Ideazon Zboard Fang review

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Verdict:

Review Date: 27 Jul 2006

Price when reviewed: inc VAT

Reviewed By: David Ludlow

Our Rating 5 stars out of 5

ExpertReviews Award

Review
Specs

Ideazon's Zboards are gaming keyboards, designed to make first-person shooters easier and more comfortable to play. Merc is a standard keyboard with gaming controls extending from the side, while Fang works in addition to your existing keyboard.

Both consist of a comfortable set of movement controls surrounded by buttons for common gaming commands including jump, run, crouch and reload. They're comfortable to use and the close proximity of the keys means you don't have to stretch your hand as much as with a standard keyboard. Fang moves the jump key to the side of the keyboard, where you can hit it with your thumb; to us, it was even more comfortable to use than Merc.

You can re-map your game's controls to match the keyboards' layouts, but Ideazon has gone one step further with its ZEngine software. Updated automatically, it downloads keyboard layouts for specific games. Before you fire up your favourite, just select the game you want to play. You can print out a keyboard legend, so you have a reference of what the controls do. The list is updated regularly, and version 2 of ZEngine lets you create your own layouts.

Merc works well as a standard keyboard. Its keys are responsive, smooth and offer plenty of feedback, so it's comfortable to type on for hours. However, the cursor keys have been moved to the bottom of the number pad, so it's frustrating if you do a lot of number work.

Both products are well priced, but Fang's higher comfort and the fact that it works with your existing keyboard give it a slight edge.

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