THE BEST PC GAMING GEAR FROM CES 2018

THE BEST PC GAMING GEAR FROM CES 2018

Even though CES is for consumer electronics, there was still a good amount of PC hardware demos this year. Everything from new mice and keyboards to giant displays and impossibly small PCs were on-hand. Below, we've collected what we think were the most notable announcements. 

Razer Mamba HyperFlux

Razer is jumping aboard the “charging mat” bandwagon with its $250 Mamba HyperFlux mouse/mat combo. Unlike Logitech’s PowerPlay system whereby the mouse surface is able to charge the battery inside the mouse, Razer’s design eschews the battery completely as the mouse pulls power directly from the mat, making the mouse a bit lighter than it would be otherwise. Both the mouse and the mat offer RGB illumination, and they’ll be showing up in the first quarter of 2018. We expect other HyperFlux mice to follow as well.

Nvidia's BFGD

Nvidia’s Big Format Gaming Display is taking the performance of a gaming monitor and merging it with the size of a television. With its 65” wingspan, 120Hz refresh rate, 4K resolution, HDR support and 1,000 nits brightness, it’s a top-shelf display and should be spectacular for gaming. Thanks to its built-in Nvidia Shield TV, it’s easy to fire up a movie or TV show too. Pricing TBD but you should contact your loan shark now as they’re arriving in the 2nd half of 2018.

iBuyPower Snowblind

The Snowblind is a seriously cool and customizable case side panel that can display almost anything from whirly effects to system temps. Though it’s been around for a bit, the company was showing it off at CES and it looks unbelievably awesome. You can download widgets to display on the side of the case, and alternatively you can have it look totally transparent, white, or blacked out completely to show off your illuminated components. It’s pretty slick, and you can check out a video of it here or see the company’s landing page for more info. Unfortunately, this tech is only available in pre-built systems from iBuyPower.

HTC Vive Pro and Wireless Adapter

HTC threw down the gauntlet at CES this year, announcing an updated Vive Pro headset and a wireless adapter that work with the new headset and the original Vive. The big news on the Pro model is it offers a decent increase in resolution— running at 1,440 x 1,600 compared to the older model’s 1,080 x 1,200 resolution. It will also include built-in headphones, but still offers the same 110-degree field of view and 90Hz refresh rate. The Vive Pro also has two front-facing cameras instead of the single one on the original model.

The wireless adapter connects to the headset and communicates with your PC over Intel’s WiGig 60G band, and you’ll need to clip on a battery pack as well. Pricing for both products wasn’t announced, but HTC says they should be arriving later this year.