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Input Devices PC Games (Games) The Almighty Buck Upgrades Hardware

Gaming Gear Showdown, Simplicity vs. Hype 159

Posted by timothy from the do-these-ruffles-make-my-avatar-look-fat? dept.
Slack3r78 writes "Gizmodo is running a feature putting the gaming marketing hype to the test and seeing whether it really makes your playing any more 1337. They match up the latest products from Razer and SteelSeries along with some five-year-old Logitech products and come to the conclusion that ... it doesn't seem to matter that much. It looks like maybe you can't buy your way into finally beating that annoying 13-year-old at your favorite FPS after all."
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Gaming Gear Showdown, Simplicity vs. Hype More

Gaming Gear Showdown, Simplicity vs. Hype

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  • It's not about the real effect. (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Colin Smith ( 2679 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @04:32PM (#23329292)
    It's about the social status.

    Gotta be honest though. Having the 'leetest rig' just makes you top of a very small pile.

     
  • No one really believes their peripherals make them better, right?? I thought all the fancy 'gaming' mice and keyboards just looked nice.

    • Comment removed (Score:4, Informative)

      by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @04:41PM (#23329424)
      Comment removed based on user account deletion

      • Re:You don't say? (Score:5, Insightful)

        by keithjr ( 1091829 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @04:45PM (#23329460)
        Comfortable or not, it'll be a cold day in hell before I drop $150 on a keyboard, and another $90 for the mouse. The article really doesn't dwell on the cost factor, which for me is the major deterrent to buying "gaming gear."

        • Re:You don't say? (Score:4, Insightful)

          by Gerzel ( 240421 ) <brollyferret&gmail,com> on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @05:49PM (#23330382) Journal
          High cost keyboards CAN make a difference in the long run, but not for gamers.

          For a typist the feel of the keys and layout of the keyboard really can cut down on wear and tear to the hands. An investment in a good keyboard can save you a payout for medical care later.

          Still in the world of ergonomics there are a lot of quacks so you really do have to do your research on what is truly a good keyboard.
        • mouse i did drop about $90 on (logitech mx revolution), though i'm quite happy with my cheap $25 logitech media keyboard (the play/pause/next/previous buttons are handy).

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by piojo ( 995934 )
            I use the VX revolution, and it's the only mouse that has ever made me happy. I mean, mice aren't the sort of things that people should get excited about. Unless they are wireless, work great on every surface, have great battery life, and share none of the usability flaws of other mice I have encountered (latency, jittering, mouse "going to sleep" and not wanting to wake up...)

            (Unlike the Logitech MX-3000 mouse/keyboard combo, which disappointed me in more ways than any other piece of electronics I have bou

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by Z34107 ( 925136 )

          There's a happy medium to be found in computer peripherals.

          I use the Das Keyboard II. [thinkgeek.com] (I used to use an IBM Model M I got from an old PS/1, but I missed the Windows key.) $80 isn't cheap, but it's a dream to type on, and built like a tank. All the keys make happy click-click-click! noises, too. (But then again, I am a computer science major. I spend a lot of time on this thing.)

          I've also been really happy with the Logitech G5 [logitech.com] mouse. The weights are mostly gimmicky, but were handy for the one I got

        • If it is comfortable enough and you use it a lot, that isn't too much to spend. I got a $70 keyboard, the Microsoft Natural 4000 keyboard because it is, hands down, the most comfortable keyboard I've ever used. They layout of the keys, the pressure required to press, the adjustability, all are superb, for me at least. Thus, that's what I use. Yes it cost a whole lot more than getting a generic cheap keyboard, but I use it a lot so it was worth it.

          While you certainly shouldn't spend more money for no benefit

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by aliquis ( 678370 )
          I would actually pay quite much for a good quality keyboard, since I use it so much. Not so much on a mouse thought.

          Same goes for a nice monitor.
        • Clicky IBM keyboards are great for pounding out code but horrible for games.

          I have a nasty squishy keyboard for games.

          PS: It may be squishy, but it has a "Silicon Graphics" logo on it - and that's 7EET (with a capital '7') in any language...

