Just bought a ZBoard.

[Bucko]

I was out looking around my local game shop and decided to splurge on a ZBoard.

Seems like a pretty good thing and AU$100 isn't too bad. It also came with a free limited edition key set (priced at AU$40) of my choice, so I grabbed the BF2142 one.

http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/5638/31133944st5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

(yes my computer desk needs a clean up)

I'll try it out with the game later on and see how it feels. From the looks of it it should make it easier to play.

Anyone else use one of these keyboards?

[Ronyx]

I use a Wolfclaw Type II, but i don't like how they have both the right and left shifts on the gamepad. I wanna remap one of the shift keys to be an alt key.

[Crimson Sky]

A few keys on my standard keyboard insert for the Zboard crapped out on me after about 7 months of use. It appears the steel lifter pins were the problem. I like the product I think it needs some work tho.

[Airbozo]

I have the Zboard and I love it. My only complaint is that you have to load the key maps before starting the game (some games will let you alt-tab and load the right one if you forget). There should be a way to have the zboard load the correct layout when you fire up each program. (there may be and I just missed it).

[Bucko]

Well I plan on leaving the BF2142 key pad on it most of the time unless I use it with other games. I'l still use my Microsoft keyboard for general typing duties.

[Durrthock]

I have a G15


PWNT

[Bucko]

I looked at at G15 at the same time I bought the ZBoard, but for playing BF2142 it didn't look like there was any real point over a normal keyboard as far as key layout went. I was specifically looking for the different movement keys and price didn't factor in either.
I wasn't planning on having it a replacement keyboard either, just a supplemental keyboard.

[Maz]

yeah, i dont type in the dark; plus i memorized the position of the keys in my games, so there is no real point for me to get a g15 either. for a while when i had no desk(just a chair) i flipped the keyboard on the side so i was playing sideways with all the # pad keys. it worked surprisingly well perched on my leg. II have a standard micro$haft internet keyboard that i have no difficulty using.

[Bucko]

Here's the three tops I have and a shot of the board with no top:

http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/8450/1013pd1.jpg

http://img250.imageshack.us/img250/5751/1014gt5.jpg

[Durrthock]

I'm only joking I just really like logitech and I had a coupon so yeah.
I almost bought a z board

[isunktheship]

Awww I'm sorry I couldn't have stepped in sooner for this...

I bought a zboard, and it was nice and all... but my gf spilled orange juice all over it by accident. I went out to the store to buy a temporary board, one I really intended on returning, but found out it was amazing.

The Razer Tarantula is by far the best board I have ever used. 10 Macros/profiles at your fingertips, each profile can customize the whole board, it's amazing. Not to mention it has 2 USB's on it (that may not be a good thing for some) and a mic/headphone jack.

I recently had my zboard "replaced"... kinda sketchy, I bought another zboard, and returned the old one in its place. I kept the tarantula, as it goes with my computer's theme, and I even bought a copperhead mouse.

I have an extra zboard now... so I might sell it on Ebay or somethin.

Just a few things I didn't like the zboard;
Loud keys, in comparison to Razer, Logitech, ...a stock Dell...
Not really too customizable, if you don't play the games that the board has sets for
If you do play those games, and want to get the sets, you're looking at $20 each.
I didn't like the fact that the buttons up top aren't lit, why make them clear?
You have to re-download drivers to get keysets to work, if you move your board into a different plug it is completely unuseable. (With the tarantula if you change one of the two USB's your sets are affected, but at least you don't type gibberish.)

