Anyone have the Belkin n52te yet?

[elsegundo]

Anyone else kinda waiting on this? its been several months since the scheduled release date, 11/07, and still little signs of progress. some folks say February, but amazon is still putting people on preorder status but the message board for that page shows a few people actually getting their product... slowly but surely.


I have an n52. would love to upgrade one day to the "te" version.

do others use an auxilery keypad device?

and for the folks who use the n52, are you waiting on the "te"?

[Kugan]

Yeah, I’m waiting for it in England. I check the n52 site every day to see if it’s been released in the UK (even though I know it’s been delayed to middle March. A girl can hope :P), and I also check e-bay regularly in the hope that someone might have gotten one from the first batch and is selling it for a silly price (if you pre-ordered previously in America, you could have made a lot of money).

The worst thing is that my N52 broke in November, and I decided that since the N52te should be released soon I will wait until then… now I’m still trying to play with my keyboard and mouse :(.

[elsegundo]

lol yea i couldnt deal with the keyboard and mouse. i've always been a console gamer and i would play wow with a controller/gamepad if i can. but that would nerf my gaming experience. im waiting for the prices to go down, actually, as my current one still works well. i just wanna see people's reaction to it and how much or how little they like it. if you really need a backup i suggest just getting a used one from ebay or even the old n50. but really, i cant live without my n52.

[spadron]

I guess I'm missing something, I don't get what advantage this has over a keyboard.

You still have to use a mouse with your right hand yeah, so you're sacrificing a load of keys for a thumb-pad? Clearly there's more to it and I'm missing something, can't work out what though!

elsegundo: there's some software that'll setup a 360 controller for WOW for you. Still not as good as a keyb/mouse but a good attempt at getting full capability out of a pad: http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/16/play-wow-with-your-xbox-360-controller-for-some-reason/

[elsegundo]

I guess I'm missing something, I don't get what advantage this has over a keyboard.

You still have to use a mouse with your right hand yeah, so you're sacrificing a load of keys for a thumb-pad? Clearly there's more to it and I'm missing something, can't work out what though!

elsegundo: there's some software that'll setup a 360 controller for WOW for you. Still not as good as a keyb/mouse but a good attempt at getting full capability out of a pad: http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/16/play-wow-with-your-xbox-360-controller-for-some-reason/

spad, i have the keys mapped from 1 to + all on the n52 keypad. plus my alt (for when i want to target myself) and my tab key (for when i need to tab through mobs, or select the next closes mob to kill)

its all put together in one place for me so i dont have to spead myself thin reaching for keys. moving along the number row of a regular keyboard, i can easily press 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, easily. but the rest i cannot do without looking down at my keyboard. i've only used the D-pad on that thing to strafe.
this is also why people buy the G-15 keyboard from logitech, there's a bunch of keys on the side, all lined up well, for you to instantly use. I used to use the keyboard and i find it slow to use, i even put tape on my #3 key so i can feel it to guide me (kinda like the F key on most keyboards).

and another note about controllers is that even with the analog sticks, i cannot turn as quickly as i'd like. i play halo and i have my turn settings to max. i find that pivoting with the mouse is so much faster and offers more control then the analog stick on a keypad. you're right, still not as good as keyb/mouse.

[Kugan]

I guess I'm missing something, I don't get what advantage this has over a keyboard.


All of my movement keys are controlled with the thumb of my left hand, and my right hand. That frees up three of my fingers to press keybindings with - making it much easier for me to move while using abilities.

It's also much more comfortable, taking away the strain on your wrist if you spend too much time on the computer.

elsegundo, I've followed your advice and gotten myself one cheap from e-bay. I'm looking forward to playing on my Rogue again (whom I had to abandon because there was no way I could play without it :embarassed:)

[elsegundo]

All of my movement keys are controlled with the thumb of my left hand, and my right hand. That frees up three of my fingers to press keybindings with - making it much easier for me to move while using abilities.

It's also much more comfortable, taking away the strain on your wrist if you spend too much time on the computer.

elsegundo, I've followed your advice and gotten myself one cheap from e-bay. I'm looking forward to playing on my Rogue again (whom I had to abandon because there was no way I could play without it :embarassed:)
thats awesome! i remember about two months ago newegg.com had a rebate on them, so you could essentially have gotten a new one for about $16 without shipping. i didnt get the rebate because i thought i might want to return it for a better one later. turns out the rebate period expired and i ended up not using the rebate. its ok. i still like my n52. i hope the new one has a better scroll wheel. the n52's scroll wheel is almost unusable. i use it for when i need to change my keybinding set.

[Euphoricsoul]

I've got really bad carpal tunnel from playing on computers for the past 20 years and am seriously looking at an alternative to the keyboard/mouse. I really enjoy playing WoW, but there are times when I just have to logout due to the pain in my wrists. Sadly, I've done all the therapy/meds and everything short of surgery to correct it to no avail. :(

Will this help?

[spadron]

All of my movement keys are controlled with the thumb of my left hand, and my right hand. That frees up three of my fingers to press keybindings with - making it much easier for me to move while using abilities.



Ah :idea:

That makes sense

[elsegundo]

I've got really bad carpal tunnel from playing on computers for the past 20 years and am seriously looking at an alternative to the keyboard/mouse. I really enjoy playing WoW, but there are times when I just have to logout due to the pain in my wrists. Sadly, I've done all the therapy/meds and everything short of surgery to correct it to no avail. :(

Will this help?

im not a doctor.... but i can tell you that my hand doesnt cramp up like it did when i was playing on a keyboard. another one you can try is one made by saitek. i forgot the name. but its almost the same.


currently, the n52te's are being shipped slowly. i dont know what the holdup is. so people who have ordered it in october of last year are just getting it, and those who ordered later will get it later..... and i dont know how much later. but if you want, there should be reviews already about it.

as for the n52, i can tell you that i like the wrist rest and the button spacing. nothing is hard to reach, but it IS made for bigger hands, so if you have small hands, you might want to look for this at the store first and see if it fits you. you can move the wrist rest forward to accomidate a smaller hand, but theres just two settings, so if you dont fit either settings, you might have to adjust. its still a whole lot better than a keyboard.

here's pictures so you can see the curves and stuff of the n52.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826169003
so far there's a total of 234 reviews. they can offer more insight to this.
note: in the description it says there's a backlite keypad. that's not true. it is true for the n52te.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000WMEHYG/ref=s9_asin_image_1_subs_c4_57_27_6_5_5?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0AX522G0BC63TXPAPT5G&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=278240301&pf_rd_i=507846

for saitek: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823175105

you will find reviewers often compare the two, and even others. some like the n52, others like the saitek, and still others prefer the xbox360 controller. good luck!


ps. if you're gaming with a mouse, do not get the Natural Wireless 6000 (http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-69K-00001-Natural-Wireless-Metallic/dp/B000KA7PD0/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1204330867&sr=1-6) it is great for everyday computing and very ergo. but for gaming, the movement mechanics are totally different since in gaming, wrist movement is key. this mouse keeps you from moving your wrists and you will have to rely on whole arm movements to get your job done. again, good for everyday computing, bad for gaming.

[elsegundo]

g4tv has a podcast reviewing the thing.

http://www.g4tv.com/attackoftheshow/videos/20033/Gadget_Pr0n_Belkin_n52te_SpeedPad.html