Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard Review

Logitech has been in the peripheral business for a long time. They’ve been known throughout the years as “the old standby” for third party input devices such as mice, keyboards, and game controllers. When you’ve been in that position for as long as they have, it can be hard to break out of the stale, stodgy, “Aunt Sally’s mouse” image. Gamers looking for the next level of interface have traditionally turned to boutique manufacturers such as Razer or ZBoard.
Logitech decided to step into the arena by releasing their “G” series of gaming-specific peripherals, such as the G5 and G7 gaming mice (review here) and their new keyboard, the G15 Gaming Keyboard. Today we will be looking at the G15.

I basically type and mouse for a living, and like most of you, the keyboard is one of the two critical input devices that I use for a significant portion of my life. I have always been very picky about my keyboards, and once I find one that I like, I beat it into the ground. I had been using an old, ugly, beige Compaq-branded keyboard for several years, and believe me it had some battle wounds. It was filthy, and the old PS2 connector had to be cut down with a rasp file to fit into any PC other than an old Compaq Presario that it came with. Despite its flaws, it has just the right “clicky” feel that I like, and I was loathe to replace it. Then one day not so long ago, I ordered a Dell server and with it came a tiny black USB keyboard that was quite strange looking. I hooked it up, tried it out, and fell in love. It became my new favorite; Sleek, black, a small footprint, USB, and a fantastic tactile response made sure it ousted my beloved, oddball Compaq. I eagerly got my hands on more of those small Dell branded keyboards (which I discovered was actually designed by a firm called NPK Design.) and it’s hard to imagine a better keyboard. Then my friends at Logitech contacted me and told me they were sending their new G15 Gaming Keyboard. When I got it home and unpacked it, I was horrified to see how huge it was.

It easily dwarfed my Dell keyboard on all four sides. When I put it on my tiny desk, I barely had room for my mouse. Due to the size of my desk, I had to sort of tilt the keyboard at maybe a 20 degree (counterclockwise) angle to re-center it. If I moved it over to the left to make room for my mouse, it wasn’t centered under my monitor anymore and my arms were a few inches more leftwards than was comfortable. Take note: If you want to buy this keyboard, make sure you have room for it. It is 21.5″ at its widest and 9″ deep in the middle. It’s big.
Then I plugged it in. I got over the freaking hugeness of the keyboard pretty fast when I saw the pretty blue lights. Every key is backlit. There are three settings: Off, dim, and bright. In the dark, it makes the keyboard look pretty bad ass when every key is lit up blue.
Then, I remembered that I had seen a little LCD screen on the box art. Ah ha! In the top center of the keyboard there was a rubberized lid. I lifted it and discovered the joy of the built in LCD screen.
The possible uses of the screen are numerous. The keyboard comes bundled with a few apps for the LCD panel such as a time and date panel, a CPU and RAM meter, a POP3 email reader, and a stopwatch applet. There is a community of modders that write applets for the panel, and Logitech has made the SDK available so that astute programmers can write their own.

I can read my most important emails with the LCD panel alone!

There are even more buttons underneath the LCD panel, such as an applet switcher, a volume knob, and media control keys, as well as four context-based buttons to interact with the applets on the panel.

Another nice feature is the two extra USB ports on the back of the keyboard, although I discovered they are only USB 1.1 ports. It would have been nice to have them be 2.0 compatible. They’re perfect for USB memory sticks, but the 1.1 speed limits their usefulness considerably.

The tactile response of the keys is quite good. It’s not quite up to the standard set by my ancient Compaq thingamajig, but it’s close. It’s good enough that I am willing to use the keyboard on a daily basis.

One more useful feature is a switch that allows you to disable the Windows key when you are gaming. I also find it quite useful to disable the Windows key when I am using Photoshop, due to all the keyboard shortcuts involving the ALT and CTRL keys. I used to find myself hitting the Windows key all the time while trying to work on photos and now that problem doesn’t exist anymore.

