, the company isn't marketing it as environmentally friendly, as some other sustainably made electronics are. (See peripherals like the now-discontinued Microsoft Ocean Plastic Mouse or even laptops like the Acer Aspire Vero.) With an all-black exterior and bold white lettering, the keyboard's keys, at first glance, reminded me of the basic chiclet keys you see on cheap laptops and other lower-end peripherals like the kind that come bundled with desktops and all-in-one computers. And indeed, every key press greets with a mushy feeling typical of membrane keys. However, this also hushes each press. The key action might not be silent, as the product name suggests, but it makes even a tamped-down mechanical keyboard sound deafening in comparison. The same can be said for the mouse. Also available separately as the $29.99 Dell Silent Mouse (MS355), the bundled clicker uses exceptionally quiet switches that muffle every button press. The mouse is a near-puck shape that should fit in most average-size hands nicely, but it is a little small for my hands. A rubber-lined scroll wheel sits between the two main click buttons and is comfortable to use. Its action is just as quiet as the keyboard's. Overall, both devices are true to the spirit of their name. The keyboard uses two AAA batteries, while the mouse is powered by one AA battery. (The batteries are included with the combo pack.) The keyboard hides its battery door on the backside of its body, while the mouse's top shell can be pried off. Dell claims that the two peripherals should offer around 36 months of use before the batteries need to be replaced. That long rated lifespan makes sense, considering the lack of battery-consuming additions like keyboard backlighting. That's not to say the peripherals are not without their fair share of modern features. The mouse and keyboard both offer two modes of connectivity: You can connect to your device via Bluetooth or using the included USB-A dongle. The latter can be stored inside either the mouse or the keyboard when you're not using it. Switching between connection methods is a matter of pressing a button on either device (on the bottom of the mouse, or on the top right corner of the keyboard.) For the most part, connections are seamless. One dongle handles both devices, which is convenient if you don't have many USB ports to spare. In testing, I did experience a fair number of disconnects when using the keyboard in particular. It would only be for a moment, but it was enough to interrupt my workflow. I tried both USB ports on my laptop, and the issue persisted. Dell positions the combo as "boasting AI capabilities," but the AI here is not a unique use case like the Logitech Signature AI Edition M750 Wireless Mouse's ChatGPT button and prompt builder. The keyboard simply includes a Copilot button, which opens Microsoft Copilot automatically on Windows 11 devices that support it. Software: A Surprising Amount of Options Plugging the USB dongle into your device for the first time will prompt you to install Dell Peripheral Manager (if you're on a Windows PC, that is). This application is where you'll handle the settings adjustments for both the mouse and keyboard. You can assign various multimedia, productivity, and Windows-specific actions to up to 18 separate keys on the board. I was surprised to find so many keys editable on a simple keyboard like this, even if the actions aren't very advanced. The mouse offers application-specific settings adjustments using Dell Peripheral Manager. You can also designate the primary click action to either the left or right button (a win for lefties), and you can even adjust the mouse's polling rate, the number of times per second that your device sends your inputs to your PC. (The higher the number, the faster the response.) Gaming mice can go as low as 250Hz or as high as 8,000Hz, while the common polling rate usually settles at 1,000Hz. The Silent Mouse offers 125Hz, 250Hz, and 333Hz options. Mouse sensitivity peaks at 4,020dpi (dots per inch), which is impressive for a standard office mouse. The app is easy to navigate, and switching between the two devices is as simple as clicking a button at the top right of the screen. As mentioned above, the Dell Peripheral Manager is Windows-only software, but the keyboard and mouse work with devices running macOS, iOS, Ubuntu, ChromeOS, and Red Hat operating systems. Verdict: An Economy Bundle Gets the Job Done With versatility, customizability, and affordability in one box, is the Dell Silent Keyboard and Mouse combo worth it? The keyboard doesn't feel particularly nice to type on, with its shallow key travel and mushy membrane switches. But the mouse is surprisingly spry, balancing out the keyboard's downsides. It's also sold separately. Overall, the combo is a solid option for people looking for affordable daily drivers. True, far better options exist -- the Editors' Choice-winning Logitech MX Master 3S Wireless Mouse and Cherry KC 200 MX, for example, but they'll cost you a lot more. If you're more concerned about getting reports done on time and less about key-actuation points and subjective things like key-switch clickiness, the Dell Silent Keyboard and Mouse are good enough.

