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Cyborg EVO Wireless
Score: 90%
Developer: Saitek
Device Type: Controller


Function:

The Cyborg EVO Wireless is a mid-range Flight Stick that is designed to give you both comfort and freedom. The wireless feature means you don?t have to deal with cords hanging in your way. The Cyborg EVO Wireless sports a lot of buttons, a hat switch, and a throttle, all of which are programmable with the included software.

Performance:

Saitek?s Flights Sticks are known for their adjustable ergonomics. The Cyborg EVO Wireless has thumbscrews that allow for precise adjustment of the pitch and yaw of the button cluster at the top of the stick, and even the handedness to provide a very comfortable feel. The centering mechanism of the Cyborg EVO Wireless is a conic wedge device with a powerful spring; this provides a firm, continuous centering with very little bounce.

As for the buttons, you have a primary trigger, a button cluster with five buttons, and a hat switch at the top of the stick. There is also a small three-button cluster of buttons on both sides of the stick. Due to the location of these buttons, one side will be easy to reach and the other will not, depending on which hand you use for the stick. I suggest using the hard-to-reach side for actions that don?t require split-second timing or aren?t used in conjunction with working the stick. Finally, at the back of the controller is a smooth action throttle.

One little surprise is that the small wireless USB receiver fits into a special slot on the underside of the Cyborg EVO Wireless? base. This is a nice feature, providing a good way to keep both the controller and the receiver together when you?re not using the controller.


Features:
  • Ambidextrous design -- Adjustable/Configurable components allow for excellent ergonomics and comfort
  • 2.4GHz wireless technology for 30? range
  • Programmable via included Smart Technology software
  • Uses 1x AA battery (two included) for up to 50 hours of play
  • Five fire buttons and an eight-way ?point-of-view? hat switch on the button cluster
  • Rapid-fire trigger
  • 3D twist for rudder control
  • Throttle lever
  • Two shift Buttons and four programmable buttons on base
  • Storage slot for USB receiver in base

Drawbacks & Problems::

The only things that I could say against the Cyborg EVO Wireless wouldn?t really be fair to begin with; I?d like to have seen Force Feedback and Foot Pedals included, but that?s not really a viable option for a wireless controller or, for that matter, the intended market for the Cyborg EVO Wireless. The Cyborg EVO Wireless is not intended for the hyper-realism crowd that would be willing to pay the same amount for a flight simulator that most would spend on a car. The Cyborg EVO Wireless is an excellent mainstream flight stick that serves as a shining example of the high quality controllers that Saitek produces.

-Geck0, GameVortex Communications
AKA Robert Perkins
Minimum System Requirements:

Windows? 98/Me/2000/XP, Available USB Port
  Test System:

Sony VAIO VGC-RA820G, 3.2GHz Intel Pentium 4 540HT, Windows XP Media Center edition with Available USB Port

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