The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 is a wired mechanical gaming keyboard that continues the GLORIOUS GMMK lineup. This keyboard has a gasket mount design, which means there are small silicon gaskets inside the case that provide a softer, slightly springier typing experience compared to keyboards with conventional top mount design. It also features a hot-swappable PCB, so you can change out switches without soldering. You can adjust various settings, including RGB lighting, macros, and custom profiles using the configuration software.
Like previous models in their GMMK lineup, GLORIOUS places an emphasis on customizability for this keyboard, providing a wide range of configuration options at purchase. We bought and tested the full-size model of this keyboard, but it's also available in smaller compact sizes. Additionally, while we bought a pre-built model, you can create your own configuration from the ground up with custom color options, materials, and features. For more information, see the Differences Between Variants section.
Disclaimer: This keyboard stopped working properly the morning after our testing concluded. For more details, see the Build Quality section. While the cause of the failure is unclear, we've determined that our unit is faulty and have purchased a replacement. Once the new unit arrives in our lab, we'll validate our results and update the review as necessary.
Our Verdict
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 is an impressive gaming keyboard. It provides excellent average latency performance, suitable for playing games in any genre. However, the latency is somewhat inconsistent with fluctuations that can impact your performance in competitive games. This keyboard also has full RGB backlighting. It's very bright, and the shine-through legends are easy to read in darker rooms. Regrettably, the build quality is only satisfactory, with some noticeable key wobble and minor fit and finish issues. The software is also unreliable, and many settings don't work or save properly to the onboard memory.
Excellent latency performance, overall.
Very bright RGB lighting and clear shine-through keycap legends.
Build quality is only decent.
Extremely buggy software experience.
Unable to take full advantage of its polling rate, bottlenecked by a significantly lower effective update rate.
Performance is a bit inconsistent, especially compared to most other wired gaming keyboards.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 is sub-par for office use. The build quality is only satisfactory, with noticeable key wobble, hollow-feeling stabilized keys, and other minor fit and finish issues. It has a gasket mount design, but it's quite stiff and doesn't offer much springiness. Typing is also somewhat loud despite layers of basic acoustic foam inside the case. Unfortunately, the software is also unreliable as many settings don't work or frequently don't save properly.
Build quality is only decent.
Mediocre typing experience.
Extremely buggy software experience.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 is a wired-only keyboard that isn't compatible with tablets or mobile devices.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 is okay for programming use. Its full-size layout includes a row of F-keys as well as Pause/Break and Print Screen keys, which are needed for some programming workflows. It also has bright RGB backlighting and PBT keycaps with clear shine-through legends that are easy to read in darker rooms. Unfortunately, the build quality is otherwise only decent. There's noticeable key wobble while typing, and larger stabilized keys have an unpleasant hollow feeling, among other minor issues. Typing noise is also on the louder side, and while you can program macros and configure backlighting using the software, it's unreliable as many other software settings don't work or frequently fail to save properly.
Very bright RGB lighting and clear shine-through keycap legends.
Build quality is only decent.
Mediocre typing experience.
Extremely buggy software experience.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 isn't designed for use in an entertainment or home theater setup. It's a wired-only keyboard, and it has a fairly bulky full-size layout that's awkward to use from a couch. Unfortunately, the build quality is also only satisfactory, and it lacks dedicated media keys. That said, it has very bright RGB backlighting with clear shine-through legends that are easy to read in the dark.
Very bright RGB lighting and clear shine-through keycap legends.
Build quality is only decent.
Wired-only.
Bulky.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 has excellent overall performance, making it well-suited for playing casual or competitive games in any genre. Unfortunately, it isn't able to take full advantage of its 1000Hz polling rate as it has a considerably lower effective update, resulting in somewhat more inconsistent performance compared to most wired, dedicated gaming keyboards. While you won't be able to notice these small inconsistencies while playing, it may still impact your performance if you play at a very high competitive level.
Excellent latency performance, overall.
Unable to take full advantage of its polling rate, bottlenecked by a significantly lower effective update rate.
Performance is a bit inconsistent, especially compared to most other wired gaming keyboards.
Changelog
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Updated Dec 18, 2024:
We've added new information to the Introduction and Build Quality sections as we've determined our original unit was defective and have purchased a second unit to validate our results.
- Updated Dec 02, 2024: Review published.
- Updated Nov 22, 2024: Early access published.
