Logitech's totally rad G19 gaming keyboard now on sale
By Paul Miller 
posted May 13th 2009 11:41AM
posted May 13th 2009 11:41AM
[Thanks, Brian]
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I prefer my original blue G15.
I hear ya. I tried the orange-tainted one and found the feel of the keys to be vastly inferior to its extra-wide blue predecessor (mushy and unresponsive to all but the firmest of presses.) Returned that bastard the next day, and now stuck with a broken macro record button.
Keep telling yourself that. (you haven't even tried the product)
Same here. Nothing can replace my 18x3 macro keys.
@ OneLove, I got my G15 for a third of the price. $180 for this keyboard is ridiculous. But you are right, I haven't tried it, but it can't be anywhere near $120 better, nor is it $1 better, the blue LEDs, simple LCD design, and 18 programmable buttons at once make the G15 better for me.
http://i44.tinypic.com/66jgaa.jpg
Haven't tried it now, you say...
Oh, another thing that pissed me off about the orange G15... the LCD was too small!
g15 ftw
At first I was worried about the keys. They took an hour or so to break in. But now they are way nicer than my old G15. That said, my G15's left shift key was either sticking or needed to be smashed pretty hard. And a few other keys were also funky in their responsiveness. So, not the best comparison.
All in all, it is cool. I will keep it around for a few years to be sure. I can't afford an Optimus, so this will have to do. And I do use the LCD quite a bit, even on my old keyboard. Odd apps, like the timer when I am scriptwriting or keeping track of my project hours. I use the vent interface when in MMO a lot. And the LCD is detailed enough to inspire me to write some applets to monitor my Maya and After Effects renders. I am even wondering if there is a way to set up a webcam in my infants bedroom and pipe that feed directly to the keyboard. That would be great for my nighttime monitoring of her.
Maybe mostly fluff, but I think it will sell well over the long haul.
I've been saying for awhile that each new g keyboard they come out with is a step back. Having a color lcd would be nice but I wouldn't be able to stand that ugly sob.
Really? I'd love to move to the red, the blue dilates your eyes to much and if you have your computer in the same room you sleep in they can be really damn bright even when most the lights have been turned off.
I just found out that the G19 has changeable backlit colors, but still I would like it if they improve the design this time.
I like my G15 and all, but don't really feel that it ever changed FPS gaming for me. It didn't feel like it was worth the entry fee is what I'm getting at. So I can't see any reason to want to upgrade to this model. It looks nice and all, but there isn't anything sucking me in.
I just bought a G15 orange. The G19 is a rip off at 180$ for just a color screen and some negligible crap compared to the G15.
This would be good for the recession.. wink wink.
The color of the keys changes. It has dynamic lighting control built in. Perhaps actually reading up on it instead of judging by pictures could have helped.
@Mike, and I realized this in one of my follow up comments. Perhaps actually reading the comments instead of replying as quickly as possible could have helped.
No problem. You can use the current Dell Gaming Accessory discount right now to bring the price down. My G15 (1st gen) broke down last month. After 4 years of service, I decided to spring for the G19. If I buy a keyboard every 4 years, might as well get a fancy one... well, it's no Optimus but still cool.
Definitely a good purchase if you, like me, run a home business and can use it as a tax write off anyway.
What discount would that be...could you link it?
I like my 2nd gen G15... much easier to fit on a desk and it's pretty slick. the original g15 looks trashy and huge.. and this new one, while having a compromise between the 3 rows and the 1 row of Gkeys of the 1st and 2nd gen is nice.. that LCD screen looks massive... and 180 bucks? holy crap. you could get 2 g15 2nd gens... or the g9 (it's been going for 60 at best buy intermitently the last couple months) and a g15 + a glass steelseries mousepad (which is great with logitech mice) and have a nice little gaming input setup.
maybe when it comes down to ~150 I'll look more closely.
Wouldn't you rather spend that money on a new video card?
Pretty much yeah.
But this is coming from someone who is still using the stock mac chiclet keyboard (for the record much prefered the clunky old one.).
I tend to get a new video card every 6 months to a year. I had my old G15 for 4 years. So in some respects, it is a bad comparison. It's like getting a nice case. You'll likely use it far longer than the computer or the parts in your computer.
I've got the second gen G15 as well. The LCD screen is seldom useful, and the application crashes often in Vista x64 making it useless most of the time. I can't imagine why anyone would fork out $180 just because it has a color screen.
I picked up the $130 G19 headset, and I think it's $60 overpriced.
They now sell 20" LCD's for $100, so yeah having a tiny bit of a display on a keyboard for $140 extra instead.. must make sense to the swiss I guess.
I have found exactly two programs where the display is useful: World of Warcraft and Ventrillo. For WoW, it puts all your stats there at a glance, which is easier than pulling up your character screen. And for Vent, it lets you see who's talking, joining, leaving, etc, while you're playing a game.
As to the app crashing...the only problem I've had with it is that if I log out of one character, sometimes when I log into a different one the WoW app won't reset itself. Other than that, I haven't had any of the apps for the LCD display crash, and I'm also using Vista x64.
I love my G15. I use the LCD screen for all RPGs as it shows stats, but the main thing that I use it for is playing music. I can turn off my main monitor and be able to play music without a huge bright light :)
Still fugly, good job sticking to your guns logitech.. I guess.
