Developer notaroomba (AKA Nathan Alspaugh) has published details of his Keybytes project on GitHub. In essence, this is a modular project where a Keyword hub is magnetically connected to Keybit keys, and each key has its own microcontroller. Hence the number of keys and their layout are entirely up to the user, with a modular design akin to building Lego.

We’ve seen oodles of imaginative and truly excellent mechanical keyboards over recent years, but Keybytes probably offers the greatest flexibility with regard to layout and key selection we’ve ever seen.

It starts with a Keyword, which is the main board that the Keybits connect to. This central component houses a stacked pair of PCBs. The top board packs an Arm Cortex M4-powered microcontroller, Bluetooth antenna, and flash memory. The lower board offers USB-C, charging, and a buck-boost converter.

Adding keys seems like a cinch. Every Keybit, one of the modular keys, contains a CH32V003 RISC-V microcontroller. Moreover, it features pogo pins on all 4 sides of every key for power and I2C. The case is magnetic so you can connect it to any aspect of the Keyword and other Keybits. Atop the Keybit, a Cherry MX switch is installed. We guess you can follow the GitHub MIT-licensed plans for this project and use your preferred variety of mechanical switches.

On the GitHub project page, there are no more than two Keybits together with a Keyword, so you don’t get to see what crazy layout plans he’s hoping to conjure up. However, it is still early days. Per the project journal, Keybytes only became a thing back in March this year, and it was only over the weekend that the developer got to finally boast “it finally works!!”

Both the Keyword and the Keybit modules are 1U sized (19.05 x 19.05mm).

Alspaugh, a student at MIT, has shared all the assets, files, and details you might need to make your own Keybytes keyboard. The GitHub repository says that everything is released under the permissive MIT license.

It might quickly become expensive for individuals to put together a usable layout with, say, 60 keys. Getting the PCBs made, buying and soldering all the components, and 3D printing all the custom bits and pieces is also a considerable task when your proposed keyboard layout is more than a handful of shortcut keys. In the aforementioned journal, Alspaugh actually mentions that he priced up a “full sized keyboard (2 keywords and like 110 keybits) and it's around $900 assembled.”

Keyword has a status light, but the Keybits lack any kind of lighting. My wishlist for Keybytes 2.0 includes customizable RGB lighting, and I would also like to propose Dialbits, a Fingerprintbit, and a matching Touchpadbit.

When it comes to mechanical keyboards, IQUNIX has always been ahead of the curve. Before COVID turned the mainstream onto mechanical keyboards, the company had already been releasing some of the best mechanical keyboards available, quietly making the case for PBT keycaps and premium materials that have since become the norm.

With a catalog of traditional mechanical keyboards under its belt, it’s not surprising that the company would be ready to branch into new territory. It has the Hall Effect demographic covered with its EZ series, but the MQ80 goes another direction entirely. It takes all of the lessons the company learned about how to create an exceptional typing and gaming experience and compressed it. It’s all aluminum, low profile, and offers some of the best-sounding keystrokes of its kind, but steep competition and poor portability hold it back from being the go-to pick it might otherwise be.

IQUNIX MQ80 Specs

Design and Construction of the IQUNIX MQ80

The IQUNIX MQ80 breaks the mold for IQUNIX, but carries the same 75-percent layout as countless mechanical keyboards before it. The form factor is sometimes referred to as a “Compact TKL,” since it shares most of the same keys — minus the blank spaces in between. The result is a condensed slab of keys, including a full function row, arrow cluster, and seven navigation and editing keys.

Nothing too out of the ordinary there, but the MQ80 marries that compact layout with an impressively low height of only 0.4 inches (10.8mm) at the front and 1.08 inches (27.5mm) in the rear. The keycaps are the same height across every row, and while they're scooped to keep your finger centered above the switch, they otherwise feel identical below the finger tip. This makes it an easy transition if you’re coming from a laptop or Apple Magic Keyboard, but first-time LP users should be prepared for a learning curve.

The keyboard is wireless and supports both 2.4GHz and Bluetooth 5.1 connections, as well as wired if you need to use it while it’s recharging. It sports a 4,000 mAh battery which IQUNIX claims can sustain the keyboard for up to 350 hours. This is with the usual caveats of that being over Bluetooth with all of the lighting disabled, etc. etc. — but I was able to use it for close to two weeks between recharges, even with the lighting on.

The MQ80 is a bit of a curiosity, if I’m being honest. It's thin, yes, but it’s certainly not light. It uses a heavy, CNC-milled aluminum case, just like the company’s prior models and countless others aiming for that “premium feel.” It’s a case study in how looks can be deceiving.

In fact, it has been a pretty common occurrence for people to comment on how surprising its weight is. The keyboard tips the scales at 2.6 pounds, which is around what you encounter with a full-size mechanical keyboard or nicer TKL. From a low profile keyboard that everyone assumes will be airy and effortless to carry around, it flies in the face of what you might expect.

So while technically, yes, it’s a portable keyboard (IQUNIX even provides a nice hardshell carrying case to tote it around in), it's not one I could see most people wanting to carry every day. Instead, this seems designed to live on your desk, providing a solid option for fans of the profile who prefer to use it for all of their typing — not just on the go.

In typical IQUNIX fashion, the MQ80 is built to an enthusiast's standard. The case features intricate milling with plenty of small accents that lend it a vaguely cyberpunk impression. The keycaps feature colored legends and contrasting accents that complete its visual identity. The keyboard is available in white or black with keycaps to match, and both look fetching.

The keycaps are made of thick PBT plastic. They have a light texture to add some grip to your typing experience and use dye sublimated legends that won't chip or fade over time.

The switches below those keycaps are Kailh Rose Red, a lightweight linear switch with a 40g actuation force, 2.8mm of travel distance, and a 1.2mm actuation point. Despite their shortness, they offer 70% of the movement of a full-height switch. This makes them easier to transition to in how they feel to bottom out, but they still feel sensitive. This is a keyboard to use with a light touch or you'll find yourself with strings of single letters or running from cover before you mean to.

The switches are hot-swappable with any Kailh Choc V2 alternative, but there just aren't many options. Gateron has run away with the variety end of the low profile switch market, but you can swap them out if you're inclined to do so.

The keyboard features per-key RGB backlighting, customizable within the VIA web configurator or with shortcut keys. The keycaps aren't backlit, however, so it's not great for use in the dark if you aren't a touch typist.

The internal structure of the keyboard is where things get really interesting. The MQ80 came into the world following a run of pre-built custom keyboards IQUNIX produced under its SUPER product line. It pulled direct influence from the boutique, limited run, group buy custom keyboards popular on r/mechanicalkeyboards. All of those lessons come into play with the MQ80.

Beneath the keys lies a multi-layer assembly that makes even the best gaming keyboards look simple in comparison. It's an intentional system meant to filter and refine the sound and feel of every keystroke without the need to customize or adjust anything yourself.

Moving from the top down, the switches snap into a fiberglass (FR4) plate, a middle-ground material that balances firmness with crisp keystrokes.

Beneath the plate and PCB are two layers of foam, each with different acoustic properties, and a plastic film. The first layer of foam is thick PORON and fills in the empty space between the switches, plate, and PCB. It cuts reverb and helps isolate each switch. A much thinner, less dense sheet of IXPE foam and a plastic PET sheet sit below the switches to add a crispness and pop to each keystroke.

Below the circuit board is another layer of PORON foam that filters soundwaves that pass through and cushion each press. Finally, in the very bottom of the case is another layer of IXPE foam intended to reflect mid-range sounds and act as a final buffer before hitting the aluminum of the case.

It sounds like a lot and it is, but it doesn't end there. The PCB assembly attaches to the case with a modified gasket mount ("Le-Tray Gasket Mount") that imparts some of the qualities of gasket mounting into this much slimmer design. Six arms from the assembly attach to the case with silicone buffers, holding it aloft to deliver pillowy bottom outs.

As a wireless keyboard, IQUNIX also had to fit a battery into its slim frame. It's surprisingly large given the space constraints with a 4,000mAh capacity. This translates into 350 hours of rated uptime, but only when using Bluetooth and no RGB backlighting. In practice, keeping RGB on high and using 2.4GHz, it lasts around 45 hours but your specific figure will depend on use.

Typing Experience on the IQUNIX MQ80

While there's an obvious pre-requisite to prefer low profile keys, you'll also need to be a fan of linear switches. And not just that, you'll need to be a fan of lightweight, fast actuating low profile switches with keycaps that feel identical under your fingers.

If I sound a little salty, I'm not. It's just that I've used hundreds of mechanical keyboards and typed A Song of Ice and Fire worth of words on them, including more than a fair share of competing low profile keyboards, and it's still a pain in the ass to switch back to them.

At least at first, because you do get used to it and the light touch required. Before long, I remembered to pay special attention to the navigation bumps on the "F" and "J" keys. Once everything clicked, I honestly felt faster and more nimble as a typist.

Surprisingly, this didn't translate into actual WPM in my case. I average right around 110 WPM on my day-to-day full height keyboard. Swapping to the MQ80, my raw speed increased slightly, likely due to the lightweight switches and the floating posture I adopted to accommodate its height. My actual average words-per-minute on MonkeyType actually decreased to 105 WPM due to having to backspace to correct typos.

So, typing speed is a bit of a wash (at least for me) but it's hard to argue that the sound and feel of typing on the keyboard is less than exceptional. The multiple layers of sound dampening quiet and deepen the sound of each keystroke in a satisfying way. The Le-Tray Gasket Mount system also gives bottom outs a softness that's reminiscent of, but slightly stiffer than, the gasket mounts used on most full height gaming keyboards.

The thing is, since IQUNIX launched the MQ80 to Kickstarter in early 2025, Nuphy released the third iteration of its Air75 series, the Air75 V3, and it delivers a typing experience that I feel is at least as good and is objectively more customizable with its Gateron low profile switches and tactile and silent switch options at checkout.

As a heavy handed typist, I prefer a lot of tactility, especially on a keyboard with perfectly flat rows. The only option for "not a light tactile" were Kailh Black Cloud switches and would have run me half the cost of the keyboard itself.

None of this is to say that the typing experience is bad. It's genuinely not. IQUNIX knows its stuff. All of this is simply to say that there's an important trade-off and if you don't like light linear switches or paying a premium to replace them, the MQ80 probably isn't the keyboard for you.

If you like that light touch, the custom keyboard-esque feel of its keystrokes filtering through all of that foam and milled aluminum, then you're probably going to love it.

Gaming Experience of the IQUNIX MQ80

Most of the same considerations from the typing experience apply to gaming as well, but fragging enemies is really where the MQ80 felt most at home to me.

Those lightweight switches that were a liability to typing accuracy suddenly feel like hair triggers. If you're connected using the 2.4 GHz dongle or plugged in via USB, its 1,000 Hz polling rate ensures that every keystroke comes through instantly - though, it still doesn't compare to the growing number of 8,000 Hz keyboards out there on paper. Whether you'll be able to tell the difference is up for debate.

While the layers of cushioning and damping don't have a direct impact on how effective the MQ80 is for gaming, much like typing, they just make the experience that much more pleasant.

Apart from its switches, there's a dearth of dedicated gaming features unique to the keyboard. The keys are reprogrammable and support string macros, but you won't find a fancy software suite to support the experience here. Instead, IQUNIX went open source and the MQ80 is better for it.

Software for the IQUNIX MQ80

Where the MQ80 comes into its own is its programmability. Unlike many traditional gaming keyboards, it doesn't have downloadable software that needs to stay running in the background. Instead, IQUNIX opted to support VIA, a web-based configurator that allows you to make changes on the fly while also saving them to the keyboard.

It's simple on the surface, but is surprisingly powerful once you dive into it. Every key can carry up to four different actions or macros, broken into layers for quick shortcut access. Much like holding Shift, you hold or tap a key of your choice and access those additional layers of keymaps.

While this functionality isn't unique to VIA or the MQ80 by any means, big gaming companies usually require you to keep their software running to access layered functions (ex. Razer HyperShift). Here, every change is written directly to the keyboard's firmware and will work on any machine, exactly as programmed.

The web client itself is fairly simple. You have a graphic of your keyboard layout with all of your current mappings on display. Underneath are all of the different commands that can be mapped, including things like media controls, additional F-keys (all the way to F24), macros, RGB controls, and virtually anything else you might want to assign to a keystroke.

The biggest feature you'll miss out on, apart from proprietary features like game-synced RGB backlighting, is the ability to assign backlight colors to individual keys. It's possible to change the brightness, hue, and saturation across its dozen or so preset animations, but creating an entirely custom lighting scheme requires creating your own code and flashing it to the keyboard manually.

The Bottom Line

The IQUNIX MQ80 is a very good keyboard. For a lot of users, I'm confident that they would describe it as "Great" or even "Amazing." I wouldn't fault them for that. This is essentially the luxury option in the low profile space at this point.

But it's too heavy to easily tote around without questioning your life choices. If portability is important to you, I highly recommend the Nuphy Air75 V3. Or, if you're looking for something a little more office friendly than the Nuphy, the Lofree Flow 2 is another great choice that also comes with a tactile switch option.

At the end of the day, all three of these options are good for the money but only the MQ80 feels like a luxury option thanks to its heavy case. If you're not planning on carrying it back and forth to work and you like a fast switch, the MQ80 is a solid choice.

Even as optical media sees a resurgence and new CD players hit the market, some optical drive and component manufacturers have ended production. As a result, PS Audio and Naim have halted production of their high-end CD players, raising questions about the maintenance and repairability of these new devices. Headphonesty says that of the eight new models, four are from Musical Fidelity, two from Marantz, and one each from Arcam and NAD.

Musical Fidelity reportedly sources its key components from SUOS-HiFi, with three of its new models using SUOS disc mechanisms. In contrast, the fourth uses a SUOS-sourced servo but a tray-loading mechanism from an unnamed manufacturer. On the other hand, Marantz reportedly develops its drives in-house, though it’s unclear whether it also outsources production to a third party. As for the two remaining manufacturers, they did not reveal who made their optical drives.

PS Audio had to end production of the PMG Super Audio CD Transport because D&M, Marantz’s parent company, has ceased external orders for its optical drives. Although the company bought D&M’s entire remaining stock, it wasn’t enough to keep production going. Naim faced the same issue with its Uniti Star—though it didn't name its optical drive supplier, it had to find an alternative when the manufacturer stopped production. Naim was evaluating a replacement manufacturer when it, too, stopped making the components the Uniti Star needed. While both companies retained some optical drives in inventory, they are only for repairs and replacements.

What hardware deals are you hoping to pick up during Black Friday?

These issues highlight the problem of relying on a single manufacturer for such a critical component. But even though these manufacturers would love to find alternative sources for the drives that they need, it’s likely that only a few companies are capable of making such a niche product, even if demand has grown substantially recently.

The best option for them would be to design these parts in-house, which is what Marantz is doing. That way, even if the current maker they rely on goes out of business, they could plausibly find another one to take over production (or even build it themselves). This is difficult to accomplish, though, with PS Audio CEO Paul McGowan saying that building its own optical disc reader is beyond the company’s capabilities.

It's been over 20 years since the first Guitar Hero arrived on the gaming scene in 2005 and catapulted music rhythm games to the top of the charts. This was followed by multiple Guitar Hero iterations and competition from rival rhythm games such as Rock Band, and even Clone Hero on the PC. Now, in 2026, band-based rhythm games are due to make a return with the imminent release of Stage Tour from developer RedOctane Games. This brings new opportunities for brand-new music peripherals, and one interesting entry with a unique spin is the InfinaKore Fender Telecaster guitar controller from manufacturer Drakong, which will retail for an MSRP of $129.99 / €129.99 / £119.99. This new controller has a modular design to let creative users fully customize the guitar to their own look and feel, and even 3D-Print their own parts.

• Preorder the InfinaKore Guitar Controller at Amazon

The premise of open-source and customizable peripherals isn't a new one, but it certainly does make this new guitar controller from Californian-based peripheral maker Drakong (Part of HyperKin) interesting. Being able to take the core of this guitar controller and modify the shape, size, and color of the body and head by 3D printing your ideas or community designs will allow you to instantly transform this controller into something else.

Apart from the customization aspects of the InfinaKore controller, the guitar peripheral hosts the latest tech, with the top frets using low-profile Kailh Choc switches (these are hot-swappable) and the bottom frets using membrane switches, with the strum-bar and whammy-bar using hall-effect switches for less wear and tear.

The fret bar has some of the frets styled like a D-pad for some interesting strumming possibilities, plus the controller can be easily stored away thanks to a foldable neck, allowing convenient storage and transportation.

There's also tri-mode connectivity, a 4-mode slider switch, tilt functionality for entering the power-up mode, or just use the new dedicated power-up button. Even better, the buttons are mappable.

There's plenty of rhythm music gaming to look forward to when Stage Tour drops later on in the year, and this could be a great controller to complement the game.

Razer has been updating its gaming mouse lineup systematically over the past two years, and it's finally the Basilisk's turn to get a real update. The last update we saw to the Basilisk line was the Basilisk V3 Pro 35K in October 2024, which was basically just the Basilisk V3 Pro with a new sensor.

The Basilisk isn't Razer's most popular gaming mouse line, but it is the more versatile, all-rounder line for people who aren't chasing performance above all else. The Basilisk V4 Pro maintains the general design of its predecessor — a contoured, right-handed gaming mouse with bright RGB lighting and a handful of extra buttons, for the serious gamer who isn't trying to break esports records. It features Razer's newest Focus Pro 50K optical sensor, gen-4 optical mouse switches, and up to an 8,000 Hz polling rate, plus multiple forms of connectivity and up to 200 hours of battery life (over 2.4GHz at 1,000 Hz).

It is admittedly pricey, like all of Razer's flagship mice, at $169.99 for both colorways (black and white), and it launched with Razer's Mouse Dock V2 Pro — which is sold separately for $69.99.

Design and Comfort of the Basilisk V4 Pro

Following in the footsteps of its other recent next-gen mouse launches, Razer has kept the design of the Basilisk V4 Pro largely the same. The Basilisk V4 Pro has basically the same size and shape as its predecessor — it has a right-handed ergonomic shape with a contoured thumb rest and a hump that sits slightly back and to the left. It has large primary mouse buttons with shallow finger grooves, and a slight contour on its outer edge that makes it relatively easy to pick up and move.

It's not exactly the same as the V3 Pro, however. The V4 Pro has two new buttons, for a total of 12 programmable buttons on the mouse: the left and right primary buttons, three thumb buttons (instead of the usual two) and a trigger button in the thumb groove, a clickable tilt wheel (three "buttons" — center click and left/right click), two buttons above the tilt wheel, and an extra button on the left side of the left mouse button. The third thumb button and the extra button on the left mouse button are the new ones; the third thumb button sits in front of the first two and is set to open up Razer's AI prompt by default, while the extra button on the left mouse button is set to switch through profiles by default.

I'm... actually not a big fan of the new buttons. Or, well, I don't really think they're necessary — the Basilisk already had plenty of buttons for a mouse that's not all about having buttons, and I don't really see myself incorporating these new buttons into my workflow in the near future. The extra button on the left mouse button is a little too far forward — this is a very long mouse (it measures 5.02 inches / 127.5mm long), and the extra button is right at the front edge. I have medium-sized hands and relatively long fingers, and the button felt too far for me to press comfortably. It's not a big deal if you plan to leave it set as a profile switch button (which are often located on the bottom of mice), but it's not really viable as a real extra button.

Worse, however, is the location of the third thumb button — the AI prompt button — which is located in line with the other two thumb buttons. I generally have no issue with three rows of thumb buttons, as my daily driver is the Razer Naga V3 Pro, but this new AI button is the same size as the other thumb buttons and it pushes everything back a little. This puts the first thumb button (MB4) back too far to press comfortably (and that's a mouse button I use often). And while you can swap the buttons around, the AI prompt button is slightly too far forward. Basically, there are now three buttons where there should be only two, and they all feel slightly off.

The tilt wheel has three different modes you can switch through with the button right above it: two tactile modes (24 and 48 steps), and free-spin mode. I generally love free-spin mode, but the tilt wheel on the Basilisk V4 Pro is a little too sensitive and will backscroll if you even think about moving your finger near it. The precision-tactile scroll hits a great balance and feels great, however, so this didn't bother me too much.

The Basilisk V4 Pro comes in both black and white colorways; ours came in white, which has shiny black accents so it's a little more Stormtrooper than iPod. It has a smooth matte white body with dimpled rubber texturing for grip on both sides. While it's nice to have built-in side grips, I suspect they will wear down like the grips on the V3 Pro — and then you'll have to find or make your own grip tape, as the mouse comes with none. The mouse is roughly the same size as its predecessor, but it weighs less: the black version weighs 3.53 ounces (100g), which is almost half an ounce lighter than the V3 Pro 35K (3.95oz / 112g). It's not an ultralightweight mouse (or anywhere close), but the weight difference is noticeable and the mouse is definitely easier to pick up.

On the bottom of the mouse, you'll find pure PTFE feet — two near the front, a strip at the back, and a strip under the thumbrest, as well as a strip around the sensor, a power switch, and a connection switch button that is not programmable.

