General Gaming Article

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• Stinky Footboard Review
• Microsoft Goes After iPhone Users with Minimum $200 Trade Offer Towards a Windows Phone
• Genius Energy Mouse Moves Your Cursor and Recharges Mobile Devices
• Bill Gates Says Control-Alt-Delete Was a "Mistake," Points the Finger at IBM
• OCZ Upgrades Fatal1ty Power Supply Family, Now Available in 550W and 750W
• Newegg Daily Deals: Dell UltraSharp 27-inch Monitor, Asus P8Z77-V Pro Motherboard, and More!
• AMD: R9 290X Will Be "Much Faster Than Titan in Battlefield 4"

Stinky Footboard Review Posted: 26 Sep 2013 11:17 AM PDT Let your foot give you a hand The premise of the Stinky Footboard is simple: Sometimes two hands and 10 fingers aren't enough. And in games that require you to press more keys than a world-class pianist, your foot can come in handy. The Footboard's internals are built for the long run. That's the idea behind Stinky's deadly simple Footboard. The USB device is akin to a four-way, foot-operated D-pad. We had concerns about the durability of the Footboard, but cracking open our review model revealed the D-pad balanced on a heavy-duty ball-bearing and a metal bar running across the length of it. The switches themselves are Cherry MX blue. The unit connects to the USB cable via a standard Micro-USB port, so you can swap cables if need be. Four independent springs can be swapped out to change the spring rate from a selection of soft, medium, and hard. Though sturdy, we have to note that our early unit did fail and would no longer be recognized by any system, despite cable swaps. We finished our review with a second unit borrowed from another magazine. At least it's not called the Cyber Athlete's Foot. Setting up the Footboard is quick, after you've downloaded the app. The Footboard app lets users create keybindings—or should we say foot bindings—for each of the controller's four switches (up, down, left, and right) and install firmware updates. The app works fairly well, but we couldn't bind more than one key to a direction. For example, we wanted to bind one switch to let us run in Battlefield 3—Shift + W—but the Footboard wouldn't record the macro. It was either W or Shift, but not both. It's too bad because such a feature would take the finger stress out of those long runs across a map. Battlefield 3 wasn't the only game we used the Footboard in. We also ran it through Dishonored and Sleeping Dogs, among other games, but we admit we found it most useful for BF3, where it aided movement and crouching. And when running, it really relieved us of the pinky stress that results from having to curl back and hit Ctrl all the time to duck. Unfortunately for the Stinky, there are some styles of games that just don't work very well with the device. When we tried using the Stinky in Dishonored, we found it wasn't very helpful. Dishonored is a slow, stealthy game that focuses on using just the WASD keys and mouse, so we couldn't find much use for the Footboard, as the game doesn't rely much on running. We tried to map the Footboard to the WASD keys but it was just awkward. We also couldn't use the Stinky for strafing since we couldn't bind more than one key. Another game that didn't play very well with the Stinky was StarCraft II. The mouse and keyboard were just too good and we abandoned using the Footboard halfway through. Again, the Footboard seemed cumbersome in this scenario and our keybindings felt very forced and unneeded, as a traditional keyboard setup was easier for us. There are obviously games where the Stinky works—such as a tactical shooter, where you might bind the left and right directions for lean out (who can ever remember those commands?) but it's not the universal salve we thought it might be. The Stinky has a good build quality and easy-to-use software, which makes it a reliable gaming accessory. What we're not fans of is the Footboard's premium price: $120. Probably the only way to tell if your gaming style will benefit from the Footboard is if you sometimes wish you had an extra hand—or foot—during sessions. $120, www.stinkyboard.com

Microsoft Goes After iPhone Users with Minimum $200 Trade Offer Towards a Windows Phone Posted: 26 Sep 2013 10:54 AM PDT Trade in program kicks off on Friday Tired of your iPhone? Not digging the direction Apple is going with its recent iOS 7 update? If so, Microsoft has at least 200 reasons why you might want to consider ditching your iPhone 4S or iPhone 5 in favor of a Windows Phone. Starting this Friday, Microsoft Stores will begin offering a minimum $200 in-store credit for recent iPhone models, and while you can spend the gift card on anything you want in the store, it's Microsoft's hope that you'll grab a Windows Phone. It's part of Microsoft's Time to Switch campaign, according to Forbes and its "inside source" that's leaking out company info. If it turns out to be true, this would follow a recent program in which Microsoft was encouraging iPad users to ditch their iOS tablet for Surface. Of course, you can always sell your device on eBay or Craigslist for a nice sum, assuming it's in good condition, but $200 for an iPhone 4S isn't too shabby on Microsoft's part. Plus, you avoid the hassle of potential non-paying bidders, buyer disputes, seller fees, etc. Microsoft's Windows Phone platform is in a distant third place behind iOS and Android, though it did recently surpass BlackBerry in market share. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Genius Energy Mouse Moves Your Cursor and Recharges Mobile Devices Posted: 26 Sep 2013 10:27 AM PDT The only rodent that can power your smartphone Genius has come out with a new wireless rodent that can charge your mobile devices via a USB cable that plugs into its backside. The placement of the cable limits the practicality of being able to charge your phone and navigate Windows at the same time, though the Energy Mouse is capable of doing so. The real intention, however, is to provide a means of juicing up your mobile device when you're not using the mouse. "With this device, business people, travelers and students can recharge their electronic devices, such as smartphones, when on-the-go, and negates the need to carry a separate power bank," Genius explains. The Energy Mouse is equipped with a 2700 mAh battery, which Genius claims is more than enough to fully recharge your mobile device. There's also a separate battery reserve to power the mouse, so you needn't worry about your Galaxy S4 sucking the life out of your rodent. Other features include a 1200 DPI sensor, four mouse buttons (one of which is a dedicated charging button), and four color options (blue, red, silver, and pink). So, what's the verdict? Could you see something like this being useful, or is it one of those ideas that should have been scrapped before an actual product was made? Sound off in the comments section below! Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Bill Gates Says Control-Alt-Delete Was a "Mistake," Points the Finger at IBM Posted: 26 Sep 2013 09:13 AM PDT Who's to blame/credit for the most famous key combination in history? It doesn't matter how long you've been using a PC, as long as there's a keyboard involved, you're probably familiar with the Control-Alt-Delete combination, or the three-finger salute, as some have come to call it. Decades after the key combination was conceived, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates candidly admits that it was a "mistake, but don't point the finger at him, let IBM share some of the blame. "We could have had a single button, but they guy who did the IBM keyboard design didn't want to give us our single button," Gates said during an interview at a Harvard fundraising campaign, according to The Verge. The combination was invented by David Bradley, an engineer who helped build the original IBM PC. It was originally intended to reboot the PC, though its function has evolved over time. One of the more common uses these days is to bring up the Task Manager, especially in times of distress when something wonky is going on. If you're thinking that Gates must have other decisions he laments even more than Control-Alt-Delete, you'd be right. Sitting up the totem pole of regret is the way Microsoft approached the mobile market. "We didn't miss cellphones, but the way we went about it didn't allow us to get the leadership," Gates said earlier this year. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

