Logitech G19s Gaming Keyboard with Color Game Panel Screen

I used the same generic $10 keyboard from the early 90s until 2011, when I got a no-name back lit keyboard, so I could use the computer in the dark. I am a gamer, but if given the choice, I always play PC games with the 360 controller, or else just the mouse. Paying games with my old keyboards wasn't fun at all, and switching from the 360 version of Dragon Age to the PC version felt awful, simply because it didn't support controllers. So I finally gave in and started looking for a new keyboard to play such games.The Logitech G19s was one of the first review pages I looked at, and I was amazed at how many people buy $200 products without doing any research. I personally don't care for mechanical keyboards (they're loud and sensitive to spills) but many PC gamers love them (they're more sensitive to press and more durable). This keyboard is NOT mechanical - not an issue to me, though it may matter to you.Naturally, the first thing anyone is going to notice about this keyboard is the LCD screen. This screen is pretty cool - it can display a clock (most games don't display time in-game) movies (not sure why you'd want to watch movies on your 2-inch screen... but you can) timers, performance monitors, and others. However, each app seems to have it's own shortfalls - the clock is only analog, the performance monitor only displays one overall cpu meter (unless you have exactly 2 cores, and people buying $200 keyboards are going to have at least 4, if not 8) and the movie app doesn't display every type of video file.One of the first things I did was try out the screen in a game - Civilization 5. While the game ran as normal, the screen displayed information on my in-game cities, information that is buried deeper within the game was now readily available. This made the game-play much more convenient - though I did notice that it hadn't been updated to include Civilization 5's expansion packs. This made me wonder if Logitech EVER updates these apps - so I tried an older game, Dragon Age. Sure enough, the app hadn't been updated since the G15 (the G15's screen was monochrome, and so were its apps).This next complaint doesn't apply to everyone (I hear Logitech's software has something against AMD drivers?) but every time I try to bring up the software's window from the taskbar, it crashes. This doesn't happen if opened from the start menu or the desktop. Minor, but fairly annoying. You should also disable any apps you don't plan on using (ex: disable the webcam app if you don't have a webcam) because they all use a little memory in the background.When you actually get it to work, the software allows full customization of the 'G' keys as well as the color and brightness of the keys. I was sick of the red on my old keyboard, so it's cool to use blue one day and green the next. However, the keys aren't very bright - set to '100', it's only just bright enough to be clearly visible. I think it could be brighter than this. However, it is absolutely NOT true that the only settings are 'on' and 'off' as the #1 review claims - you can set it anywhere from '0' to '100'.On to the keyboard itself - the keys seem to be fingerprint resistant, as well as being more comfortable to press than generic keyboards. The 'media' keys are separate from the normal keys - that means no 'fn' key to mess with. The volume control is a roller, sorta like an extra large mouse wheel - when you scroll it, a volume bar shows up both on your monitor and the keyboard's screen to guide your adjustment. There's also a slider switch that can disable the windows keys, so you don't accidentally press them while in-game. The keyboard also has a pair of USB ports you can plug devices into, so while the keyboard itself takes up a USB port, it creates two. I personally use a USB extension cord so my keyboard can reach across the room, and with the keyboard's own ports, now my mouse and controller can too!Based on my experiences with this keyboard, I have to say it's a fantastic product bottle-necked by less-than-fantastic software.

The G19s is one of the better keyboards I have owned in years,Installation:Installation is a basic plug and play, though if you want to change the back lighting or set your keys up for macros or game commands you will need to install the gaming software that Logitech has on there site here:[...]This program will let you set up the keyboard to your liking and allow you to configure the LCD screen.Lighting, LCD Screen, App/Applets:The lighting is nice to have though vary hard to see in the day time or on lower color settings, I have also noticed that the LED's with some of they keys don't light up fully. The colors are nice being able to set it to any color you want. Down fall is the LCD control keys only stay one color.The LCD looks nice and is not as pixelated as I thought it would be. The screen is nice and colored as stated with a draw back you will need to make sure to adjust it to be able to see it. This dose cause issues if your in a game and have to make adjustments to see it.The apps it comes with are:G-Series Profile SelectorLogitech LCD ClockLogitech LCD Countdown TimerLogitech LCD Movie ViewerLogitech LCD Picture ViewerLogitech LCD RSS ReaderLogitech LCD Video Player (YouTube)Logitech LCD Webcam ViewerLogitech Performance MonitorThese apps are helpful but are miss leading like the youtube app it comes with wont let you browse or search for videos you want to see, it just brings up vary old videos or ones that have the most views that are not worth the time. Most of the videos wont load on the screen and asks you to view on site. The Performance Monitor shows the CPU cores and RAM. The clock is basic none digital and can be hard to read at times. The picture viewer works well when set up right. The video how ever dose not work well with the basic formats MP.4, AVI, WMV, Ext.The Applets I have found do not work when you down load them and you cant find any information on how to get them to work with windows 7. There are a vary few applets for this keyboard which is vary misleading saying there is a ton of them out there and being developed which is not the case. There might have been when the board 1st came out though now days I was only able to find around 20 that are still being updated the rest are too old and out dated to work on win7.Other:The hand rest it came with is vary flimsy and will break with barely any effort. They board feels cheaply made for what you spend on it. and the volume controls at times wont work with programs that are not windows based.The buttons sometimes will not register the key you hit with out some force to it.Over all I would say it is worth the money for the down falls if you get it on sell as I did for 139.99 I would also say you need to have a USB 3.0 port for the board to run super smooth, I have tried it with the USB 2.0 and it worked fine with some lag times. With the 3.0 Ports it has no lag time.

I upgraded to this from a G510s. I chose this keyboard because while I liked the 510s, it's footprint was just a smidge too large. Since I don't use the G-keys very often, the trade-off from 18 to 12 wasn't a big deal.So far, I've been very impressed with the G19s. It has smooth and precise key actuation. I've never been a fan of mechanical keyboards, even for gaming, and this keyboard hits a true sweet spot in key height, travel, and resistance/responsiveness. The coatings on both the keys and the palm rest are slightly less slick than the 510s, which I'm happy about. The brightness and color for the key backlight is quite good. I'm impressed with the LCD screen. Mine has no imperfections, has excellent brightness and color, and after creating my own applet for system monitoring, has come in quite handy. The powered USB 2.0 ports are quite nice, eliminating the need for a hub for the add-on Soundblaster sound card I added to my Mac Pro (no factory mic input on the Pro.) The menu keys for the LCD don't require much pressure like some complaints I've heard, and register every press I've given them so far. The switch between applets is quick and responsive, which is another complaint I'd heard.Overall, I think the G19s was an excellent purchase, with none of the downsides or issues others have mentioned.The one thing I will note for anyone switching from a G510s, is that the G19s does not have the built in mic and headphones jacks that the 510s has. This was something I hadn't looked at too closely before I bought it, but I could see someone being irritated at the lack, since it could have easily been included in a nearly identical fashion.