In the box, the Basilisk V4 Pro comes with a USB-A dongle, a USB-A to USB-C converter, and a 6-foot (2m) braided USB-C to USB-A cable. While the cable is braided, it is not one of Razer's flexible HyperFlex cables — it's meant for charging the mouse and plugging the dongle into your PC, not for using the mouse in its wired form.

Specs

Performance of the Basilisk V4 Pro

The Basilisk V4 Pro sports Razer's latest optical sensor, which is the Focus Pro 50K Gen-3 optical sensor. It has a maximum resolution of 50,000 DPI and a maximum speed of 930 IPS, and it can handle up to 90 G's of force. This is the third Razer mouse to feature this sensor (others are the Viper V4 Pro and the Naga V3 Pro), and it's a solid sensor that works with Razer's dynamic sensitivity (the sensitivity can be set up to change based on how quickly you move your hand) and rotation tool in Synapse. It tracks well across just about every surface, including glass that's at least 4mm thick.

The Basilisk V4 Pro isn't an ultra-lightweight mouse, but its shape and grippiness mean it's pretty easy to pick up and move quickly if you're playing an FPS. The trigger button is right under your thumb, however, so you may accidentally trigger (haha) it if you have a tendency to pick up your mouse a lot. The Basilisk's shape isn't quite as natural-feeling as that of the DeathAdder V4 Pro, but it's a comfortable mouse for a variety of games — from multi-button-needing MMOs to competitive shooters (though, perhaps not for peak competition). While I still take issue with the placement of the new buttons, it is nice to have a few extra buttons without jumping straight to 19.

The Basilisk V4 Pro sports Razer's Gen-4 optical mouse switches, which are rated for over 100 million clicks. The switches have a nice, crisp sound that's not too loud (not as loud as Logitech's, anyway), though it's not a mouse for those trying to minimize mouse clickiness. The primary buttons have a solid, tactile feel, and I had no issues with misclicks or double-clicks while I was testing. While the tilt wheel's free-spin mode was too sensitive for me to get to work properly, I love the precision tactile mode — it blends speed and tactility perfectly.

Features and Software of the Basilisk V4 Pro

The Basilisk V4 Pro is programmable with Razer Synapse 4 (not Razer's web-based version of Synapse). You can use Synapse to remap the mouse's 12 programmable buttons (14 programmable controls, if you include scroll up/down; the connection switch button on the bottom of the mouse is not programmable). Synapse has a variety of remap options, as well as a built-in macro recorder / editor. Synapse is also where you'll be able to customize the mouse further by tweaking things like the scroll wheel, DPI stages, and surface calibration. There's also a sensitivity matcher that will match the Basilisk V4 Pro's sensitivity to match that of your old mouse.

You can also use Razer's Chroma Studio to customize the mouse's lighting and sync it with games and/or your other Razer peripherals. The Basilisk V4 Pro has seven RGB lighting zones: a five-zone underglow strip along the bottom curve of the mouse, as well as one in the scroll wheel and one in the logo on the palm rest. The lighting is bright and the underglow's five zones blend nicely — the underglow strip is tilted outward so it's pretty visible when the mouse is just sitting on your desk.

Wireless Experience and Battery Life of the Basilisk V4 Pro

The Basilisk V4 Pro has three forms of connectivity: 2.4GHz wireless, Bluetooth, and wired (via USB-C), though it doesn't really come with a mouse-ready USB-C cable. Razer rates it at 200 hours of battery life over a 2.4GHz wireless connection with a 1,000 Hz polling rate, which is excellent. This number does drop to 54 hours at an 8,000 Hz polling rate, which is... still pretty good, to be honest.

The Basilisk V4 Pro launched alongside Razer's Mouse Dock V2 Pro, which is a wireless charging dock with built-in RGB lighting and an integrated 8,000 Hz wireless receiver. The Mouse Dock V2 Pro is sold separately for $70, and comes with a wireless charging puck that slots into the bottom of the mouse. It sits on your desk (it's small — 3.28 x 2.2 x 1.71 inches / 83.5 x 56 x 43.5mm) and serves as a magnetic dock and wireless receiver for your mouse. It has eight RGB lighting zones around the base, and it lights up to indicate battery level (flashes red when the battery is low). It's made for the Basilisk V4 Pro and V4 HyperSpeed, but it will also work with the Basilisk V3 Pro 35K, the Basilisk V3 Pro, the Cobra Pro, the Cobra HyperSpeed, the Naga V3 Pro, and the Naga V2 Pro (up to 8,000 Hz polling rate for all except the Naga V2 Pro).

The Basilisk V4 Pro is also compatible with Razer's HyperFlux V2 charging mouse pad, but you'll need to connect to your PC via the mouse's dongle for 8,000 Hz polling.

Bottom Line

The Razer Basilisk V4 Pro is an expected update to the Basilisk V3 Pro / 35K. The bump in battery life, from 150 hours in the Basilisk V3 Pro 35K to 200 hours in the Basilisk V4 Pro, is very nice (and 54 hours with an 8,000 Hz polling rate isn't bad, either). While I didn't like the new buttons, I'm sure some people will (although I find it difficult to believe that every mouse and keyboard needs a dedicated AI prompt button), and the reduced weight feels good even if, at 100g, it's still nowhere near the ultra-lightweight category. The Basilisk V4 Pro is a great gaming mouse for gamers who want something a little more exciting and versatile than a DeathAdder V4 Pro, but not as button-heavy (or as heavy) as a Naga V3 Pro.

Blu-ray is fading after 20 years in the market, with Sony Japan finally discontinuing its last dedicated Blu-ray player. According to FlatpanelsHD, Sony Japan has finally marked the UBP-X700/K player as “Discontinued,” meaning customers in the country can no longer purchase a new standalone Blu-ray player from the company. This should not come as a surprise, as Sony stopped shipping the players in February of this year, suggesting that Sony only relied on existing inventory for its remaining Blu-ray player sales.

The PlayStation 5 is the only remaining Sony device that can play Blu-ray discs, but the company has also announced that it will end physical game disc production by January 2028. Because of this, some people fear that the upcoming PlayStation 6 will no longer have an optical drive. This move follows in the footsteps of LG, which ended Blu-ray player production in 2024. Japanese electronics companies Elecom and Buffalo have also ended production of Blu-ray drives for PCs this year, although Buffalo Americas says that it is “fully committed to supplying optical drives to the American market, and our DVD/Blu-ray drive products are anticipated to remain available for the near future.”

This move away from physical media and focus on streaming is worrying, especially to those who are concerned that we are moving towards a world where people no longer own anything. Because of this, sales of “retro media,” including CDs and vinyl, went up by 59% and 18% respectively. While you could still purchase a Blu-ray player from other manufacturers like Panasonic, Sony is one of the bigger companies that built and supported the standard, and its move to end the production and sale of Blu-ray players will leave this niche market even smaller. The audiophile market is facing the same dilemma, as some Hi-Fi player manufacturers ended production of selected products because optical drive makers have stopped making the components needed to read SACDs.

Ultra HD Blu-ray is facing the same upheaval that VHS and DVDs went through with the introduction of new formats. But while the older technologies were replaced by higher-quality formats, Blu-ray is being replaced not by more pixels, but by the convenience of streaming. However, it also comes with the caveat that people would no longer own physical media; a trend that worries data archivists.

"Best gaming headset for audiophiles" is one of the categories on our list of best gaming headsets, and it's easy to look at that and wonder if you shouldn't be looking at just audiophile headsets to begin with. Headsets are mainly about audio, after all, and it does seem to logically follow that audiophile headsets would have the best audio (I mean, it's in the name).

Well, not so fast.

Headsets are mainly about audio, but that doesn't mean that the "objectively" best-sounding headset by audiophile standards translates to the best-sounding headset by gaming standards. Nor does it mean that you should choose your gaming headset based on audio quality at the expense of everything else.

Audiophile headsets, including headphones, are primarily designed around one thing: audio fidelity. In other words, they're designed and tuned to reproduce audio exactly as it was recorded, which is exactly as the artist heard it when they were recording it, and is therefore exactly as the artist intended for it to be heard. This doesn't necessarily mean it's going to sound amazing to everyone. In fact, to many people it will probably sound somewhat underwhelming, but it's really the only objective way we have of measuring what makes audio "good," since how something sounds depends largely on individual listeners' preferences.

Gaming headsets, on the other hand, are designed around... well, everything else. This doesn't mean they ignore audio fidelity completely, but it tends to not be the priority. (Many premium flagship gaming headsets have been focusing more on audio fidelity in recent years, but it's still generally not the priority.) Gaming headsets tend to focus on other features, such as comfort, convenience, and communication. And when they do focus on audio, their priority is about making games sound good — which is generally not the same as making them sound accurate to their original recording.

Don't get me wrong, some of the "audiophile" elements do help games sound better; for example, detailed, layered sound and a wide soundstage make virtual environments sound more realistic. But ultimate realism isn't always what gamers are looking for. If you're playing a competitive first-person shooter, you're probably looking for audio cues to give you a tactical advantage: you want sound that's directionally accurate and that singles out specific details, such as footsteps and gunshots. You're not here to appreciate the individual details you can pick out from different layers of audio if those details prevent you from hearing what's important. If you're playing a game that's designed to make you feel something with the sound, an epic fantasy or a horror RPG, for example, then the goal isn't really accurate sound reproduction; it's for the game to sound epic (or horrifying, I guess).

There isn't a universally perfect answer, of course, because it depends on how you're going to use the headset. It's easy to get swept up in the audiophile hype, but you shouldn't ditch your mainstream gaming just yet. Here's what you should consider before buying into either side.

Comfort

There are plenty of audiophile headsets and gaming headsets that are comfortable — and plenty that are... not so much. While both categories tend to put comfort at least somewhat high on the priority list, comfort means different things for different listeners. Audiophile headsets tend to be larger and more open — larger drivers can produce more sound with less movement, and less movement means less distortion; an open-back design lets sound waves move through the headset instead of bouncing off the enclosure for a wider soundstage and better spatial accuracy. Open-back headsets offer more listening comfort: you won't feel like the sound is closing in and overwhelming you like you will with closed-back headsets, and you'll be able to listen for longer.

Gaming headsets, on the other hand, are largely closed-back (though there are several open-back gaming headsets on the market now, including the Corsair Virtuoso Pro and the Turtle Beach Atlas Air), with smaller drivers, so there's not as much consideration toward listening comfort. They do, however, tend to focus more on physical comfort. They are lightweight and flexible, with gamer-oriented features such as Turtle Beach's "ProSpecs" earpads, which have softer foam near the front to prevent discomfort for gamers who wear glasses. Or the hinge-free design of Logitech's G735 headset, to prevent snagging on longer hair and piercings. Audiophile headsets are designed to be physically comfortable, but gaming headsets are specifically designed around the gaming audience.

Convenience

Convenience is one area in which gaming headsets will basically always win, hands-down. Not only are audiophile headsets not designed with convenience in mind, they're usually the opposite: wired, with very little non-audio-focused tech, and many require a separate audio interface to even work with a PC or gaming console.

Gaming headsets, on the other hand, are packed with technology to make your life easier. Headsets like the Turtle Beach Stealth Pro II and the Razer BlackShark V3 Pro let you connect to multiple devices and switch between them seamlessly, listen to two audio sources simultaneously, and quickly cycle through game-ready EQ presets. Gaming headsets try to put as many controls as possible at your fingertips, from on-ear dials and buttons to detailed app-based EQ tuning to separate desktop base stations (such as the one included with the HyperX Cloud Alpha 2 Wireless).

Even wired gaming headsets often include multiple ways to connect to various devices. For instance, the HyperX Cloud Alpha Air is wired, but it comes with a standard 3.5mm analog cable for plugging into a standard audio jack, a USB-C extension (with USB-A converter) for plugging into a USB-C/USB-A port, and a PC headset extension for plugging into separate audio/mic jacks.

The wireless gaming headsets from the audiophile sector that have these features still manage to implement them in a way that is... well, inconvenient. Audeze's Maxwell and Maxwell 2 allow for dual-wireless connectivity but do not give you a way to manually switch between the two. Instead, Bluetooth always takes precedence over 2.4GHz wireless — full stop. It's infuriating, and it's one of my only real grievances with those headsets.

Communication

A standalone USB gaming mic will almost always make you sound better than a built-in headset mic. But that doesn't mean that you should ignore headset mics or how gaming headsets implement other features that help you communicate with others, whether they're team members or stream viewers, while gaming. (Besides, some headsets, such as the Razer BlackShark V2 Pro (2023), have microphones that actually can rival the best USB gaming mics.)

If you go with an audiophile headset — or headphones — you'll likely need to invest in a separate gaming mic regardless. There's more to communication than just the mic, though. Many gaming headsets, such as SteelSeries' Arctis Nova series, have built-in ChatMix, which lets you channel your game audio and your chat audio through different channels and mix them together on your headset. This lets you dial up (or dial down) chat if you need to hear what's being said over whatever epic music or sound effects are playing in the game. Gaming headsets are also backed by peripheral software that, while often frustrating, is, ultimately, designed around the needs of gamers. Software-based noise reduction/cancellation, microphone EQs, and sidetone are all particularly useful communication tools that you won't find on most audiophile headsets.

Audiophile or gaming headset?

At the end of the day, audiophile headsets tend to focus on audio above everything, which is exactly what audiophiles want. But it's not really what most gamers want. A great gaming headset does have to sound good, but that's not all it has to do.

There are, of course, gaming headsets from audiophile companies, such as the Audeze Maxwell and Maxwell 2, as well as headsets from gaming companies that implement audiophile features, such as the open-back Corsair Virtuoso Pro. And while a headset like the Audeze Maxwell 2 does a decent job of bridging the gap between audiophile and gaming, it makes some sacrifices; it's a very heavy headset (thanks in part to its large, 90mm planar magnetic drivers), though it is relatively comfortable for its weight. It sounds great, but it doesn't do the best job of implementing the gamer side of things — while it has a wide soundstage and decent spatial immersion, that's not the same as pinpoint spatial accuracy when you're listening for footsteps and gunshots.

And while the much pricier Audeze LCD-GX sounds incredible, it's basically the perfect example of how an audiophile headset focuses on sound at the expense of all else, as its gaming features are... mostly non-existent. The only thing that really makes the LCD-GX gamer-friendly is the fact that you can plug it directly into a PC because it comes with a 3.5mm cable and a PC (dual 3.5mm headphone/mic) converter.

So, should you get an audiophile headset in lieu of a gaming headset? Probably not. If you need a gaming headset for its gaming features: multi-device connectivity, super accurate positional audio for tactical advantage in shooting games, the ability to mix chat and game audio on the spot, convenient microphone, connection, and volume controls at your fingertips, or physical comfort for a marathon gaming session, definitely not. Yes, you will give up some audio fidelity and quality by picking a gaming headset over an audiophile one, but you aren't going to miss that when you're arguing over voice chat while trying to determine how far away the enemy is.

Windows 98 SE devotees can now enjoy (experimental) support for USB4 and Thunderbolt 3/4. Developer and maker Yeo Kheng Meng, who also enjoys retrocomputing, recently released the vibe-coded xHCI98 v3.0.0.0, enabling the practical use of generic USB 3.x, USB4, and Thunderbolt 3/4 host controllers on systems running Windows 98 SE, ME, 2000, XP, Vista, and 7. An extensive blog post by the dev provides further reading about the driver, compatibility, its creation, and usage.

Demo video “shows many different USB devices being hotplugged to a modern 2020 ThinkPad P14s Gen 1 with only xHCI controller.”

Some of you will be wondering why a project to bring USB4 (Thunderbolt 3 and 4) to PCs running Windows 98 SE exists. Retro computing fan Meng explains on his GitHub that this project should appeal directly to users of PCs from the mid-2010s that have xHCI-only (USB 3.x) chipsets and no legacy EHCI controller. However, older OSes don’t have xHCI drivers, and that’s where xHCI98 steps in. “Without xHCI support, even keyboards, mice, and flash drives need the BIOS's legacy support, cannot be hotplugged, and devices such as Ethernet and audio do not work at all,” explains Meng, revealing his motivation. “This project fills that gap.”

Impressively, xHCI98 drives a lot more than USB storage. It replaces Windows’ own USB port and hub drivers to facilitate the connection and use of USB 1.1 and 2.0 and SuperSpeed (USB 3.x) devices and hubs, UAS (USB Attached SCSI) storage through a second driver (xhciuas.sys), and Thunderbolt 3 and USB4 docks and NVMe enclosures through a third driver (xhcicm.sys).

Meng has developed and tested xHCI98 mostly on Intel hardware, as that is what he owns. Candidly, he admits “this is a solo human's project with AI assistance, so bugs are not unexpected,” even if you do have the same hardware as the dev - a 2020 ThinkPad P14s Gen 1 (Comet Lake xHCI, no EHCI). It stands up pretty well during the plug/unplug video demo above, though the test rig used is not quite the USB cart of death.

As a solo developer, Meng isn't shy to admit he leaned heavily on AI assistance to prepare the xHCI98 release. His vibe coding adventure was supported by Claude Fable 5.1 for planning, Claude Opus 5.5 for coding, and Codex GPT 6 Astra as an adversarial reviewer.

In addition to a few bug warnings, there are some other things to know about using this driver with the various older versions of Windows it supports, standby and hibernation, and more. The dev helpfully sketches out a process for checking your hardware, outlines various install methods, discusses updating, and talks about tuning the driver for those who will be jumping in at the deep end with this project.

HyperX has decided to toss its hat in the ring of open-back gaming headsets with its newest, the Cloud Alpha Air. It's definitely not the first open-back headset we've seen in the past few years — others include the $200 Corsair Virtuoso Pro, the $180 Turtle Beach Atlas Air, and, of course, the $900 Audeze LCD-GX. The Cloud Alpha Air is at least somewhat budget-friendly at just $149.99.

The Cloud Alpha Air is a wired over-ear open-back gaming headset designed for comfort and immersion. It features dynamic 40mm drivers with a frequency response range of 20 - 20,000 Hz and a special "HyperX Bass Tube" to keep the low end present without compromising the open-back design. And, like other HyperX headsets (which are some of the best gaming headsets we've tested), it's extremely lightweight and easy to wear for hours at a time.

Design and Comfort of the Cloud Alpha Air

The Cloud Alpha Air is a wired over-ear (circumaural) open-back headset with a detachable boom microphone. It has large, plastic oval-shaped earcups with metal grilles attached to a padded steel headband. It's a fairly lightweight headset — HyperX has its weight listed at 9.6 ounces (272g) without the boom mic attached (the boom mic is listed at approximately 0.42 ounces / 12g), but we found the headset weighed closer to 10 ounces (283g) (the boom mic, however, weighed closer to 0.07oz / 2g), and came in at just under 10.6 ounces (300g) with both the boom mic and cables attached. This still makes it one of HyperX's lightest headsets — slightly lighter than the HyperX Cloud Stinger 3 Wireless and Turtle Beach's Atlas Air open-back headset.

The Cloud Alpha Air's earcups are pretty roomy, with thick memory foam padding covered in soft ultrasuede material. The earcups tilt and swivel a little, but they're not as flexible as the earcups on many gaming headsets — and they don't swivel flat. The headset features a steel headband with leatherette-covered padding at the top and metal-reinforced yokes, so that explains the rigidity. The earcups are independently height-adjustable, with about an inch of extension for a maximum inner headband measurement of approximately 12 inches (300mm).

I found the Cloud Alpha Air to be very comfortable, despite the headband's relative rigidity, since the whole package is pretty lightweight and well-padded. However, I can see users with larger heads having problems with the top of the headband, as the padding did press on my crown slightly.

This is a wired headset, so there aren't a lot of ports or on-ear controls. The left earcup has two 3.5mm jacks, one for the detachable boom mic and one for the primary audio cable, as well as a microphone mute button, and the right earcup has a volume wheel.

The Cloud Alpha Air is wired, but the wires are detachable, and it comes with everything you need in the box to plug it into various devices. The main cable is a standard 4-foot (1.2m) 3.5mm, and it comes with two extension cables: a 4.5-foot (1.37m) 3.5mm to USB-C extension (with a USB-C to USB-A converter attached) for plugging it into a PC or console, and a 3.5-foot (1m) PC extension cable with separate audio and microphone jacks. That gets you about 8 - 8.5 feet of cable when you're plugged into your PC, which is decent — though I would personally prefer single long cables instead of the extension system, as the extension system means there's a weight (where the cables connect) in the middle. The cables are braided and seem high-quality, if a bit heavy. The headset also comes with its detachable boom microphone in the box, as well as a thick drawstring carrying bag for keeping everything together.

Specs

Audio Performance of the Cloud Alpha Air

The Cloud Alpha Air features dynamic 40mm neodymium drivers, with a frequency response range of 20 - 20,000 Hz (still pretty standard for gaming headsets, despite several companies coming out with premium models that have wider ranges).

Music sounds very good on the Cloud Alpha Air. The headset has a mostly neutral sound profile, with bright, detailed highs, a full, present mid-range, and solid but not overly powerful bass. It definitely has a wider sound stage than its closed-back counterparts, though it's not quite as wide or as open as some open-back headsets (such as the Audeze LCD-GX). Mid-range-heavy songs such as K-931's Lonely World and Enya's Orinoco Flow sounded especially dynamic. The headset has a built-in "HyperX Bass Tube" designed to maintain powerful bass, despite its open-back style. This works decently well — while I still found bass to be more powerful on closed-back headsets such as the Razer BlackShark V3 Pro, the bass was definitely present (and fairly detailed — I could hear the full run of the bass drum in Lorde's Royals).

