Steam Link Review

The Steam Link is a piece of hardware made by Valve corporation so you can play your Steam games on your living room TV over a network. It is quite a small device but heavy for its size.

Setting it up is fairly simple. You plug it in and boots up for the first time, downloads updates then tests the network. It asks you to plug in a mouse, keyboard or controller. If you have a computer with Steam running on the network it should detect it and you simply click on that computer. You enter a one time password then it should load Steam in big picture mode on your TV. From there you navigate to a game in the Steam library and start playing.

The unit has 3 USB ports which is enough for a keyboard, mouse and controller. It supports the Steam controller, Xbox for windows controllers and a few others. The HDMI port accepts HD streaming over the network at 1080p resolution and looks good over a 100mbps wired network. For it to work properly on a wireless network you will have to have no other wireless devices using the network or you will get occasional stuttering and frame drops. I could not notice any lag from when I pushed a button to when the action happens on the screen.

I tested it with an Xbox 360 for windows controller and it worked on all the games that are listed as controller supported. Some games that still work with a controller on the computer would not work on the Steam Link. F1 2015 for example. I was able to fix this by purchasing a program called Virtualhere for the steam link and was able to play non Steam games like Need for Speed on the Orign platform. But this was short lived as one day all the games that worked with help of Virtualhere no longer worked any more. I tried searching the forums for fixes and tried everything but nothing would work. So I would say this device is not just a desktop streamer. Although you can control the Windows desktop from the Steam Link, it is built to work with the Steam client and it does that really well. I was also able to get games to play in 5.1 surround sound through an Amplifier. One annoying thing is that there is no on button. To turn it on you hit a key on the keyboard or move the mouse. So if you bump the mouse on the coffee table it will turn on and interrupt anything you are watching on TV. It also turns on when you unplug a device from the USB port.

This is a good little device. It does well what it was built for, to stream Steam games to the TV in the living room over a wired network.

Update:

So I was able to fix the problem with non Steam games not working with the Xbox controller for windows. In the settings menu I unselected the Xbox 360 configuration in the controller settings. To fix the controller stick acting like a mouse I changed the default configuration when not in a game to generic gamepad. So I'm changing the score as it can play non steam games with a controller. Instead of 7.9/10 I give it.

8.3/10

HTC Vive Review

Picture of two base stations not included

The HTC Vive is the product of the partnership between HTC and Valve (the company that made the Steam software for the PC).

The Vive is a room scale virtual reality package that consists of a headset, two controllers, two mountable base stations and a breakout box with cables. To use the Vive effectively you will need a high-end PC and plenty of room to move around. The minimum specs to run the Vive are as follows:

AT LEAST A GTX 970 OR GTX 1060 GRAPHICS CARD, 4GB RAM AND CORE I5 CPU. 

When you unpack the box, it can look a little daunting to set up with all the cables and parts, but thanks to the well written instructions the setup is made as simple as possible. I found the hardest aspect of the installation was installing the base stations. I mounted them on the wall with the supplied brackets but they can also be mounted on bookshelves or other high objects.

Once the software is installed, the cables plugged in and the power turned on it is time to run the first-time Steam VR setup. In this process, you measure the distance of the playing space (if you are going to use the room scale feature). You also calibrate the sensors of the headset, controllers and base stations. When this is done, you are ready to go through the Steam VR Tutorial. The tutorial is very friendly and easy to learn.

Now you can use the Vive.

It takes a bit of getting used to at first. The headset mounts over your head with a long cable hanging down your back. Once the headset is on you will see a room in a 3D space. The controllers will appear where they are in real life. The headset does feel quite heavy and you must be careful not to get tangled in the cable on the floor. The accuracy of the movement tracking is extremely impressive thanks to the two base stations on the walls. The resolution of the headset display is 2K with a refresh rate of about 90Htz, about double that of a normal HD television. But because it’s so close to your eyes you can still see the pixels which makes watching 3D and VR videos not the best experience. Where the Vive shines is playing games. The games for the Vive are growing all the time and getting better and better. My favourite game and one I never get sick of is Audioshield. This is a game where you hold a shield in each hand and have to block the orbs that come at you in the beat to the music you are playing. There are some great fast paced racing games available also, like Radial G: Racing Revolved.

