Gaming Hardware News Roundup, April 2023, Part 2

In recent weeks, some news has surfaced regarding what’s new on gaming hardware. I can’t cover everything, so feel free to share any hardware news you think everyone should know about in the comments below.

KontrolFreek non-slip thumb grips

First, KontrolFreek has announced the next generation of thumb grips for gamers. The new non-slip thumb grips are available in a variety of colors and sold in packs of 4 pairs. These thumb grips are designed to improve grip, reduce hand fatigue and improve accuracy with your favorite controllers. You can get your own non-slip thumb grips from KontrolFreek’s site and select resellers for $12.99 per pack.

Charging station for Joy-Con HyperX ChargePlay Quad 2

Meanwhile, HyperX has announced the ChargePlay Quad 2 Joy-Con Charging Station. Available now through HyperX’s website for $29.99, this charging station lets you charge up to four Joy-Cons at a time in less than four hours. It comes with a 2m USB-C to USB-A cable and the base is rubberized and weighted for added security. The LED light indicates the charging status of each inserted Joy-Con. I personally love the design of PokeBall.

Drop + The Lord of the Rings Mordor Artisan Keycap

Next, Drop announced three new handcrafted keycaps for fans of The Lord of the Rings. Based on The Eye of Barad-dûr, Morgul Fellbeast and Sauron The Dark Lord, these keycaps will add more Mordor to your favorite mechanical keyboards. Dwarf Factory handcrafted these resin keycaps to be compatible with Cherry MX switches and clones. You can pre-order your favorite of these keycaps now for $55 each with an expected release date of August 2023.

PDP peripherals

PDP has announced a few new peripherals for Xbox and Nintendo Switch fans which are all available to pre-order now from PDP’s website. The Afterglow Wave Wired Controller for Xbox offers millions of color combinations that can be customized to fit your needs and comes with an 8-foot USB-C cable to keep you away from the TV. Meanwhile, the REMATCH controller for Nintendo Switch is available with some great new designs including Breath of the Wild, Peach and Mario. There are also some great Switch cases with the same designs. Finally, the new AIRLITE wired headphones offer a noise-canceling microphone and pair perfectly with REMATCH controllers that let you plug your favorite 3.5mm headphones directly instead of running a cable up to the Switch.

XGIMI MoGo 2 and MoGo 2 Pro

XGIMI has launched the new MoGo 2 and MoGo 2 Pro projectors starting at $399 on their website and at your favorite retailers. These projectors deliver 720p (MoGo 2)/1080p (MoGo 2 Pro) images at up to 300 ISO lumens brightness. MoGo 2 Pro is the first XGIMI projector with ISA 2.0 technology for seamless automatic keystone correction and autofocus for a smoother experience for users. I really liked the similarly specced Horizon Pro projector and so if you don’t mind a lower resolution and saving money, it could very well be worth it.

Acer laptops, desktops and monitors

Finally, Acer held its Spring Global Press Conference with some incredible news! There was the reveal of the Predator Orion X gaming desktop that goes up to an i9-13900KS CPU and RTX 4090 GPU, the 44.5″ Nitro XZ452CU V curved gaming monitor with a 32:9 aspect ratio and 165Hz, Predator X34 V curved 34″ OLED monitor with 175Hz refresh rate, Vero eco-friendly laptops and projectors, and various new gaming laptops (Predator Triton 17 X, Predator Helios Neo 16, Predator Triton 14) with the largest per me is the Predator Helios 3D 15. This one uses SpatialLabs stereoscopic 3D on your laptop. The laptop can be configured with an i9-13900HX and RTX 4080 with tons of RGB lighting and rear vents to prevent overheating. A couple of months ago, I shared my newfound appreciation for the Nintendo 3DS and talked about how my opinion has changed from disliking 3D to actually liking it and now Acer is working to bring the technology to PC gaming. He pumped me!