Dell Wired Collaboration Keyboard (KB525C) Review

Releasing alongside the Dell Silent Keyboard and Mouse (KM555), the $34.99 Dell Wired Collaboration Keyboard (KB525C) is a bargain-priced keyboard designed with productivity in mind. This board features video-chat controls compatible with both Zoom and Microsoft Teams, a dedicated Microsoft Copilot button, and the option to connect via USB-A or USB-C. It has some minor issues, similar to the KM555's -- primarily, the membrane keys aren't the most comfortable to type on -- but its affordability is argument enough to score it a recommendation if you're in the market for a cheap keyboard. Design: A Familiar Look and Feel Nearly identical to the keyboard included in the KM555 bundle, the Dell Wired Collaboration Keyboard is fairly standard. "Generic" might sound too harsh, but it's apt to describe the keyboard's simple design. But simple is not bad, as the lightweight (1-pound) and compact (1-by-17-by-8.8-inch) build makes the keyboard easy to move around your desk. Like on the KM555, the membrane switches make the keyboard's typing slightly uncomfortable. It's not terrible; I imagine users accustomed to the short key travel distance of Apple keyboards might have no issue with them. But for others, it could be a noticeable annoyance. The chiclet keys feature no backlighting, but the white labels against the black keys do pop enough to give your workspace a clean, no-nonsense look. A closer look at the keyboard reveals one of the major differences between the KM555 and the KB525C: the four keys above the number pad. Touted by Dell as the "world's first wired collaboration keyboard for Zoom and Microsoft Teams," the keyboard includes four shortcut keys exclusively for video calls. It's certainly not the first Zoom-minded keyboard, though. The much pricier Dell KB900 Premier Collaboration Keyboard was among one of the first keyboards to be "Zoom certified." The four LED keys come to life while on a video call, offering one-press shortcuts for the camera, microphone, messaging, and screen-sharing functions. On Zoom calls, the functionality works flawlessly. For Microsoft Teams calls, however, you must navigate to the settings menu and activate a third-party API before the functionality is recognized. Teams isn't the only place Microsoft injects itself into the keyboard. A Copilot button works its way onto the KB525C, too, an increasingly common way to bring basic AI functionality to keyboards. In this case, pressing the button automatically opens Microsoft Copilot on devices that support it. The second major difference between the two new Dell keyboards is in the name. You may have already guessed, but the Dell Wired Collaboration Keyboard is, well, wired. The KB525C doesn't support Bluetooth or any other type of wireless connection. It instead offers both USB-C and USB-A connectivity. The cable is a USB-C one, but it has a removable USB-A cap that stays connected to the cord if you'd prefer to use a USB-A port. Software: Collaboration Is Key Almost every mainstream and high-end keyboard has downloadable software meant to squeeze more functionality from it, but budget models sometimes skip this. The Dell Wired Collaboration Keyboard does not, though. Installing automatically the first time you connect it to a Windows PC, the Dell Peripheral Manager is where you will adjust functionality. It has fewer function buttons to customize, down to 15 from the KM555's 18, but that's still a surprising amount for a run-of-the-mill productivity daily driver. After spending some time with the keyboard, I found that it easily fills its role as a reliable productivity tool, even if the gummy-feeling keys aren't the most desirable to type on. I didn't have to worry about wireless connection glitches, thanks to the wired connection. The keyboard can be used across operating systems, including macOS, Ubuntu, ChromeOS, and Red Hat operating systems (though the software is only compatible with Windows). All of these capabilities increase the KB525C's appeal, but the real selling point for the Dell Wired Collaboration Keyboard is its price. At just $35, the keyboard is highly affordable. It's a way better buy than the Amazon Basics Low-Profile Wired USB Keyboard, and if you don't mind the membrane keys, it's just as good as, if not better than, the Cherry Stream Keyboard, thanks to the productivity add-ons. Verdict: A Good Basic Value for Frequent Video Callers Sure, you could buy the Dell KB900 Premier Collaboration Keyboard, the Razer Pro Type Ultra, or another general-use keyboard if you've got $100 or so to spend, but if you're looking for an excellent keyboard on the cheap, the Dell Wired Collaboration Keyboard (KB525C) is for you. Exceptionally quiet when you're typing, the KB525C is compact, and it comes armed with a surprising amount of functionality and customizability. Best of all, it balances out some of its shortcomings with an affordable price. It stands out from the bargain-keyboard crowd as one of the best buys for economizing shoppers.