Games sound even better on the Cloud Alpha Air, thanks to the open-back design. Games with multi-layered audio environments, such as Uncharted 4 and God of War: Ragnarok, really stood out on the headset — I could hear every individual creature in jungles and make out conversations with (possibly unrealistic) clarity in cities. Directional audio was also very good, though I would probably still opt for a closed-back headset for competitive first-person shooters where the direction of footsteps and gunshots is paramount. But you can't beat open-back headsets for exploring an open world (and for being able to hear things happening in the real world).

Microphone of the Cloud Alpha Air

The Cloud Alpha Air has a detachable 10mm boom microphone with a unidirectional polar pattern. It sits at the end of a 3-inch flexible metal gooseneck you can bend toward your mouth for better pickup, and the arm has a small red indicator light near the microphone end that lets you know when it's muted. It's the same microphone found on HyperX's other premium headsets, including the Cloud III S Wireless and the Cloud Alpha 2 Wireless.

The mic performs about as well as expected — it's good for a headset mic, but it's definitely still a headset mic. My voice was clear and full-sounding over both voice chat and in recordings. But the mic's pickup was pretty low by default — for other HyperX headsets I've been able to adjust the gain in its Ngenuity software, but I wasn't able to get Ngenuity to recognize the Cloud Alpha Air (I imagine if it had recognized it, it would have been adjustable, however). Hopefully this is fixed in a software or firmware update soon.

The mic mute button is easy to press, and the indicator light is a nice thought — but it was too low and too dim to be useful to me (I had to keep moving the mic up to see it, which seems like it sort of defeats the purpose of having an unobtrusive indicator light). I also had the same issue I did with the mute mic button on the HyperX Cloud III wired headset, where pressing the mute button caused a noticeable blip in my recordings.

Features and Software of the Cloud Alpha Air

The Cloud Alpha Air is supposed to be configurable with HyperX's Ngenuity peripheral software, which should let you do things such as tune the EQ and adjust the microphone's input gain. But, again, I couldn't get any version of Ngenuity to recognize the Cloud Alpha Air.

Bottom Line

If you've been thinking of getting an open-back gaming headset, the Cloud Alpha Air might be the headset you've been waiting for. As long as you don't mind the wires, it's an excellent headset for the price — it's comfortable, lightweight, and it sounds great whether you're listening to music, watching movies, or gaming. While I couldn't get it to connect to Ngenuity, I honestly don't count that as much of a point against it — peripheral software often causes more headaches than it's worth, especially for a headset that's mostly analog to begin with.

Over the past several years, MOZA Racing has become one of the most recognizable names in sim racing, earning a reputation for producing high-quality racing wheels and peripherals. Founded in 2012 by a group of automotive engineers and sim racing enthusiasts, the company initially focused on manufacturing and selling videography equipment before entering the sim-racing market.

More recently, MOZA has expanded into the world of flight simulation, bringing the same focus on build quality and performance that has made its racing products so popular. Today, we’re taking a look at the MOZA AY210 Force Feedback Base and MFY Yoke. We’ll be putting both products through their paces in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, testing them across a variety of challenging flight scenarios to see how they perform in the cockpit.

Inside the Box

While you can purchase the base and the yoke separately, they also come in a bundle. With the bundle, you get both the yoke and the base in the box, along with a toolkit and user manual. The base comes with a power cable and a USB Type A to Type B cable.

MOZA also sent us a couple of table clamps for the yoke to secure it to our test setup. The clamps are sold separately.

Customization

The base and yoke feature several programmable buttons and switches, but the real depth of customization comes from MOZA Cockpit Software. The software provides an impressive range of options for fine-tuning the yoke to your preferences. You can adjust individual settings to create your ideal feel, or choose from one of MOZA’s presets or community-created profiles.

Build Quality

The base is constructed from aluminum alloy, giving it a sturdy, durable, and premium feel. An aluminum quick-release mechanism allows you to swap yokes quickly while keeping them securely attached.

Under the hood, the AY210 is powered by a 280 MHz processor and features a 15-bit high-resolution magnetic encoder. This is designed to provide precise and responsive inputs across the full range of motion, whether you’re making small, delicate adjustments or larger, more aggressive inputs. Combined with MOZA’s proprietary active force-feedback system, the AY210 is designed to deliver a high level of control while adding another layer of immersion to the flight experience.

The MFY Yoke features a premium build made from high-quality synthetic engineering thermoplastic and ergonomic design that closely replicates the feel of a yoke found in a real commercial aircraft.

How Does it Feel?

The star of the show is undoubtedly the force feedback. With up to 9 Nm of torque and 210 N of push force, the system adds a level of immersion that simply isn’t possible with conventional yokes that lack force feedback.

When flying the PMDG 737, the yoke gives the aircraft a noticeably heavier feel through the control column, closely mimicking what we experienced in a 737 simulator. As airspeed increases, the yoke becomes progressively harder to deflect in both pitch and roll, accurately reflecting the aerodynamic forces acting on the aircraft.

But the force feedback goes far beyond simply simulating control forces. You can feel the vibrations from the engines, as well as the movement of the flaps and spoilers. After takeoff, the yoke conveys the increasing resistance of the airflow as the aircraft accelerates. Approaching a stall during a climb produces a noticeable buffet through the controls, while landing provides feedback as the wheels make contact with the runway.

The AY210 also replicates the movement of the aircraft's controls when the autopilot is engaged, with the yoke moving under the control of the autopilot servos.

All of these effects work together to create a remarkably convincing connection between the aircraft and the controls. It’s a level of immersion that most other yokes simply cannot replicate.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 Testing

We tested the AY210 Force Feedback Base and MFY Yoke in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 primarily using the PMDG 737-800. While the iFly 737 MAX is a great addon with a superb flight model, especially in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, it is not yet natively built for MSFS 2024. As such, it does not handle wind and turbulence effects entirely well in MSFS 2024. We wanted to stick with MSFS 2024 because of its more realistic flight dynamics. We also tested the yoke with the PMDG 777. For our tests, we used the latest 737 NG and 777 profiles from Tonyaviation on Flightsim.to. Tony is a real-life pilot with experience in the 737 and 787. The 787 and 777 share many of the same flight characteristics.

We tested the base and yoke in three different scenarios:

1. Basic maneuvering. Flying at 5,000 feet, we performed gentle turns and pitch changes to evaluate the precision of the base during small, accurate control inputs.
2. Turbulent approach. We performed an approach into Las Vegas under hot, windy conditions with strong updrafts and downdrafts. This scenario required larger, more frequent control inputs to assess how the base handles turbulence and rapid corrections.
3. Curved approach. Finally, we flew the RNAV Visual approach to Runway 1R at San Francisco International Airport. This approach is available in MSFS 2024 if you use the Navigraph database, but it is missing the RF leg between the waypoints KLAUS and SQIRL, so we added it to the navigation database of the PMDG 737 and 777 ourselves. The procedure features a sweeping right-hand arc that continues until roughly one mile from the runway threshold, requiring the aircraft to remain in a turn at very low altitude. The approach demands precise tracking of the flight path while also requiring a smooth, accurate transition to the runway centerline after the final waypoint. This scenario tested both the precision and responsiveness of the AY210 Base.

Basic Maneuvering

Basic maneuvering feels precise and smooth with the right settings. That last part is important, however, because the AY210 does not necessarily deliver this experience out of the box. Based on our previous experience with a 737 simulator, even with significant pitch input, the control column should maintain a smooth and consistent feel throughout its movement. With the AY210, we found that the motion could feel less natural and “sticky” unless Pitch Friction Correction was enabled in the MOZA Cockpit Software. Fortunately, this setting significantly improves the feel, giving the control column a response that is much closer to what we experienced in a 737 simulator.The 280 MHz processor and 15-bit high-resolution magnetic encoder also contribute to the AY210’s precise and responsive inputs. We were able to make accurate turns and precisely set our desired descent rate, with even small control inputs translating smoothly and predictably into the simulator.

Turbulent Approach

Here, we perform our usual turbulent approach, landing in Las Vegas during the summer. The combination of extreme heat, strong winds, and thermals along the approach path can create significant turbulence, making for a much less stable approach. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is able to replicate these conditions through its Live Weather system, providing a challenging environment for testing the AY210.

The level of immersion provided by the AY210 is simply incredible. Through the force feedback system, you can feel the effects of wind and turbulence directly through the yoke, rather than relying solely on visual cues or the aircraft’s instruments. This provides useful feedback that helps you anticipate and make the necessary control corrections. The AY210 handled these conditions exceptionally well, accurately conveying the changing forces throughout the approach and giving us a much better sense of how the aircraft was responding.

Curved Approach

The RNAV Visual approach to Runway 1R at San Francisco International Airport contains an RF leg between the final two waypoints – KLAUS and SQIRL – which is a sweeping right-hand arc. The AY210 was responsive and precise throughout, allowing us to follow the arc all the way to SQIRL, at which point we were able to accurately align with runway 1R and perform a smooth landing.

By comparison, the Thrustmaster TCA Boeing Yoke felt noticeably jerkier throughout the approach. The two products are also in completely different price tiers, so this is not necessarily a direct or entirely fair comparison. However, the TCA Boeing Yoke is a popular choice among simmers flying Boeing aircraft in Microsoft Flight Simulator, making it a useful reference point. The difference was immediately noticeable, and the AY210’s ability to provide smoother, more natural control while conveying the effects of turbulence is a clear example of what you gain from its more premium design and force feedback system.

Bottom Line

The MOZA AY210 Force Feedback Yoke Base delivers one of the most immersive experiences available in desktop flight simulation. It comes at a premium price, but after spending time with the AY210, it is genuinely difficult to go back to a yoke without force feedback. The combination of realistic feedback, precise control, and the level of detail conveyed through the yoke adds an entirely new dimension to the flying experience.

It is not without its flaws. Some of the force feedback effects could be stronger, while the control column can feel slightly unnatural and “sticky” out of the box. Fortunately, both issues can be addressed to some extent through the extensive customization options in MOZA Cockpit Software.

Overall, the AY210 is an impressive piece of hardware. For those willing to pay the premium, its force feedback and overall level of immersion make it a compelling upgrade for any serious home cockpit.

For years, the standard polling rate for gaming peripherals — mice, keyboards, etc. — has been 1,000 Hz, which equates to a delay, or latency, of 1 millisecond. This is significantly higher than the standard polling rate for non-gaming peripherals, by the way, which is 125 Hz (8ms latency) — in fact, it's eight times as fast.

Well, over the last couple of years, gaming companies have been asking: What if we made the polling rate even faster than 1,000 Hz? What if we made it eight times as fast?

And now just about every single ultra-lightweight, esports-oriented gaming mouse that comes out has up to an 8,000 Hz polling rate. And, of course, this raises the question every time: Do you actually need a mouse with an 8,000 Hz polling rate?

And the answer is... probably not.

What is polling rate, and what does it mean?

Polling rate is, simply put, how often your mouse communicates with your PC. That is, how often it reports mouse movement and clicks to your CPU. At a standard gaming mouse polling rate of 1,000 Hz, your mouse is communicating with your PC 1,000 times per second — or, once every millisecond. Hence, a 1,000 Hz polling rate means 1ms latency. At a standard non-gaming mouse polling rate of 125 Hz, your mouse is only communicating with your PC once every eight milliseconds — or an 8 ms latency. At a polling rate of 8,000 Hz, your mouse is communicating with your PC once every 0.125 milliseconds — a 0.125 ms latency.

Polling rate affects both mouse movement (if the polling rate is low enough, mouse movement might be jerky) and, more importantly, click latency — you want your mouse clicks to translate instantly.

But it's important to keep this in perspective, because higher polling rates yield increasingly diminishing returns. Going from 125 Hz to 1,000 Hz is definitely noticeable — it cuts your latency from eight milliseconds to just one. But while going from 1,000 Hz to 8,000 Hz cuts your latency by the same factor, we're now talking about fractions of a millisecond. The average gamer can tell if their mouse is lagging by several milliseconds, but can they tell if their mouse is lagging by less than one millisecond?

Maybe. But probably not.

Why not?

Well, inability to distinguish whether your mouse is lagging by 0.875 milliseconds aside, there are some potential downsides to ultra-high polling rates. The main one being that your system may not be able to handle it. A higher polling rate means that the mouse is communicating with your PC more frequently, so this can affect CPU performance — if you don't have a pretty solid gaming CPU, you may see more of a performance hit than is worth the infinitesimal lower latency (which may not even end up being lower if performance issues cause latency). And if you don't have a gaming monitor with a high refresh rate (at least 240 Hz, if not higher), any perceived smoother mouse movement will be just that — perceived. (Of course, with a higher refresh rate you'll need an even better system to keep up with that and the 8,000 Hz polling rate, and... well, you get the point).

Another downside to an 8,000 Hz polling rate is battery life, because it drops significantly on wireless gaming mice. The battery life of the Corsair Sabre v2 Pro Wireless is a pretty impressive 120 hours at 1,000 Hz, but this drops to just 21 hours at 8,000 Hz. The Razer Basilisk V3 Pro 35K gets up to 150 hours at 1,000 Hz, and just 28 hours at 8,000 Hz. The Turtle Beach Burst II Pro does a little better, going from 150 hours at 1,000 Hz to 40 hours at 8,000 Hz, but it's still a significant drop.

And while you can cheat the system with select Razer and Logitech gaming mice by pairing them with either the Razer HyperFlux V2 or the Logitech PowerPlay 2 wireless charging mouse pads, you will need to pair the mice to your PC using their included (or, in some cases, sold separately) 8,000 Hz dongles — neither the HyperFlux V2 nor the PowerPlay 2 offer 8,000 Hz polling rates if you connect through the built-in receivers.

But... 8,000 Hz!!

You may not need an 8,000 Hz polling rate, but maybe it will make you feel better.

If any category of gaming mouse is going to benefit from lower latency, it's the esports category — where mice need to be lightweight so they can fly across surfaces, relatively small so they can be picked up when sliding them is too time-consuming, and hyper speedy and accurate so competitors can shoot people in the head without missing a beat. And so it's not surprising that flagship gaming mice like the Razer DeathAdder V4 Pro or the Asus ROG Harpe Ace Extreme (or the Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Edition 20) tout 8,000 Hz polling rates.

But you don't have to spend a ton on an extreme edition flagship gaming mouse to max out your polling rate — several of Razer's older mice work with the company's Mouse Dock Pro and/or HyperPolling Wireless Dongle to get up to 8,000 Hz wireless polling rates, including the Razer Basilisk V3 Pro, and many of its newer mice come with 8,000 Hz polling out of the box (e.g. the Razer Viper V3 Pro, which is currently on sale for $110 at Amazon — 31% off its retail price of $160).

If you don't need a wireless mouse, Razer's DeathAdder V3 wired gaming mouse gets up to an 8,000 Hz wired polling rate (and is currently on sale for $45 at Amazon — 36% off its retail price of $70). Even Redragon, one of our favorite budget-friendly peripherals companies, has a mouse with an 8,000 Hz polling rate: the Redragon M916 ULT, which is wireless and ultra-lightweight (49g) and retails for just $50.

Ultra-high polling rates are creeping in everywhere, not just in the competitive esports market. Even Razer's recently launched V3 Naga Pro, which isn't even an ultra-lightweight, esports-oriented gaming mouse (it's a relatively hefty 23-button mouse for games that definitely do not need to worry about ultra-smooth, accurate mouse movement or click latency), can get up to an 8,000 Hz polling rate if you pair it with either the company's Mouse Dock Pro or HyperPolling Wireless Dongle (both are sold separately, naturally, because — again — you don't need this).

Corsair recently showed off its Nightsword v2 Wireless SD, a mouse with a built-in Stream Deck (sort of), which also has up to an 8,000 Hz polling rate (170 hours of battery life at 1,000 Hz, which drops to 47 hours with the lighting turned off and 25.5 hours with the lighting turned on at 8,000 Hz). And if you think that you can tell the difference between half a millisecond but not that extra quarter, there are also mice with up to 4,000 Hz polling rates, such as the HyperX Pulsefire Saga Pro and the SteelSeries Aerox 3 Wireless Gen 2.

And as for whether you need a keyboard with an 8,000 Hz polling rate, the answer is: absolutely not.

Sometimes you need a keyboard, and you need it now. That was where I found myself a couple months ago during local AI testing with one of the Nvidia GB10 boxes on my bench. Those systems are incredibly picky about which wired keyboards they'll work with for some reason, and moving the one known-good board I have on hand between systems under test was becoming a massive headache.

After one too many inconvenient keyboard swaps, I had had enough. I wanted a compact Bluetooth board that I could dedicate to my workbench, and I wanted it now. Testing on that GB10 system couldn’t wait, and I didn't want to get stuck in analysis paralysis. So I hopped on Amazon, filtered my choices down to items with same-day delivery, and found the Epomaker x Aula F75 Pro for just $65.

I was suspicious of this board at first, given the lack of in-depth independent reviews online and its unfamiliar switches. It uses Epomaker’s Leobog Reaper switches, which didn't map directly to any of the standard Cherry MX switches or their knockoffs that I'm used to.

But according to the spec sheet, they were linear and didn't have an incredibly heavy actuation force, which is the most important spec I look for in a keyboard when protecting my RSI-ravaged wrists. And they claimed to come pre-lubed, which is an upgrade I’ve never performed myself on any of my prior boards. So we were off to a good start.

The rest of the F75 Pro's feature list suggested custom keyboard DNA in its lineage. Spiffy dual-tone PBT keycaps with side legends? Check. A stack of noise-shaping and noise-reducing materials inside, including a cotton layer and a hefty silicone foundation? Check. A dedicated volume knob that doubles as a mute button? You got it.

Throw in wired, 2.4GHz wireless, and Bluetooth connectivity (with multiple Bluetooth pairing profiles), along with customizable RGB LED backlighting, and I was sold. And for such a low price, plus a few bucks extra for same-day delivery, I was willing to risk it if some aspect of this board wasn’t quite up to snuff.

A couple hours later, my Amazon delivery driver dutifully dropped the F75 Pro at my doorstep. And after a few minutes with the printed shortcut guide so I could pair it over Bluetooth, I had it connected to my GB10 box and was typing away in a terminal.

Despite this board’s low price, the Leobog Reaper switches underneath its keys are honestly the nicest I’ve ever felt. They’ve ruined me for every other board with MX-style switches I have. Whether it’s down to their pre-lubed treatment or inherent construction quality, they don’t have the tiniest bit of wobble or grit in their strokes like the red switch clones in many of my other mechanical keyboards.

The Reapers have a light 36gf initial force, a 45g actuation force and a 55gf bottom-out force, so they don’t place undue stress on my hands and wrists, and they have a nice, high-pitched audible “thock” at the bottom of their range that serves as pleasant reassurance for a successful keypress without rising to the level of a deafening click like blue-type switches might. The five-layer acoustic dampening stack within this board makes it the nicest-sounding one I own, too. And if I ever get tired of these particular switches, the Aula F75 has hot-swap support for easy modding.

I feel like I’m more accurate with these switches than I am with other boards in my office, and at 107 wpm with 99% accuracy on the MonkeyType test, I’m slightly faster than average on this board, too.

For all the thoughtful stuff that might be happening inside the F75 Pro's chassis, the outer plastic shell does feel a bit cut-rate. If you want the pleasure of knowing your board is clad in milled aluminum, carved stone, or some other exotic solid, this board doesn’t offer that satisfaction. But you're not touching the shell as you type. You're touching (and listening to) the keys. And I can attest that the tactile and auditory experience of typing on this board is far, far better than you would expect given its low price.

I also appreciate that most of the Aula F75’s functionality is available without installing any extra software. Although a utility is available, I’ve never felt the need to install it. I do have to refer to the included cheat card to figure out certain Fn combos, though, so don’t throw yours away if you get an F75 Pro of your own.

I do wish this board’s 75% layout dropped the volume knob for a dedicated Home key, but I can live with its existence on a Fn layer given the rest of this board’s virtues. And again, this board sells for $65 (and possibly even less during the current Prime Big Deal Days event). Given the hundreds of bucks that boards from big brands usually go for, I’ll enjoy what I hope is a long-lived and premium typing experience and keep the extra cash in my pocket.

Sony doesn’t have a lot of love going its way among gamers right now, especially among the PC crowd, between the decision to abandon physical disc sales and reportedly shelve ports of its games to PC. Sony makes an excellent controller with the DualSense, not only for the PS5, but also for PC, with native support for its features (such as adaptive triggers) in some games. Still, it doesn’t feel great spending $74 on a controller if you don’t particularly align with Sony’s recent decisions, especially considering there are several other excellent controllers that either cost less or pack more features (and sometimes both).

Although there’s some impressive tech in the DualSense, it’s missing a lot of features that are now commonplace among third-party controllers, notably, TMR joysticks, additional rear paddle buttons, and multiple onboard controller profiles — you’ll need to spend $200 on the DualSense Edge for that. All of the controllers below come with those modern conveniences, as well as dedicated software for profile management and button remapping.