Now we get to the “killer app” - the feature that sets the G15 apart from most other keyboards. There are eighteen “G” keys on the far left side of the keyboard, along with three “bank switcher” keys. The G keys are fully programmable keys that allow you to set up to 54 macros. The macros can be as simple as a keystroke or as complicated as a full series of keypresses with recordable pauses. If you want to use Bank 1 (1-18), you press the “M1″ key. Bank 2 is “M2″, and so on. With the macro recording software, it is very easy to configure the keys to do all sorts of things.
These are amazingly useful, even beyond gaming. In fact, I’ll be frank and say I use them more for non-gaming applications than for gaming. For example, when I load PuTTY (the remote SSH program I use for all my unix/linux administration), the PuTTY profile loads up and my G keys are all configured for common shell commands that make my work a lot faster. For example, to get to a mail directory on one of my mail servers I would log in and type ls -lah /var/mail/ to see a quick glance at the size of my mail spools. Now I log in and press the G2 key and it just happens for me. It may seem trivial but when you do a lot of this during the day (along with many other things) the time saved adds up. I even configured a “hot exit” key that quits all my shells and logs out instantly.
For Photoshop, I’ve configured the G keys to do some of the things that used to require convoluted multi-key presses (CTRL+ALT+SHIFT+S for Save to Web, for example). Now, Save to Web is G1!
Certain games that can utilize crazy macros to perform a whole series of commands like Final Fantasy XI or World of Warcraft also benefit greatly from these configurable keys.
On the box art, I saw a picture of the LCD screen showing an in-game chat windows. Curiously, I could not figure out how to get this working for any game. I asked a forum member about it and he pointed me to this page on Logitech’s web site. The documentation or help didn’t mention this, and it doesn’t seem to easy to get there from their main home page, so they could have done a better job showing people how to get the most out of this device. There are only a precious few games supported right now, but the list is growing, especially if you consider the homebrew community

Conclusion

If you’re willing to spend the money and take a big chunk out of your desktop real estate, this is a fantastic keyboard. The great tactile response is just gravy on top of an already amazing input device. I was skeptical at first, because all those keys and the screen, etc. feel “gimmicky” but they are not. You can use them to do real work and they can definitely help improve your game and your daily tasks. However, it doesn’t do much ‘out of the box’ - you need to hunt down mods for what you want to do or be really hardcore and make them yourself. I would call this an “enthusiast’s” keyboard. You will get more out of this thing if you put the effort into it. It’s worth the money if you are willing to spend the time to get it tweaked out. I guess the ultimate recommendation is that I have replaced my favorite keyboard with it, and I use it everyday. I can truthfully say I love this keyboard.

Highs

• Looks great
• Excellent tactile response
• The LCD is like a whole seperate device
• The G keys are extremely flexible

Lows

• Huge
• USB ports are only version 1.1
• Expensive for a keyboard
• Lack of out-of-box support for all but the most basic applets and macros
• Not very intuitive. You need to be something of a hacker to get the most out of it

NEW MULTI LCD SCREENS

With the success of the Apple iPhone, it seems no electronics company can bring out new portable devices without a touch screen interface. The new touch screens have to support of course multi-touch.
The new Sony LCD Touchscreen uses a low-temperature polysilicon thin film transistor TFT process technology based on optical sensor arrays.
The current prototype display is 3.5 inch in size and has a resolution of 640 x RGB x 480 pixels. The optical touch sensor array supports up to 5 points. Finger and stylus input is supported.
More info : Sony Press Release (Japanese language).
An optical sensor system in stylus input to achieve touchscreen feature integrated mobile low-temperature polysilicon LCDs for development
Sony Corporation (Sony) is a function of the touch panel LCD panel built low-temperature polysilicon liquid crystal display has been developed. This display is a low-temperature polysilicon thin film transistor TFT process technology based on optical sensor array can be formed simultaneously, external touch is needed, and multiple finger or stylus-operated by the characters and can enter the picture NARIMASHI hoop.
Sony, LCD driver circuit and power supply circuit and display glass substrate formed on a “SHISUTEMUONGURASU” such as low-temperature polysilicon TFT characteristics of a good account technology to actively develop the mobile liquid crystal display products to go ‘m here. The further evolution of this technology and optical sensor and readout circuit formed on a glass substrate in the operation of the excellent features integrated LCD touch panel system.
In recent years, the touch panel is mobile phones, music players, game machines, video cameras and other mobile products in an intuitive user interface as the operation is possible, with the progress. The conventional type of resistance and capacitance of the LCD touch panel on the paste must be the set design and increased thickness decreased degree of freedom, and quality deterioration (resistance) and other issues.
Sony has developed this feature integrated touch panel display for the low-temperature polysilicon thin-film transistor liquid crystal cell technology for use in an optical sensor to form for the traditional touch of the flat-screen set of challenges, the quality and degree of design freedom to improve possible. In addition, the design optimization of optical sensors and signal processing technology to develop the same time, and a light sensor, the signal S/N to improve success. As a result, the outside light and the display image to minimize the impact, and the fingers and by the stylus to achieve stable operation.
Sony is the technology of the new user interface features SHITA low-temperature polysilicon LCDs for product development and market demand widely supported within the mobile liquid crystal display business further expanding there shortly.

