May has been a really wonderful month: E3 is still a warm, fuzzy memory; there are a bazillion new games out, or are soon to be released; the air is warm and scented with flowers…
And, best of all, we've got new hardware to review! This time around we're looking at two new gaming peripherals from Razer and Logitech. Both manufacturers are considered to be masters in their chosen fields, so we knew that this assignment was going to be something special, and we're happy to announce that it certainly was.
Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard
MSRP: $99.99
MyGamer Hardware Score: 9.6/10
We were initially hesitant about the G15 for a number of reasons, not the least of which was its fairly steep $100 suggested price. Not that we didn't think it was sexy-looking, with its cool blue LED backlighting, laser-cut illuminated keys, matte-black rubberized trim accents and flip-up, illuminated LCD screen, but, hey, we've seen lit-up keyboards in the past, so for the price tag, the thing was going to have to be something special if it was going to earn a good score.
All we can say after playing with it for a while is… Holy cow- this is one freaking awesome peripheral.
No… this is certainly NOT your father's keyboard.
Besides being a solid general-use keyboard, employing a standard keyset that any PC user will be familiar with, the G15 also has a number of programmable "G keys" at the left side of the board. These keys (via included software) can be assigned to any number of pre-written macros, key combinations or even executables, streamlining nearly every facet of a user's computing, from games to MS Office to Photoshop and everything in-between.
A flip-up rectangular LCD screen sits at the unit's top edge, beneath which are a set of multimedia buttons (volume control, last/next track, pause, play, etc). Two USB ports are available as well, giving users of headsets, gaming mice, flash drives or other peripherals an easy place to plug in.
The G15 actually talks to your PC via its USB connection and, right out of the box, the LCD screen can be set to show a number of useful data, such as CPU and RAM usage, the current date and time, etc. Even better, the screen can be used to display game-specific info such as remaining ammo and health, DPS and other stats if the user installs a small patch (downloadable from Logitech's site). For the moment, only a few games support this functionality (a full list can be found here on the manufacturer's web site), but fans of World of Warcraft will be happy to know that native support for the G15 will be a part of the upcoming 1.11 patch- the player's stats, DPS, item durability, remaining bag slots, Battlegrounds queue status and a slew of other data will display on the LCD once that patch goes live (for screenshots and discussion, see this thread on the G15 fan boards). Other major titles, such as UT2004 and Prey are either currently supported or will be supported soon.
The flip-up LCD screen displays health, ammo, stats and other useful info– provided a game-specific add-on patch is available…
The programmable "G keys" are a stroke of genius, not so much because of the idea behind them (we've seen things like this in the past and seldom made use of them), but rather because of their implementation. The included programming software is dead-simple and intuitive, and allows users to record key macros (including pauses, if they are needed), assign keys to buttons and even copy-and-paste longer, more complex commands from Notepad. The keyboard scans your PC when it is first installed for the games you have loaded and makes profiles for each title, further streamlining the setup process.
While testing, we assigned any number of macros to the G keys, for games as varied as Guild Wars to F.E.A.R to WoW. Anything you find yourself having to manually type in, you can simplify with a G key. For example, we made a macro to switch the Action bars in WoW to each corresponding G key (G1 = Bar 1, G2 = Bar 2, etc). We also used a number of G keys to pre-record a number of chat messages, such as "Pulling {target}" and other useful, oft-repeated phrases. In Guild Wars, we made keys to remove the UI for screenshots, call targets, as well as other functions that, by default, require multiple-key combos. Last, just to see if we could do it, we made a non-gaming profile called "Photoshop", and assigned the G keys to oft-repeated commands such as "crop", "rotate", "resize", "save copy as…", etc., and were thrilled to see that these worked every bit as well as our in-game macros. It's so great to be able to simplify a task that, in the past, called for multiple menu-clicks or multiple key combos with a single button press! The assignment software always worked flawlessly, and never missed a beat. Best of all, the software is smart enough to know when a game or application is being launched, so when you fire up WoW, that game's profile automatically loads as well- you'll never have to remember to manually switch your keyboard profiles when you switch games.
Logitech has a SDK is out for the G15, allowing users to make their own LCD applications (there are plugins for everything from Trillian to Weather updates on the official G15 forums), further expanding the unit's value score. Game-specific G key profiles are also available as downloads, for those that want to see what other people have come up with. Combine this with the keyboard's wonderful tactile feel (the thing looks and feels like something a Special Forces wet team would have in their command bunker, with its rubberized, matte black wrist rest and key surfaces), and you have a device that well deserves this month's first-ever "MyGamer Hard Core Hardware" award. Congratulations, Logitech on a well-deserved win!
Pros: Possibly the most useful gaming keyboard we've ever tested- the G key system is extremely well implemented, and is a breeze to set up. The device itself also looks cool as all get-out, and the rubberized keys and wrist rest feels wonderful. Add in the blue LED lighting and you have one hell of a nice piece of hardware. USB ports and multimedia controls are, as always, a very welcome addition.
