Saitek Pro Gamer Command Unit command pad

...laid out as with the Saitek offering.

It's adjustable for different hand sizes, and looks great. It has a blue light on the palm rest, and a naff red Saitek logo that shines down onto the desk. The key illumination can be set to blue, red or green, depending on the mode it's in (there's a 3-way switch to choose). The plastic finish is good quality, and it grips the desk and stays put when you use it.

The programming ...
...it's a conflict with the Saitek X52 joystick, but I've never managed to solve it. It can be mitigated by disabling/ disconnecting the joystick, but since then I've had problems with the programming software not loading, with the only solution I've found being to keep restarting the system until it happens to load correctly.
I should mention that this seems to be a problem unique to myself, and there is little mention of it on the support forums.
more

This product makes a huge difference to gameplay. I've never got used to using a keyboard to play games, and this is a sensible alternative.

This is great for FPS's, RPG's, and action games like Hitman and Gun. It's a companion to using a mouse, and has a logical, intuitive layout, with keys that are much easier to locate by feel than those of the keyboard.

The central pad of keys are few enough that you don't lose track of them or get them confused, the "pinkie" keys on the left are ideally placed and easily located by touch, and the thumb joystick and buttons are well laid out. All in all, the layout is perfect.

The main alternative to this product is the Belkin Nostromo. Although it didn't suffer from the glitch described below, the keys are grouped together and easily confused, it doesn't stay put and the thumb buttons aren't as well laid out as with the Saitek offering.

It's adjustable for different hand sizes, and looks great. It has a blue light on the palm rest, and a naff red Saitek logo that shines down onto the desk. The key illumination can be set to blue, red or green, depending on the mode it's in (there's a 3-way switch to choose). The plastic finish is good quality, and it grips the desk and stays put when you use it.

The programming software is excellent, very easy to use and customisable. Unfortunately, I've had a problem with hardware conflicts that causes the system to crash - I suspect that it's a conflict with the Saitek X52 joystick, but I've never managed to solve it. It can be mitigated by disabling/ disconnecting the joystick, but since then I've had problems with the programming software not loading, with the only solution I've found being to keep restarting the system until it happens to load correctly.
I should mention that this seems to be a problem unique to myself, and there is little mention of it on the support forums.
With the recent update to their SST software, the failure to load now happens very rarely.

As for using the thing, it doesn't take much getting used to, but as with any controller, it takes a bit of getting used to switching from one game to another. If you haven't played a game for a while, it takes a bit of time to remember the configuration, but that's not a criticism of the product.

I use this with all the games I play, but I've found the biggest advantage to be with FPS's and action games. 

...less