Before buying the Vive I would suggest you look at the games and software available to see if it is suitable for you. There are many great games, but there are many stinkers as well.

The controllers last a long time before recharge and the force feedback works really well. The display can also be adjusted for your eyes. 

After using the Vive for a few months I can say that a good virtual reality experience is finally here and over the next few years things will only improve. Higher resolution headsets will come out as well as being lighter and without cables. But here and now the HTC Vive will meet the expectations of what people expect from virtual reality.

Is the HTC Vive experience worth the money? It depends on your expectations. For the average consumer, probably not. For those of us who are technology adopters or enthusiasts, yes. For the average person who wants hours of entertainment? Depending on what games they like that’s a definite maybe.

If you just want to sit down and use a controller I would recommend the Oculus Rift as it’s a bit cheaper but the HTC Vive is currently the best consumer room scale VR experience you can get.

Considering the current price and the ever-improving technology that will be available in the future I give it:

7.5/10 

Logitech G402 Hyperion Fury Gaming Mouse Review

The G402 is a gaming mouse made by Logitech. It’s a wired mouse that connects to a USB port.

The mouse uses an optical sensor and at the time of release boasted to be the world’s fastest gaming mouse. Specs include a resolution from 240 to 4000 dots per inch, acceleration up to 20G and a max speed of over 420ips. This is all achieved with the help of the high-speed fusion engine. It is quite a light weight mouse constructed of lightweight materials.

The mouse has 8 programmable buttons but after the left, right and 3 dpi buttons there are only 3 buttons left to program. The scroll wheel and the 2 near your thumb on the left.

The speed of the mouse can be changed on the fly using the three dpi buttons. The two buttons top left change between 4 speed levels and the hidden button on the left side changes the mouse to the slowest speed when pressed. Especially good for shooting games where a better aim is needed.

The mouse has the ability to play back programmed macros thanks to input analysis recording using the gaming software. The brightness of the G logo can even be adjusted, flashing and also turned off. 

After using it for a year I can say it feels comfortable in the hand. The clicking feels responsive and the tracking feels accurate. The mouse's durable design means it still feels the same as when it was new and when used with a mouse pad it glides easily without much effort. If you were into playing first person shooters I would really recommend this mouse otherwise I couldn't justify having the adjustable DPI buttons on the side.  

9/10

Logitech G910 Orion Spark Keyboard Review

The Orion Spark is a wired RGB mechanical gaming keyboard from Logitech. 
Each key on the keyboard can be illuminated individually up to 16.8 million colours. Made with the exclusive Roma-G mechanical switches the keys actuate 25% faster than other mechanical types. This has an advantage in gaming as the action is performed that little bit faster. The feel of the keys when typing is great. There is the noise associated with typing on a mechanical keyboard which is quite loud compared to non-mechanical types. 
This wired keyboard plugs into a USB 2.0 port. 
This is quite a heavy keyboard and feels quite durable. It comes with a 2-year warranty.
When the Logitech gaming software is installed the keyboard can be customised in many ways. The lighting mode can be changed to different effects such as breathing or rainbow pattern. The keys can be changed to solid colours. There are also different profiles for the games you play that change the key colours when you launch the game. You can also make your own profiles for the games you play. Some games automatically change the colours during the game. The only one I have tried is GTA5 where the function keys flash blue and red when the cops are after you and the keys change depending on what character you are playing as.
There are 9 keys that are customisable. These keys can do anything from launching programs or even typing a line of text. There is a volume control and play, pause, skip buttons. At the top, there is a dock to fit a smartphone. If you run the ARX software on your phone you can use it to monitor your computer.
I have used this keyboard for gaming and typing for over a year now and it still feels like a quality keyboard. I use the keys as a blue colour and when I type the keys turn green and fade back to blue. It also comes with two palm rests. I use the smaller of the two.
A great quality and reliable gaming keyboard.
8.9/10