Belkin n52te Tournament Edition SpeedPad
by Belkin Components
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List Price: Our Price: $62.04 You Save: $7.95 (11%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Belkin n52te Tournament Edition SpeedPad
Customer Review: Tourney SpeedPad Cool
Summary: 4 Stars
This new speed pad hasn't changed much. The software suite is totally different. Forget about transferring your old profiles. The thumb space button sticks a bit which is a bummer. The most recent N52's started to do the same thing. I suspect they have changed something in the materials. This is the 4th Speedpad I have bought in a year which had the same problem. (3 N52's and 1 Tourney) All in all I am satisfied with the product. Fix the thumb space issue and it's a perfect 5 star product.Customer Review: Gaming central
Summary: 4 Stars
No complaints here. First time I have ever used a pad like this and other than the learning curve, I am having no problems with it. I use it mostly on Guild Wars and it does keep the game comfortably enjoyable. Maybe not for everyone but I would still recommend trying it out. I am happy with the performance and ergonomics.Customer Review: Pricey, Shiney, And Unneccasarily over priced.
Summary: 1 Stars
The Belkin N52te upgraded version is more of a impulse buyers type of gamepad. Yes the look is concrete and the feel is the same as the original N52. Bottomline, you are spending 3x the money it would cost to get the N52 regular without the paintjob and backlight. This is the sad truth. You begin to wonder why so many units have been returned. Conclusion. If you got money to burn go for it, if you're looking to invest in a gamepad try the old model, its the exact same thing.Customer Review: For the N52 critics
Summary: 5 Stars
I never owned the N52 original so this is the first key pad I have ever purchased. WOW after reading the reviews of the N52 owners I wouldn't have ever even came close to purchaseing the N52te edition. Ahhhh...but I do know someone that owned one and he assured me that if I was a noob to this type of device I could enter it without any bias. So, with that said I found this device a little on the pricey side, but after using it for 48 hours I fealt well adjusted to it. I had none of the problem the N52 users complained about, I actually found it very easy to use and control. The size seem to match my hand almost perfectly, I have average size hands so the reach was good and confortable. I do agree that the interface that maps the keys is ridiculously small, but I was able to get it set up for Call of Duty 4 within 15-20 minutes. I like the back lite keys, although I agree they could be a bit dimmer, but I didnt find that to be distracting. So if you are new to these types of game improving key pads, this is a great addition that will make you a better player, but if your one of the people that doesnt like change and is confortable with the N52, well look at the reveiws and you can see what they have already decided. But I bet if they gave it a chance and got used to it they will be telling Customer Review: Expensive, but very nice
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased this from a local retailer on 3/24/2008. My son choose the Saitek PZ31A Pro Gamer which I purchased at the same time.
First, others have complained about buggy software. I have not had any problems with either software or hardware.
For each game you use this unit with, you'll want a profile. In each profile, you can map each key (minus one to actually switch maps) to three different functions, one for each mapping (which goes by color).
This isn't as useful as it sounds, but it's still nice.
The software iteself is extremely easy to use. There is a picture of the controller on screen, you choose a button, then choose what you want that button to do. Each button can be mapped to up to tree different keys, functions, or macros. Switching is easy, however, I've found that switching between keymaps isn't that useful during a game. While not in battle, switching has some usefulness, but when you are trying to kill that last demon, you don't want to switch maps just to get to another weapon.
There are fewer buttons than I would have liked, but realistically, the fourteen buttons available for the fingers of the left hand are about all that can be reached comfortably. There is also a scroll button which can be used for up to three different keys. (One key for scroll up, one key for scroll down, and one key for press.)
The scroll button can cycle between keymaps, something I believe only it can do. My one disappointment was that the scroll button can't cycle between other keys. For example, if I have weapon sets mapped to F1, F2, and F3, it would be nice to be able to use the scroll wheel to quickly scroll through my weapons.
The thumb controls three keys -- a lower key, an upper button, and a D-pad. Each can be mapped to anything you choose, including all eight directions available on the D-pad. The thumb can only do one thing at once, however. Don't expect to use the D-pad and another button at the same time. This is important if you choose a thumb key to momentarily shift to another mapping. Since my D-pad is set for movement, and the upper thumb button to shift, I can't do both at the same time.
A manual is included on the CDROM, but simple exploration with the mapping application will give as much information except for two things. The D-pad has a removable joystick, and the hand rest is adjustable/removable. In either case, you simply pull the component off the base. The hand rest can be moved back about an inch, or the whole thing used without it.
Now, I wanted to make a couple of comparisons to the Saitek I bought for my son. First, the software for the Saitek is difficult to understand, and the colors the software talks about aren't the colors on the keypad. It also has several more keys available, which sounds good, but I'm not sure it would actually work well in practice. The one thing I really like about the Saitek is that it has a shift key that can be pressed by the base of the thumb, allowing use of the joystick and shift key at the same time.
Finally, my son has had issues where in the middle of a game, it seems to lose its programming and the profile has to be reloaded.
As for the n52te, I love it. I bought it specifically for Hellgate: London, and once I got the keys mapped for it, it worked wonderfully. I have also experimented with a profile for Starcraft, and while I don't believe it works as well for that game, it still speeds up my commands.