      • Re:You don't say? (Score:5, Funny)

        by Slack3r78 ( 596506 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @05:04PM (#23329724) Homepage

        As stated at the end of TFA
        You know that you've just implicitly admitted breaking one of Slashdot's oldest and most revered rules, right? ;)
        • Comment removed based on user account deletion

        • As stated at the end of TFA

          You know that you've just implicitly admitted breaking one of Slashdot's oldest and most revered rules, right? ;)

          He didn't. He just wrote that and everyone else assumes that's what's actually stated at the end of TFA.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by aliquis ( 678370 )
        Well, unless you need to be able to hold down say shift+a+s to backstrafe while crouching with a keyboard which can't handle all those keypresses at once.

        And mice are more or less picky with surface and I would expect them to "jump around" with the pointer more or less aswell.

    • Re:You don't say? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by VeNoM0619 ( 1058216 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @04:43PM (#23329452)
      I disagree. Sure "fancy" stuff won't make you game better, but functionality DEFINITELY has a huge effect on gameplay.

      The functionality of your mouse makes the greatest difference in a FPS: binding the extra buttons to prevent keyboard movement allowing you to continuously move/jump/crouch etc. to dodge instead of "press whatever key to throw grenade/use good gun". This assumes you have 2-3 fingers for movement, 1-2 for movement actions, you only have at best 1-2 random fingers lingering for a select few keys.

      My personal example would be playing spy in TF2, before I had my 8 button mouse I had issues stabbing engies while placing sappers immediately. Now, I can do it with 90% success - meaning I don't die. Why? Cause all I have to do is press left click, thumb click, left click, while maneuvering with keyboard effectively.

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by Ryukotsusei ( 1164453 )
        Which still doesn't warrant a gaming mouse. You just need a mouse with multiple buttons. The only factor that gaming equipment offers is comfort, basically you can play longer without wearing yourself out. Then again, maybe you have bigger problems if you're getting to the point where you can wear youreslf out.
        • So, if that's what it all boils down to, than why bother calling this stuff "gaming" equipment? Why can't you get the same features and comfort on something that doesn't have that doesn't make you look like a status-whore to own? Mousing around for eight hours a day is a significant part of many jobs the average /.er will take. You should have something better than a dollar-store wrist-rapist for that.

          • Re:You don't say? (Score:5, Insightful)

            by vux984 ( 928602 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @05:35PM (#23330196)
            So, if that's what it all boils down to, than why bother calling this stuff "gaming" equipment?

            Its marketing. They've identified a target demographic with:
            a) interest in the product
            b) disposable income

            Your average enterprise manager isn't interested in equiping his team with higher quality peripherals, and is even less interested in shelling out for them. To a phb, they only reason you got an optical mouse was that they were the same price as wheel.

            Why can't you get the same features and comfort on something that doesn't have that doesn't make you look like a status-whore to own?

            You can actually. Razer for example has a 'pro' series of its mice that are white. And the product name is 'Click v1.6' or something instead of 'Death Adder in Biohazard Green', specifically to be more palatable to getting your PO approved at the 'office'.

            Logitech and Microsoft also make decent quality mice that aren't overly garish.

            But at the end of the day the big market for this stuff are teens. And they buy it as much for the status as the performance. And there is plenty of 'gaming hardware' that is ALL flash and no substance. The same 'Razer' that makes extremely good quality mice also has a 'cord manager' (to keep your mouse cord from getting out of control, pulling, tangling, etc. That little dohickey is little more than steel bolt and screw that that they charge $20 bucks for. You could improvise somethign equivalent from the hardware store for maybe $2.

            Other products, like gamers computer cases are often poorly designed cheap plastic monstrosities -- while others are genuinely high end product.

            Mousing around for eight hours a day is a significant part of many jobs the average /.er will take. You should have something better than a dollar-store wrist-rapist for that.

            You should. Do you? If not, why not?

        • The best advantage of a gaming mouse, in addition to extra buttons over a standard mouse is a higher resolution in hardware. I turn the game sensitivity down, and the mouse sensitivity up, and it's simply more precise than whacking up the pixel jump count that increasing the mouse speed in game does. That really does make a difference when say, sniping, or tank fights in BF2. Plus adjusting the resolution on the fly, with buttons on the mouse makes switching from sniper to soldier on tf2 a lot easier. I wil
    • As somebody who resisted getting a Logitech "gaming" mouse for precisely the reason that I felt it was just a higher price for a ridiculous assclown 1337 design, I will tell you that some of them are indeed better than standard mice. When I was in the market for one a while back, the G5 I'm using right now was the only thing that wasn't either wireless, too small, or lacking important buttons, sometimes even the wheel. Logitech's newest hotness is unfortunately combining interesting features with wirelessne

      • Re: (Score:1, Troll)

        by Slack3r78 ( 596506 )
        The SteelSeries mouse covered in TFA piqued my interest because it looks like they took the front button design from Microsoft mice, the rear ergonomics from Logitech mice, and tweaked them slightly for a bit more comfort. The $90 price tag is pretty steep, but as somebody that's been a pretty hardcore Logitech fan since I bought an MX500 a good 6 or so years ago, this is the first time I've considered defecting.