Development of a Major Feature Article

Stylus can enter light pen, a special pen is not a simple stylus by handwritten letters and pictures can be entered in the usual pens and pencils as well as a natural taste has been written (see photo).
Fingers point of contact for multiple input and soft touch input to achieve light outside influence and the display image to minimize the impact on the LCD panel on multi-point push button and the image scaling, and rotating stable finger input operation to achieve. The detection method using light sensors, touch display much input.
An optical sensor system adopted by the high quality of slimline design degree of freedom to improve optimization of optical design of the touch panel features is not the same product to achieve contrast and color reproduction. Also, the touch panel for the light sensor in the liquid crystal cell formation in the liquid crystal display flat-screen and acrylic plate and liquid crystal displays can be placed on the degree of design freedom.

Products developed in the main specification

Item Work likeScreen size: 3.5-inchDisplay pixels (H × V): 640 x RGB x 480 pixelsPixel array: StripeColor depth: Color 16.77 million color transmissionTouch Panel Function: Finger-type 5-point to possible stylus input is possible

SHARP

16 X 9 HD TV ready with HDMI input Multi-System LCD TVNTSC/PAL/SECAM Color System - Watch any signal on this TV!NTSC M, PAL BG/PAL I/Secam BG, DK/ PAL DK TV tunersActive Matrix TFT ASV (Advanced Super View) LCD PanelSharp proprietary panel with Black TFT low reflection coating.

• 16 X 9, 1366 X 768 Resolution, Wide Screen LCD Hi Definition TV LC-19A33H


• NTSC/PAL/PAL-60/SECAM/ Color System - Watch any video signal on this TV!


• World Wide NTSC M/ PAL/Mesecam BG, DK, I TV tuners enables you to plug your cable TV line right into the TV and start watching.


• HDMI input supports HDTV for 1080i Resolution


• 18.5" Active Matrix TFT ASV (Advanced Super View) LCD Panel - Sharp proprietary panel with Black TFT low reflection coating


• AQUOS Liquid Crystal Televisions are very bright, so you can put them anywhere -- even near windows, doors or other light sources and their picture will still be vivid


• 60,000-Hour Lamp Life


• Sharp's LCD backlight life is long enough to give you viewing pleasure for many years.


• Allows you to invert the image upside-down or "mirror" image if you need to hang it in an unconventional manner.


• are so wide you can view AQUOS Liquid Crystal Televisions from anywhere in the room!


• Carry Handle/Table Stand


• is the ultimate in convenience! Carry it easily from room to room or detach the one-piece stand for wall mounting.


• 4-line digital comb filter


• 800:1 contrast ratio provides incredible images whether you're watching dark or bright scenes!


• Pixel Resolution: 1366 X 768


• Brightness: 300 cd/m


• Lamp Life: 60,000 hours


• Matte Black Cabinet Color


• Headphone Connection


• EZ Setup with Auto Clock Function


• Color Temperature Adjustment


• Brightness Adjustment


• On-Screen Display Languages: English, Spanish, French


• V-Chip Parental Control


• Sleep Timer, Wake-Up Timer


• Picture Flip Function


• Audio System: 2.5W + 2.5W


• HDMI Input


• Component Input (Y/Pr/Pb)


• Composite (AV) Video Output


• Composite (AV) Video Input


• S-Video Input


• Audio Output: RCA: L/R x 1


• ENERGY STAR® Compliant


• Power Consumption AC: 77W


• 462mm Wide X 360mm high X 75mm deep with stand


• 462mm Wide X 320mm high X 75mm deep without stand


• Weight: 17.5 lbs. (With Stand), 15.5 lbs. (Display Only)


• World-wide Dual Voltage 110-240 volts 50-60 hertz

TECHNICAL SPACE:-

- Compatible DVD/VCD/MP3/MP4/CD/DIVX.

- 11.5" TFT LCD Screen monitor.

- Built-in stereo speakers digital surround sound.

- Built-in anti shock system.- Built-in TV tuner.

- PAL/NTSC/SECAM System.

- USB and SD card.- Remote control.

- Built-in super power polymer lithium battery.

Glass Keyboard has No Keys

This is a “no-keys” keyboard made of glass. It is a concept designed by Kong Fanwen. The keyboard is transparent and looks stylish.


