So Christmas is around the corner, and I already know that Christmas lists are being written! Gamers out there are definitely going to be asking for new mice, keyboards, mousepads, Gaming headsets and more accessories for their gaming careers. So a company called Sunfire reached out and asked us if we wanted to take a look at some of their gear. They’ve taken over my gaming setup for the past few weeks, giving them a proper test on a range of games from Overwatch 2, Warhammer Darktide, The Wandering Village, Hunt Showdown and more. Here’s what we thought.

The Surefire Kingpin M2 Keyboard

So, let’s start by talking about the Surefire Kingpin M2 keyboard. It’s a full-sized mechanical keyboard with a number pad on the right. There is an M1 version which is pretty much a TKL keyboard. The frame itself is made from a galvanised metal which gives the Kingpin M2 a real quality feel. It’s super heavy as well which was surprising when I first took it out of the box. It features multi-optional RGB lighting and there’s a partner software that you can download from the Surefire support page, but more on that in a moment as it’s a peculiar story. You can use keyboard shortcuts to set your RGB lighting effects, and there’s a guide on how to do that on the support page too. It uses mechanical Red switches and actually feels quite nice to type on, and the keys have quite a satisfying click to them.

The only issue I found was with the right edge of the Enter key didn’t match the tone of the other keys. While they had quite a nice thud, the Enter key when hit across the right edge sounded a lot lighter. Thre’s 100% anti-ghosting and the keys feel super smooth to use while typing and gaming. There’s no bottoming out on the keys, and the actuation doesn’t require much force at all to type. It’s a smooth motion for the keys’ up and down movement. It’s actually a really nice keyboard to type on.

So, software time! What was pretty strange was when I was trying to download the Surefire software from their support page, so I could access features to the keyboard, my antivirus detected a virus. It wouldn’t let me open the ZIP file. And to be quite honest with you, in this day and age, I’m not about to start sticking exclusions on my antivirus if it’s already said there’s a virus detected.

You’re definitely going to need to look into that Surefire because it’s super off-putting being greeted with that kind of message from your support page! Where can you buy this keyboard? Well, not sure really. I went to their Amazon store, and it wasn’t there. Though they do have a secondary Amazon link that took me directly to the product page, very strange. And what’s stranger is that the only other retailer listed on the Surefire website that had them was Box.co.uk. None of the other links worked. Currys/PC World? No clue, the link from their website took me to the homepage. Maplin? That company went into liquidation years ago. Funnily though, the Amazon link takes you to a Kingpin M2 for £63 and Box.co.uk are selling them for £46, from the link on the Box.co.uk website!

Surefire Buzzard Claw Gaming Mouse

Now this one is a bit of a mixed bag for me. First off, it’s a nice size. I can grip it with a palm grip, and when used with the Surefire Silent Flight mouse pad – love these names by the way – it glides across the surface really nicely and weighs just 133 grams. Though it’s called the Claw it’s definitely too big for a claw grip. Confusing a bit. But, for me, it’s a little skinny, and I would have preferred a bit more of a dome shape, especially regarding the side buttons. The mouse is a bit convex and I feel like my thumb can’t rest against the side of the mouse comfortably. There is a rough surface, unfortunately not made from rubber but it has a hexagonal pattern for grip. The main body of the mouse is made from plastic which is smooth but VERY prone to fingerprints. It has six buttons in total: a left and right click, a middle scroll and click, a DPI switcher below the scroll wheel and two thumb buttons. It’s for right-handed use only which is pretty standard now in the gaming mouse world.

The base has two large smooth plastic feet at the front and rear of the mouse which helps with the glide, and a 7200FPS sensor that’s capable of up to 7200DPI. The increments on the mouse are adjustable to 800, 1600, 2400, 3200, 4800 and 7200DPI. There is software that you can download, but my experience with the keyboard software has pretty much put me off downloading any driver from the Surefire support page. I do like however that you can assign colours to the mouse depending on the sensitivity you have set. So for example, I have a yellow colour against my 800DPI setting, so I can easily tell when I’m in that mode.

For the most part I stuck to using the 800 and 1200 DPI modes, as these are really the most common for me when it comes to gaming. Tracking was pretty nigh-on accurate and I was able to hit my shots in FPS games, and it was smooth for some nice movement across the mousepad. Clicks were very satisfying too, with very little effort actually needed to accentuate. And the switches felt solid. I’m not sure on the exact switches used in this mouse, as their website doesn’t mention it and the text on the box is far too small for my eyes to even read. There’s a braided cable to keep snagging to a minimum, though it was hard to straighten out properly.

Sunfire Silent Flight Gaming Mouse

As it says on the tin, this is a gaming mouse pad. Pretty much made from the same material as any other gaming mouse pad on the market. It’s smooth and soft and made from polyester fibre and natural rubber and aids the mouse in gliding across the surface. It’s heavily branded with a Surefire logo in the corner as well so whoever looks at it definitely can see where it’s from. It worked well with the Buzzard Claw mouse and I must say the RGB effect that glows around the outside of the mouse pad actually looks alright. It does require USB power, and the cable included is an alright length of 1.8 meters. There are multiple lighting modes which include eight static lights and 6 dynamic lights which include a full RGB colour cycle and a few others that shuffle through several colours. No driver is needed either which is cool, seeing as I’ve had a bad experience with their drivers so far.

You’ve definitely got to stick some heavy items on the corners of the mouse pad because it’s not sitting flush to my desk from the box. I left it for a few days on my testing table to flatten out but it didn’t happen. So squash it a bit with something heavy. The control box has a USB 2.0 interface. Not keen on this because in my experience those cable ends tend to break quite easily. USB Type-C on your next iteration, please. They come in two different sizes, small and large. Mine here is 680mm wide and has a depth of 280mm so it’s a nice size. Not quite big enough to comfortably put a mouse and keyboard. I would have liked to have seen something wider, but still, it’s not a bad size.

So, would you get them?

So, that’s Surefire’s new lineup of PC peripherals. They’re not a bad pick if you’re wanting to match your peripherals to the same brand to show that affiliation. Do remember though that these are not wireless items, so if you’re someone who’s a bit OCD about cables running down the back of your desk, be warned. For this setup, I had three separate cables, one from each peripheral, and this can get a little bit messy. If you’re looking to purchase your own Surefire products though, then head over to their website. The link will be in the description for you. There’s also some Amazon Affiliate links down below too so you can head directly to purchase. On the website you’ll be able to find the retailers that sell the items, but it might take a few searches before you find one that actually sells the items, or even has them in stock. To purchase all of the items, I’m looking at around £80-`100 depending on the retailer. As I said, there was a big price disparity between Amazon and Box.co.uk, so as I said do your research first. But if you’re after some budget gear that feels nice and premium, as with the Kingpin keyboard, and don’t have huge amounts of cash to spend, then check out Surefire. I’m impressed for sure. I just hope they sort their driver download issues out.

The post Upgrade Your Gaming Peripherals With Surefire appeared first on TechNuovo | Bitesized tech news and reviews.