Gizmo

By Andy Walker, Cyberwalker Media Syndicate

If video gamers had a mascot, it would probably be a nocturnal bunny-ape.

After all, success in the virtual play world is all about quick reflexes, dexterous fingers and the ability to stay up all night until all the pixel beasties are dead.

In fact the more controls there are close to your fingers the better you'll play. So the Belkin Nostromo N45 GamePad makes a lot of sense. It is an odd-looking video game controller that puts all kinds of buttons and control nodules within fingers' reach.

Two of these nodules move to all the points of the compass for great steering and targeting. Then there are 13 action buttons and a mouse mode button. The latter lets you control the computer cursor without having to take your hands of the controls. Take all these buttons and add software and there's up to 70 programmable functions possible on the gadget.

The gadget comes in a version for the Sony PlayStation 2 as well as for Windows-based personal computers. On a PC, the device plugs into a USB port, which is common on all computers built since 1998.
The only thing missing is a coffee cup holder for those marathon late-night gaming sessions.

Price: $30 Canadian, $19.99 US
More info: www.belkin.com
Buy it: In Canada, at Future Shop and Office Depot. In the U.S., at Electronics Boutique and Staples. Also availale through Amazon.com

Search for more gadgets at: The Sharper Image

Copyright © Cyberwalker Media Inc. 2002