- Updated Nov 14, 2024: Our testers have started testing this product.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 is available in three sizes and in either a prebuilt or barebones configuration. The standard prebuilt models are available in Black or White colorways and with linear Glorious Fox mechanical switches. We bought and tested a full-size pre-built model in Black. For reference, see a photo of our unit's label.
GLORIOUS also offers a service called 'Boardsmith' that lets you design your own GMMK 3 from scratch or choose from various custom designs.
This keyboard is part of a wider family of related GMMK 3 series keyboards. We've provided a table below comparing them.
| Name | Sizes | Switch Compatibility | Case Material | Maximum Polling Rate | Prebuilt Color Options | Connectivity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GMMK 3 | Compact (65%), Compact (75%), Full-size (100%) | Mechanical (MX) hot-swappable | Plastic | 1000Hz | Black, White | Wired |
| GMMK 3 HE | Compact (65%), Compact (75%), Full-size (100%) | Hall effect hot swappable | Plastic | 8000Hz | Black, White | Wired |
| GMMK 3 PRO | Compact (65%), Compact (75%), Full-size (100%) | Mechanical (MX) hot-swappable | Aluminum | 1000Hz | Black, White | Wired/Wireless |
| GMMK 3 PRO HE | Compact (65%), Compact (75%) | Dual hot-swappable mechanical (MX) / Hall effect | Aluminum | 8000Hz | Black, Silver | Wired/Wireless |
We expect our tests to broadly apply to all configurations of the standard GMMK 3, including custom designs. However, depending on your exact configuration, there may be minor build quality differences. Furthermore, all models with hall-effect switches, higher polling rates, or wireless connectivity will perform differently than the model we tested in this review.
If you have this keyboard and would like to share your experience, we'd love to hear from you in the comments.
Popular Keyboard Comparisons
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 is a wired mechanical gaming keyboard that continues GLORIOUS' GMMK lineup. This keyboard offers an extremely customizable experience with options for different color combinations, keycaps, switches, switch plates, gasket stiffness, material choices, and more. This degree of customization sets it apart from other options on the market, surpassing the customizability of options like the Keychron V5 Max as well as more straightforward, dedicated gaming keyboards like the Razer BlackWidow V4 Pro or the Corsair K70 CORE. Unfortunately, the build quality is only satisfactory, the typing experience is mediocre, and fully customizing your keyboard is quite expensive. Furthermore, the software experience is extremely buggy, and while the raw performance is excellent overall, it's also somewhat inconsistent and still falls short of the flagship gaming keyboards from other brands.
For more recommendations, see our picks for the best keyboards, the best mechanical keyboards, and the best budget and cheap keyboards.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 PRO HE and GLORIOUS GMMK 3 are mechanical gaming keyboards in the same lineup. Both are designed with modularity and customizability in mind. While they're available in prebuilt configurations, you can also customize various parts and colors on GLORIOUS' website. The GMMK 3 is newer and features a new gasket mount design that provides a slightly softer typing experience. It also has somewhat better gaming performance. On the other hand, the GMMK 3 has a standard top mount design and a slightly more compact (96%) form factor.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 and GLORIOUS GMMK 2 are mechanical gaming keyboards in the same lineup.
Both are designed with modularity and customizability in mind. While they're available in prebuilt configurations, you can also customize various parts and colors on GLORIOUS' website. The GMMK 3 is newer and features a new gasket mount design that provides a slightly softer typing experience. It also has somewhat better gaming performance. On the other hand, the GMMK 2 has a standard top mount design and a slightly more compact (96%) form factor.
Both the Corsair K70 CORE and the GLORIOUS GMMK 3 are full-size mechanical gaming keyboards. The Corsair has superior raw performance, build quality, and typing quality. It also includes a wrist rest, which the GLORIOUS lacks. Comparatively, while the GLORIOUS is available as a prebuilt model, you can choose to customize it at purchase with different color options, materials, and features.
The Razer BlackWidow V4 Pro and GLORIOUS GMMK 3 are wired mechanical gaming keyboards. The Razer has significantly better raw performance, build quality, and typing quality. It also includes a wrist rest and a full set of dedicated media controls, which the GLORIOUS lacks. On the other hand, the GLORIOUS offers more in-depth hardware customization. You can also choose to customize the GLORIOUS extensively at purchase with a much wider range of color options, materials, and features. The GLORIOUS also has a hot-swappable PCB, while the Razer's switches are soldered.
Test Results
You can buy this keyboard in one of three sizes. We bought and tested the full-size (100%) model, which takes up a considerable amount of desk space.