        (Especially considering that the scroll wheel on my G5 is total garbage).

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Gerzel ( 240421 )
        I've always wondered about the use of wireless vs wired mice.

        I suppose it really depends on your usage and priorities in the mouse's performance.

        For me wired mice get snagged on the stuff on my desk, and don't provide any different functionality from wireless, at least none that I will ever see or even faintly notice. Also I like a mouse with a solid feel to it, a little weight that fits well in the palm of the hand, and wireless mice, with their batteries feel right.

    • Re:You don't say? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by eln ( 21727 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @04:48PM (#23329508)
      You have more faith in humanity than I do.

      You could just as easily say that no one really believes their Monster cables make their stereos sound better. And yet, that company is still in business.

      I think for most people there is a psychological relationship between how expensive something is and how good it is. If these things cost $20, no one would even consider the idea that they would make anyone play better, even if they were built exactly the same. At $300, though, people are more likely to believe it.

      • Re:You don't say? (Score:5, Insightful)

        by Shagg ( 99693 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @05:00PM (#23329672)
        You could just as easily say that no one really believes their Monster cables make their stereos sound better.

        Knowledgeable people don't believe it.

        And yet, that company is still in business.

        The world is full of stupid people.

        I think for most people there is a psychological relationship between how expensive something is and how good it is.

        Yep, see above. ;)

        • Re:You don't say? (Score:4, Funny)

          by Gilmoure ( 18428 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @06:17PM (#23330724) Journal
          Next you're going to say that Brilliant Pebbles [machinadynamica.com] don't reduce comb filter effects in the corners of your listening room.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by lgw ( 121541 )
            Is that an Audiophile products site, or an Audiophile parody site? I honestly can't tell the difference any longer.

            Heck, even companies that I respect because they make honest products (like speakers that sound good) also sell this kind of crap these days, as if they can't stand to be left out. What a market.

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by Gilmoure ( 18428 )
              If it's not a parody site, I'm going to be hoping for an asteroid srike soon as we're too stupid to deserve life.

              • Re: (Score:2)

                by lgw ( 121541 )
                Wow, looking at this product [machinadynamica.com] ... I still can't tell!

                • Re: (Score:2)

                  by fbjon ( 692006 )
                  It seems like a serious parody, i.e. someone's cashing in by selling junk as audio gear. Junk with "subtle effects", mind you, so customers can't really complain.
        • I think it's more like a bell curve though. There are cheap products, there are good products, and then there are over-priced products. Up to a point, an increase in price usually does indicate an increase of quality (in electronics, food, clothing, anything really), but it's when you reach the upper end of that bell curve where the quality stops increasing or seems to in relation to the increasing cost that it becomes a problem.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by dave562 ( 969951 )
        I think for most people there is a psychological relationship between how expensive something is and how good it is. If these things cost $20, no one would even consider the idea that they would make anyone play better, even if they were built exactly the same. At $300, though, people are more likely to believe it.

        There is a relationship there. Pick up "Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion" if you want a good book on the subject of marketting and persuasion. Often times it is more difficult to give aw

    • I believe it... but to a certain point, and then it becomes redundant... for instance a good soundcard helps (ie: stereo, instead of mono)... an optical mouse is better than a ball, a silent and/or small motion motion keyboard helps... but as for FPS/MMO there really isnt any need to pay more than about $140 for your mouse & keyboard... most of these 15 button mice are useless because only the standard 5 buttons can normally be mapped without having to run some special software in the background which i

      • Re: (Score:1, Interesting)

        by Anonymous Coward
        I agree. I got a metal mousepad with teflon surface and it helps more than a $100 gaming mouse would. Plus those mice with tons of buttons are a pain to use, it's almost impossible to hold on to the mouse securely while contorting my fingers to use those stupid buttons.
        A couple side thumb buttons is more than enough.


