At $70 for the set, this is a good starter bundle for a new gamer. The components included are about a $110 in value.
Instruction Manual
• No instruction manual included.
• No drivers to download and install, runs off standard windows drivers.
• There is some information on the back of the box about what is included, and available functions. An instruction manual would have been nice though.
Mouse Mat (4 stars)
• The included mouse mat is huge, you will need a fairly large desk to fit this one. It's almost twice as tall as the gaming mouse pad I've had for the past several years.
• The texture is fairly smooth.
• It has a ripple in the center from being folded in the box. It should have been rolled up, instead of folded, to prevent this.
• This is a decent gaming mat, but I will likely stick with my existing mat due to its shorter height and lack of deformity in the center.
Keyboard (4 stars)
• Keys feel slightly clicky, but actuation is fairly quiet.
• Travel distance is high. Too much for fighting games, but fine for most games and tasks.
• The keyboard feels fairly compact compared to most gaming keyboards.
• Media keys for audio playback on the top-right: play/pause, stop, mute, volume up, volume down
• Icons on volume up and volume down, are unclear as to their function, and are swapped from the normal order.
• On the top left you will find five function keys: My PC, Home Page, Mail, Search, Calculator
• These 5 function keys are not programmable, which I would have preferred.
• The bottom left corner of the keyboard is missing the usual Windows key, but does have a Fn key in its place. (But there is a Windows key on the right side.)
• By default the keyboard will pulse through a sequence of RGB rainbow palettes.
• You can switch the keyboard to a fixed palette with Fn+Scroll Lock. You can rotate through the available palettes with Fn+Ins.
• You can also turn of the backlights with either Fn+Scroll Lock or Fn+Print Screen.
• The keys are white without the backlight on and easy to read.
• Cool green and black braided cable.
• This is a good quality keyboard and the design is cool, but I do wish the keys were a little bigger for my fingers.
Mouse (3 stars)
• The mouse sports a very nice rotating RGB look which shines through the printed mesh.
• There does not seem to be a button to turn off or stop the lights.
• The scroll wheel has a laddered texture, with big stripes, which makes it easy to measure distances.
• There is a DPI button on top, but there is no way to know which DPI setting you are currently in. (The box lists 800/1200/1600/2400 DPI as the steps.)
• There are forwards and back buttons on the side for use with your web browser. These are not programmable.
• Cool green and black braided cable, which matches keyboard.
• The is a good mouse overall for the money, but the lack of a button to turn of the lighting is a major turnoff.
Headset (2 stars)
• This feels and sounds like a $20-$40 headset. (Compared to my old Astro A40 headset.)
• The bass is muddy, but the mid-tones are okay.
• The boom microphone picks up decent audio for voice comms, but feels a little short.
• The microphone cancels out breathing decently well, but not fan/background noise.
• There is a volume adjustment knob in the cable, but it doesn't have a good range. I would stick to the media keys on the keyboard.
• Cable is not braided, and is instead made of smooth rubber. It does not match the other cables.
• The headset is adjustable, but may not fit all sizes. (May be too big for children.)
• With the set, this headset is essentially a free addon and feels like it. Its perfectly suitable for the price, but I would recommend upgrading this with a better pair of headphones / microphone if you plan to use it regularly.