All except one also use a 2.4GHz connection, allowing you to use the controller wirelessly with virtually any device, and without the latency implications or connection limitations of Bluetooth.

The controller for most PC gamers: GameSir G7 Pro

The GameSir G7 Pro is a pro-style controller without the extra luggage, literally. As more tech gets packed into controllers, they get heavier, which is an issue with the standard DualSense and, to a far greater extent, the Xbox Elite Controller (any version, really) and the DualSense Edge. With the G7 Pro, you get extra amenities like remappable buttons (including rear paddles), a charging dock, a 2.4 GHz connection, and a surprising number of different aesthetic variants. The primary difference is that the G7 Pro feels like a normal controller in your hands, and it’s less than half the price of the first-party options from Sony and Microsoft.

For feel, the G7 Pro clocks in at 7.1 ounces, a far cry from the Elite Controller's 12.2 ounces and the DualSense Edge’s 11.6 ounces. Like the first-party premium designs, you get four remappable buttons: two paddles on the back and two small buttons situated between the trigger and bumper. It also comes with removable sticks and three D-pad options in the box. The faceplate and grips come off, as well, if you want to change up the look in the future.

The G7 Pro stands out most for what it does differently, however. For the face buttons and D-pad, GameSir uses optical micro switches, which you can also carry over to the triggers. The G7 Pro includes Hall Effect analog triggers, but you can toggle over to a hair trigger setting with a slider on the back. In this mode, the controller instead uses a micro switch, giving you the tactile feedback you get with the face buttons.

For connectivity, 2.4GHz is the way to go, with the G7 Pro operating at a 1,000Hz polling rate and using its included charging dock for connection (the dongle is removable but sits inside the dock). It also supports Bluetooth and wired connections. For managing the controller, you can use the Nexus App, which gives you access to full controller remapping, calibration for the TMR sticks, and far more. But you don’t need to use the app, which is one of the highlights of the G7 Pro.

You can remap buttons, as well as calibrate your sticks and triggers, with combinations on the controller itself. The remapping is particularly useful, allowing you to quickly remap controls when you boot up a new game rather than opening Nexus to remap there. It’s seamless. Regardless of how you set up the G7 Pro, you can store up to three profiles on the controller itself, and far more within Nexus.

For retro enjoyers and DualShock fans: 8BitDo Pro 2 (SN30)

The 8BitDo Pro 2 (previously known as the SN30) is a more versatile controller than it first appears. It’s modeled after a Super Nintendo controller, supercharged with dual Hall Effect sticks, two back paddles, and triggers. It looks like a SNES controller, and the D-pad pulls off a good impression if you want to dive into any emulators or retro-style games. But with the handles, it feels most like a DualShock 4, a controller that you can’t use natively with Windows.

Although controller compatibility between platforms isn’t as big of an issue as it once was, the Pro 2 supports several platforms natively over Bluetooth, no cable required. A toggle on the back of the controller allows you to switch between Switch, Apple/macOS, Android/DirectInput, and PC/X-input modes. Unfortunately, there’s no 2.4GHz connection, though you can use the controller wired on any of the platforms it supports.

8BitDo allows you to store three profiles on the controller, which you can customize using the 8BitDo Ultimate software. It includes full controller remapping (including additional layers), macro support, trigger and stick deadzones, and vibration settings.

At $42, the 8BitDo Pro 2 is a solid deal. If you can stretch your budget a bit, the newer Pro 3 is $60 and comes with several upgrades. 8BitDo replaced the Hall Effect sticks with TMR sticks, added extra buttons between the bumpers and triggers, and added a hair trigger toggle for the triggers. The front buttons are swappable as well, as you can swap between a Nintendo and standard layout, and 8BitDo bundles in a charging dock.

For around $50: GameSir Cyclone V2

The GameSir Cyclone V2 is a slightly worse version of the G7 Pro, and the difference really is slight. It comes with just two additional buttons (the back paddles) instead of four, and you don’t get the customization options for the sticks, D-pad, and faceplate. The primary annoyance with the Cyclone V2, which the G7 Pro solves, is the dock. It’s bad. It can hold and charge the controller, but you’ll fumble trying to make sure it’s actually sitting on the dock when you go to set the controller down.

Outside of that one usability issue, the Cyclone V2 is excellent, especially considering its price around $50. You still get quality TMR joysticks, responsive micro switches on the face buttons and D-pad, a 1,000Hz polling rate over the 2.4GHz wireless mode, and analog triggers with an optional micro-switch mode.

Instead of the dozen or so variants of the G7 Pro that are available, the Cyclone V2 is available in two colors: white or black, with a matching dock. The plastic shell isn’t fully opaque, however, and GameSir includes LEDs within the body of the controller that shine out while it’s on. You can customize these colors inside Connect (the software for the Cyclone V2), creating a smooth gradient of color (or just a solid color) across the controller while you’re playing.

Within Connect, you still get access to trigger and stick deadzone settings, button mappings, and profile management. Three profiles can live on the controller, and you can remap buttons (as well as access functions like macro recording) directly on the controller with key combinations.

If you have money to spend and time to wait: Valve Steam Controller

It’s hard to recommend the Steam Controller because it’s not on sale (it’s not even available outside of Steam), and you can’t actually buy it right now because it’s sold out. Still, it’s an excellent controller, and if you have $100 to burn and a few months you’re willing to wait, you’ll come out on the other side with perhaps the only purpose-built controller for modern PC gaming we’ve ever seen.

As Valve did with the Steam Deck before, the Steam Controller is only available via a reservation system. You need a Steam account in good standing to sign up for the queue. Thankfully, Valve’s queue isn’t some black hole lottery that you’ll never hear back from; you will get the chance to buy a Steam Controller eventually, but it might take several months before that time comes.

As you can read about in our Steam Controller review, the gamepad essentially recreates the feel and functionality of the Steam Deck with any PC. It’s built around Steam Input, giving you a deep level of customization over every aspect of your input, even in games that don’t natively support a controller. The dual touchpads come in handy in that case, mimicking the movement of a mouse.

Similar to other Valve devices, the Steam Controller has a solid modding scene around it. There are party trick mods, such as a tool that allows the controller’s haptics to play back 16-bit audio, but also practical hardware mods like third-party buttons and triggers. The modding community has had a field day with the puck that the Steam Controller uses for charging and connection, as well.

Whether you're one of the many people who rushed on the M4 Mac Mini this year or grabbed the M6 or M5 Pro Mac Mini that released last month, you're bound to eventually want to consider more storage, more ports, or both.

You can't upgrade the storage (it's soldered on the M6, and on M4 you need specialty NAND that will void the warranty and isn't easy to come by), so using external storage is all there is. And while the Mac Mini is fairly generous with five USB-C ports, there are no legacy USB-A ports or an SD Card slot like on the Mac Studio.

For Prime Day, there are a handful of docks specifically designed for Apple's Mac Mini that will give you more ports, including options with SSD slots to allow for more storage in a compact footprint. Keep in mind these won't work in older Mac Minis, which had a different chassis.

In general, some Mac users love these docks, while others have suggested that placing them underneath a Mini can block the Wi-Fi signal. That's something to consider if you're not plugging into Ethernet.

While there are lots of specialized docks for the Mac Mini, you don't need that. If you're willing to use any standard, rectangular USB-C or Thunderbolt dock, which can offer the same advantages, just not in a bespoke shape.

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In case you didn’t get the memo, CD sales are surging, up a whopping 58.6% in the U.S. this year, according to the RIAA. And whether you’re looking to break your old disc collection out of the attic or closet, or you’re considering starting a new CD collection and ditching that algorithmically driven streaming service, there are plenty of options to choose from. Some can offer as good or arguably even better audio quality than a 90s-era Discman or hi-fi player, while others prioritize modern features, like Bluetooth, showcasing your spinning disc, novel form factors, or RGB lighting.

There are solid, affordable, sub-$150 options that deliver the best of old and new, though. Below is a list of some of the best and most interesting new CD players, starting with a couple that I own and enjoy myself.

Most of my old CDs are housed semi-permanently in a large Sony CX555ES 300-disc CD changer I picked up, refurbished and serviced, from eBay in early 2025. But my whole collection (roughly 450 discs at this point) doesn’t fit in that machine, and I often want to listen to my more recent purchases someplace other than my living room.

That led me to buy the Fiio DM13 last year, around the Black Friday deals season. If you haven’t heard of Fiio, it’s a Chinese consumer electronics company that has made a name for itself over the last decade-plus, churning out all manner of audio gear that typically sounds and performs well for its price bracket.

The DM13 has a nice metal frame and sounds great, thanks to dual CS43198 DACs and a SGM8262 op-amp, and sports a USB-C rechargeable 3750mAh battery that lasts a solid 7-8 hours. It also supports Bluetooth 5.2 (SBC, aptX, aptX Low Latency, and aptX HD) for wireless connectivity, and has a balanced input for high-end headphones.

I briefly considered the more premium FiiO DM15 R2R (better DAC and Bluetooth chip, and a better screen, plus a disc window — but it didn’t feel different enough, and I didn’t really want to spend $250-plus on a (second) portable CD player. That’s when I heard about the recently announced Fosi Audio DISC Nano CD player. And mere moments after seeing it (and reading that it was priced at $99), I knew I wanted one.

Yes, it’s a CD player that’s smaller than a CD, with two edges of the disc exposed while it’s playing. Yes, Sony did this with its D-88 Discman in 1988. Yes, it’s mostly a gimmick. But yes, I still bought one and (mostly) love it.

• Fosi Audio DISC Nano CD Player ($99.99)

Fosi Audio is a newer company (founded in 2017, also in China) that typically makes budget-focused gear. I’ve been using the company’s $89 Audio Box X4 Phono Preamp for going on four years, and it’s performed flawlessly.

The Nano’s display is a simple two-digit design, and the battery life is short, at around two hours of listening between charges (via USB-C). But it also has a magnetic back for attaching to accessories. And so far (I’ve only had it for a few days), I’ve enjoyed popping it onto my fridge while listening through my various Bluetooth speakers, and have no complaints about the sound output or pairing.

It does have an old-school slide switch for turning the player on and off (there is no auto-off), which feels a bit crude. But for me at least, the unique design and magnetic back make it fun to use.

There are, of course, several other modern desk, desktop, and portable CD players on the market. And several are on sale for Prime Day. Below are some of the more interesting and affordable options we could find.

Google Japan just showed off a quirky keyboard that has keys rolling on a conveyor belt to make typing “easier.” According to the company blog [machine translated], it built the Gboard Conveyor Belt Version so that the keys flow to your hand instead. That means you don’t have to move your fingers or arms as much, especially when you’re typing using a single hand. The keyboard comes with four belts, each containing 29 keys, making it quite “intuitive” to operate. The team behind it is also considering releasing various color variations, high-speed models, and even a shorter version for mobile devices. You can see the keyboard in action in the video below.

This weird keyboard is the latest addition to the Google regional office’s annual tradition of releasing a new model every first day of October. The local subsidiary has previously released these quirky designs as an April Fool’s Day joke starting in 2012. However, in 2021, it switched the release on the first day of October, or 10.1, in reference to the 101-key layout popularized by the IBM Model M. These include the Gboard Dial Edition, which is reminiscent of the rotary phones of the 1960s (good luck hitting 100 words per minute with that keyboard), the Double-Sided Gboard, designed to be always right-side up no matter how you orient it, and the Gboard bar version, which places all the keys on a single row to make characters easier to find. But even though most of the funny designs aren’t meant to work in real life, the Google Japanese Input Physical Flick Version actually looked promising.

All these models likely won’t make Tom’s Hardware’s best gaming keyboards or even best budget mechanical keyboards lists, but they’re still a good addition to any keyboard collection if you want to have something unique (but not necessarily practical) on display. The plans for the Gboard Conveyor Belt Version are available directly from GitHub, including 3D-printable STL files, KiCad schematics and PCB layouts, and the firmware source code and projects needed to build a working copy of the keyboard. The schematics for previous Google Japan keyboard designs are also available in the main directory, allowing you to build all these eccentric pieces in your free time.

It seems that Microsoft has refined the balance between ergonomics and sophisticated control systems with the Xbox controller, as the U.S. Navy has started using Xbox-style controllers for its anti-drone laser systems. According to Interesting Engineering, Xbox-style controllers deliver targeting precision and rapid user inputs, making them ideal for operating the weapons platform. Aside from that, many sailors are already quite familiar with the basic layout of these handheld controllers, making it easier for them to get used to the control method during training.

We don’t have further details about the system, like whether the operators use a wired or wireless controller and whether the Navy uses an off-the-shelf commercial system or has one specially made by a contractor. Nevertheless, this isn’t the first time that we’ve seen a controller being used for such a critical system. In fact, the ill-fated Titan submersible used a cheap Logitech F710 game controller as its sole control interface (although the main suspected reason for the tragedy is the design and construction of the vessel).

This weapon that uses an Xbox-style controller isn’t just an experimental system, too. The U.S. Navy has now started deploying them on warships and has reportedly used them against drones and other threats in the Strait of Hormuz. Lasers have previously been used to neutralize drones from land-based systems — for example, the U.S. military used them to disable Mexican cartel drones in late August, while Ukraine has been experimenting with the AI-guided lasers to destroy Shahed suicide drones in mid-2026. Still, this appears to be one of the first instances that an anti-drone laser has been deployed in an active conflict area months after a similar system has been tested on the USS George H.W. Bush supercarrier. The Royal Navy is also installing a similar system on its destroyers, with the UK expecting them to be operational by next year.

Lasers are ideal for counter-drone operations as they are cheaper to operate compared to traditional missiles and close-in weapons systems (CIWS). It’s estimated that a single laser engagement costs around $13 in electricity, compared to the price tag of a typical anti-aircraft missile that could cost anywhere between thousands and millions of dollars. They can also be more cost-effective compared to machine guns and cannons since they don’t rely on conventional ammunition — as long as a vessel has enough electrical power, whether from the massive turbine engines aboard destroyers or the nuclear reactors on U.S. supercarriers, and the system remains serviceable, laser weapons can keep on defending the ship from drones long after it has run out of missiles and ammo.

Sincere Inc. has released its Pixel Tunes portable Bluetooth CD player in an alluring new ‘After Hours’ finish. This is a limited edition release, and one of four translucent colors available, but it is the only one that glows in the dark due to the use of phosphorescent materials. You can grab one today for 12,980 yen ($83).

According to the official product page, you’ll be interested in purchasing a Pixel Tunes player for the retro-futuristic design, combined with cutting-edge functionality. The ‘standard’ translucent colors of Warm Gray, Ray of Light, and 1983 already look quite handsome, if you are into that kind of thing. However, adding phosphorescence to the new After Hours livery turns things up a notch.

In daylight, the After Hours Pixel Tunes looks like a translucent smoke-shelled portable CD player. “But when the lights are turned off, the body glows with a soft, fantastical green light,” says Sincere Inc. Apparently, its design expresses the culture of people who like to transition from bright everyday life to the “private world of the night.” One wonders what the designers are getting up to in the evenings.

Under the skin, the Pixel Tunes has decent enough specs for a portable CD player, and indeed comes with some ‘modern’ features like a USB Type-C rechargeable Li-ion battery and Bluetooth 5.3.

Pixel Tunes specifications:

• CD audio music player
• Status LCD
• ESP anti-skip audio (60-second buffer)
• Buttons for play mode, skip/rewind, stop, play/pause, skip/fast forward
• Volume wheel with click power on/off
• Ports include USB-C, 3.5mm headphones, charging LED indicator
• Built-in stereo speakers
• Rechargeable battery with 5-7 hours playback time
• Bottom mounting holes

I still have a large CD audio collection of original releases. However, I couldn’t see any indication of whether the Pixel Tunes could play CD-R or CD-RW home-burned discs, which is slightly off-putting. Moreover, there’s no mention of compatibility with discs containing MP3 files or with USB audio playback.

If you are interested in the Pixel Tunes player in its After Hours livery (or any of the other colors) and don’t live in Japan, you can check options with your preferred forwarding service. I also noticed Amazon Japan will ship this special edition product internationally, depending on your location. It's listed at 12,980 yen, which is roughly US$83.

Surprisingly, there are other translucent portable CD players around in 2026. An example we recently highlighted was the orange Death Stranding 2-themed player, which was the result of a collaboration between legendary video game designer Hideo Kojima and audio company km5.

For many of us, the tech we carry to keep our other devices powered while on the go doesn’t get much consideration. Buy a power bank with enough ports, capacity, and output, and you’re good to go, right? And generally, that is right, though a few small things can make a big difference. Of the dozen-plus chargers we've tested so far, a couple take four to six hours to charge, which may be fine for some, but could be a deal breaker for anyone who needs a quicker turnaround on a fully charged power bank.

We’ve compiled 13 power banks, ranging from slim, single-port 5,000 mAh units outputting 22W to monster multi-port 25,000 mAh bricks capable of delivering 220W across multiple ports. Prices range from around $24.99 for the Cuktech CP12 (10K/20W) to $129.99 for the most powerful unit we’re testing, the high-end Anker Prime (A110B) 20K/220W. Some include integrated USB-C cables; some include a removable USB-C cable; and some include nothing else in the box.

Others have fancy displays that show charging and temperature information, while some use simple LEDs that flash or change color to show charging status. Looks and size matter, too. The designs of the banks we tested range from simple grey boxes barely thicker than a deck of playing cards to larger stand-up units, and even see-through chassis.

What’s right for you depends on your needs, budget, and to some degree taste. In general, the higher the output and capacity, the more the device costs. How many ports do you want or need? Do you need to fly with it? Capacity and output are, of course, key deciding factors. But price, size, and safety features also matter. So there’s a lot to consider if you want the best power bank for you, and there are plenty of feature, design, and performance differences between our tested devices that we’ll share below to help with your buying decision.

What makes a power bank good or bad?

What makes a power bank good or bad?

The answer depends on who's buying the device and how they plan to use it. For example, if you need more than one charging port or an integrated cable, certain models just won’t work for you. Make sure it supports modern charging standards like USB-PD (Power Delivery) and/or Qualcomm Quick Charge so it can fast-charge your device (all tested devices below have PD3.0 or above).

Having the proper output to fast-charge your device is another important consideration. Buying a 10K, 25W charger for your Asus Zenbook Duo, for example, isn’t the best idea, since the device can use around 90W (@ 20V) to fast-charge and run. For that, you’d want something with more listed capacity and more wattage output. If you’re only buying a bank for your phone, that same 10K/25W charger can easily give your phone or a small tablet lots of extra run time away from a wall charger.

Rated capacity versus actual capacity is another issue, but marketing materials don’t clearly state it. The main thing to know is that the rating you see on the box is based on the battery's 3.7V rating. So the actual capacity varies depending on the voltage your device needs. The higher the voltage and output used for charging, the lower the actual capacity is. With 20V laptop charging, usable capacity can drop to around 20% of listed capacity, whereas with simple 5V charging it’s closer to 60% or more.

Another worthwhile feature for power banks is pass-through charging, or the ability to charge the bank and output power to your device(s) at the same time. Most do support this feature, though we couldn’t find anything concrete on the Cuktech CP12 or Baseus PicoGo Air (though every current Baseus PicoGo series does support it). Belkin’s Ultracharge limits output to 15W while charging, however.

Name-brand devices from Anker, Sharge, Cuktech, Belkin, and Baseus, like the ones we’re covering here, typically have multiple safety features, including protection against overcharging, over-current/voltage, over-temperature, and more, to prevent premature device failure (or worse). You’ll get an assortment of these features from popular brands, but be careful with off-brand ones, as they may not support some (or any) of them, and could therefore be a hazard. If you see a no-name power bank, make sure it is at least UL/CE (or CCC if in China) certified and has some or all of these safety features before buying.

Test Equipment and Setup

Test Equipment and Setup

To gather our power bank testing data, we need several items to ensure we’re getting the right information. Our test setup includes a wall charger to charge the empty power bank, an Asus Zenbook Duo and an Anker portable power station to charge and get output from, a USB tester that shows the output voltage, amperage, and watts, along with the charging protocol, mAh, and Wh, and an IR thermometer to record the device's surface temperature. We also need a high-quality cable that won’t limit the output (we chose one rated at 240W). To test the cable, we used a USB Cable Checker2 to verify its capability. Below is a list of all the parts we use in power bank testing.

• USB Tester/Voltmeter/Ammeter Tester - Chargelab Power-Z KM003C ($109.99)
• USB Tester (used with multiple connections) - HDC-085C ($12.15)
• USB Cable Checker - Bit Trade One Cable Checker2 ($60.00)
• Laptop - Asus Zenbook Duo ($2,299.99)
• Charger - Satechi Chargeview 240W ($149.99)
• IR Thermometer - TempPro TP30 ($20.99)
• Wall Power Monitor - Tekcoplus TK282PLUS_US ($20.99)
• USB-C Cable (240W) - Anker 515 ($21.99)

How We Test

How We Test

Before we plug the device in, we inspect build quality (does it feel like cheap plastic or metal), size, weight, and port count/type. We also look at capacity and output ratings, fast-charging capabilities (think PD, etc.), and any certifications (UL/CE) or safety features. From this information, we can get a good idea of the pros and cons, including cost/mAh, actual versus listed capacity, port count, temperature, protections, and more.

