artiste's Full Review: Belkin Nostromo N50 SpeedPad Game Pad
Belkin has produced many different computer related products from USB cables to mouse pads. Belkin has not produced any gaming products previously, however it recreated the keyboard specifically for gamers with this n50 Speedpad. I purchased this for my son who has lots of computer games. He thoroughly enjoys using this product. It is no wonder why because of the way it is made.
It looks like a sleek left handed device and it looks very responsive. Most keyboards are made so their keys are alittle misaligned. n50 has 10 vertically aligned keys in two of rows of five. They are very easy to press and they are very intuitive. The best feature is the large thumb pad built on an eight directional axis. When you use the directional pad you can avoid relying on the standard keyboard's arrow keys for movement. There is also a throttle wheel which shows Belkins close attention to detail.
The device is very easy to install. You plug the SpeedPad into the PC USB port and boot up the computer. Then just install the software. My son really likse the software. A Profile editor maps out all the keys and allows customization of keystrokes and macros his favorite games with key profiles. After he launches a game, the Speedpad automatically has the key profile loaded. Belkin has included 33 pre built profiles to launch the most popular games and to get them running in no time.
One note is that users need to carefully check profiles in the editing software and make any necessary adjustments. The program has some problem with loading under Windows XP.
We notified Belkin about this problem and they are working out the kinks. It will be corrected in the next upgrade.
My son likes using this speedpad over the regular keyboard. He says the standard keyboard is awkward compared to speedpad. It works more efficiently and it much more fun to use.
14 Programmable Buttons Plus 2 Thumb Buttons. Extra Keys With Presets For Select Games. 360 Rotating Mouse Wheel With A Switch. 3 Status Leds For Shif...More at Target
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