More pictures after the jump:

Kong Fanwen has come out with a winning concept design with his No Key Flat Glass Keyboard. This keyboard consists of an ultra thin piece of glass onto which is etched the letters of the keyboard. The keyboard is illuminated by a source of light which is used to shine through the keyboard. A mounted camera recognizes your finger positions on the keyboard and transmits this data into recognizable keystrokes to the workstation.
One of the nice things about this keyboard is there are no physical keys to worry about. This means less service calls due to sticky keys and there is no longer a worry about bits of food getting stuck and “growing” in between the keys. Hopefully with this great design will come the ease of cleaning with just a simple wipe of a damp cloth.
Elegance and miniaturization, those seem to be the theme these days when it comes to computer gadgets. Kong Fanwen has definitely met both of these criteria with his no key glass keyboard and although this is just a concept keyboard at this time, you can really see one of the large corporations making the investment to move this from a concept design to a production product.
Apple has always been on the forefront when it comes to design and this keyboard would just be a perfect match for them to introduce with their Mac lineups. Here’s hoping this is the future of keyboards to come

iPod Hi-Fi Speaker System Reviewed (Verdict: Missed Opportunity)

Reviews of Apple's reviled/puzzling Hi-Fi speaker system are rolling in and the verdict is mixed. Clearly, it's an acquired taste, but iLouge was quite disappointed with the dearth of features and the size/weight.
You can't really judge speakers without hearing them, but the iLounge EIC Jeremy basically said there are better speakers systems out there and without any of the wireless/video bells and whistles iPod lovers have been clamoring for, this thing is kind of a let-down.

Waterfall Glass Speakers Actually Work

In fact, these glass-enclosed speakers work amazingly well. The advantages of glass are high density, rigidity, and (with the aid of a damping chamber behind the drivers) "no vibrations," presumably meaning none of the bad kind. Warmth, depth, and solid controlled bass were what I heard and quite liked. Waterfall will also offer on-walls when the French manufacturer gets its U.S. distribution nailed down, which should happen any minute now.

If you're not supposed to cast stones at glass houses, it's probably not a good idea to throw them at glass speakers--especially when they cost $5,400 a pair. No word on whether these superslick towers are shatterproof, but we're glad to hear that the French company Waterfall Audio is introducing its line of glass loudspeakers to the American market at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show this week.
According to the press release, Waterfall will showcase its two flagship models, the Victoria EVO and Iguascu EVO, which are named for the "famous waterfalls in Africa and South America, respectively."
The release goes on to say that the "Victoria EVO and Iguascu EVO are slim, pure-glass towers standing 40 inches high but just 10 inches wide. The Victoria EVO, a three-way/four-driver design, includes Waterfall's proprietary, downfiring, 8.5-inch passive woofer, the Iguascu (34 inches tall by 10 inches wide) employs identical drivers (including the passive woofer) in a two-way/three-driver arrangement. Both models use a key Waterfall technology: the Acoustic Damping Tube (ADT), which performs near-total damping of mid- and low-frequency 'back-wave' artifacts, and precise damping control of midrange reflections, allowing the speakers to produce superbly accurate, high-end performance within their effectively undamped glass enclosures."
"The Waterfall designs also feature drivers designed and manufactured by French partner Atohm--the 6-inch bass/midrange unit in both the woofer and midrange (Victoria) positions. This custom-alloy-diaphragm driver achieves superbly low-distortion output with impressive dynamic range. The Atohm tweeter is a 3/4-inch silk-coated dome design capable of smooth, unobtrusive, yet remarkably extended treble. Ultra-linear crossover topologies grace both models, with best-grade components such as polypropylene capacitors employed throughout. The use of 'doubled' low-frequency drivers delivers enhanced power-handling, while the exclusive downfiring passive woofer, an exceptionally low-profile design effectively disguised within each speaker's base, extends useful low-bass output to well below 38 Hz (Victoria) and 48 Hz (Iguas?u)."
Waterfall says the speakers will be available by March 2008, with the Victoria Evo retailing for $5,400/pair and the Iguascu Evo $3,900/pair. Unfortunately, there's no mention of a center-channel speaker or I'd be all over this for my new surround sound setup.