        The only thing fancy about my keyboard is that it's LED backlit so I can see it in the dark.

      • Re:You don't say? (Score:5, Interesting)

        by vux984 ( 928602 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @05:04PM (#23329722)
        an optical mouse is better than a ball,

        And a laser mouse is better than an optical mouse.

        a silent and/or small motion motion keyboard helps

        I tend to say, "go with what is most comfortable". Quality keyboards tend to have 2 crucial gaming features:

        1) more simultaneous key presses. Nothing sucks worse than side strafe moving while crouching and flicking the reload button and having nothing happen.

        2) quality = durability/consistency. the only thing that sucks worse than 1) above is playing on a keyboard where one of the w-a-s-d has gone 'squishy' or 'sticky' or otherwise doesn't have the same feel or travel as the other 3, for example. Any keyboard can fail, but cheap ones fail sooner and more often.

        most of these 15 button mice are useless because only the standard 5 buttons can normally be mapped without having to run some special software in the background which impeeds the performance

        Trading 0.1 fps to be able to run a useful mouse macro is nearly always worth it. The trick is coming up with useful macros -- some games have them... some don't.

        • Agreed, I had a fantastic Quake three macro that switched between RL and Rail, so amazingly useful.

          Also like the "cover me" reload bind in CS and the "It's pinaple time!" say bind in games with grenades.

          Wow seems like it should have the best binds, it's turn based though so you just can't be really fast.
          • I really hope your post is sarcastic. Every macro you mention doesn't have an ounce of usefulness.

            Also like the "cover me" reload bind in CS and the "It's pinaple time!" say bind in games with grenades.

            God those macros are so annoying. Who the hell "covers" their teammates in pubs anyways? Also, you should only be reloading when you're safe. Imagine if everyone used stupid aliases like that. People would be asking for cover every 5 seconds even if they were just reloading at the end of the round and don't actually need cover.

    • Peripherals have some impact. If you have a 10 year old roller ball mouse full of dirt, it can get in the way. It can be nice to get some peripherals with some extra buttons or other functionality, but when it comes down to it, it's the wetware that matters.

      Although nothing can be quite as satisfying or annoying as the prepubescent voice "It was the controller! F@#$%ing Xbox controllers! Expletive! Expletive!"
  • That stupid people are the ones any type of marketing ever works on.

    The rest of us do research and buy based on our research and our own opinions.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Gerzel ( 240421 )
      Marketing works on everyone. You are not part of us, in fact neither am I, there is no "us" or "them" apart from the "stupid" people.

      Marketing does have a valid function. Sometimes you do want to know how cheap fruit is at one grocery store rather than another. Not all marketing is misleading.

      The thing with "doing the research" is that research costs time and often enough money.

      Do you really have the money to buy six or seven keyboards to try them all out and test them? Ok more realistically you can got

  • It's about the armor.. (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Tominva1045 ( 587712 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @04:43PM (#23329446)
    That 13 year old is gonna own ya because he has become exhalted with the Scryers, has a sweet Tier 5 armor set, and spends all day dueling his homies because he doesn't have a job and can play WOW 13 hours a day. It's not the computer harware.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Hojima ( 1228978 )
      Actually, they were talking about fps not mmorpg. If the 13 year old beats you it's because of many reasons. The first is close to your point, and that is he has a lot of time to practice. No matter what input device you have, there must be some mastery to it. The other thing you can practice in is also the mechanics of the game. It doesn't matter how skillful at sniping you are if you're in close quarters with a shotgun. People who study the map know the right array of weapon pickups to have the advantage
    • If that 13 year old is using Tier 5 armor to own you (assuming pvp), you should probably look into some arena gear and other pvp gear that's *designed* for it, and stop trying to carry on with some pve gear that allows for big juicy crits on you.

  • Um (Score:4, Interesting)

    by dreamchaser ( 49529 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @04:55PM (#23329606) Homepage Journal
    I'm 41 and at most games I've play online, and they are many, I totally own the 13 year olds. They don't like it much either. Then again I've been playing various games in arcades on on PC's since I was...hmmm about 13. Maybe experience and natural dexterity is better than good gear or having too much time on one's hands?

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Lumpy ( 12016 )
      Exactly I completely own every Kid from 12-17 that comes over. My daughter hates it when I'm playing and hew new boyfriend comes over ot visit. It usually ends with her pissed, he's sad and dismayed that a old bald fart kicked his ass effortlessly over and over in every game he chose.