Pros that the board has to offer:
Extremely easy to clean (unless its oj)
It definately has the "wow" affect, when you see someone rip all their keys off and slam on a new color-coded bf2/bf2142/cod/wow/age of empires? set.
Excellent volume control (the tarantula has everything the zboard has in this dept. plus it is compatible with itunes, winamp, wmp, and I think you can program some extras in)
Um...Nice USB slots? (tarantula has these as well, works fine for memory sticks, but don't try plugging in anything that needs a lot of power... ipod.. external HD using USB power, tarantula also has this problem, even with its two USBs)
Comes with a second keyset for "gaming".
The themes are pretty cool, especially in the case of the Doom 3 mod, it all comes together well, nice and aesthetic.
For the price, you can get the board, and two keysets, and it would still be cheaper then a Tarantula($50 + $20 + $20 = 90+tax, versus about $99+tax)

SIDENOTE: Unfortunately as soon as a new game comes out and you move on to that, your old keyset is now from some old-school game. You either switch to the generic reg-board or gaming-board, until to are ready to cough up yet another $20. With the tarantula you just save a new profile (You can make 100) and then edit the keysets for the new profile, which can be loaded at the touch of a button. It basically comes down to "Are you really going to buy every customized keyset for each new game, or do you want your keyboard to look sleek, and while it doesn't advertise the game you play, internally it conforms to anything you want, even programs that aren't games (Photoshop, 3ds max, maya, video editing (sony vegas), flash, programming, etc.)

If you have the money I would definately recommend the tarantula. ZBoard + keyset is already about 2/3 of a tarantula. EDIT: You got the set for free, so the 2/3 doesn't apply to you, that was a gooood deal!

Awesome keyset regardless +rep for the find!

[Bucko]

I had a look online at the price of the Razer board and it is between AU$130-$200 depending on which online shop you go to.

Now from the pictures I saw of the Tarantula, it seems similar to a G15 as far as being a standardish looking keyboard which has programmable macros?
ie, it doesn't have the game layout WASD keys like the ZBoard does.
As I said above, that was the main thing I ws looking for.

I may still buy a G15 or Tarantula yet to replace my main keyboard.
I like to play around with Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City (I finished it on the PS2, then saw it cheap for PC about 6 months or more after I finished it and thought it would be fun to muck around with again) and I like to cheat while playing it on the PC.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the programmable macros should mean I could put in the various cheat codes for more health/ammo/tank/whatever and only need to hit a single button on the keyboard to make ech one work. Correct?

As far as the Tarantula/G15 goes, what are they like as a day to day keyboard while not gaming?
I spend a lot of time on forums typing (it comes from being an Administrator of an Aussie Bike Magazine's Web Forum. 12,000 posts in just over 2 years. Yes I need a life...) so having a good keyboard for me is a must. The ZBoard isn't up to the day to day typing I do and I had already guessed that before I bought it. I'm treating it more like my Dual Action controller, it's an extra for gaming, not the main input device.
Hence the question about the G15 and Tarantula. Is there any issues that annoy you with key placement?

[isunktheship]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the programmable macros should mean I could put in the various cheat codes for more health/ammo/tank/whatever and only need to hit a single button on the keyboard to make ech one work. Correct?

Yeah, you're right! The only problem with the macros for me right now is that they have a size limit. It records key presses down, and key "presses" up, you can also add time in between buttons. Here is a screenie of what it kinda looks like.
http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/306/tarantula1ef0.th.jpg (http://img180.imageshack.us/my.php?image=tarantula1ef0.jpg)



As far as the Tarantula/G15 goes, what are they like as a day to day keyboard while not gaming?

Day to day is pretty nice, the board is pretty quiet. If I want to play music or games I just press the macroed button to play the game, and for music I use the built-in buttons. The board also has zoom +/-, rotate, and '100%' buttons. These are useful for image editing/3d. To edit profiles I can press the 'razer' button, and if I want to hibernate the computer I press that, there is also a home button.

Another thing I like about this is the "battledock" which is going to have a few accessories, a keyboard light, or an ipod dock, or even a webcam dock. These extra features will be released soon I think. I need to get a real camera, then I can take pictures.

[klingelton]

i've had the z-board for around 3 years (ish). i was thinking of upgrading to the logitech G15 because i love logitech products and i thought it was time for a change, but im playing well with the zboard so i figured why change, i'll just blow the money on a water cooling rig instead!

[Durrthock]

I love my g15
I use the monitor all the time and bf2142 supports it now.
Definitely worth it.