For testing, we first make sure the power banks are fully discharged before we begin. Next, we take the chassis temperature with the IR thermometer and connect the power bank to the Satechi desktop charger via a certified 240W USB-C cable, along with the Power-Z device. From there, we record the time to fully charge the device and the maximum sustained input wattage (which, as you’ll see, tends to drop due to temperature or at a point in charging where it slowly lowers the amperage/wattage, and sometimes voltage). We also record the maximum chassis temperature using the IR Thermometer.

After fully charging a power bank, the next step is to discharge it using a constant load. In this case, we use the Asus Zenbook Duo as a real-world load up to ~93 W while running Cinebench for the CPU and FurMark to stress the integrated Intel Arc B390 graphics. This isn’t your basic budget laptop. At over $2,200, it packs an Intel Core Ultra X9 388H (5.1 GHz turbo, up to 80W), dual 14-inch Lumina Pro OLED touchscreens, and a 99 Wh charger.

Here, we test maximum and minimum output in watts and determine watt-hours (Wh) and milliamp-hours (mAh), with data gathered from the Power-Z device while discharging. We also record temperature readings at the start and at the maximum.

Once we have that data, we can determine the device's capacity efficiency, at least for testing the laptop and higher-voltage charges. As we mentioned earlier, mAh ratings on packages are inflated by voltage-conversion losses and are based on the internal battery cells' 3.7V voltage. The higher the voltage (and, of course, amperage/watts), the less mAh capacity a battery bank provides.

In our testing, the Zenbook Duo accepts 20V and up to 93W when it can, which is a worst-case scenario for smaller-output chargers, normal for higher-output chargers, and typical for laptops and higher-powered devices. If you’re only charging a smartphone or small tablet at lower volts, the value will be closer to the listed specifications. But it will differ when your smartphone charges at a lower voltage, often 9V for fast charging. Remember, output wattage (and voltage) determines charging speed, and for some people (or in some instances), that matters more than capacity.

After testing all of the power banks, we compiled all the data into the charts below.

Tested Power Banks

Tested Power Banks

We captured some images of all the chargers during the test below. We also included a simple chart listing all the power banks tested, along with capacity, wattage, port/count type, safety features, and the current price (at the time of publication).

Takeaways and Results

Takeaways and Results

What surprised me most was how long a couple of these devices took to completely charge from empty. Cuktech’s CP12 and CP24 models and the Baseus PicoGo AC22 took over 2.5, 4, and 6 hours, respectively, to reach 100%. This is partly due to lower input wattage and/or how the device accepts power over time. Whether it's the voltage used, temperatures and potential throttling, or battery health and safety features, each handles the activity a bit differently. Others, like the Anker Prime or Shargegeek 170, offer much higher output and charge even higher-capacity devices much faster. In fact, the Shargegeek took under an hour to fill its 24K mAh coffers, accepting the most power (almost 140W peak) from our charger. Again, charging may not be a major concern for many people, but it’s good to know how long to expect your bank to reach full, since some are notably faster than others at the same capacity.

Temperatures didn’t play as obvious a role as they did in our charger testing. Lithium batteries perform best between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius, and the hottest device we covered was the Baseus PicoGo, which reached a peak chassis temperature of 43 degrees. The coolest of the bunch were the Anker Prime and Anker Laptop chargers, peaking at 37 degrees externally. These are all warm to the touch, but not hot — not something I would be particularly concerned about leaving out on a desk or table, in your purse or backpack, or even just sitting on the couch or a bed while charging your device(s).

But of course, it’s always good to keep charging devices somewhere you can see them regularly. Because batteries can, of course, be dangerous when things go very wrong, and there are at least two batteries cycling when you’re using a power bank.

Discharging didn’t bring too many surprises. A rare couple, like the Shargegeek 170 and Cuktech P23, maintained output throughout the entire discharge tests, while most others dropped voltage, amperage/wattage, or both. This matches how many devices charge: they use a lot of power/voltage initially, then drop to lower values to protect battery health (or due to thermal throttling).

We see a lot of ads about charging X device to Y% in Z minutes, and the higher the sustained output (assuming your device can take it), the faster it charges. For those that did drop, the differences were somewhere between 33% and 50% of the peak output.

The one thing I found surprising here was how quickly some power banks stopped outputting at their maximum. For instance, the Baseus PicoGo dropped from its peak just four minutes into testing, while the Shargegeek 170 pumped a constant 90+ Watts until it was empty – no subtle voltage changes, just 20V/90W full tilt until the very end. Belkin’s Ultracharge also maintained its full output over time.

Below are the results covering capacity, output, and the actual capacity from our testing. The Anker Nano (A1638) had the least capacity when charging a laptop, at 1,600 mAh out of 10K. It spit out over 40W of output for a short time and stepped down to 20W, about 20 minutes in.

The Baseus Picogo Air and its slim design managed the highest actual capacity, but this is more a function of its limited 9V output and a quick drop from 19 to 11W. This tiny little device is great for a phone, but not ideal for larger items like our laptop. The large 24K Shargeek 170 sits in the middle of the pack, since it can output the full 20V and 90+W constantly.

Conclusion

Conclusion

After testing all 13 power banks, there really isn’t a single ‘best’ bank. It comes down to what you’re charging and how patient you are. If you’re mainly topping off a phone or small tablet, capacity efficiency matters more than raw output. The Baseus PicoGo Air (currently $49.99 on sale), with its tiny footprint, shines here, squeezing out the highest actual-versus-listed capacity because of its lower 9V charging output. It’s small, light, and fits easily into a bag or purse; just don’t expect it to do much for a laptop, but it will easily charge a modern smartphone.

For laptop charging, the Shargeek 170 (currently on sale for $79.90) and Cuktech P23 $109.99 stood out by maintaining peak output (90+W @ 20V) through discharge instead of stepping down like most other power banks. At under $80, the Shargeek is a steal compared to the Cuktech.

Although others will charge laptops fine, that consistency could mean the difference between a predictable fast charge and a slower charge over time due to pre-programmed behavior or thermal throttling. The Anker Prime at $129.99 deserves a mention for charging laptops, too, as it pairs high output, fast charging, and the coolest chassis temps. However, it is the most expensive power bank we’ve tested. While it and others do come with informative displays, it’s up to you if that’s worth the premium.

If you’re concerned about the speed of charging the power bank, stay away from the Baseus PicoGo (AC22), Cuktech CP24, and CP12 – they took anywhere from 2.5 to 6 hours to reach full, which is a long time to wait if you need your battery back in rotation quickly. The good news is that these also have pass-through charging and will charge and discharge at the same time. The bottom line is, for phones, go small and efficient like the Baseus PicoGo Air; for laptops, prioritize sustained high wattage and sheer capacity (Shargeek 170, Cuktech P23, or Anker Prime), and if you want a bit of everything, the Anker Prime is hard to beat given its balance of speed, output, and temps, but it is expensive.

The Thunderbolt 5 market is starting to heat up, as we’re seeing more players enter the increasingly crowded field. We’ve previously looked at docks in the sub-$400 price category, and premium offerings crossing the $600 barrier.

Today, we’re focusing on two new entries in the sub-$400 category: the VectoTech V-Core and the Orico TB5, priced at $349 and $399, respectively. Both offer a wealth of USB and Thunderbolt ports, 2.5 GbE Ethernet, and internal M.2 slots. While their specs look similar on paper, at the end of our testing, there was a clear winner.

VectoTech V-Core

Design of the VectoTech V-Core Thunderbolt 5 Dock

The V-Core has what I’d call a traditional, candybar form factor. It’s meant to sit flat on your desk, unlike chunkier docks that can also operate vertically. At first glance, I thought the V-Core was made of lightweight aluminum. However, it wasn’t until I started fumbling around, trying to figure out how to access the internal M.2 SSD slot, that I discovered the unfortunate truth: the V-Core is constructed almost entirely of plastic. That includes the lower and top chassis, and much of the internal structure.

It’s a stark departure from every other Thunderbolt dock that I’ve tested, which are made from aluminum to help dissipate heat – which can be intense when a dock is under load. In addition, the top cover wiggled around when snapped into place (it uses a friction fit to attach to the main chassis).

With the top cover removed, you can see an internal cooling fan, which is essential for cooling Thunderbolt 5 docks with internal SSD bays, and a large black aluminum heatsink held in place with two screws. After removing the screws, the heatsink lifts off, revealing an M.2 slot that supports up to an 8TB 2280 SSD. Here’s another nitpick: Instead of using a screw to secure the SSD, VectoTech uses a tiny, spinning plastic retaining clip.

This is a feature that’s handy to have on motherboards when you’re often reaching inside a case, sometimes while the case is vertical. But it makes less sense in a small dock – especially when this particular latch is smaller than we’ve seen on other M.2 mounts. It didn’t inspire much confidence that it would hold the SSD in place, at least not compared to traditional screws. That said, VectoTech offers thermal pads that cover both the top and bottom of your SSD.

When it comes to ports, the VectoTech V-Core left me scratching my head a bit: There are no native HDMI or DisplayPort ports on the dock. Most Thunderbolt docks include at least one of the two common video ports, so it was disappointing to see this omission here. It’s not the end of the world, however; you can always use an HDMI-to-USB-C or DisplayPort-to-USB-C adapter with the dock (at an additional out-of-pocket cost).

Front

• 1x Thunderbolt 5 upstream (80 Gbps bi-directional, 140W)
• 1x Thunderbolt 5 downstream (80 Gbps bi-directional, 60W)
• 1x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2
• 1x SD UHS-II slot
• 1x audio combo jack

Back

• 2x Thunderbolt 5 downstream (80 Gbps bi-directional, 15W)
• 2x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2
• 1x USB-A 3.2 Gen 1
• 1x 2.5 GbE (RJ45) port
• 1x 240W power port

Instead, you’ll find two Thunderbolt 5 ports on the front (one upstream, one downstream), a USB-A port, an SD 4.0 reader (no microSD), and a 3.5 mm headphone jack. Moving to the back, there are three additional USB-A ports, two downstream Thunderbolt 5 ports, and a 2.5 GbE port.

Orico TB5

Design of the Orico TB5 Thunderbolt 5 Desktop Workstation

Unlike the V-Core, the Orico TB5 has a chassis primarily constructed of a single piece of thick aluminum. The outer chassis has an oblong shape, with ventilation cutouts on the right and left sides.

The front and rear fascias are plastic, and where you’ll find the assortment of ports.

Front

• 3x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2
• 1x Thunderbolt 5 downstream (80 Gbps bi-directional, 60W)
• 1x SD UHS-II slot
• 1x microSD UHS-II slot
• 1x audio combo jack

Back

• 1x Thunderbolt 5 upstream (80 Gbps bi-directional, 140W)
• 1x Thunderbolt 5 downstream (80 Gbps bi-directional, 60W)
• 1x HDMI
• 1x DisplayPort
• 1x 2.5 GbE (RJ45) port
• 1x 240W power port

Up front, you’ll find an SD 4.0 slot, a microSD 4.0 slot, three USB-A ports (10 Gbps), one USB-C port (also 10 Gbps), and one Thunderbolt 5 downstream port. On the back, there’s one Thunderbolt 5 upstream port, one Thunderbolt 5 downstream port, one USB-C port, one DisplayPort, one HDMI port, a 2.5 GbE port, and a 3.5mm audio combo jack.

I was somewhat surprised to see both HDMI and DisplayPort in this relatively compact Thunderbolt 5 dock, but they are welcome additions here. It’s hard to be disappointed with Orico’s choice of ports on the TB5, as there’s a nice balance of USB-A, USB-C, and video outputs.

But my absolute favorite design feature of the TB5 is on its underside. Most Thunderbolt docks that feature an internal SSD slot require you to remove a screw to access the M.2 slot. However, the TB5 uses a magnetic cover that is easily removed with a fingernail, yet strong enough to remain attached when moving the dock around. It’s a small touch, but appreciated when swapping SSDs. The M.2 slot can accommodate 2280 form-factor SSDs.

Testing

Testing the VectoTech V-Core and Orico TB5 Thunderbolt 5 Docks

The lack of native DisplayPort and HDMI ports didn’t hamper my testing with the V-Core. My primary desktop rig uses a 49-inch WQHD monitor with native USB-C support, and it connected to the V-Core without issue at its native 240 Hz refresh rate with a Windows 11 PC and a Mac running macOS 27. I also tested the same monitor using the HDMI-to-USB-C and DisplayPort-to-USB-C adapters that I have on hand. Again, I had no issues with this setup.

The dock itself did get very hot; just as hot as the many aluminum-shelled Thunderbolt 5 docks I’ve tested. Although I didn’t experience any slowdowns or errors after extended use, I do wonder about heat soak with the plastic enclosure over time. The internal fan definitely helps, but it’s a concern that lingers at the back of my mind.

I tested the Orico TB5 across USB-C, DisplayPort, and HDMI connections without any performance issues or hiccups. Like the V-Core, the TB5 also includes an internal cooling fan.

Everything that I threw at both docks worked without issue. I hooked up USB mice and keyboards, my iPhone Air, a 1TB USB-C thumb drive, an Orico Thunderbolt 5 SSD dock, multiple portable USB-C monitors, and a DJI Mini 5 Pro drone. I also tested the 2.5 GbE LAN on both docks on my TP-Link Deco BE63 home network.

Among recent Thunderbolt 5 docks we've tested, the V-Core was at the back of the pack in both sequential read and write speeds (5,371.96 MBps and 4,083.95 MBps, respectively). Orico’s TB5, on the other hand, landed in second place, behind the UGREEN Revodock MaxiDok in sequential reads (5,745.11 MBps), and led the pack in sequential writes (4,335.56 MBps).

When testing the 2.5 GbE LAN on both docks, both maxed out at around 2,300 Mbps using iPerf3, which is right in line with what we would expect after taking into account TCP/IP packet overhead.

Bottom Line

Bottom Line

The VectoTech V-Core and the Orico TB5 are similarly priced and feature a similar form factor, but Orico’s TB5 is by far the superior entry here. For starters, it just feels like a more premium product, with its aluminum enclosure versus the V-Core's plastic. And accessing the internal M.2 slot on the TB5 is much easier, requiring a simple tug on the magnetic access door, versus prying off the plastic cover on the V-Core, removing two screws, and then prying off the internal heatsink.

In other ways that matter to most people, the TB5 includes native DisplayPort and HDMI connections for your monitors. The V-Core is USB only (necessitating a USB-C adapter for most monitors). And finally, while the V-Core was at the back of the pack in storage performance compared to its peers, the TB5 trended near the front.

Right now, the VectoTech V-Core is priced at $349 on Amazon, versus $399 for the Orico TB5. A $50 premium is certainly enough to consider going with the cheaper option. But more and better ports, faster throughput, and a better, more premium design make the Orico worth paying extra for.

The Blue Yeti launched back in 2009 and went on to become one of the most popular USB microphones for creators, podcasters, and streamers. Now, eight years after acquiring Blue Microphones, Logitech is finally launching its successor. The new Yeti 2 arrives as a more modern version with a cleaner design and features a 3D proximity sensor, AI-based noise reduction, and even a built-in display. Unlike the original Yeti, however, it will be available in only two colors — Black and White — at a starting price of $159.99.

• Grab the Logitech Yeti 2 microphone from Amazon

Logitech says the proximity sensor on the Yeti 2 is capable of tracking audio in 3D and can automatically adjust various settings in real time, including gain, equalizer, and pickup patterns. As for the AI denoiser, it can actively filter out unwanted background noise such as keyboard clacks, mouse clicks, and fan noise to ensure crystal-clear audio.

The Yeti 2 also retains the USB connectivity that helped make the original microphone popular, while adding several features aimed at making it easier to adjust settings on the fly. The integrated 1.3-inch colored LED display features an easy-to-use interface with an 8-bit Yeti mascot that provides quick information and helpful tips. It also allows you to tweak settings or switch between presets using the dial, without having to rely on dedicated software. Alternatively, the mic offers direct integration with Logitech’s G Hub software for deeper settings control, community-powered Blue VO!CE profiles, and custom avatar uploads.

In addition to its latest microphone, Logitech also announced some gaming-focused products under its G Pro series. The new gaming lineup includes the Pro X3 Superstrike mouse, Pro X Control mousepad, Pro X2 Rapid keyboard, and Pro X3 Lightspeed headset, all designed with input from professional esports athletes.

The Pro X3 Superstrike uses Logitech’s proprietary HITS technology and is claimed to deliver 50% improved power efficiency in a lightweight design. The Pro X Control mousepad measures 400 x 460 mm and features a knitted cloth surface, 6 mm foam cushioning, stitched edges, and a high-friction base for stability. The Pro X2 Rapid keyboard comes with magnetic switches, Rapid Trigger, Key Priority, and an OLED display that allows users to make quick adjustments. Finally, the Pro X3 Lightspeed headset features a 48 kHz microphone, customizable EQ, and extended battery life aimed at long competitive gaming sessions.

Something, something, going back to your roots. I guess that's what Glorious is doing (or, thinks it's doing) with the GMMK Eternal — its new wired mechanical gaming keyboard.

The GMMK Eternal is, at a glance, pretty basic: it's wired, it has regular mechanical (not magnetic) switches and a standard 1,000 Hz polling rate. It comes with bright backlighting, double-shot ABS keycaps, and some gamer-friendly features such as multiple onboard profiles and macro-recording via Glorious Core. It also has a hot-swappable PCB and three layers of sound-dampening material in the case — it's not supposed to be a revolution, but it is a pretty solid option if you're looking for something compact and relatively budget-friendly. The GMMK Eternal is available now in black, with GMMK's Fox MX linear switches, for $99.99.

Design and Construction of the GMMK Eternal

The GMMK Eternal is a wired mechanical gaming keyboard with a compact 96-percent layout — it has a full function row, arrow keys, and a 10-key numberpad, but everything is squashed together (and it ditches most of the navigation keys), so it takes up significantly less space than a full-size keyboard but has almost as many keys. It sports a fairly simple, minimalist overall design — edge-to-edge keys with virtually no bezel, black anodized aluminum top plate over a black ABS plastic bottom case, and no obvious branding on the top or sides.

The keyboard measures approximately 14.6 inches (372mm) wide by 4.8 inches (122mm) deep, and is 1.7 inches (44mm) thick at its thickest point (including the keycaps). That's significantly smaller than a full-size keyboard, and is even small by 96-percent keyboard standards — perhaps my favorite 96-percent keyboard, the Asus ROG Strix Scope II 96 Wireless, is slightly larger than the GMMK Eternal at 14.84 x 5.16 inches (377 x 131mm), though at 1.57 inches (40mm) thick, it's slightly lower-profile. This is because the GMMK Eternal has double-shot ABS keycaps with shine-through legends in an OEM profile (the ROG Strix Scope II 96 Wireless comes with keycaps in a mid-height profile that's very close to the Cherry profile).

While the GMMK Eternal is pretty compact, even by 96-percent keyboard standards, you won't feel too cramped for space. There's enough room to leave some separation between the alphanumeric keys and the arrow keys (though not much), and there's enough room in the top row that the Function keys are grouped into visibly distinct groups of four. There are five navigation keys next to the Function row and above the numberpad: PrintScreen, Delete, Insert, Page Up, and Page Down. So you really shouldn't miss too much about your full-size board once you get used to the numberpad being right on top of you.

The GMMK Eternal has some weight to it, but it's not too hefty: it weighs in at just under two pounds (1.94 lbs / 879 g), which is about what we'd expect for a board of this size and construction. For comparison, the wired Corsair Vanguard Pro 96 weighs about 2.2 pounds (998g), while the wireless Asus ROG Strix Morph 96 Wireless weighs just under 2.5 pounds (2.48 lbs / 1,125 g). The GMMK Eternal is heavy enough that it shouldn't move around on your desk too much during heavy gaming sessions, but it's not so heavy that it would be difficult to travel with.

The bottom of the keyboard is where you'll finally see Glorious' branding. The Glorious name is stamped across the back, debossed with a shiny finish. There are also a couple strips of anti-slip rubber, as well as two sets of plastic flip-out feet for adjusting the keyboard's angle. The GMMK Eternal is a wired keyboard, and it has one USB-C port in the center of the board.

The GMMK Eternal comes with just two accessories in the box: a 6-foot (1.8m) rubber-coated USB-C to USB-A cable and a 2-in-1 combination keycap and switch puller.

Specs

Typing and Gaming Experience on the GMMK Eternal

The GMMK Eternal is a mechanical gaming keyboard with a hot-swappable PCB that takes both 3- and 5-pin switches. It comes pre-built with Glorious' Fox switches, which are pre-lubed linear switches with an actuation force of 55g — a little heavier than your average linear switch, but I kind of liked the extra force. The switches are otherwise typical linear switches, with smooth, stable keypresses that have no tactile bump or audible click. They're rated for 50 million clicks.

The keyboard features three layers of sound-dampening material in the case: a molded silicone layer and two layers of PU foam around the PCB, for a "deeper, more satisfying thock." And I'll admit that I was pretty impressed with how the GMMK Eternal sounded out of the box — especially for a sub-$100 keyboard from a mainstream gaming company. There was a small amount of rattle as I typed, but the case, at least, was solid and ping-less, and bottoming out did give a deeper sound (if not quite a "thock").

