The New King of Couch Gaming? - Roccat Sova MK
Linus Tech Tips
·Linus Tech Tips
·2017-05-06
·
1,342 words · ~6 min read
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a few months ago i checked out the lap dog and turret corsairs and razors
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respectively solutions to the supremely
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first world problem of not being able to have an optimal keyboard mouse gaming
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experience on the big screen tv from the couch tragic i know
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anyway the conclusion of that video was that my ideal solution probably lies
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somewhere in between the usability and
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ergonomic compromises of the small sexy
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but cramped turret and the
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lap dog whose size makes it more like having a great dane stretched across my
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thighs than any miniature canine that i've ever encountered
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and i guess rocket was watching that video going what the heck lioness that's
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basically our product because they reached out almost
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immediately after that one went live asking me to take a look at the sova mk
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so let's see then if it solves the problems that i've had with other
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lapboard solutions
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cooler masters mastercase maker 5 features their freeform modular system
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allowing you to customize adjust and upgrade make it yours at the link in the
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video description we'll begin with the physical tour the
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bottom of the sofa has four removable cushions they're pretty thin but they
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work well enough so i don't think i would try to 3d print replacements for
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them but being able to clean them is still a bonus
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also down here is a single proprietary breakaway usb connection with a 4 meter
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lead and a couple of usb ports for other peripherals a mouse and a headset come
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to mind flipping the unit over about 40 percent
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of the top is taken up by a 275 by 240
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millimeter hard plastic composite mouse pad another 40 is taken up by the 84 key
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ttc brown mechanical keyboard and the
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last 20 or so is taken up by what might look to razer
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and Corsair like wasted space
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but what ended up being the difference maker for me an ample wrist rest that
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let me use the sova mk comfortably for up to three hours at a time compare that
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to 10 to 30 minutes on the other two
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and okay yes i know you're not supposed to rest your
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wrists while you type on a keyboard but do you honestly type like this
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i mean okay let's say you do do you game like that
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get real while on the surface the sova is quite
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similar to other lap boards and to Corsair's offering in particular
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for an ergonomic product the devil is in the details and the wrist rest is just
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the tip of the iceberg for me the next big one is the inclusion of a
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10 keyless rather than a full width keyboard i mean
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sure you don't have a number pad for tax accountant simulator or whatever but it
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definitely solves more problems than it creates
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one unless you're the incredible hulk it brings your hands closer together for a
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more natural posture two it makes typing
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much more comfortable and more accurate since the home row is somewhat directly
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in front of you three it not only fits on my couch so i don't have to sit on
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the crack between the cushions but it allows a lady friend to sit on the couch
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with me while i game without looking like she has some kind of a restraining
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order and four when your lady friend wants to use the couch for something
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other than gaming its smaller dimensions make it easier to stow away
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and there are more little details rocket opted for two plugs on the pc
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side rather than a wall powered hub this does lower the combined power draw limit
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for all the connected devices versus the lap dog but along with that breakaway
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cable it makes setup and tear down faster and easier improving wife appeal
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the wrist rest and mouse pad are theoretically replaceable which is cool
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though i haven't seen anything actually available yet and the rail system along
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the top promises 3d printable accessories like cell phone holders and
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the included wire management system is really clever it holds the cable as well
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as Corsair system but does it without tools so you won't be tearing your hair
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out looking for an allen wrench if a buddy needs to borrow your extra mouse
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the keyboard also continuing with things that are good feels surprisingly good
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and key to key consistency was surprisingly strong considering that
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they're using a cherry mx brown clone from a company that i actually hadn't
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even heard of before ttc i'm not personally sold on the tactile bump on
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the w key but it's a minor issue considering that the layout is otherwise
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very good considering how little space they had to work with the arrows are
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correctly spaced and easy to landmark too thanks to their edge position the
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media keys are a must for couch use and i think that every keyboard should
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require a modifier to turn on the caps lock
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thumbs up there so then if it wasn't clear already i
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like this product and i think it's the best in the category so far but that
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doesn't make it perfect mouse drift when you take your hand off
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of it is still a pretty annoying issue though i don't know how they would
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resolve this without creating a special mouse with some grip on the bottom like
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razer did but personally if given the choice i would prefer to be able to use
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my own mouse with it so i don't have a solution and there's nothing that rocket
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can do to fix the bigger issues with couch gaming like poor ui scaling in
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games that weren't designed to be played from 10 plus feet away
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but if you're willing to deal with those things and you're willing to pay for it
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i think the sova should be 20 to 30 dollars cheaper than a lap dog and 10
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keyless keyboard not more expensive thanks to lower switch costs and cheaper
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materials once they offset the development cost of a custom keyboard
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for it the sova is the best couch gaming
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experience yet
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ting is the mobile carrier that is focused on customer service and customer
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satisfaction first you never have to speak to a robot you get put through
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directly to a person which is worth its weight in gold but you pay only for what
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you use so none of that gold bit the average ting bill is only 23 dollars per
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month per device if you're stuck in a contract and switch to ting they will
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cover 25 of your cancellation fee up to 75
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they are now lowering mobile data rates across the board data is now just 10 per
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Gigabyte beyond the first Gigabyte every
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single ting customer will be able to reap the benefits of this new change so
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head over to Linus.ting.com and try out their savings calculator to
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see how much you can save with them also when you sign up at our link you'll get
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25 in service credit or 25 towards a new
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device so thanks for watching guys if this video sucked you know what to do but if
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it was awesome get subscribed hit that like button or check out the link to
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where to buy the stuff we featured at amazon in the video description also
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linked in the description is our merch store which has cool shirts like this one and our community forum which you
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should totally join now that you're done doing all that stuff you're probably wondering what to
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watch next so click that little button in the top right corner to check out the
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video that i made on the Corsair lap dog and the rocket rocket razor turret