it used to be that to everyone but tiny Niche companies platforms that you could
use to operate a keyboard and mouse on the couch were a solution in search of a
problem but whether we have steam link to thank for this or something else
Corsair and Razer both reached out asking us to evaluate their couch
keyboard mouse gaming product so here we
go
cooler Master's master case maker 5 features their free form modular system
allowing you to customize adjust and upgrade make it yours at the link in the
video description the Corsair lap dog comes in two pieces with the nural Allen
key that you'll need for assembly tucked into a little notch in the bottom one
pull that out then put it aside that cushion attaches to the bottom with
magnets later this is the meat and
potatoes of the lap dog a plastic backed
brushed aluminum topped board intended to act as a comfortable platform for
your full-size keyboard and mouse that sits across your knees though a spacer
is included if you prefer a shorter 10 keyless keyboard without a number pad
you can use any Mouse you want but official keyboard support is limited to
Corsair's own K65 and k70 let's talk
assembly plug your power brick and USB 3 Cable in on the PC side Cable Management
options are a little limited due to the 15 ft length limit that's imposed by the
use of a passive cable then undo the four screws from the mouse pad and the
two screws from the top fascia that pulls double duty as a cable management
cubby to hide the keyboard's long USB cord that will be plugged into one of
the two internal usb3 ports there's another two on the outside and as a lock
to keep the keyboard in place there are a couple of anchor points below to make
this easier and exactly two zip ties to
go with them in the box so if you break one or you want to tighten things down a
bit more then you better have your own already then from there Mouse assembly
is equally straightforward there's a large compartment for cable management
though with no zip tie anchors for some reason and a little Gap to bring it up
to the top with minimal cable drag finally there's this handy little
compartment that's presumably for Condoms due to all the sex that you'll
be having whenever anyone sees you using one of these which I guess leads us
pretty well into the usage experience the aluminum top plate makes the lap dog
very very solid but also kind of heavy
and unwieldly and not helping matters is
the way that the mouse flops about and slides cringingly off the mouse pad
whenever you take your hand off of it or move the board but once it's in position
it is mostly pretty darn functional the
only limit to the kinds of games that that you'll be able to play from the
couch now will be the ones imposed by the game developer due to poor text
scaling implementations of the UI and the like and having extra USB ports for
a headset or a thumb drive is pretty nice but there are also some oversights
that I'd like to see addressed in a V2 one it needs wrist rests within 20
minutes holding up my arms or resting on
the hard metal edges of the lap dog were both kind of a drag two the integrated
mouse pad is not double-sided for some reason nor is it symmetrical so that I
can DIY an alternate pad for the other side and three there needs to be a
narrower K65 only version I realize the
widened board improves keyboard compatibility but it causes interference
with plush armrests a wider than natural gaming posture and discomfort when
typing and all for what so can have a number pad for all the accounting that
I'll be doing on my
TV I'm not personally a huge fan of 10
keyless keyboards but it would save 30 bucks on a
$300 purchase and it was the right move
here ergonomically and Corsair chickened out a little
bito let's move on to the razor turret where the lap dog screams no compromises
the turret counters with I'm not perfect but I'm small and attractive enough that
your wife might actually allow this thing in her house which is not a bad
point included in the box is a wall wart a weighted base station that charges
both the keyboard and mouse when they're not in use a wireless receiver and a
wireless keyboard and mouse both of which are capable of being used with
Bluetooth or with their 2.4 GHz receiver
with the flick of a switch and and both of which were specifically designed to
be bundled together as this product purpose-built for couch gaming it's just
too bad that they the mouse in particular really didn't impress me
surprisingly and maybe the higher input leg of TVs especially my LG OLED
compared to monitors was a factor here I didn't feel like the wireless interface
hurt the gaming experience but there were other things that did the mouse
clicks are pleasantly tactile and the scroll Wheels satisfying scroll and
rubber coating feel great but even with my tiny girl hands this thing feels like
a toy apart from there being nowhere to rest my pinky the sides are the worst
kind of slippery glossy plastic making it hard to lift and reposition the mouse
on the 20x 12 CM mouse pad and on top of
that the ergonomics are bad enough that within about half an hour my wrist was
getting that cold sensation radiating from my joints
really bad kind of soar in spite of one
huge advantage that's given to the turret by its lowprofile design the fact
that your thigh can be used as a wrist rest the keyboard fared quite a bit
better it's got a similar layout and feel to my blade 14 daily driver laptop
the function keys are shorter and the space bar is noticeably mushier but it's
very usable at least when it's centered in front of me
unfortunately the hinge that unfolds the attached mouse pad doesn't lock into
place so unless you want that to seg causing your mouse to fall you'll be
stuck with it off to the left where it is much less comfortable to use although
significantly more comfortable than the keyboard on the couchmaster now to be
clear there are some very good ideas in the turret the Dual Wireless interfaces
would make the turret a reasonably competent set of travel peripherals if
they could be charged via USB with Android compatibility as an awesome
bonus the mouse is magnetic and with a
hard textured bottom foot that Glides well enough on the smooth pad without
falling off all the time a much more elegant solution to the mouse whacking
things every time I try and move the damn thing syndrome that other coach
gaming boards suffer from like that and the compact folding
form factor could probably work for me
with a little bit more y AIS height on the mouse M pad it just feels kind of
first gen still and at $160 it's not an Impulse bu for most
people which I guess leads us pretty well into the overall conclusion here
the barriers that exist for keyboard and mouse couch gaming are deeper than the
lack of available platforms on which to place peripherals with game UI scaling
being a significant one and the fact that a keyboard and mouse being more
comfortable to use while sitting up straight or even leaning slightly
forward with game controllers being more comfortable to use resting in your
crotch while slouched on the couch being another one the industry is making
progress towards an uncompromising PC gaming experience in the living room and
I think we'll get there eventually the steam controller is a viable in between
for some genres of games uh point and click like papers please comes to mind
and both of these keyboard mouse Solutions are better looking
easier to store more refined more affordable and more functional than my
3-year-old couchmaster this is real progress I just think that the balance
may be somewhere in between them
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