OCZ Upgrades Fatal1ty Power Supply Family, Now Available in 550W and 750W Posted: 26 Sep 2013 08:30 AM PDT New core, same branding OCZ is still making the most of its relationship with renowned gamer Johnathan Wendel, otherwise known as Fatal1ty, the name you'll find on the side of OCZ's two newest power supplies. Available in 550W and 750W models, these Fatal1ty PSUs feature a brand new core and are quieter, more energy efficient, and easier to manage thanks to a completely modular cable design. Once again, OCZ claims Fatal1ty is co-developing these PSUs, though we wonder how much input he truly has. Regardless, the new models feature up to 85 percent energy efficiency at typical loads and 80 Plus Bronze certification. Both make use of a single +12V rail and have a 135mm temperature and load-controlled fan with glowing red LEDs. OCZ says the new models also use premium components and heavy-duty protection circuitries that utlize specialized DC-to-DC converters for compatibility with Haswell machines. No word yet on price, though OCZ says the 550W model is backed by a 3-year warranty and the 750W by a 5-year warranty. They're supposed to be available right now, however OCZ's website is still listing the previous generation Fatal1ty PSUs. We suspect it will be updated sometime today. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Newegg Daily Deals: Dell UltraSharp 27-inch Monitor, Asus P8Z77-V Pro Motherboard, and More! Posted: 26 Sep 2013 06:17 AM PDT Top Deal: If you haven't made your video card sweat just yet, perhaps it's time to upgrade your monitor to something beyond 1920x1080 and give it a workout. Once such candidate is today's top deal for a Dell UltraSharp U2713HM 27-inch monitor for $603 with free shipping (normally $670 - use coupon code MONITORTEN). This IPS display boasts a 2560x1440 resolution and has flexible input options (D-Sub, DVI, HDMI, DisplayPort). Other Deals: Asus P8Z77-V Pro LGA 1155 Intel Z77 ATX Intel Motherboard for $190 with free shipping (Free 4GB Crucial Ballistix memory w/ purchase, limited offer; additional $20 Mail-in rebate) Raidmax Smilodon Black/Silver SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower  Computer Case for $64 with free shipping (normally $75 - use coupon code: [RMXSEP16]; additional $15 Mail-in rebate) Raidmax 1000W 80 Plus Gold Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply for $120 with free shipping (normally $145 - use coupon code: [0924CLRNCE87]; additional $20 Mail-in rebate) LG 23EA53V-P Black 23" 5ms LCD Monitor for $140 with free shipping (normally $190 - use coupon code: [23LGMNT])

AMD: R9 290X Will Be "Much Faster Than Titan in Battlefield 4" Posted: 25 Sep 2013 09:05 PM PDT The red team says that with Mantle, its new flagship GPU will "ridicule" the GeForce Titan With AMD unveiling its new series of GPUs, many gamers want to know how well it performs, namely against Nvidia's flagship GeForce GTX Titan graphics card.  We had a chance to sit down with AMD Product Manager Devon Nekechuck to see how AMD's new top dog R9 290X stacks up against the green team's best single-GPU offering. According to Nekechuck, even though the R9 290X uses a 438 square mm die, which is significantly smaller than the Titan's 550 sq. mm GK110 offering, it "will definitely compete with the GTX 780 and Titan." When we asked what this means in real-world terms, he stated, "with Battlefield 4 running with Mantle (AMD's new graphics API), the card will be able to 'ridicule' the Titan in terms of performance."  Is the R9 290X the Titan killer? AMD seems to think so. When we asked him what he meant by "ridicule," he simply stated that it will run Battlefield 4 "much faster than the Titan." Again, this is provided that you run the game using AMD's Mantle API, which is set to launch in December.  While no pricing has been announced for AMD's high-end GPU just yet, It is worth mentioning that Nekechuck did confirm to us that the company does not plan to release single-GPU cards in the $1,000 price range because AMD thinks that is such a small, niche market. When you consider that the GeForce Titan runs for one grand, it's safe to assume that it will be a fair bit cheaper than $1K. Rumors abound the event are that the R9 290X will retail at around the 780 price point, which currently hovers around $650. May we see Titan+ performance for less than 780 price from AMD? Only time will tell.  Stay tuned to Maximum PC for pricing, release date, and benchmarks when we get one in!

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