Other sizes include a compact (75%) and a compact (65%) model. For a complete list of variants, see the Differences Between Variants section. If you want the dimensions of the smaller variants, they're listed at the bottom of the online user guide from Glorious's website.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 has decent build quality. Its chassis is made of plastic and has an aluminum switch plate. There are minor gaps between the top and bottom chassis pieces. Overall, the board feels fairly sturdy, though it flexes slightly when twisted. Its gasket-mount design offers a slightly softer, springier typing experience compared to conventional top-mount keyboards, but it still feels much stiffer compared to other gasket-mounted boards we've tested.
GLORIOUS emphasizes the customizability and modularity of this keyboard. A screwdriver is included in the box, and the case is secured with eight screws (hidden beneath the removable rubber feet), making it easy to disassemble. However, the rubber feet lack grip, tend to fall out easily, and are prone to getting lost if you frequently reposition the keyboard.
The keycaps are made of doubleshot PBT, which GLORIOUS markets as 'GBPT' keycaps. Despite the branding, they feel and look similar to standard PBT keycaps.
Unfortunately, there's some minor key wobble during typing, and we noticed a rattling sound from inside when shaking the keyboard. We opened the case and found the rattle was caused by loose screws that hold an internal weight. Once these screws were tightened, the rattling disappeared.
There are two 'O rings' included in the box. It seems these O rings are supposed to fit around screws inside the case to isolate them and dampen the impact of typing. While the more expensive GLORIOUS GMMK 3 PRO HE we tested do have these O rings pre-installed, the GMMK 3 doesn't have any installed.
Disclaimer: Our keyboard stopped working the morning after our testing concluded. While the backlighting still functions and can be adjusted using hotkey combinations, the keyboard no longer registers keystrokes on computers. The cause of this failure is currently unclear, and we haven't seen this issue reported in the wider community. However, we've determined that our unit is faulty and have purchased a replacement. Once the new unit arrives in our lab, we'll validate our results and update our review if necessary.
These keyboards provide standard ergonomics with a fairly tall profile and one additional incline option.
Using this keyboard with a supportive rest will provide the best ergonomic experience. There isn't one included, but GLORIOUS sells rests separately on their website.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 offers outstanding hardware customizability and is designed to be easy to disassemble and modify. There are eight screws on the bottom that hold the top and bottom cases together, and there's a screwdriver included in the box.
GLORIOUS advertises this keyboard also supports screw-in stabilizers.
These keyboards have full per-key RGB backlighting. You can customize brightness and effects directly on the keyboard using hotkey shortcuts or using the configuration software. Unfortunately, we experienced significant issues trying to customize the lighting using the software. Many other users online also experiencing issues. For details, see the Configuration Software.
Note: The maximum brightness photo looks slightly blurry, but this is the result of blooming from the keys as the maximum brightness setting is very bright and the aluminum plate does a good job of reflecting additional light.
The backlight clarity on the GLORIOUS GMMK 3 is excellent. Legends are clearly visible with very minimal obstructions. The lighting is also very bright, and the white-only setting is very clean without any noticeable blue tint.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 has a braided cable that includes a velcro strap to help with cable management. Unfortunately, the cable retains some kinks from its packaging.
You can't program macros directly on the GLORIOUS GMMK 3 with keyboard shortcuts, but you can program macros using the configuration software.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 has a rotary knob that you can program using the configuration software. By default, it controls media volume when rotated and other functions when you press it.
The compact 75% and 65% versions of this keyboard also have a programmable knob, which is somewhat unusual for compact models.
There are media hotkeys on the function row with secondary printed legends on the front of the keycaps.
You can adjust backlighting settings using hotkey combinations, which are also labeled with printed legends on the front of keycaps. See a photo of these legends here and here.
There are a pair of physical switches near the cable port, one of which switches between profiles while the other toggles between Windows and macOS compatibility modes. There are also alternate Mac keycaps included.
For a complete list of supported shortcuts and other information you can see a user guide on Glorious' website.
- USB-A to USB-C cable
- 4x extra screws
- Screwdriver
- Keycap puller
- Switch puller
- 4x alternate Mac-specific keycaps
- 2x extra gaskets
- 2x O rings
- 3x sample switches
- User documentation
Both the product box and GLORIOUS' product page identify that there should be three sample switches included (a Glorious Fox, Glorious Panda, and a Glorious Raptor switch). However, our box contained two Glorious Raptors and one extra Glorious Fox switch.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 provides a decent typing experience. The keycaps have a standard OEM profile and are made of doubleshot PBT plastic with a pleasant, slightly textured finish.
