Posted 11/03/09 at 08:30:39 PM by Michael Brown

We haven’t auditioned many cheap speaker systems lately. Why? Well, let’s just say we don’t enjoy subjecting our ears to the sonic equivalent of waterboarding. But Logitech has a knack for packing big sound into inexpensive boxes, so we agreed to review its new two-channel Z520 system.

You’ll have to decide for yourself if the Z520 system’s $130 price tag really puts it in the “cheap” category, and we imagine the folks at Logitech will cringe to hear us describe them as such; but you can cut only so many corners before we begin to ask, “Why bother?” Judging by these speakers’ performance, Logitech’s engineers know just how low they can go.
 
When we see small speakers, we usually pigeon-hole them as near-field monitors: short-throw speakers that produce a small stereo soundstage that collapses as soon as you move more than three feet away from the cabinets. There’s nothing inherently wrong with near-fields, especially in a PC environment, but they have their limitations. So we were surprised to hear Logitech boast that the Z520 could provide a “great listening experience throughout the room.” We decided to put that claim to the test as soon as we took the speakers out of the box.

Continue reading this review after the jump.

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Posted 10/15/09 at 03:21:55 PM by Bart Salisbury

It’s not going to help my game, but it just might yours: Logitech has introduced a new gaming keyboard, the G110. The G110 takes a big numerical leap over the Logitech’s existing G15 and G19 keyboards, and comes with some interesting new features--new for Logitech anyhow.

The G110 personalization starts with backlit keys, in your choice of red, blue, or any combination of red and blue (which makes purple!). There are 12 programmable “G-keys” and three “M-keys” which allow you to assign up to 26 single keystrokes, multi-key macros, or complex LUA scripts for each game you play. Logitech’s contribution to the keyboard arms race is the inclusion of integrated USB audio, simplifying the hook-ups for in-game chatter.

Logitech expects to have the G110 in the stores in November for a suggested retail price of $79.99.

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Posted 09/14/09 at 02:44:38 PM by Logan Decker

If you ask a gun enthusiast why he needs that M4 SOPMOD to hunt squirrel, you’re asking the wrong question. It’s not that the average squirrel in the Adirondacks is on PCP and likely to require two magazines to put down; it’s that the M4 SOPMOD is a fine and uniquely crafted weapon regardless of whether it ever sees action worthy of its true potential. So, please, don’t ask us why you’d want to spend $200 on a keyboard with up to 36 macros available across 12 programmable macro keys (recordable on the fly from the keyboard itself), customizable keyboard backlighting, and even a 320x240 color display. If you’re a gamer, understand that you’re buying more power than you may ever need, but absolutely should have.

The key action is cush and quiet (preferred by most gamers and characteristic of Logitech’s boards), and the plastic is smooth yet never slippery beneath sweaty digits. The keyboard itself includes a hardware switch to disable the Windows key, and both macro and function keys are slightly elevated for easier nailing. We appreciate the slightly larger than usual Mute button below the media control keys to the upper right, and love the barrel-style volume control (if only it were reprogrammable for use as a scrubber or dial).

Continue reading this review after the jump.

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Posted 09/07/09 at 08:30:13 AM by Paul Lilly

Forget about fumbling for batteries in your kitchen junk drawer once your remote loses its juice. If you owned Logitech's new Harmony 700, you could just plug it into the wall with the included adapter to bring it back to life. According to Logitech, the Harmony 700 can go several weeks between charges.

Other tricks include one-click activity buttons for  tasks such as "Watch a DVD,"  a color LCD screen, support for more than 5,000 brands and over 225,000 devices, online setup so you don't have to punch in codes on the remote, and the ability to replace up to six other remotes.

Logitech is taking pre-orders for the $150 rechargeable Harmony, which the company says will ship this month.

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Posted 08/17/09 at 09:45:39 AM by Paul Lilly

Whether you lost your license for racking up too many points for speeding and reckless driving or just can't stand to be anywhere else other than behind the wheel, Logitech has you covered. The gaming peripheral company today announced the G27 Racing Wheel, which it says is "designed to deliver the definitive sim racing experience."

For three Benjamins, the G27 will have you gripping tight corners and feeling the road courtesy of a dual-motor force feedback mechanism. A hand-stitched leather wheel helps justify the cost of admission, as does a six-speed gated shifter complimented by a new LED RPM/shift indicator. Other features include steel-constructed gas, brake, and clutch pedals, and more programmable buttons than the G25.

Logitech says the G27 will be available in the U.S. and Europe sometime in September and will work with both PCs and the Playstation 3.

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Posted 08/06/09 at 09:30:00 AM by Norman Chan

Just a few months after we awarded Logitech with a perfect score for their superb G9x mouse, they've announced the new contender for best mouse ever. The G500 is the long-awaited update to the G5 gaming mouse, taking its familiar ergonomic chassis and cramming the G9x's laser sensor into the body. The wired peripheral has a minimum resolution of 200dpi, which can be adjusted on the fly up to a whopping 5700dpi (the G9x only had a max of 5000dpi). Logitech claims that the G500 can process sensor data at a rate of 12 megapixels per second, and can detect movement as fast as 165 inches per second (as if your twitch skills are that good).

The usual gaming mice features are also present, including removable weights (range of 165 grams to 192 grams) and 10 programmable buttons. But the standout improvements are in the inclusion of a hyper-fast scroll wheel mode (for web browsing), and the relocation of the dpi adjustment buttons to the front of the mouse so you don't accidentally hit it in the middle of a game. 

Hit the jump for more of our hands-on photos, but you'll be able to try the G500 yourself when it goes on sale in September for $70. 

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Posted 08/04/09 at 03:00:58 PM by Paul Lilly

You can never have enough USB ports, but when it comes to wireless devices, wouldn't it be groovy if they all ran off of a single USB dongle? We certainly think so, and so does Logitech, who today announced the release of its Unifying Receiver.

Logitech's Unifying Receiver lets multiple wireless gadgets communicate with the host PC through a single USB dongle, and to kick off the proprietary technology, Logitech announced four compatible products. These include the Wireless Keyboard K350, Wireless Keyboard K340, Marathon Mouse M705, and Wireless Mouse M505.

As is the case with other Logitech wireless products, the new devices each use 2.4GHz wireless connectivity, but they no longer each need their own dongle. The Unifying Receiver further saves space by only protruding 8mm.

Up to six compatible devices can be connected at the same time, with each subsequent peripheral needing to be configured using Logitech's Unifying software. All devices connect securely using 128-bit AES encryption, and they work with Windows 7, Logitech says.

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Posted 07/22/09 at 12:00:00 PM by Will Smith

When we first reviewed the original Logitech G9 (November 2007), we didn’t like it. Specifically, we thought it was uncomfortable to hold, using either of the removable shells. In fact, we described it as “not particularly comfortable for day-to-day mousing” before complaining that it was unsuitable for people who use a traditional palming grip.

We were wrong. After we made a few small adjustments to our grip, we fell in love with the G9—at least when using the grippy palm-friendly Precision body. We still don’t like the smooth grip—dubbed Wide Load—and we’re generally not fans of having to adjust our grip to suit a mouse, but the smooth response and power-gamer-friendly features that the G9x delivers make this mouse the best we’ve ever tested.

Continue reading this review after the jump.

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