The GMMK Eternal comes with double-shot ABS keycaps in an OEM profile, which is the standard, medium-height profile you'll find on most mainstream gaming keyboards. The keycaps have lightly cupped, textured tops with shine-through legends and secondary legends printed on the sides in white. While I usually prefer lower-profile keycaps, I didn't mind these — the keyboard is fairly compact and low-profile to begin with, so I didn't find the standard height OEM profile to be uncomfortable (nor did I feel like I needed a wrist rest).

The GMMK Eternal is a solid option for both typing and gaming — I didn't have any issues with accuracy, speed, or response time in my testing, minus the normal learning curve of getting used to having the arrow keys right on top of the alphanumeric keys.

Features and Software of the GMMK Eternal

The GMMK Eternal is configurable with Glorious' universal peripheral software, Glorious Core, which I don't have any real problems with, save for the fact that it requires a restart upon install. The keyboard has onboard storage, and you can set up up to three profiles in Glorious Core to save directly to the hardware.

You can use Glorious Core to adjust the keyboard's settings, including polling rate, input latency, and lighting standby timer, as well as switching between Windows and Mac modes. This isn't a magnetic switch keyboard, so there's not much else to set up in terms of performance. You can also remap keys — up to two layers deep, and the software has a built-in macro recorder and manager.

You can also customize the keyboard's lighting, which looks great — the board features bright RGB backlighting with a north-facing PCB, and the board's otherwise boring design really lets the lighting shine. There are 17 different lighting presets in Glorious Core, and you can also customize the lighting for each key individually (if you want).

The Bottom Line

The Glorious GMMK Eternal isn't the most exciting keyboard on the market, especially not for gaming. It's a wired keyboard with mechanical switches and a standard 1,000 Hz polling rate, so it's not trying to be the fastest, lowest-latency, RapidTrigger-enabled keyboard that will launch you into a pro-eSports career. Instead, it's a simple, compact keyboard that offers a very solid typing and gaming experience with hot-swappable switches and pretty RGB lighting for the relatively budget-friendly price of $100. While you can definitely find keyboards for less than $100, you probably won't find one that sounds and feels better than the GMMK Eternal.

The best webcams are getting smaller, cheaper, and faster, apparently — Dell's newest premium webcam is a 4K webcam that streams video at a maximum resolution of 4K / 60fps, which is definitely a faster and smoother frame rate than your typical Dell webcam buyer needs. There's not much you can really do with those numbers if you're not a content creator — and especially not in a professional setting, as most video conferencing apps limit your outgoing stream to 1080p or lower.

Luckily, the Dell Pro 7 has more than just smooth, high-res video going for it — it also features Windows Hello compatibility, presence detection, smart image enhancements, and built-in dual beam-forming mics that might be the first built-in webcam mics we can actually recommend. At $199.99, it's priced right alongside 4K webcams such as the Logitech MX Brio and the Insta360 Link 2 4K, which means it has some pretty tough competition.

Design

The Dell Pro 7 webcam is a 4K / 60fps webcam with a solid, sturdy fabric-covered chassis and a glass lens cover. It features a large Sony STARVIS CMOS sensor, an auto-focus lens, 4x digital zoom, and it has a maximum aperture of f/2.0. It has a built-in physical privacy shutter and comes with a detachable USB-C cable and monitor mount.

The Dell Pro 7 is similar in design to the cheaper Dell Pro 5 Webcam 2K — it features the same low-profile oval-shaped body, though the Dell Pro 7 is quite a bit larger and heavier than the Dell Pro 5. The Dell Pro 7 measures approximately 2.6 inches (66mm) deep by 2.1 inches (53.3mm) wide, and is about 1.4 inches (35.6mm) tall. This is the same height as the Dell Pro 5, though the Dell Pro 7 is both deeper and wider than its cheaper sibling. It's also heavier — Dell lists its weight at 8.48 ounces (240.4g), but that includes the mount. However the webcam alone still weighs around 3.46 ounces (98g). By comparison, the Dell Pro 5 weighs 7.41 ounces (210g) including its mount, and weighs 2.57 ounces (73g) without it (but including the cable, which is not detachable).

It is heavier than the Dell Pro 5, but it's not unusually heavy for a premium 4K webcam. The Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra, for example, weighs about 6.28 ounces (178g) alone, and that jumps up to 11.89 ounces (337.08g) when you include the mount. The Logitech MX Brio weighs just 4.83 ounces (137g) alone, but it weighs 11.04 ounces (313g) with its mount. And the Dell Pro 7 is also quite a bit smaller than its competition — I especially like how relatively low-profile it is at 1.4 inches, which is less than half the height of the 3.01-inch (76.5mm) height of the Kiyo Pro Ultra.

The Dell Pro 7 has a built-in physical shutter that you can close with a switch on top of the webcam. It looks just like the built-in physical privacy shutter on the Dell Pro 5, but it has a built-in spring-loaded mechanism so it snaps into place when you slide the switch. (The Dell Pro 5 doesn't have this mechanism — you need to manually slide it all the way.) The spring-loaded mechanism definitely made it feel more premium than the Dell Pro 5, but it still needed to be pressed fairly hard to activate, which means you can't really use the shutter without messing up your frame.

The Dell Pro 7 comes with a detachable monitor mount that attaches to the webcam via magnet. The mount is a pretty standard clamp-style monitor mount, with a lip at the front that hooks over your monitor and a rubber-coated adjustable "foot" that sits against the back of your monitor to stabilize the setup. The mount attaches to the Dell Pro 7 via a relatively stable magnetic attachment point, and the camera can tilt (approximately 90 degrees forward) and swivel while mounted. On the bottom of the webcam you'll also find a universal tripod attachment mounting point so you can use it with a tripod or a different, third-party mount. The mount itself does not have a tripod attachment point, which is a little disappointing as it means you'll be limited to the movement options of whatever third-party mount/tripod you're using.

The mount is hefty and stable, weighing about 4.83 ounces (137g). It's basically the exact same mount that comes with the Dell Pro 5, though it has a slightly textured rubber coating on its "foot," while the Dell Pro 5's mount features soft, smooth rubber. The weight and quality feel much more consistent with the build of the Dell Pro 7, however.

In the box, the Dell Pro 7 comes with a 6.5-foot (2m) heavy-duty USB-C to USB-C cable (USB 3.0) with a built-in USB-C to USB-A converter, the detachable monitor mount, and the webcam itself. The cable is definitely very thick and sturdy — a little too thick and sturdy, as bumping it kept displacing the webcam. The built-in USB-C to USB-A adapter is a nice touch, though you will still need to plug it into a USB 3.0 port if you want to get the full 4K picture quality and use some of the "smart" features (such as the "smart" HDR).

Specs

Well-lit Performance

The Dell Pro 7 is a 4K webcam that records video in 4K, 1080p, and 720p resolution at both 60 and 30fps — which makes it somewhat rare, as most 4K webcams record a maximum of 4K / 30fps. Not that this matters for most users, as streaming and video chat platforms still generally limit outgoing streams to 1080p at most. Still, I guess it's worth noting if you're looking for a webcam that you can use to record action sequences on.

We started out by testing the Dell Pro 7's performance in what is basically an "ideal" (and very unrealistic) webcam lighting scenario. In this scenario there are two professional lights in front of me (behind my monitor set up): a ring light and a key light. I also have four monitors — three 27-inch monitors and one ultra-wide 34-inch monitor, plus some negligible ambient lighting from various peripherals (including my desk). There are two desk lamps behind me, as well as an arching floor lamp above me. All in all, this is an aggressively well-lit scenario (and a very unlikely one, unless you happen to be a professional content creator).

The Dell Pro 7 looked very good in our well-lit scenario. It did a great job of reigning in its auto-exposure in response to the lighting, which is something even the best webcams usually have more trouble with. It managed to keep the scene pretty evenly lit, even as I moved around the room, while also keeping it from looking too evenly lit, i.e., flat and featureless. Its auto white balancing was okay, though it trended toward the cool end of the spectrum. Actually, the colors on this webcam always seemed to be just a little too cool, even with some tweaking in the software. Not the worst thing in the world, but it was frustrating that I couldn't get the color to where I wanted it with adjustments.

That said, while the Dell Pro 7 produced an objectively very good image overall, it didn't really stand out in any way aside from that. I suppose that's not a bad thing, especially for a webcam that's (maybe) slightly more aimed at the workplace, but it mostly made me think of all the other $200 4K webcams you can pick up instead of the Dell Pro 7. Also, while the webcam did a pretty solid job of capturing still photos, the auto-focus was a little slow — which sort of negates the benefit of a 4K / 60 fps capture rate.

Low-Light Performance

To test the webcam's low-light performance, I turned off all of the lights and all of my monitors except for one 27-inch monitor. For consistency, I opened the standard Google home page, which is mostly white, on one half of the monitor and the Windows 11 camera app on the other half. This scenario leaves me in complete darkness save for the light from one 27-inch monitor, which is still quite a bit more light than a laptop user would have if they were sitting in the dark.

The Dell Pro 7 performed moderately well in our low-light scenario. It did an okay job of lighting the scene — the picture looked better than most older webcams, but that's about it (and that's not saying much). There was a lot of noise / graininess and artifacting, however, especially when I moved. And the autofocus had (unsurprisingly) even more trouble tracking me in the dark, and an evenly-lit blurry mess is still a blurry mess.

No webcam performs particularly well in low light, because sensor size is a major factor in low-light performance and webcams are... just not that big. But compared to other 4K webcams such as the Elgato Facecam Pro and the Logitech MX Brio, the Dell Pro 7 definitely comes in a little below average.

Overexposed Performance

To test the Dell Pro 7's performance in overexposed lighting scenarios, I turned off all of the lights in front of me and three of my monitors. That left me with my overhead and background lights, as well as one 27-inch monitor. This isn't the most extreme overexposed lighting scenario, but it's a fairly common one as most offices tend to have a lot of overhead lighting (and only professional streamers put bright, studio-grade lighting directly behind a monitor).

The Dell Pro 7 performed fairly well in this lighting scenario, though it struggled to find a natural-looking color balance (and it kept veering cooler). This is another scenario in which no webcam does particularly well — for the most part, it's enough to just not get blown out by the lighting behind you. But the Logitech MX Brio, which is probably one of the Dell Pro 7's closest competitors, did a much better job here.

Features and Software

The Dell Pro 7 is configurable via the Dell Display and Peripheral Manager, which lets you adjust camera and picture settings and set up the webcam's various features, such as Windows Hello, presence detection, and the "smart" image enhancements.

While the Dell Display and Peripheral Manager has all the settings and adjustments you might expect in a webcam app, I didn't feel like the various manual adjustments for exposure, saturation, contrast, sharpness, and vibrance were very powerful, which was a bit surprising as usually these settings are too powerful. But this wasn't too much of an issue for me, as the picture is already pretty good — just not perfect — out of the box.

In addition to image enhancements and color adjustments, you can also set up several features in Dell Display and Peripheral Manager — such as face-tracking and auto-framing; "smart" HDR, exposure, and auto white balance; and Windows Hello compatibility. Like the Dell Pro 5, the Dell Pro 7 also has a "document view" feature designed to better focus on and display documents, as well as an "object focus" mode that can be activated using gesture controls (or manually).

The Dell Pro 7 has built-in dual beam-forming microphones, and while a built-in microphone is not really something most people are looking for in a webcam (especially as they generally tend to be terrible), the Dell Pro 7's built-in mics were surprisingly good — and not just for a webcam, but... in general. In fact, this might be the first webcam with a mic I can actually recommend.

The Dell Pro 7's mics picked up my voice very well — it came through loud, clear, and surprisingly vibrant and full, even when I was sitting at a normal distance from the webcam and speaking casually (i.e., not trying to speak "into" the mic). There was a little fuzziness and distortion around the edges of my words, and it picked up the clacking on my keyboard and the clicking on my mouse almost as well as it picked up my voice (and the software-based noise reduction in the app almost immediately started swallowing my words), but as long as you're not trying to type and talk at the same time the Dell Pro 7's mic sounds good. Not as good as a standalone USB gaming mic, of course, but on par with the average gaming headset mic.

Bottom Line

The Dell Pro 7 is actually a pretty solid 4K webcam, if not a particularly thrilling one. While I don't think most people looking at the Dell Pro 7 are going to be fiending for 60fps, I'm sure there are probably at least two people who will appreciate it. For everyone else, the Dell Pro 7 has a nice suite of office-friendly features, including presence detection to lock your PC when you're not sitting in front of it, Windows Hello compatibility for extra security, and things like document view and gesture control and an extra-wide field of view for when you need to run a remote 4K, 60fps meeting with lots of people (and documents).

But if you don't see yourself running speedy, highly-detailed multi-person webcam meetings, the similarly-priced Logitech MX Brio does a better job at making you look good... which is a big part of what webcams are for, right? The Dell Pro 7 outputs a decent picture (in relatively "ideal" lighting), but this webcam is not really about the picture — it's about everything else.

Many audiophiles still prefer physical media like CDs and vinyl over streaming, especially those who want to own their music, which is why we’re seeing a resurgence in sales for these media. However, one major concern hitting some Hi-Fi brands is the lack of optical drives built for mainstream computers, which has caused the supply chain for key components to dry up. According to Headphonesty, Naim’s Uniti Star and PS Audio’s PMG Super Audio CD Transport have ended production because their suppliers no longer make the optical hardware these units need.

Unfortunately, both companies cannot easily find replacements for these out-of-production components. “The drives appropriate for a PMG are no longer available,” PS Audio CEO Paul McGowan said in the company forum. He also added that building its own optical disc reader is beyond PS Audio’s capabilities, saying that its expertise is in electronics and software. It’s also the same problem that Naim is facing, with one commenter in its own forum saying that it assembles components instead of manufacturing them from raw parts and materials.

PS Audio’s problems began in June 2024, when D&M Holdings, which owns Denon and Marantz, said that it would stop taking orders for its SACD/CD mechanism by the end of the following month. This meant that the company needed to place its final order before the deadline, with costs doubling as other brands scrambled to build their stockpiles. This was probably because D&M was the only company producing and selling that particular component to third parties. McGowan stated that Marantz has ended production of its SACD/CD drives and that PS Audio has completely bought out the company’s last remaining inventory.

While it’s unclear which supplier Naim used for its Uniti Star Streaming Amplifier, it’s been said that the company did consider an alternative supplier for its optical drives. Unfortunately, this is not an easy swap in the production line, as these optical media readers are often built as an assembly, meaning installing a different model requires new control codes and mechanical tweaks inside these units. As Naim was considering how to integrate this substitute drive into its existing Uniti Star product, the alternative ceased production as well.

You can still buy Hi-Fi CD players and transports today, but these units from Naim and PS Audio are already out of stock if you want them brand new. Thankfully, the two companies keep some components in their inventory for repairs, so existing owners don’t have to worry about getting their expensive systems bricked just because the optical readers on their devices have failed.

Just because you're in the office doesn't mean you might not still need to be on camera — so I guess it's not too surprising that some of the best webcams are made specifically for the office. Or that Dell is the one to make them.

Dell's new office-oriented 2K webcam, the Dell Pro 5 (WB526), is a small, lightweight webcam that records video at 2K QHD / 30fps, 1080p / 30fps, and 720p / 60 and 30fps. It sports a Sony sensor and has a 78-degree field of view, 2x digital zoom, and an autofocus lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.0. As for its "office-friendly" features, it's compatible with Windows Hello, and it has an "anti-theft interface" and comes with a lockable cable that you can attach to a loop on the non-detachable USB-C cable. It also has some intelligent features, such as smart auto-exposure, AI auto-framing, and face tracking, as well as a built-in omnidirectional microphone that doesn't sound quite as terrible as most built-in webcam mics. It's available now for $119.99, though it's currently on sale for $114.99.

Design

The Dell Pro 5 webcam is a small oval-shaped webcam with a non-detachable USB-C cable (which comes with a built-in USB-A adapter. It has a lightweight black plastic body, measuring about 2.28 inches (57.9mm) wide by 1.7 inches (43.18mm) deep, and is 1.4 inches (35.56mm) high. It's a fairly small webcam — not quite as small as the YoloLiv YoloCam S3, but close. It also has a physical lens shutter, which you can open and close via a small switch on top of the device. It's not the most elegantly implemented lens shutter we've ever seen, but it does the job perfectly well.

Like many lower-cost webcams, its cable is not detachable — it's a 5-foot (1.5m) rubber USB-C cable with a built-in USB-C to USB-A converter attached to one end. It's not a particularly thick cable, but it's stiff enough (and the webcam is lightweight enough) that it does influence the webcam's position, and bumping it can cause the webcam to accidentally move and mess up your framing.

The Dell Pro 5 comes with a sturdy detachable monitor mount that attaches to the bottom of the webcam via a strong magnet. (The webcam also has a standard tripod mounting point, should you want to use it with a different camera mount.) The mount is surprisingly hefty — it weighs about 4.7 ounces (133g), which is nearly twice the weight of the webcam itself, which weighs around 2.57 ounces (73g). It's a pretty standard monitor clip mount, with a lip that goes over the edge of your monitor and an adjustable, rubber-coated "foot" that sits on the back of your monitor to hold the webcam in place.

The mount allows you to tilt the webcam forward up to 90 degrees, which will probably be useful for the webcam's document-reading feature. It also allows you to swivel the webcam almost 90 degrees in either direction, so it's actually pretty flexible for a mount included with a more budget-friendly webcam. It does not have a tripod mounting point on the bottom, however, so you won't be able to take advantage of this flexibility away from your PC.

In the box, the Dell Pro 5 comes with its detachable monitor mount and a locking mechanism for those of you who work in insecure office environments (or, I suppose, for those who might travel and work from co-working spaces, I guess). The locking mechanism is designed to slide through a loop on the cable.

Specs

Well-lit Performance

The Dell Pro 5 is a 2K webcam that outputs video in 2K UHD at 30fps — it's not 4K, but it should give you more detail and better image quality than a standard full HD 1080p webcam, even if most streaming and video conferencing services limit your outgoing stream to 1080p or lower.

For our well-lit performance test, I tested the Dell Pro 5 webcam in a fully-lit setting. From the front, I have two professional lights (a ring light on the right side and a key light on the left side), as well as four monitors (three 27-inch monitors and one 34-inch widescreen monitor), plus ambient lighting from various peripherals, including my desk. Behind me, there are two desk lamps, and overhead I have an arching floor lamp. There is no uncontrolled light in my home office, and it's a pretty bright scenario. (All of my test photos are taken with Windows' native camera app for consistency, but please note that test photos are mainly for illustrative purposes and the conclusions drawn are based on extensive testing.)

The Dell Pro 5 performed pretty well in our well-lit scenario, though the color balancing seemed to wash me out slightly and the picture wasn't quite as crisp as I would have liked. That said, this is exactly the kind of picture I look for in an office-oriented webcam — bright and evenly-lit, if a little flat, for a more "professional" appearance (and so it can do things like read text and scan documents). It's not the most cinematic, dramatic, or flattering image from a webcam, but it should work very well in a professional setting.

Low-Light Performance

For our low-light test, I turned off all of the lights in my home office except for one 27-inch monitor, on which I had a window open with Google's homepage (mostly white) filling half the screen and the Windows 11 Camera app filling the other half. This is basically a completely dark scenario with only my (admittedly, relatively large) monitor for lighting.

The Dell Pro 5 performed about as well as I expected in this scenario — it was able to pick up more detail in the dark than most 1080p webcams, though its low-light performance is far from what I'd call "good." This was more noticeable in moving video, however, as the video was extremely grainy with large artifacts (this photo actually makes it look much better than it was). The Dell Pro 5 does have HDR, but this didn't seem to make a significant difference in the low-light picture quality.

By comparison, the Dell Pro (WB5023) webcam did a better job with balancing light in the low-light scenario, though it picked up the same amount of detail. The Elgato Neo, which is a budget 1080p webcam, did a much better job of balancing light in this scenario, but its picture was also extremely grainy.

Overexposed Performance

For our overexposed performance test, I turned off most of the lights in front of me (save for one 27-inch monitor) and left the lights behind and above me turned on. This is actually one of the most likely scenarios for webcam users, as offices tend to be generally well-lit environments, but without dedicated camera-focused lighting aimed at the user.

The Dell Pro 5 performed adequately in our overexposed performance test: it managed to balance light fairly well (every webcam struggles with this), but its auto color balancing was definitely off. Both the Dell Pro (WB5023) and the Elgato Neo did a much better job with color balancing in the overexposed scenario, especially with the default settings.

Features and Software

The Dell Pro 5 is configurable via Dell Display and Peripheral Manager, which lets you adjust the webcam's image settings and toggle on various features such as face tracking, HDR, and auto exposure. You can also set up features such as gesture control and Windows Hello from this app, as well as Document View, which can be configured to automatically turn on when you tilt the camera down at least 60 degrees and show a rectangular document.

While the Dell Display and Peripheral Manager does have a lot of settings you can adjust, including brightness, sharpness, contrast, saturation, and vibrance, I found that adjusting the settings didn't actually seem to do much for the picture. Turning the saturation down to 0%, for example, gave me a slightly desaturated image — not a completely black-and-white one. I also found it frustrating that there was no way (at least as far as I could see) to minimize the app to your system tray.