APPLE CINEMA DISPLAY LCD

A1081 20 LCD Monitor

Apple's latest line of Cinema Displays (available in 20-inch, 23-inch, and 30-inch models) ushers in a renewed spirit of cross-platform cooperation. Thanks to a DVI connector on each and every Apple Cinema Display, PC users can now enjoy the fabulous design and stunning image quality that Apple aficionados have been luxuriating in since the iMac. The 23-inch Cinema HD Display LCD, in particular, is a looker. It's so lovely that we're willing to forgive its high price, limited adjustability, and lack of video inputs. In fact, hooking it up to a comparatively hideous Intel-based PC feels like such a crime that we're beginning to suspect an ulterior motive on Apple's part. How much was that Apple Power Mac G5 again?
The Cinema HD Display's design leaves no detail overlooked. The sleek, 0.75-inch brushed-aluminum bezel is unblemished by anything so vulgar as a power button (it's tucked discreetly into the right-side edge of the display), and the aluminum neck and base form a simple, elegant L shape that's both completely stable and smooth enough on the bottom to turn and slide easily across your desktop. As you contemplate the Cinema Display's pristine beauty, you'll notice small, elegant details, such as the oval cable pass-through ringed with white plastic; the single white cord, which meets the glossy white power brick and splits into signal, power, USB, and FireWire cables; and the DVI connector, which also wears a tidy, white, iPod-style suit.
The simple design, however, limits the adjustments you can make to the display panel. The neck height is fixed, so very tall users may have to set the Cinema Display on a riser (though it's almost painful to contemplate sullying the display's minimalist appearance with such a device). Also, unlike many large LCDs, such as the Eizo FlexScan L885, the Cinema HD lacks the ability to pivot between Portrait and Landscape modes--a feature that would have made it even easier to view legal documents and Web pages. But while the display doesn't have a hinge or a lazy Susan for swiveling left and right, the slippery aluminum base lets you accomplish the same thing by sliding the monitor around. The panel also tilts back and forth about 20 degrees and 5 degrees, respectively; it's by far the smoothest, easiest tilt function we've ever seen in an LCD.
This generation of Cinema Displays marks Apple's return to a DVI connection (after years of using a proprietary ADC connection), making the Cinema HD Display PC compatible. Also, for the first time, the new Cinema Displays are compatible with VESA mounts, allowing you to attach the monitors to walls. But unlike many jumbo LCDs that incorporate home entertainment features such as picture-in-picture, a TV tuner, or composite and S-Video ports, the Cinema Display provides only two USB and two FireWire ports. We're willing to forgive these omissions because this LCD looks so pretty, but you should know that you can get these video extras in a 23-inch LCD (such as the Planar PX212M or the HP L2035) that costs several hundred dollars less than the Apple Cinema HD Display.
If you're using the Cinema Display with a Wintel machine, the only adjustment you can make to the display's image is to its brightness. The touch-sensitive brightness-control buttons are nestled out of sight along the right-side edge of the panel (below the power button) and blend perfectly with the white plastic end pieces. Luckily, the image quality is so good that the average Wintel user won't miss the ability to tweak contrast or individual color values. When we hooked it up to our Power Mac G4, we were able to tweak the image using Apple's Display Calibrator Assistant. CNET Labs' DisplayMate intensity and grayscale test screens revealed some obvious color-tracking errors; very light grays have a distinctly pinkish hue. Otherwise, we see very little hue shift in the Cinema HD Display's nicely linear progression from black to white. Our only other criticism is one that's common for LCDs: there's a fair amount of ghosting in high-contrast test screens; the display seems to have trouble switching from black to gray and back to black again without leaving reverse video trails. But overall, the display looks stunning: colors are vibrant and warm, details are crisply rendered, and video looks quite smooth and free of noise. (Video playback looks even better when you hook the display up to a G5.) Text also looks very sharp, with excellent contrast; the monitor does a great job reproducing pure, bright whites and dark blacks.
Given that the Cinema HD Display is significantly more expensive than competing LCDs, we're disappointed with its skimpy one-year warranty. The industry standard for LCDs is three years--appropriate for a piece of hardware that costs $2,000.

Apple Wireless Keyboard

Like its wired sibling, the Apple Wireless Keyboard features a low-profile anodized aluminum frame that complements any Mac. It connects using Bluetooth wireless technology, giving you the freedom to work or play up close or across the room.
Sleek and compact, it has low-profile keys that provide a crisp, responsive feel and function keys for one-touch access to Mac features. Intelligent power management conserves battery life by automatically powering down the keyboard when you are not using it and turning it on the instant you start typing.
When you pair the Apple Wireless Keyboard with a wireless Mighty Mouse, you get the ultimate in flexibility, style, and freedom.

With its elegant anodized aluminum enclosure, the Apple Keyboard looks equally at home in your living room or on your desk. Just connect it to the USB port on your Mac and start enjoying the crisp, responsive feel of its low-profile keys.
The Apple Keyboard features an ultracompact design that takes up 35 percent less desk space and gives you more room to mouse comfortably next to the keyboard.

Sleek and ultrathin, it has low-profile keys that provide a crisp, responsive feel. The compact design takes up a fraction of the desk space — up to 24% less — of larger keyboards and gives you more room to mouse comfortably next to the keyboard. Function keys provide one-touch access to a variety of Mac features. Intelligent power management conserves battery life by automatically powering down the keyboard when you're not using it and turning it on the instant you start typing.