And even more expensive too, again what I said above.
It's funny the day after I bought my G15 they announced this :-(
@ Leindurstit, I meant I haven't tried the G19, I own the original G15. Also what is the picture for?
On Sale at microdirect now at reduced price.
Check http://twitter.com/micro_direct or visit http://microdirect.co.uk for up to date price in UK.
They need a version without the lcd could save alot of money. As well might save the need for a SEPERATE power adapter for the keyboard. Thats kinda dumb. Imagine having another power adapter to take to a lan.
They do - it's the G11, although it's still the blue version like the original G15 (which I have and love).
In for 3!
Wait, this isn't Woot, is it?
I've got the G15 and I love it. I should clean it off, and the top 3 buttons that switch get stuck. I haven't used it much other then a keyboard, but I do have plans for it in the future. I would rather pay 200 for a vid card though.
Nicely compared, they now have sales of an HD4850 for $101, in that light a keyboard for $200 is even more extreme, no matter how nice it is.
(I think it's fugly but that's in the eyes of the beholder)
The problem is, this keyboard actually needs a plug. A no-go for gaming events.
The thing... plays.... Korn??!?
Whats wrong with Capitalism?
Too, freakin, expensive.
Ok, so you can get the bundle containing a G19 and G9 for $260....or you can get them separately for $225. G19 = $179.99 and G9 = $44.99 (according to the Customer Recommendations).
Am I missing something?
Nope. You're not missing anything.
All you can do is hope that the packaging of the combo bundle is worth 40 bucks.
Nothing can ever beat the Cherry G80-3000
too bad... I've ordered G15 for £79. (I think G19 was available in UK when I ordered G15, but I ruled it out because it's way too expensive)
overkill but i still want it
"Sure, that might sound like a lot of money, but just remember the next time you reach a weathered, calloused index finger across your keyboard to toss your last grenade at a grim virtual enemy: you could've paid $180 to do the exact same thing while listening to Korn."
Best sentence on Engadget in a long time; kudos to you Paul.
My only gripe is the extra power adapter... Some LAN parties only give you two power ports per spot that you buy. I already buy 2 spots (dual monitors + Computer + Xbox360 = 4 power spots). So I'd rather not have to buy more than that, just because I'd like a new keyboard with a few more bells and whistles.
Anyone know the power requirement for the keyboard? Would it be possible to splice power from the power supply?
Sorry if this is a stupid question, I've never visitid LAN parties...
Are you not allowed to bring your own power strip and create more sockets? Since I'm assuming that's the case - Why on earth?
Well the main LAN party I go to, your not allowed to bring your own power strip. They calculate the power per seat. So if you plug in too much, you take out the whole circuit and people aren't happy when you take like 5 computers out. They also walk around and check for if you bring your own. My friend almost got kicked out for bringing a UPS that was fully charged.
$180 for a keyboard? Are you kidding me. That LCD on it better be good for that price. Is it 1080p capable and does it support HDCP for watching blu-ray movies while i'm playing WOW? First they offered LCD panels for mounting on your case and this is next I guess.
What makes this worth $180? I don't get it.
Shortcut buttons on a keyboard are a waste of space usually. The only useful one to me is the volume control.
It looks like a 90's-era Matrix-inspired design. In other words, yuck. Big blocky, and full of "k-r4d".
Logitech should first take care of the LCD issues with the WOW applet on the G13 and G15.
This problem is known since more than a month, nothing happens yet....
not bad, but i'll stick with my G15..
g15 was gimmicky, and this ain't any better....
There's free software that allows to reprogram/macro keys to your liking... There are already TOO MANY keys on any keyboard for gaming...
And for 180 bucks, you can get a 24" 1920*1024 monitor (and have money left over), so the arguement for the itsy-bitsy screen falls apart right there...
Somehow logitech decided that the little utilities they write for their little screen are worth 180 bucks...
arghh... plus the whole "I'm 8-years old, and I love spaceships" design theme... argghh..
But hey, some of us love spaceships, and some of us think that the endless hours logitech put into R&D of this awesome keyboard are worth it...
Just ordered 1. can't wait to play with it.
Geeks.com has the g15 for $48 right now... I know which one id choose if i was looking for a new keyboard :-p
http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=967599-0103
I have had the same keyboard for about 7 years now. (http://ebtx.com/comp/keyboard.htm has a pic of the exact same model). The caps lock, insert, and two Start button keys have been removed via screwdriver. Half of the keys are worn smooth and blank, the spacebar has some lovely thumb-carved curves to it, and several of the most used keys have gouges worn in them from my fingernails.
So no, I'm not getting a new keyboard anytime soon. :) This thing is like a favorite old chair that conforms perfectly to your butt. Only with fingers.
I believe that the point of the electrical power is to power the USB plugs. Since pretty much every usb device these days requires a powered usb port, the unpowered usb plugs on most keyboards (including the previous g-series ones) were useless.
nope, it has its own little Linux system built in to it, that's what the extra power is for, and it doesn't touch the USB from my understanding. thanks but no thanks unless the price drops below 150 with shipping, I love my V1 G15 to much.