The Dell Pro 5 has a built-in omni-directional microphone for when you have absolutely no choice other than to use your webcam's built-in mic. The mic wasn't the worst I've heard on a webcam — it managed to pick up my voice pretty clearly, and didn't make me sound like I was yelling through an underwater tunnel — but it wasn't great, either. It should work fine if you've got nothing else on hand to speak into, but it's not a microphone I'd recommend.

Bottom Line

The Dell Pro 5 webcam is definitely designed for office use — and for an office-oriented webcam, it's not bad. But if you're looking for something easy to use and cheap enough that your coworkers aren't going to try to steal it, I'd probably recommend the Elgato Neo over the Dell Pro 5 — after all, the Elgato Neo retails for $60 and can currently be found for about half that, which means the Dell Pro 5 is more than four times as expensive.

The Dell Pro 5's 2K resolution might come in handy if you're the type of person who's constantly showing documents over video calls, but Razer's Kiyo X also has a 2K resolution and retails for $100 (and can currently be found on sale for around $75). The Dell Pro 5 isn't a bad webcam, but you don't need to pay $120 for similar quality.

The past few years have been an exciting time for flight simulation hardware. Established brands and newcomers alike have introduced a wide range of new products, making it easier and more affordable than ever to build a capable home cockpit.

Thrustmaster has long been one of the leading names in flight simulation hardware. Its HOTAS Warthog has been a staple in home cockpits since its release, earning a reputation for its robust construction. In 2024, Thrustmaster introduced the AVA Joystick Base, bringing several notable improvements over the Warthog base. Until recently, however, there wasn't a dedicated Airbus grip compatible with the AVA base.

In this review, we'll be taking a look at the recently released Thrustmaster Airbus Add-On Grip paired with the AVA Joystick Base. We will put both the grip and the base to the test using the Fenix A320 in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024.

Inside the Box

The Airbus Add-on Grip contains the grip itself, the A400M module, and a button cover.

The AVA Base contains the joystick base, two sets of two cams (Aero and Jet), three sets of two springs (Soft, Medium, and Strong), three masks (Small, Medium, and XL), two Allen keys, and one detachable USB-C cable.

• Airbus Add-on Grip Dimensions: 3.1 inches / 78 mm wide, 3.3 inches / 83 mm deep, 7.7 inches / 195 mm tall. Weight: 0.4 lb / 203 g.
• AVA Base Dimensions: 4.3 inches / 108 mm wide, 6.7 inches / 170 mm deep, 2.8 inches / 72 mm tall. Weight: 2.4 lb / 1,069 g.

Thrustmaster also sent us an AVA Base Plate for easier desktop mounting, along with AVA Dual Pitch Cam. The Dual Pitch Cam contains two FBW (fly-by-wire) cams which are meant to simulate the sensation of a fly-by-wire aircraft.

All of these products are sold separately.

Customization

One of the primary goals of the AVA Base is to provide a high degree of customization, allowing users to tailor the joystick to their preferred flying experience. The interchangeable cams let you adjust the axis curve, different springs allow you to fine-tune resistance, and the various deflection masks can be used to limit the range of travel.

The user manual includes recommended configurations for different types of aircraft. Since we’re testing the Airbus Add-On Grip, we’ll configure the AVA Base for an airliner-style feel. According to the manual, this involves using the Jet Cam with the Medium spring. However, as mentioned earlier, Thrustmaster also provided us with a pair of FBW cams that are designed to deliver an even more authentic experience by simulating the control feel of a fly-by-wire aircraft, such as those in the Airbus A3XX family.

The AVA Base also comes with T.A.R.G.E.T (Thrustmaster Advanced pRogramming Graphical EdiTor), which is an application that allows you to further tune the feel of the axes and access advanced profiles created by the Thrustmaster community.

Like the AVA Base, the Airbus Add-On Grip also offers several customization options. For example, it includes a module and button cover that transform the grip from an A3XX sidestick into an A400M sidestick. Additionally, the Z-axis can be locked out using an integrated mechanical lock, preventing unintended twist inputs.

Overall, customizing the base and the grip was very straightforward.

Build Quality

The AVA Base has a premium feel, with a high-quality plastic outer shell complemented by a metal top plate. The are only two drawbacks. On its own, the base is not stable enough to handle larger stick inputs. We therefore recommend pairing it with the optional AVA Base Plate, which significantly improves stability. Additionally, the base does not include enough damping out of the box, causing the stick to wobble if you move it with a finger. This is not noticeable during normal flight, but stronger damping would have been a welcome inclusion. Thrustmaster offers additional dampers, which are sold separately, that address this issue.

The Airbus Add-On Grip is designed as a 1:1 replica of the Airbus A3XX sidestick, closely matching the shape and ergonomics of its real-world counterpart. In its standard airliner configuration, it features the signature red autopilot disconnect button. It also includes an interchangeable module and removable button cover, allowing it to be converted into an A400M-style sidestick.

Both the AVA Base and Airbus Add-On Grip use Hall effect sensors with 16-bit precision. The base employs them on the X and Y axes, while the grip uses them for the twist (Z) axis and integrated mini-stick.

How Does it Feel?

The first thing that stood out was how much more authentic the AVA Base felt compared to the Thrustmaster Warthog. Unlike the Warthog, there is no noticeable center detent as you pass through the neutral position. Resistance increases progressively as the stick moves farther from center, resulting in smoother and more natural control inputs.

Compared to the Thrustmaster TCA Airbus Sidestick, the AVA Base also has less overall travel on both the X and Y axes, with a progressively increasing resistance rather than the TCA's more linear feel. Based on previous experience with an A320 simulator, this behavior closely matches the feel of the real Airbus sidestick, making the controls feel more authentic.

The Hall effect technology and 16-bit precision of the AVA Base also allow the user to make very fine and precise inputs. In normal conditions, that is exactly how one would fly an Airbus - using small, deliberate sidestick movements.

The Airbus Add-On Grip captures the look and feel of the real Airbus sidestick, with ergonomics that make it feel instantly familiar to anyone who has flown or used an Airbus simulator.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 Testing

We tested the AVA Base and Airbus Add-On Grip in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 using the Fenix A320. While there are several Airbus aircraft available for MSFS 2024, we chose the Fenix because it offers one of the most accurate flight models and flight dynamics for an Airbus plane in the sim, making it the best platform for evaluating Airbus flight controls.

We also tested with a pair of FBW cams designed to replicate the feel of an Airbus fly-by-wire sidestick. However, based on our experience with an A320 simulator, we found that the standard Jet cams included with the AVA Base felt more authentic. The FBW cams introduced a more noticeable center detent, whereas the Jet cams provided a smoother transition through center, more closely matching the feel of a real Airbus sidestick.

We tested the base and stick in three difference scenarios:

1. Basic maneuvering. Flying at 5,000 feet, we performed gentle turns and pitch changes to evaluate the precision of the base during small, accurate control inputs.
2. Turbulent approach. We performed an approach into Las Vegas under hot, windy conditions with strong updrafts and downdrafts. This scenario required larger, more frequent control inputs to assess the resistance and how the base handles turbulence and rapid corrections.
3. Curved approach. Finally, we flew the RNAV Visual approach to Runway 1R at San Francisco International Airport. This approach is available in MSFS 2024 if you use the Navigraph database, but it is missing the RF leg between the waypoints KLAUS and SQIRL, so we added it to the navigation database of the Fenix A320 ourselves. The procedure features a sweeping right-hand arc that continues until roughly one mile from the runway threshold, requiring the aircraft to remain in a turn at very low altitude. The approach demands precise tracking of the flight path while also requiring a smooth, accurate transition to the runway centerline after the final waypoint. This scenario tested both the precision and responsiveness of the AVA Base.

Basic Maneuvering

While flying at 5,000 feet, we were impressed by the AVA Base’s precision when making small adjustments to both pitch and roll. Compared to the Warthog and TCA Airbus Sidestick, the AVA Base allowed for significantly finer roll inputs, making it easier to make small corrections and maintain a precise flight path.

When controlling vertical speed through pitch adjustments, we were able to consistently achieve the desired climb or descent rate within approximately 100 feet per minute, demonstrating the level of control possible with the high-resolution sensors.

Turbulent Approach

Landing in Las Vegas during the summer can be a challenging experience. The combination of extreme heat, strong winds, and thermals along the approach path can create significant turbulence, resulting in a much less stable approach. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is able to replicate these conditions through its Live Weather system. While it is important to avoid overcorrecting and creating pilot-induced oscillations, these conditions require more frequent and sometimes larger control inputs than a typical approach.

The AVA Base handled this turbulent approach very well. The conditions forced us to make slightly larger inputs, so we felt the progressive resistance of the base as we moved further from center, which felt authentic. We were also able to make very quick corrections to counter the turbulence and keep the aircraft on the published approach path.

Curved Approach

During the RNAV Visual approach to Runway 1R at San Francisco International Airport, we were able to precisely track the sweeping right-hand arc all the way to the final waypoint, SQIRL. Once established at SQIRL, the AVA Base’s responsiveness allowed us to smoothly align with the runway centerline.

Other products, including the Warthog and TCA Airbus Sidestick, produced more noticeable jerky movements during this approach, which is likely due to lower precision around the neutral position.

Overall Thoughts

After putting the AVA Base and Airbus Add-On Grip through extensive testing, we came away extremely impressed with the experience. As competitors have continued to close the gap with Thrustmaster Warthog — and even surpass it — the AVA Base represents a return to the level of quality and refinement we have come to expect from the brand.

The AVA Base delivered exceptional precision, smooth control, and an authentic Airbus-like feel across a variety of challenging flight scenarios. The addition of the recently released Airbus Add-On Grip finally allows users to pair this high-end base with a dedicated airline-style sidestick, making it a compelling option for anyone who regularly flies Airbus aircraft.

The biggest obstacle is the price. The level of engineering and build quality comes at a premium, which may put the AVA Base and Airbus Add-On Grip out of reach for many users. However, for those looking for a high-quality Airbus stick and willing to invest in a premium setup, the Thrustmaster AVA Base paired with the Airbus Add-On Grip is a compelling option.

Libernovo is still basically brand new to the gaming chairs market — the company just released its first chair a little over a year ago. But the original Libernovo Omni was impressive: lightweight, dynamically ergonomic, and comfortable enough to supplant my ride-or-die Herman Miller Aeron for several months. Now Libernovo is branching out (sort of), with variations on its original Omni. There's a cheaper, less-techy version (the Omni SE), a fancier version with a built-in fan (the Omni Pro), and a sturdier version for people who are between 5 feet 10 inches and 6 feet 7 inches, weighing up to 399 pounds (181kg).

We're taking a look at the Libernovo Omni Pro, which is the more premium version of this already fairly pricey chair. It's got a few upgrades from the original Omni, including a reinforced aluminum alloy base and more durable fabric, as well as a built-in seat ventilation fan that works... surprisingly well, considering it doesn't blow air toward you but rather draws it away from you. As the fanciest Omni variation, the Omni Pro is, of course, pricier than the original Omni, but not by too much — its retail price is listed at $1,299, but that seems to be permanently discounted to $1,109. That's for just the chair itself; Libernovo also sells it bundled with a corresponding StepSync footrest for $1,183 (MSRP: $1,497), and with an extra battery for $1,247 (MSRP: $1,596).

Assembly

The Omni Pro does require some assembly: It's more complicated to assemble than most gaming chairs, as it has some electronics built-in. But it's also easier to assemble than most gaming chairs, as it's fairly lightweight and none of the pieces are oversized or unwieldy.

The chair comes with everything you need to assemble it, including work gloves (not really necessary, but a nice touch, I suppose), a hex screwdriver, and hardware packaged in individually-labeled bags. The instructions are printed on a giant box insert, which is fairly easy to follow (though I still felt like the illustrations could have been explained slightly better). The chair also comes with a separate user manual and a setup manual to help you calibrate the chair for the first time.

The chair took me about 20 minutes to put together on my own.

Design and Construction

The Omni Pro looks very similar to the regular Libernovo Omni — it's a compact, lightweight office chair with an articulated backrest that's designed to move with your body as you move and shift your weight in the chair. It's a pretty compact chair, relatively speaking, but it does have a “spine” that holds the backrest together, as well as a headrest that can be moved forward/backward, and so it takes up more space (at least, behind you) than you initially expect.

The Omni Pro comes in two colors, graphite (dark gray) and glacier (light gray, almost white). Our review unit came in graphite, with dark gray upholstery, a dark gray frame, a black wheelbase, and silver (plastic) accent buttons / knobs. The Omni Pro features new fabric upholstery — Gabriel Atlantic fabric, which is more durable and (I guess) breathable than that of the original Omni. The fabric does look and feel more durable and premium, but it's slightly more abrasive than the original fabric. It didn't cause me any real discomfort, but I also didn't sit on it for very long with bare skin.

The upholstery and the wheelbase — which is made of hefty aluminum alloy — are the main noticeable design differences between the Omni Pro and the original Omni. The aluminum wheelbase does add some weight to the chair, bringing its total weight up to 55.8 pounds (25.31kg), which is heavier than the original Omni's weight of 48 pounds (21.77kg) — but still isn't particularly heavy for a chair, let alone a gaming chair.

The Omni Pro also has an extra button under its left armrest, to control the underseat ventilation fan (tapping the button toggles through the fan's settings — slow, fast, and off).

Specs

Comfort and Adjustments

The Libernovo Omni Pro is a surprisingly comfortable chair — just like the original Omni — thanks to its dynamic, ergonomic articulated backrest and various adjustments. It's more of an office chair than it is a gaming chair, but it does offer a full 160-degree recline — though it's an active recline, meaning you need to be sitting in the chair for it to happen (as opposed to many gaming chairs, which are similar to car seats).

The Omni Pro's adjustment levers are mainly located under the seat on the right side. There's a dual lever / switch that controls chair height and recline position — pulling up on the front side of the lever lets you adjust height, while pulling up on the back side of the lever locks the maximum recline. While the original Omni had four recline positions, the Omni Pro has five — and believe it or not, this makes a big difference. Whatever fifth position they added is the position I wanted on the original Omni, I guess (the recline positions lock at 105, 115, 125, 135, and 160 degrees).

Under the dual lever / switch, there's a knob that controls tilt tension, which is how much tension you'll feel when you recline. Turning the knob clockwise increases tension and turning it counter-clockwise decreases it. There seems to be a pretty wide range of tilt for this chair, so you may need to turn it several times to get the tension to your liking.

There's also dynamic, adjustable motorized lumbar support, which is controlled via the buttons on the inside of the left armrest. There are two arrow buttons for making the lumbar support firmer (forward) or... less firm (backward), and there's also a spinal massage button that triggers a five-minute spinal massage / stretch (using the chair's lumbar support) when pressed. While I like the Omni Pro's lumbar support, and found it very comfortable, it's worth noting that it's not vertically adjustable — so while it worked well for me, it may not work quite as well for someone with different body proportions.

Speaking of which, I'm about 5 feet 7 inches and 130 pounds, and the Omni Pro seemed perfect for me — not too big or heavy, and easy to adjust and move around in. The chair is rated for up to 300 pounds (136kg), and it seems sturdy enough — though I'm not sure how well the electronics will hold up if someone who weighs closer to that is using the spinal stretch feature regularly. My husband, who's 5 feet 11 inches and around 180 pounds definitely seemed a little too big for the chair (he has very long legs, though, and the chair's maximum depth of 18.9 inches (48cm) was still a little short for him).

In addition to the lumbar support, the Omni Pro has a ventilation fan under the seat. Unlike the other chairs we've seen with built-in fans, such as DXRacer's Martian Pro Red Triangle or Cougar's NxSys Aero Chair, this fan doesn't blow toward you to cool you off — instead, it removes hot air (I guess?) from around you by blowing away from you. I was skeptical, too, but it actually seems to work... pretty well. I guess there's a lot of heat trapped in the seat, because it instantly felt cooler even on the lower setting.

The fan runs on the same battery pack as the motorized lumbar support, and Libernovo says you'll get up to 9 hours of continuous fan usage on the higher setting, and up to 36 hours on the lower setting, and there's also a built-in sensor in the seat that automatically switches the fan off if you stand up (and switches it back on again when you sit back down). I could definitely hear the fan on both the high and low settings, but it faded pretty quickly to background noise on the lower setting. Also, the fan definitely seems to take up some space, because the seat on the Omni Pro is less padded than the seat on the Omni. I could feel the chair's frame through the seat, which wasn't a problem for me but may not be quite as comfortable for someone who's heavier.

Like the original Omni, the Omni Pro has 4D armrests that adjust four directions: up/down, forward/back, left/right, and angle in/out. There's a lever under the outside of each armrest that you can press to adjust the armrests up/down. To adjust the armrests forward or backward, you just slide the tops (no button/lever necessary); same with adjusting the angle. Bringing the armrests closer to you involves pulling them inward, tilting them toward you. I don't love the way the armrests end up angled toward your body as a result of this, but I also don't ever find it necessary to adjust the width of my armrests so it wasn't an issue.

The Omni Pro also has an adjustable head/neck rest, which is curved to fit the curve of your neck/spine. The neck rest is height-adjustable and can be moved forward/back to suit your needs (or removed entirely).

Libernovo also sent us the corresponding StepSync Footrest, which is a dual height footrest with both a bottom shelf for resting your feet on when you're sitting upright and a padded upper shelf for when you want to recline. It's not a particularly high-tech footrest, but it's sturdy enough and it matches the chair, and it's a nice addition to the entire setup if you snag it in the bundle.

Bottom Line

Libernovo's Omni Pro managed to surprise me — I already liked the original Omni, and the Omni Pro's seemingly gimmicky seat ventilation fan worked better than I expected it to. The Omni Pro is a comfortable ergonomic chair that will fit pretty easily into most gaming setups (especially if you don't have the space for a giant racing-style behemoth), but the issue of longevity that we had with the original Omni carries over.

The Omni Pro has even more potentially breakable technology inside it, and the warranty on electronics is a mere two years — and remember, if the electronics in this chair stop working then you can no longer adjust the lumbar support. The chair itself has a six-year warranty (up from the original Omni's five years), which is on par with other gaming chair companies, but is still only half that of Herman Miller's 12-year warranty.

And while the Herman Miller x Logitech G Vantum has been fluctuating in price, it's still less than the Omni Pro.

Fractal Design is determined to be on, under, and in front of your desk — the PC peripherals company best known for its designer PC cases has just released the Fractal Refine 2 — the second generation of its minimalist, "refined" take on the typical racing-inspired gaming chair.

The Fractal Refine 2 is very similar to the original Fractal Refine, but it's been... refined... just a bit further. It still features a subdued but unmistakable "gaming chair" silhouette, as well as a fairly high level of adjustability and a large, hefty frame. Fractal has definitely made some changes — the 4D arm rests now lock in place, and the tilt limiter, which I found to be way too strong in the original, has been pulled back a little (but not quite enough). The price has also been adjusted — all variations retail for $640, which is on the higher side for a typical racing-style gaming chair. We did like the original Refine, but its scratchy mesh fabric kept it off our list of best gaming chairs — but this time we're taking a look at the fabric version.

Assembly

The Fractal Refine 2 comes in a heavy box that's so large you might think the chair is already assembled — but it isn't. It's well-packed: all the pieces are individually wrapped and/or boxed, and there's plenty of eco-friendly packing material keeping everything in its place.

The chair comes with all the tools you'll need to assemble it, though there's admittedly not too much assembly. It comes with an allen wrench and several screws — six longer screws for attaching the armrests, two shorter screws for attaching the backrest, and a handful of extra screws, just in case.

Assembly is pretty straightforward and is pretty easy to accomplish alone — unlike most of the traditional racing-style gaming chairs, the backrest of the Refine 2 is quite a bit lighter than the base, and is easy to put into place alone. It also has two pre-placed screws that slot into two holes and slide to "lock" in place, so you don't need to somehow hold the two pieces together and screw them into place simultaneously. (This might not sound that noteworthy, but trust me — many chairs are virtually impossible to put together without a partner because of this.)

I was able to assemble the Refine 2 by myself in about 15 minutes, and the most difficult part was unpacking everything (because the box really is huge). The Refine 2 comes with a large illustrated instruction panel, as well as an information booklet with more detailed instructions.

Specs

Design

The Refine 2 comes in three upholstery options — fabric, mesh, and hybrid (fabric seat, mesh back) — and two colorways — light and dark. Our review unit came in the dark colorway, a dark slate heathered gray with a black frame, with full fabric upholstery. The fabric feels like soft brushed cotton and is much more comfortable than both the mesh and the fabric of the mesh version of the original Fractal Refine that we reviewed two years ago.

Fabric aside, the Refine 2 looks very similar to its predecessor, with the same "refined" racing-inspired silhouette. It sits on a sturdy, five-spoke metal base with large, hollow plastic casters and a class 4 pneumatic gas lift. It features a glass-fiber reinforced frame with a thick, padded seat that has slightly raised sides — not quite a bucket seat, though it does have the traditional forward hump that bucket seats have. The seat width is approximately 17 inches (431.8mm) between the sides; with the sides included it's closer to 20.5 inches (520.7mm).