It has a gasket mount design, but the gasket is quite stiff. Unfortunately, there's also a small degree of key wobble that's noticeable while typing.
The stabilizers do a fairly good job of keeping larger keys stable without much rattling, although stabilized keys do have an unpleasant hollow feeling.
There are basic layers of sound-dampening foam inside the case (one between the top plate and the PCB and one under the PCB), but they don't do much to dampen or round out the sound profile.
This keyboard is somewhat loud and may bother those around you, especially in noise-sensitive environments.
The prebuilt versions of this keyboard come with Glorious Fox linear switches.
GLORIOUS also offers several other switch types at purchase if you choose to customize your keyboard with their 'Boardsmith' utility.
The Glorious Fox switches are lightweight, linear switches that operate smoothly with very typical pre-travel and total travel distances.
The GLORIOUS GMMK 3 has excellent single-key latency performance, making it well-suited for playing casual or competitive games. However, the performance is somewhat inconsistent with small fluctuations of ~3ms, likely due to this keyboard's low effective update rate, which acts as a bottleneck. For more details, see the Data Transmission section.
This test was performed at the maximum polling rate setting of 1000Hz and with the lowest input latency setting (0ms).
This keyboard offers excellent multi-key latency performance. It's well-suited for gaming scenarios requiring additional keystrokes while multiple keys are pressed and maintained.
This test was performed at the maximum polling rate setting of 1000Hz and with the lowest input latency setting (0ms).
This keyboard has reasonably good data transmission performance. NKRO is enabled by default, and it's capable of sending multiple keys per USB report. Unfortunately, the board's polling rate is bottlenecked by its significantly lower effective update rate.
While the configuration software includes options for adjusting the polling rate, they don't work. Regardless of the setting, the keyboard outputs a 1000Hz polling rate, with its effective update rate capped at 333Hz across all settings.
This keyboard offers excellent 4-chord split delay but significantly higher 8-chord split delay. Furthermore, while overall chord split performance is good, we experienced somewhat inconsistent measurements with occasional latency spikes during testing.
This keyboard is well-suited for playing rhythm games, but some inconsistency may impact performance if you play at a highly competitive level.
We experienced a wide range of issues with the GLORIOUS Core 2.1 software, and many owners of this keyboard are reporting similar issues online. You can see a selection of these threads on GLORIOUS' forums or on Reddit here or here.
We also experienced issues when using the software on macOS. Note that for Macs, the software is only compatible with newer Apple Silicon devices (M1 and later).
Overall, the software is reasonably well laid out. It provides expected options for adjusting RGB lighting, keymapping, custom profiles, macros, and performance settings. Unfortunately, many features don't work as expected.
Adjusting RGB lighting and effects is buggy and frequently fails to save changes. The only reliable method we found to change RGB settings was to perform a factory reset and use shortcuts directly on the keyboard. Unfortunately, whenever you reopen the software, the RGB settings revert to default once more.
We attempted to test basic key remapping and found it didn't work initially but seemed to only take effect the next day. Removing custom keymaps proved to be just as difficult, often taking multiple tries to revert changes. In a related vein, trying to map different layers is confusing as the software continues to visualize the default layer while doing so.
Other custom settings, particularly performance settings such as polling rate and input latency (debounce), frequently reset to their defaults during our testing. Additionally, while the software has an option to change the polling rate settings, they don't work. We consistently measured 1000Hz across all settings.
We attempted to use GLORIOUS' legacy Core 1.0 software, but it isn't compatible with this keyboard.
GLORIOUS has identified that they will continue to update the software, and they may be able to address these issues in the future. If you have this keyboard and want to share your experience with the software, please reach out to us in the comments.
This keyboard is fully compatible with all major operating systems, and Media hotkeys work as expected. However, Mac users should note that the mapping of F-row keys is nonstandard, and the printed secondary legends on the keycaps don't correspond, which may be confusing.
Typical macOS media key layout:
- F7: Previous
- F8: Play/pause
- F9: Forward
- F10: Mute
- F11: Vol -
- F12: Vol +
macOS media keys on the GLORIOUS GMMK 3:
- F7: Play/pause
- F8: Pause
- F9: Mute
- F10: Vol -
- F11: Vol +