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Review: 1byone 4000DPI Programmable Wired USB Gaming Mouse

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Rating: ★★★★

PROS:

  • Very comfortable to use
  • Braided cable for extra durability
  • Performs well in game, easy to map buttons as per requirements
  • Inexpensive

CONS:

  • Only 6 LED colours to choose from, no fully fledged RGB system
  • Would have liked more programmable buttons
  • Software can only be installed from CD

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Learn more about this product at 1byone.co.uk

I wouldn’t call myself a heavy gamer, but I do enjoy the odd PC game from time to time when I get the chance. Historically, I’ve very much been a controller-based gamer, typically relying on an Xbox 360 or Xbox One PC controller. 1byone got in touch with me and said they thought I should try gaming with a high DPI mouse designed for gaming, so i took them up on their offer to sample one of their latest models.

The mouse comes packaged in a simple cardboard box which thankfully doesn’t require any frustrating man-handling to open, and arrives together with a mini-CD containing the software required to use the mouse’s high DPI functionality. The software is fully compatible with most recent versions of Windows including Windows 10 but unfortunately can only be used as a standard mouse within Mac.

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The mouse itself fits very nicely in the hand and is a good size. If anything I might have liked it to be a tiny bit larger but that’s just personal preference and most will feel it’s an ample size for the job at hand. Buttons are well placed with a button marked ‘DPI’ on the top which by selects each DPI profile that has been configured (and simulatenously changes the configured colour scheme ready for each profile). There are then two other buttons on the left hand side of the mouse which by default act as back and forward buttons for your web browser.

Getting started is simple. Simply plug in your new mouse and then run the bundled setup.exe program within the installation CD and in a few easy steps you’ll be good to go. Once the software is installed, you can configure up to 5 gaming profiles and even assign the profiles to an individual game. The profile can even be automatically selected when a particular game starts.

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Bar a minor spelling error, the interface is well designed and allows easy configuration of gaming profiles.

Playing games with the mouse is very easy and the comfortable thumb rest makes use of the mouse for extended periods of time comfortable. I’m not sure how I’d use the mouse in my left hand as it does seem to be manufactured for right-handed gamers, but that’s likely to be an issue that won’t affect many. The two buttons above your thumb are well placed so you don’t hit them by accident and have a very decent level of feedback and a loud click upon pressing.

Every button on the mouse including the left and right mouse button can be mapped, which can be particularly useful if you want to avoid using a keyboard almost altogether. One of my criticisms is the lack of buttons for you to be able to map – I’d like to have seen a couple more custom buttons myself but overall feel that the choice 1byone made is reflected well in the price.

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My biggest gripe with the mouse is the lack of downloadable software for it. At the time of writing, the only way you can install the software (which is absolutely mandatory if you want to do any form of gaming with the mouse) is to use the provided mini disk. If you don’t have a CD drive on your computer (and let’s face it, many of us don’t these days) you’re going to find the software difficult to install unless you have another computer with a CD drive kicking about. 1byone could however easily fix this!

Aside from those relatively minor niggles, this is a solid budget gaming mouse with as much accuracy as most will ever need. At around £15, it fits nicely within its price range and certainly feels well built and designed to last. If 1byone could fix the software download issue this would be suitable for all games no matter how their computer is configured. If you’re in need of a reliable gaming mouse that won’t cost the Earth, this is a good choice.

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Review: 1byone Bluetooth LED Light Bulb with Speaker

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Rating: ★★★★★

RRP £24.99, best price at time of writing £15.99 on Amazon

“Smart” technology is very much a thing of the present with everything from TVs to central heating systems to security systems all now being available with enhanced functionality when connected to the internet or another device. Another device we’ve seen become “smart” lately is the light bulb. Philips Hue lighting is a great example of this – a light bulb that you can control over your wi-fi, use with a wide variety of colours, and even use (with other hardware) to sync up to devices like your TV or games console. The only issue is that it’s rather expensive technology and won’t suit everyone. So what if you want something a bit more wallet-friendly?

1byone were kind enough to send me one of their latest offerings – their 1byone Bluetooth LED Light Bulb. Available from around £16 on Amazon, it’s a fraction of the cost of the Philips Hue and should offer similar features, as well as having the bonus of a built in speaker. Lets find out!

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The bulb comes very well packaged in a decent cardboard box so is unlikely to get damaged in transit. Inside the box you’ll find the bulb together with some short instructions.

Setting up the bulb is really easy. Simply screw it into any Edison screw bulb holder (you can get bayonet adapters separately if you need them), turn on the light and it’ll immediately power up. It’ll default with a cool white light if no device is connected and that works nicely. At this point you can pair it up to a device (it’ll reconnect automatically once it’s paired) and get started. You then simply need to download the free TecPowerBulb app for either Android or iOS and you can get started.

Once you’ve got the app open you can access a number of controls. Use the lamp tab to choose pretty much any colour you like from a colour picker – the lamp responds almost instantly and output is really good – a very decent bright output. You can also use setting tab to set a delay before turning the lamp off – ideal if you need a security light while you’re going out or if you simply want a night light. The clock with the movable hands makes it really easy to set a switch-off time.

If you want, you can also use the music tab to set a song to play, but in my test with iOS 8 I could simply use the onboard music player to transmit audio through to the onboard speaker – a method I much prefer. The onboard speaker was surprisingly good – a warm sound (if a tiny bit tinny) which fills the room very effectively. Really not bad at all. It actually makes quite a lot of sense because if your ceiling light fitting is in the centre of the room, the omni-directional speaker does a fantastic job of directing volume equally. I was very surprised at how well it worked.

The only feature I felt the device lacked was an automatic on-off feature. It’d be nice if you could automatically turn the lamp on when it becomes in Bluetooth range of your phone, and then turn off when it falls out of range – but I feel this is a feature that could easily be added in future. This would certainly appeal to people trying to be “green” with the environment.

Overall, I am very happy with the device. For the 6W of energy the lamp uses, it produces a really bright output. The colour customisation really appeals to various moods – love the idea of mood lighting. It isn’t quite perfect, but it’s damn near close for a Bluetooth bulb – and the minor things that are missing could easily be added with an app update. At around £16, it’s a bargain, and if you’re looking for a budget colour-changing light bulb – this could be a great option.

Buy the 1byone Bluetooth LED Light Bulb from Amazon