Cons: The key action is not quite as smooth as one would find in, say, the Saitek line. Support for the LED screen is on a per-game basis, and must be patched in, written in by the game's developers, or developed by the fan community, and so far only a handful of titles are supported (but World of Warcraft is one of them). $99 might be a bit much for some users as well, but we really do feel you get what you pay for here.
++++++
Razer Copperhead Laser Gaming Mouse
MSRP: $79.99
MyGamer Hardware Score: 9.0/10
When we saw the Copperhead at Razer's E3 booth, we knew that it would be the perfect companion for the G15 keyboard, and we certainly weren't disappointed by its performance. It, too, uses an artful mix of LCD lighting and matte black rubberized control surfaces to intimidate a player's foes and delight their senses. Best of all, the Copperhead enhances a player's gaming experience through its rock-solid performance.
The Copperhead is Razer's latest entry in their long series of high-end corded mice, designed specifically for use by serious gamers. The mouse is powered by a high-resolution 2000 dpi laser engine, and can be configured to use up to 1000 Hz "Ultrapolling" to translate the user's hand motions into on-screen input. This, claims the manufacturer, gives the mouse a blistering "1 ms response time as compared with 125Hz/8 ms response time used by other conventional gaming mice". The mouse's DPI settings can be switched on the fly using a set of side-mounted buttons, dialing the engine's sensitivity up or down as needed. Lower resolutions can send a player hurtling through tight turns and jumps at a barest hint of wrist movement while higher settings smooth out random twitches and jerks, helping to tame hard-to-use weapons like the Sniper Rifle. The left and right main buttons are coated with a non-slip, rubberized material, and raised silicone ridges run along the unit's sides, assuring a firm connection with the user's hand.
The Copperhead is certainly eye-catching…
While the Copperhead can and will work straight out of the box using Windows' vanilla mouse drivers (an important feature we will expand on in a moment), the mouse is intended to be used in conjunction with an included software utility, which allows the user to assign buttons and tweak the unit's sensitivity settings. While we were perfectly happy with the default sensitivity settings, the truly hard core will doubtless want to dial in their own. Everything from the main laser engine's overall DPI ranges to the relative sensitivity of the X and Y axis can be tweaked in ultra-fine increments. Best of all, the Copperhead comes equipped with 32MB of internal RAM, and all of the player's saved configuration settings are stored right inside the mouse. This is a great feature because, since the settings are stored inside the device, they can be recalled and used even if the mouse is installed on a PC without the Razer-supplied drivers- great touch!
But, all these facts and figures aside, how well does the mouse actually work? We tested the Copperhead using a variety of games and on every mousing surface that we had on-hand. We found that the sensitivity buttons (located on the mouse's right side by default) took a few minutes to get used to and required a bit of an awkward reach to press, but that after repeating the motion a few dozen times it became almost as natural as left-clicking. The Copperhead's symmetrical, ambidextrous design, which should be very appealing to left-handed gamers, also felt a bit strange, putting the left side buttons in the way of our thumbs- occasionally, we hit them without meaning to with unexpected results.
Virtually everything on the Copperhead can be tweaked and custom configured…
We're happy to report, however, that no matter what surface we used- whether it was our black glass Icemat pad, our plastic Steel Pad unit, any number of cloth or metal surfaces, or even the sanded wood of the desktop itself, the Copperhead always tracked flawlessly, with nary a hop, skip or jump. We've had issues with other laser-based mice on different "pro-end" mousing surfaces (most of which were designed with traditional, LED-based optical mice in mind), and were a bit worried when we saw that the Copperhead was also laser-based. Whatever Razer's engineers are doing over there, however, they should be commended for doing an awesome job- we couldn't find a single surface that the Copperhead didn't love. When you combine the Copperhead's large, zero-friction feet with a ultra smooth pad like the black glass Icemat, and factor in the unit's 2000 DPI resolution, you end up with a control setup that's so fast and responsive that it almost feels telepathic.
The Copperhead isn't a cheap mouse- at $79.99 (MSRP), it constitutes a significant expense that might give many gamers pause. Do you really need such ultra-high-rez performance and lightning speed, when a mouse that costs a third the price gets the job done almost as well? Perhaps not. But, if you are a regular player of UT2004, Doom III, Half Life 2, or are looking forward to the multiplayer madness that a game like Prey will offer up, we can almost guarantee that your game will improve, once you get accustomed to the Copperhead's quicksilver speed.
Pros: The 2000 dpi laser engine is not only faster than greased lightning, but also works on any and every surface that we tried- something that not all laser-based mice we've seen can boast. The included programming software, which creates profiles that are stored inside the mouse itself in on-board RAM, is simple to use. Saved profiles can be activated with the mouse plugged into any PC, even when the Copperhead is running under Windows' generic mouse drivers. Plus, the device itself is just plain cool- all black rubber and glowing LEDs.
Cons: The Copperhead's not a cheap mouse, but it doesn't work like a cheap mouse, either. Gamers that don't care about the fraction of a second's edge that the mouse delivers should probably look at less expensive hardware. FPS aficionados, however, should find lots to love here.