The chair has a tall, racing-style backrest with slightly winged shoulder support and a headrest. The chair measures 18.75 inches (476.25mm) wide at the shoulders, and is approximately 53.7 - 58.5 inches (1365 - 1485mm) tall overall. The backrest consists of fabric stretched over a plastic frame for firm, suspension-style support. The chair also features manually-adjustable lumbar support, which presses through the backrest and can be moved vertically and adjusted for strength.

The Refine 2 is not a bad-looking chair, but it is big, heavy, and difficult to maneuver once it's been assembled. It weighs almost 80 pounds (36kg), and is fairly bottom-heavy, which I suppose is good for those who want to spend a lot of time tilting in this chair.

Comfort and Adjustments

The Refine 2 is highly adjustable, though it doesn't offer some of the traditional gaming chair adjustments, such as the ability to lie almost completely flat. There are two levers on the right side of the chair, just under the seat, that control seat depth and height. The front lever controls height, and works as expected — pulling it raises and lowers the chair's height via its gas lift. The floor-to-seat height ranges from 19.3 - 24 inches (490 - 610mm).

The back lever controls seat depth, which starts at around 16.7 inches (425mm) and can be adjusted to approximately 19.69 inches (500mm), which is pretty deep. Under the two levers there's a knob for adjusting the strength of the chair's tilt limiter — twisting forward (clockwise) makes it stronger, while twisting backward (counter-clockwise) makes it weaker. One of my main issues with the original Refine was that the tilt limiter was far too strong, even at its weakest setting. I'm pleased to see that the Refine 2 has toned down the absolute strength of the tilt limiter, but unfortunately it's still just a little too strong for me to be able to easily lean back. While I did manage to find a comfortable position with the Refine 2 by tilting back and locking the chair into a slightly reclined position, I would still prefer more flexibility in the seatback while I'm working.

The Refine 2 has adjustable lumbar support in the form of a moving lumbar pad that presses through the seat's suspension back. The lumbar pad can be moved up and down (you'll need to move it manually), and support can be dialed up by twisting the knob clockwise, or dialed down by twisting the knob counter-clockwise. The lumbar support now features dual pads on either side of your spine (instead of just one pad, like the original Refine had), which flex and adapt as you move to better support your lower back. The dynamic support was nice, though I think I still prefer vertically-adaptable support (like what's on the Herman Miller x Logitech G Vantum).

Like its predecessor, the Refine 2 has 4D adjustable armrests — you can adjust the height, width, depth, and angle. Unlike its predecessor, these arm rests do fully lock in place, as the depth (back/forward) movement is now locked to the small button (on the inside of the armrest, near the front) that also locks angle. There's a lever on the outside of each armrest for adjusting height, and a button on the inside (in the middle) for adjusting width. You can also adjust overall armrest width at the base, though you'll need to break out the hex wrench to do this.

The armrests have wide, padded polyurethane-covered tops and are fairly comfortable. I did find the depth/angle lock to be a little difficult to easily maneuver — especially when I wanted to adjust angle (there are only three angles — neutral/straight, and about 20 degrees inward and outward), but I suppose that's the price we pay for locking arm rests.

The chair has a built-in, detachable neck pillow implemented the same way it is on the original Refine — attached to the chair via two sturdy metal attachments that click into place. The neck pillow can be manually raised or lowered, or it can be removed completely by pressing the button at the top of the backrest. The neck pillow is very similar to the one in the original Refine — moderately dense fabric-covered memory foam with a bottom-heavy sloped shape designed to sit at the base of your neck.

The maximum recommended weight for the Refine 2 is approximately 300 pounds (135kg). However, the recommended weight range is 132 - 300 pounds (60 - 135kg) and the recommended height range is 5'5" - 6'7" (160 - 200cm). I'm right at the lower end of this range (I'm around 5'7" / 171cm and I weigh around 135 pounds / 61kg), and the chair still seemed too heavy for me. While the tilt limiter was weaker than the tilt limiter on the original Refine, I still found it hard to easily tilt back and ended up having to lock the chair into position for comfort. My husband, who's 5'11" (180cm) and weighs around 190 pounds (86kg) had a much easier time tilting and maneuvering the chair.

Bottom Line

The Fractal Refine 2 is actually a pretty nicely refined version of the original Refine. The company definitely took some feedback into account and made some adjustments — but are they enough? This chair is practically identical to its predecessor, and the relatively minor changes aren't really enough to warrant an upgrade if you already have the original. If you don't already have the Fractal Refine, the Refine 2 is a pretty nice halfway point between racing-style gaming chairs and pricier task/office chairs — and the price is about halfway, too. At $640, this is a little more than you'll spend on a typical racing-style chair, such as SecretLab's Titan Evo NanoGen, but it's significantly less than you'll spend on most office-style chairs, such as SteelCase's Karman.

An ardent Asus customer who's bought over $30,000 worth of the company's products recently had his brand loyalty put to the test. Lucas (u/lucaslucaalucas123) wanted a replacement for the 2.4 GHz wireless receiver that came with his ROG Delta II KJP gaming headset, but was denied support because accessories aren't covered under warranty. He took to Reddit to express his disappointment and was met with a hopeful reply in the comments.

The OP brought receipts (literally) to prove his unwavering commitment to the brand, with screenshots showcasing at least 18 different items bought just this year alone. In the second picture, we can see the ROG Delta headset was purchased in April, and it's still under warranty till 31 January 2027. This is a premium headset; it costs $270 normally, though it's on sale for just $199 on Best Buy right now.

Asus' official support policies say that free accessories, such as a mouse with a laptop, are not covered under warranty. But accessories bundled with peripherals are indeed covered under the same terms as the peripheral itself. Since a wireless receiver is a key component of the headset, it should be replaced in case of a defect or hardware failure. However, if you lose it or break it yourself, that's a different story.

Since the customer was asking for a replacement outright instead of opening a ticket for a defect, it's possible that customer service simply wasn't equipped to help him out. Small parts like these often don't carry their own SKU number, so it's hard to bill them separately, or it could be just that the reps are misinformed on the exact nuances of free, optional accessories versus core accessories required for proper functioning.

Anyhow, Lucas was told to buy the receiver himself through a third-party reseller. Asus lists three suppliers in North America for replacement parts, but we weren't able to find the specific receiver for the ROG Delta II KJP on any of these websites. It's actually unclear if the OP has found a supplier that even has this receiver in stock, because the post concludes with him asking others how they managed to get a replacement.

Fortunately, an Asus rep in the comments apologized and said they've escalated the matter. They also remarked how this shouldn't have happened regardless of one being a new or a loyal customer. Lucas' allegiance to Asus had perhaps created a bubble where he thought the brand would reciprocate the loyalty. We're not inferring this either; his caption clearly implies he felt betrayed after investing so much.

Ultimately, it took one simple receiver to completely shatter that illusion. Businesses operate on the basis of fatter margins. Laws bind them to offer customer support. It wouldn't be unreasonable to say that they'd do much worse if they could get away with it. So, let this serve as a cautionary tale for the next time you're being brand-conscious or trying to be an evangelist; remember that they are profit-making organizations first and foremost.

The portability of a laptop is nice, but it’s not without drawbacks. I often find myself wanting more from their generally tiny screens and more connectivity than my laptop offers, especially for heavy multitasking. Even writing a simple deals post like this requires multiple windows to be open, and my 14-inch 2560x1440 work laptop doesn't offer enough screen real estate to work efficiently. An extra monitor or two is great for viewing multiple things (for me, browser tabs) at once without using ‘Alt+Tab’ to move around between active applications on your desktop. This $99.99 docking station costs only $24.29 with Woot using promo code WOOTDOCK ($29.99 without); it’s a whopping $77 (76%) off and is the best deal you’ll find on a name-brand 7-in-1 docking station this side of a Prime Day.

• Check out this deal at Woot!

Starting with video output, this tiny little device offers a single HDMI 2.0 output good for 4K60Hz, along with a DisplayPort 1.4 port for up to 8K30Hz output. In other words, you can run two 4K60Hz monitors or a single 8K30Hz display, either dramatically increasing your screen real estate from a single, generally small, native laptop monitor. In addition to video output, it supports up to 60W USB-C PD, so you can also quickly charge your host device when connected to an external charger.

It’s not all about the video with docking stations, though. You get additional connectivity, including two USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) Type-A ports and a 3.5mm audio combo jack. It also offers a 1 GbE port so you can connect your laptop to a wired local network or the internet for faster speeds, lower latency, a more stable connection, and increased security over Wi-Fi. The HyperDrive dock connects to your MacBook Pro/Air, iPad Pro/Air, Windows, or ChromeOS device via a Thunderbolt 4 (40 Gbps) connection for ultra-fast data and file transfers.

With a price of $24.29 after using the promo code WOOTDOCK at checkout, you’re not going to find another name-brand dock at a better price. In fact, you’d be hard-pressed to find any Thunderbolt 4 dock at this price that offers the port count and high-res video support. Deals at Woot.com don’t last long, so if you’re even thinking about buying a dock for your laptop, jump on this deal now before it disappears.

It has been a quarter century since the world’s first webcam was turned off for good. The Trojan Room Coffee Pot was retired on Wednesday, August 22, 2001, after 10 years of service at Cambridge University. This extraordinary webcam’s final low-res image was of its own switch-off, with the fingers of Daniel Gordon, Martyn Johnson, and Quentin Stafford-Fraser pressing the power-off switch on the Acorn Archimedes to which the cam was attached.

Quentin Stafford-Fraser and Paul Jardetzky created the webcam for the entirely practical purpose of preventing team members from being disappointed when they visited the coffee pot. “There were about fifteen of us involved in related research and, being poor, impoverished academics, we only had one coffee filter machine between us, which lived in the corridor just outside the Trojan Room,” Stafford-Fraser recalls. “However, being highly dedicated and hard-working academics, we got through a lot of coffee, and when a fresh pot was brewed, it often didn't last long.” With several team members in other parts of the building, some needing to traverse several flights of stairs to reach the coffee pot, XCoffee was devised as a solution.

The Archimedes mentioned in the intro wasn’t the first host for the Trojan Room Coffee Pot camera; that was an unnamed Motorola 680X0 machine. The Acorn RISC computer took over webcam duties less than eight years prior to the switch-off in 2001.

This webcam has a history going even further back, though. Remarkably, the Trojan Room Coffee Pot webcam was live even before the World Wide Web was a thing. It began service in 1991, when a 128 x 128 pixel grayscale camera was connected to the science lab’s LAN via a frame capture card. An image of the coffee pot was captured three times a minute and via a custom-coded server-side X Window System protocol app so that any team member on the network could monitor/check it. This pioneering webcam actually connected to the internet for the first time in November 1993, just a few months after web browsers gained the ability to display images.

Today, webcams can be used to broadcast very high-quality streams with high resolutions and supporting very fast data and frame rates. Great capture hardware, fast computers, and fiber internet are widespread now, so if you wanted to live-stream a coffee pot, it would be a cinch to do so in true color, in up to 4K, and 60 frames per second using one of the best webcam picks of 2026.

A class-action lawsuit has been filed against Logitech after it allegedly failed to return the tariffs that the U.S. government refunded to the company after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that President Donald Trump’s tariffs were illegal. According to Ars Technica, the company increased the prices on more than half of its product line by as much as 25% in April 2025, the same month that the U.S. president announced the “Liberation Day” tariffs.

The lawsuit [PDF] alleges that the company received a full refund of $61 million as of June 30, 2026, but it has yet to return or refund any of its customers who bought Logitech products at the inflated prices. In fact, the price increases that it implemented last year in response to the illegal tariffs are still in place. “Many companies that received the benefit of a tariff refund, like the shippers that are now voluntarily returning money that they paid on customers’ behalf, are returning those ill-gotten gains to customers,” the attorneys argued in their class-action complaint.

“What separates Logitech from these shippers is that Logitech has made it clear it has no intention of returning that refund to its customers.” This contrasts with some companies, like Arctic, that have begun implementing refunds by cutting product prices.

Another argument in the complaint states that Logitech has more than enough capability to refund its customers. “Logitech’s own figures establish that the Company extracted approximately $73 million to $97 million from consumers in fiscal years 2026 alone through tariff-justified price increases, a conservative estimate of the amount passed through to the Class is therefore at least $75 million to $100 million,” the lawsuit alleges. It also pointed to the company’s statement in its May 2026 earnings call, saying that “manufacturing diversification actions combined with the price increase in the U.S. more than offset the negative impact of tariffs.”

Nintendo is in the same boat as Logitech, which is also facing a similar lawsuit after it refused to pass on its tariff refunds to customers. Although the Japanese console manufacturer managed to keep Switch 2 prices at its launch price of $449, the price of the previous-generation Switch increased by $40 to $50, and other accessories like Joy-Con 2 controllers also got a price bump. The list price of the older console has since reverted to pre-tariff prices, but the company refused to refund customers who bought at the higher prices.

“Nintendo or one of its retailers set a price for each product, and consumers decided whether that price was worth paying,” Nintendo’s lawyers said. “Those who bought Nintendo’s products received exactly what they bargained and paid for: a console, game and/or accessory at a price to which both parties agreed.”

There aren't too many wireless charging mouse pads on the market, which is perhaps a little surprising given how many wireless gaming mice there are. Possibly there just isn't that much demand for wireless charging mouse pads. After all, not many people want to pay $100+ when the best gaming mouse pads start at much, much lower prices.

The Razer HyperFlux V2, introduced about a year ago, is the current version of the brand's wireless charging mouse pad lineup, which debuted back in 2018. The HyperFlux V2 supports several of Razer's current mice from three of its lines — Naga, Basilisk, and Cobra — but not from the DeathAdder or Viper lines. It comes in hard and soft editions, both of which are priced at $119.99.

Design of the HyperFlux V2

The HyperFlux V2 comes in two variations — a hard edition, which has a hard, polycarbonate surface designed for speed; and a cloth edition, which has a soft, cloth surface for control. Both versions share the same specs, aside from surface type. For this review, we tested the hard edition.

The HyperFlux V2 is a medium-sized gaming mouse pad that's a little larger than other medium-sized gaming mouse pads. It measures 16 inches (360mm) wide by 12.24 inches (311mm) long, so it shouldn't take up too much space on the average gaming desk. The surface itself is only 0.2 inches (5mm) thick, though the power/charging module at the top is around 0.52 inches (13.3mm) thick. The HyperFlux V2 is slightly larger than Logitech's PowerPlay 2, which measures 13.54 x 11.14 x 0.14 inches (344 x 238 x 3.5mm). But both should fit on your desk pretty easily.

The mouse pad has a hard, microtextured polycarbonate surface surrounded by a shiny plastic bezel. It's not particularly luxurious-looking, but the surface is flat and consistent and seems fairly easy to clean, though dust does seem to gather in the (very tiny) gap between the surface and the bezel.

There's a long, thin charging module at the top of the mouse pad, in the center. It's longer and more prominent than the PowerPlay 2's charging module, but it's also better integrated into the design. It's very similar to the power module in the Razer Firefly V2 Pro. In the center of the charging module, there's a 1.25-inch (32mm) LED indicator light, which lights up to indicate the mouse's charging status and battery level.

The bottom of the mouse pad is fully lined with an anti-slip rubber base to keep it from moving around on your desk.

The HyperFlux V2 comes with just two accessories — a wireless charging puck and a USB-C to USB-A adapter, as the mouse pad has a non-detachable USB-C cable. The cable is similar to the non-detachable, rubber cable on the PowerPlay 2.

Specs

Performance of the HyperFlux V2

The point of the HyperFlux V2 is to eliminate the need for you to manually charge your wireless Razer mouse, and it executes this... exactly as expected. All you need to do is replace the puck on the bottom of your compatible wireless Razer mouse. I'm using the recently-launched Razer Naga V3 Pro, but other compatible mice include the Naga V2 Pro, the Basilisk V3 Pro, the Basilisk V3 Pro 35K, the Cobra HyperSpeed, and the Cobra Pro with the included wireless charging puck that comes with the HyperFlux V2. Then, place the mouse on the mouse pad and, assuming the mouse pad is plugged in, it will automatically detect the mouse and pair with it wirelessly. (I did have a minor hiccup with this process, but we'll talk about that later.)

I will point out that the HyperFlux V2 has a polling rate that tops out at the standard 1,000 Hz. If you want to get a higher polling rate, such as 4,000 or 8,000 Hz, with your mouse, you'll need to connect via Razer's HyperPolling Wireless Dongle ($40) or Razer's Mouse Dock Pro ($70), both of which are sold separately. You can still use the HyperFlux V2 as a wireless charging mat, even if you aren't connected through it.

As for the mouse pad's surface, I didn't have any complaints, but I also wasn't particularly impressed. The hard surface version of the HyperFlux V2 is hard, micro-textured polycarbonate with a slight sheen. It's designed for speed, and while it seemed fast enough, it wasn't anywhere near the smooth, speedy glide of a glass mouse pad such as Razer's Atlas. The mice I tested with it — the Naga V3 Pro and the Basilisk V3 Pro 35K — had no issues with tracking and accuracy, but that's not particularly surprising as the sensors in modern-day premium gaming mice are all pretty consistently great at tracking on any sort of traditional mouse pad surface. The surface is textured enough that precision wasn't an issue, though the mouse pad also comes in a cloth surface version for those who need just a little more control. And the full rubber backing ensured that the surface remained perfectly level at all times.

If you ignore the wireless charging part, the HyperFlux V2 is a decent mouse pad. It's not particularly impressive, exciting, or attractive to look at if you don't have a wireless mouse in need of charging. I do like the size. There's plenty of room for big mouse swipes, and the mouse pad still fits very easily next to a full-size keyboard setup. It's a few inches larger than the PowerPlay 2, and the difference in surface area is noticeable.

But let's be serious — you're buying this mouse pad for the wireless charging and connection. And it does do both of these things pretty seamlessly; it's definitely a "set it and forget it" type of product. But without the wireless charging/connection, you definitely wouldn't give it a second glance.

Features and Software of the HyperFlux V2

The HyperFlux V2 does connect to Razer's universal peripheral app, Synapse 4, even though it doesn't have a ton of customization options (it doesn't have any RGB lighting, for example). Still, it's useful for managing what devices are or aren't paired to the HyperFlux V2. The mouse pad features "seamless auto-pairing," which means all you have to do is put the charging puck in a compatible wireless mouse and place it on the mouse pad, and it should pair automatically.

This wasn't perfectly seamless for me, however, as I already had the Razer Naga V2 Pro with a wireless charging puck from the Razer Mouse Dock Pro inside it — and when I set it down on the HyperFlux V2 to put the charging puck in the Razer Naga V3 Pro, the mouse pad recognized and paired with the Naga V2 Pro. While the mouse pad is apparently compatible with other Razer charging pucks, it can only pair with one mouse at a time, so I had to unpair the Naga V2 Pro before I could pair the Naga V3 Pro (the Mouse Dock Pro puck also only appears to work for connecting, not charging).

The HyperFlux V2 does support multi-device pairing, just not multi-mouse pairing. It can pair with a mouse (via the charging puck) and a compatible wireless Razer keyboard simultaneously, which lets you free up a USB slot.

There's also a battery health optimizer option in Synapse 4, which automatically turns off wireless charging when the mouse reaches a certain battery level percentage (adjustable, from 50% to 80%).

The Bottom Line

The Razer HyperFlux V2 works as intended — it charges compatible wireless Razer gaming mice as you use them, so you'll never have to worry about docking your mouse or plugging it in to keep the juice up. There's not a lot of competition on the market, aside from Logitech's PowerPlay 2, and there's basically no competition if you already own a Razer mouse.

The HyperFlux V2 shares some of the issues we didn't love on the PowerPlay 2; specifically, it feels a little cheaper, overall, than its $120 price tag would suggest. Like the PowerPlay 2, it has a non-detachable rubber USB-C cable and comes with a wireless charging puck that plugs into the bottom of your mouse. It's larger than the PowerPlay 2, though its charging module takes up more of the actual mouse pad real estate. Like the PowerPlay 2, it acts as both a wireless charging pad and a wireless receiver, and you can free up a couple of USB ports on your PC by connecting via this receiver. It can also simultaneously connect to a compatible wireless Razer keyboard, if you happen to be fully inundated in the Razer ecosystem.

Also like the PowerPlay 2, the HyperFlux V2 works best for those who are fully inundated in (or plan to be) the brand's ecosystem. At the end of the day, the best wireless charging mouse pad for you really comes down to which company made your wireless mouse of choice. Don't get me wrong, the HyperFlux V2 will remain on my desk for the foreseeable future, but only because my main mouse is the Razer Naga V3 Pro.

A Blu-ray drive has got tech fans excited over on Kickstarter. This project has hit 160x the initial (but low) funding goal just halfway through the campaign. The device that has caught plenty of eyeballs and pledges is the BluHub: 9-in-1 Blu-ray Hub for Memories, Ports & Storage, to give it its full, overly long title. We’ll just call it the BluHub from now. Why is it so popular? We think the combination of a USB-attached Blu-ray read/write drive (also DVD and CD compatible, of course) plus extensive docking abilities looks quite attractive. Its ‘super early bird’ price of $59 is not frightening either. But the cherry on top here may be the BluHub’s unique ‘grand piano styling.’

As a 9-in-1 device, there are a lot of specs to work through. So we’ve made a table to set out the capabilities of the BluHub as clearly and succinctly as possible.