Logitech goodies on display

LOGITECH SHOWED four new goodies at CES this week, two of which are fairly significant. They range from a high end remote to headphones.

The first one is the new Harmony 1100 remote. If you recall the Harmony One from last year, the new one is nothing like it. The functionality is a superset of the older part, but the new one looks totally different. It features a colour touch screen, and all the menus are customizable to whatever you want them to be.

Normally I don't say that a product will just work without trying it myself, but Logitech hasn't screwed up much in the last few years, so I am willing to buy their line that it is really customisable and easy to program.

The best part about it is the size. It is really thin, with less height than a lot of 'thin' phones. Luckily, it is also quite rigid as well, so the engineers seem to have gotten it right. They will be out in February, no MSRP yet, but it won't be cheap.

The next one up is the G19 keyboard, an update to the G15 gaming keyboard that you probably know about. This one has a much higher rez LCD, the gaming F-Keys, a D-pad for the screen, and best of all, a scroll wheel. At last!

For those into such things, you can customize the lighting colors until you get bored, play Youtube videos on the screen, and generally amuse yourself with only the keyboard if your computer dies. The down side to all this functionality is the keyboard needs to be plugged into an AC outlet, but that allows them to upgrade the USB hub to 2.0 and power it. I want one of these.

From there, we go to a new mouse, the G9x. It is a mild upgrade to the G9 gaming mouse, and I could not spot any differences, but there was no G9 to compare them side by side. The biggest upgrade is the sensor, it now runs at 5000DPI, and they are skinable as well. You can custom make designs that Logitech will print up for you when it comes out in March for $99.

Last we come to the G35 headphones. Logitech claims that they are the first 7.1 stereo headphones out on the market, but I am sure there will be a few links in the comments pointing out others. In any case, there are several nice touches to this product, the most important is a removable foam insert on the headband.

The G35 ships with a few different sizes of inserts so you can customize the feel of the set. Given how long people usually wear these for, that can be a very good thing. The mic is also flexible, so it probably won't break off if you catch it on something.

There are a few other slightly more dubious features like voice morphing. Should you want to talk to that lonely guy in Nebraska that thinks you are the 15 year old girl of his dreams in California, you can at least sound the part. There are also keys for volume, and a few other functions on the headphones. µ