      My nephew is a avid gamer, he plays all of them and when he comes over he gives me a fight but I win 40% of the time which upsets him.

      Last time I owned him 100% of the time and he got pissed. Granted it cheated...

      I built one o

  • it was never about status or edge or hype (Score:4, Insightful)

    by netsavior ( 627338 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @04:58PM (#23329640)
    It is about buying a product that is comfortable to use for 18 hours straight. I mean in hour 1, I have the same skill with a $5 optical mouse on a piece of cardboard as I do with a reasonable mouse on a reasonable surface, but come see me in 18 hours with the crap setup and I will not be as sharp as with the comfortable one.

    • Re: (Score:1, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Have you ever kissed a girl?

    • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

      by CubeRootOf ( 849787 )
      I'm prett sure you will be in the same state either way:

      Hungry, tired, thirsty, and in need of a trip to the nearest bathroom... unless you have the 1337 catheter add-on for your gaming rig.

      In that case, I guess you would be in better shape. Just hungry and tired, because you can always drink from the catheter.

      and I bet you would even be able to spell catheter at
      • Not only do I have the

        1337 catheter add-on for your gaming rig.
        but in an effort to reduce reuse and recycle, I use the urine as coolant to c001 my uber h07 processor! \rant - by the way, i'm hungry, tired, thirsty and in need of a trip to the nearest restroom, after only 2 hours of work.
    • Should we be more worried that being able to game for 18 hours straight is a requirement for you, or that your comment gained an "Insightful" moderation?
      • I didn't say that I played for 18 hours EVERY day.

        Lots of people have hobbies that they do for many hours straight occasionally. A person might, for instance, justify buying a proper pair of hiking boots for a weekend of continuious backpacking; a person would buy the correct shoes to run a marathon, even though they do not run 26.2 miles but once per year.

        Likewise when I show up for a 2 day gaming event [ghettolanparty.com] I will be prepared to game for many more hours than I normally do
  • Now that you're done with testing, they'd like all their "missing" laptops back...

  • Could be because of the newer games (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Cthefuture ( 665326 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @05:04PM (#23329730)
    Games have gotten more and more sucky over the years. Everything is "realistic", slow and boring. Nobody plays the twitch games like Quake where it actually mattered how good your equipment was. This may be why the specialized gamer hardware does nothing.

    I have personally found that it's not hard at all to play games like COD, Crysis, Battlefield, etc. on a poor refresh rate LCD and piece of shit optical mouse. It just doesn't matter. There is no way I could kick ass in Quake3 with that stuff though because just moving the mouse fast enough makes it lose tracking. This is where better equipment could show its worth.
    • I love that people describe CoD, Crysis and Battlefield as "realistic" games.

      What the hell is realistic about any of them? Just because they aren't a methamphetamine induced hyper-kill-fest doesn't mean they don't require fast reflexes and accurate movements.
      • That's why I think the OP put the word realistic in quotes. These games aren't really realistic in the Operation Flashpoint-realistic way, but compared to Q3 and UT99 they certainly feel so, regenerative health bullshit aside. The pace is slower, the movements are slower, and even mouselook is crippled with the simulated accuracy drop when you snap the mouse to the nearest foe's head. I'm not saying that's necessarily bad, I myself really enjoyed the abovementioned Operation Flashpoint as well as pre-Vegas
    • I enjoyed the gaping looks at the last LAN that I attended. Keep in mind that I'm in my late 20s and most of the attendees were 5-7 years younger. We spent most of the evening playing CoD2 and CoD4. After dinner, I loaded up a quick AI match of Quake 3 Arena (real old, I know). Soon after, a crowd of the younger gamers were requesting that we switch games so they could try out their 'mad skills'. None of them got within 30 kills due to them being unable to adapt to the faster paced game.
    • Agreed, complexity has also diminished...

      Especially in sims and strategy games, no more real tech trees, gameplay evolution, etc. It's all rock paper scissors now.

      The Settlers, Patrician and Railroad Tycoon used to be great series...

      Of course the only reason that ID would continue with doom is because they want to make a killer 1v1 game...

  • Coding keyboards? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by atrus ( 73476 ) <atrus.atrustrivalie@org> on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @05:10PM (#23329818) Homepage
    Now for what really matters, how do those keyboards do for coding? :-)

    I'm always interested in "better" keyboards for large volumes of text entry. It does get minus points for putting the Ctrl key in the wrong spot - who uses capslock anyway?

