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[Review] SteelSeries 7H – Professional Gaming Headset

EnJoY — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 12:07:54 +0000

Introduction:

SteelSeries is not a new name in the world of high-end gaming gear. In fact, their heritage stretches back to the early days of Counter-Strike when they made actual mouse pads made of… you guessed it… steel! Ah, those were the days, hard wrist on a cold pad at 3am, refusing to care about how I’d feel the next day when I had to go to class. But alas, SteelSeries have moved on from the original products that made them so famous among gamers. Now they offer a plethora of gaming gear that runs the gamut from superb value, to ultimate quality and performance, and in everything from mice and keyboards to audio equipment, such as the 7H Headset that we are reviewing for you today.

The 7H represents SteelSeries top of the line, and touts extreme comfort, convenience, and performance for gamers and audiophiles alike. To accomplish each of these goals, SteelSeries would have had to invest serious time in their R&D for this product, and perhaps they have. I’m sure you are all itching to see what I think of them, so please read on for a taste of what Steel brings.

The SteelSeries 7H:

The packaging of the SteelSeries 7H is high in quality, but also not such a pain in the rear to open that you end up hurting yourself in the process. Everything fits into its own neat compartment and is safe and secure.

Next: Unboxing, Features & Specifications

[Review] Cooler Master Spawn Gaming Mouse

The Duke — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 02:22:45 +0000

The Spawn gaming mouse is light weight and ergonomically designed for comfort in long gaming sessions. The Spawn gaming mouse was built for professional FPS gamers who prefer a claw grip. Engineered to execute precise in-game tactics, Spawn comes loaded with an ultra high-performance 3500 DPI sensor that includes on-the-fly adjustment. The Spawn is manufactured with Japanese-made Omron micro-switches that are meant to endure up to five million clicks. Presented in an eye-catching crimson red high-gloss finish, Spawn compliments a gamers setup by adding to the overall look. Let us get down to business and see just how well it actually performs in our tests.

Packaging:

Specifications and Features:

The Spawn:

Next: Tests, Overview of the Spawn, Spawn Software and Conclusion

[Review] ARCTIC K381 Keyboard

The Duke — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 21:43:31 +0000

The K381 keyboard has an ultra-slim design that makes it very space efficient. The simplicity in the design of this keyboard embraces style, quality and functionality. Although the K381 is small and thin, it is embedded with 12 one-touch office function keys, including volume control, full-sized arrow keys and a numeric keypad. Read on to learn how the K381 keyboard fairs in our testing.

Packaging:

Specifications and Features:

The Arctic K381:

Next: Usage and Conclusion

[Review] Arctic Cooling M571 Gaming Mouse

The Duke — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 01:42:48 +0000

Arctic Cooling has sent us a nice looking, budget-oriented, gaming mouse for review. The M571 has adjustable dpi levels with one push of a button for on-the-fly transitions while gaming. It also has a quiet, smooth scrolling wheel, and next to it is a multi-shot button which can be useful in shooters. The ergonomic design of the mouse gives it a great feel while it is in your hand, which is accompanied by adjustable weights in the bottom of the mouse. You can use these weights to customize the feel of the M571 gaming mouse. All in all it would appear that AC has given the M571 all of the features it needs to compete against the big boys for a significantly lower price, but will our testing find any weaknesses? Read on…

Packaging:

Specifications and Features:

Continue to the next page for a closer look at the M571 and a size comparison.

[Quick Look] Razer LACHESIS a sexy, comfortable, almost perfect mouse.

Archer — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 06:20:16 +0000

What is the best attribute of a mouse? For me it is all about feel! If it does not feel right, I don’t care if it can take out the trash or even walk the dog, it is trash! Razer hit the nail on the head with the LACHESIS, for me the feel along with the tight crisp action makes this mouse a winner.

Let me define my comfort, first and foremost is weight, this mouse has it. In a comparison with some brand name and generic mice it is on the heavy side of the scale for wired and approaching the realm of wireless.

Razer Lachesis	3.3 ounces
GE mouse (wired) H097769	3.0 ounces
Generic mouse (wired)	2.2 ounces
Microsoft wireless Laser 5000 mouse	4.7 ounces
Logitech wireless Laser mouse	4.0 ounces
Generic mouse wireless	3.9 ounces

My next issue is the crispness of the mechanisms and the break pressure.

Left break pressure	2.2-2.3 oz
Left move till break	.015-.048”
Right break pressure	2.1-2.2 oz
Right move till break	.015-.048”
Side and top buttons crisp requiring more pressure for break than left and right, preventing accidental clicks

The scroll wheel requires 6.5-7.2 ounces of pressure to activate, again preventing accidental clicks. The scroll wheel is not the precision smooth scroll type

Below are pictures of the button arrangement, to be honest the outside (pinky) buttons are pretty much useless (unless you have small hands or awesome dexterity), especially in a FPS, the two behind the scroll are almost as bad with the one in the rear being almost useless in a game as well.

This mouse put in in mind of a 69 Corvette, so much so that I had to pull one out of the rack for comparison. This mouse is sexy!!

The software is pretty good, allowing for many advanced adjustments not found on the average to mid level mouse.

Other than the button placement I only had one other issue, creep. I noticed at times with all settings to max I would get a little creep. I attribute this to the combination of surface, resolution and polling rate. With the polling rate lowered and the resolution at 2000 I have no problems.

Now for the purpose of this little tool! GAMES

I tested with four games: Battle Field 1942, Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, Sins of a Solar Empire and Star Trek Legacy. Where does this mouse fit the best? RTS, due to the ability to use all of the functions without getting fragged! That is not to say it is not good for the FPS, if you love to make head shots then it is great, just don’t get fragged trying to use all of the buttons! With the Lachesis you can switch from fast action to slow precision on the fly by adjusting the resolution (125-4000 DPI) for a little sniping. Changing control schemes in game by switching profiles is awesome! Going from FPS mode to vehicle mode and changing your profile to allow better situational control with the advanced functions is a big plus.

As you can see above the options are there to take it to the next level. Setup is easy and when you are done you will be able to frag with the best!

When I think about it, the usefulness of this device far outweighs its minor deficiencies. I found it most useful (don’t hate me) for design work! Sometimes when doing a little modeling the DPI select is a time saver. Don’t get me wrong it is great in games as I have already pointed out, I mean from FPS to RTS to SolidWorks and AutoCAD this mouse can get the job done.