    • Gateway "AnyKey" keyboards.

      Every keycode was reprogrammable, so you could change each key's output (or key combo, like shift+ctrl+A) to any other letter, or series of letters up to 250 characters. Plus, it was self-contained. No external program necessary. Hit the remap button, select your target keypress, type in the new output you want, hit remap again, poof. OS and program independent.

      Plus it's got an additional 12 function keys down the left side. And a 9 button arrow key group. And after 12 years of us
      • I *loved* the Gateway AnyKey keyboard. I actually had three, but the build quality wasn't great and I'd only get 3-9 months out of one.

        Air Warrior (on GENIE) was a blast with the programmable buttons. Alas, after the last one bit the dust, I got a MS Natural Keyboard and then the first (and last) F-button keyboard. I assume it was MS that mandated that the keyboard must, when power is applied, be in the F mode and not the traditional F1-12 mode. Grrrr.

        I've since went with the Logitech G15 and do make use of
  • 1 guy plays 1 game in 1 role for a mere 15 matches per game and somehow thinks that he has come to an "objective" conclusion regarding which is better? I hope he doesn't design nuclear reactors.
    • I agree. How is a completely subjective article written by some guy any kind of evidence that these are or are not better?

      My personal experience has been the opposite. When I went from an old 19" CRT to a crisp flat panel it improved my game. As did going from an old Intellimouse to a 3200 DPI "gaming" mouse. In both cases it was the improved resolution that helped me. In TF2 it's not something you notice much, but in CounterStrike getting your reticle right over someone's head - and fast - is crucial. (A

    • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

      by crossmr ( 957846 )
      Not just objective. Definitive as he puts it.
      Everyone else will have an identical experience using the same hardware as him because he is Joe Everyman.

  • That 13 year old kid... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by The Moof ( 859402 ) on Wednesday May 07, 2008 @05:18PM (#23329942)
    Honestly, I've never really cared about beating that 13 year-old kid.

    I always take the stance that I'm an adult who works 40+ hours a week and has other responsibilities that take my time. The kid likely plays every waking moment. The fact I can come close to beating him with significantly less practice says something about my skill at the game. Or the kid's.

    Then again, ignorance is bliss.

  • not a mouse, but i'll put out there that i'm enjoying the ideazon fang [ideazon.com] gaming keyboard i got a few months ago.

    i happened by it when looking for a usb keyboard after i decided i just cannot crouch, strafe diagonally, and change weapons at the same time with my wireless keyboard. i now use that + a usb extender on my living-room set-up (plus the extender enabled a wired mouse and microphone to be near me again too, while still stashing under the couch nicely)

    i like that it reaches for ergonomics and don't-hav
  • ...mit apo-logies to Gary Larson [wikipedia.org]

    My Razer Lachesis [razerzone.com](the one in the article) is leaps and bounds ahead of the Logitech 3-buttoned PS2 ball mouse it replaced, though obviously any optical/laser mouse would be better.
    It's comfortable to use for long periods, has just enough buttons without being ridiculous about it. It's twitchy as all get-out when I want it to be, and I can use the buttons just behind the wheel to decrease sensitivity on the fly for tricky headshots (or even just for link-clicking:)

    I w
  • Your gaming gear doesn't make you better. Air Jordans won't help you dunk. It's the same old stuff all over again. Flashy gear won't help your game, but it will make you more likely to get robbed!

  • Interesting but I'd have like to have seen a comparison with some non-gaming gear.

    Is there any advantage of a Logitech MX500 mouse over a no-brand office mouse? What about keyboards?

    I like my Saitek Eclipse II (it looks so nice) but will it give me any gaming advantage over the Genius K627 (boring thing) it replaced?

  • I can completely agree with this article. I am currently playing COD4 and I enjoy it.
    My setup is an AMD 64 Athlon cranking out a whopping 1.8 gigahertz (chip is roughly 4 years old) 3 gigs of ram, dual IDE drives 1 120 gig, 1 80 gig. On board sound and lan, and a GeForce 7600 GS 256 meg AGP.
    Most maps I get between 40 - 60 frames, which is more than playable.

    Average scores 20 kills - 15 deaths, (scores normally higher this is an average)

    Point is my brother spent $1800 to build a new system, 3 gig Pentium

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