Gavin’s Gadgets Review –

Brando Bluetooth Gamepad

Price:                      $49.00                                                     Reviewed by:         Gavin Fabiani-Laymond

Supplied:               http://shop.brando.com.hk/                  Review Date:         5^th August 2005

Pros:                       Fun                                                         Cons:                      Only fits device up to 6cm wide

                                Gaming comes alive                                                            

                                No worn out PDA/Phone keys

                                Cool

                                Works superbly

Welcome to my next review.

Last Monday, a brown package arrived from Brando. I opened the packaging to find the Gamepad.  Inside the box is one AAA battery , the Gamepad, cd rom and wrist strap. See picture below.

The Gamepad dimensions are 145 x 44 x 30.5 mm closed,  145 x 127.32 x 30.5mm open. It weighs circa 130.2g inclusive of battery.  The other specifications are:

• Arrow Keys: Up/down/Left/Right (4-way)
• Custom Keys: 6 (A, B, C, D, Left and Right)
• Start Key: 1
• Multilingual Support
• Bi-color LED: 1
• Battery: 1 (1.5V "AAA" battery)
• Power on/off switch
• Standby Current: 1~10mA, depending on handheld device
• Operation Current: 2~50mA, depending on handheld device
• Standby Time: 39/H, connected and ready to use
• Operation Time: 3.5/H, functioning continuously

Supports:

• Nokia 3650, 6260 , 6600, 6630, 6670, 6680, 7610, 7650, N-Gage, N-Gage QD
• Sendo X
• Siemens SX1
• SonyEricsson P800, P900, P910
• Motorola A925, A1000
• O2 Xphone
• Dopod 565, 575, 585, 700, 818, 699
• Orange SPV C500, SPV E200
• Audiovox SMT 5600
• iPAQ h1940, h5550, h2210, h2215, rx3417, rx3715, hx4700, h6365
• T-Mobile SDA Music, MDA II, MDA III, MDA Compact
• O2 xda II, xda IIs, xda II mini
• i-mate Pocket PC, Jam, PDA2K
• Qtek S100
• Asus P505
• ETEN M500
• Acer n30 series
• Dell Axim X30, X50

Installation. This was very simple. First, you select your device. Next there is the option to read the manual (pdf) and/or continue installing via Active Sync. You will need 450kb of memory and a soft reset after installation. The user manual is extremely clear, with perfect illustrations and explanations. So I won’t dwell too much on the installation. After installing you select Gamepad in the Programs menu . Bluetooth is turned on automatically. You now have the ability to configure the keys to your liking and a few other options. I have not changed the default actions. Only on one game 6^th Gear did I need to change the keys, but I did this within 6^th Gear game settings and not the Gamepad.

In use. Just huge fun, big smiles and so much more enjoyment playing games. Plus the bonus of higher scores. The only thing I wish was possible was the arms could go wider than 6cm. This prevented me from inserting my XDA IIs in between the gap. See picture. However, I have played many games on the Gamepad. I have been surprised by just how many work, since clearly these games were not designed with the Gamepad around. No doubt if you are curious to know if a particular game works, then please drop me a line. Below is a selection of games played and the results:-

• Sea Strike – lightning control , very well suited to Gamepad. Achieved significantly higher scores than using conventional XDA keypad.

• 6^th Gear – Ultimate Challenge – had to reconfigure game controls in 6^th gear settings. Worked wonderfully with Gamepad.

• Flux Challenge – Gamepad worked again. Very very slight delay, but not an issue. Again new high scores achieved.

• Invaders – freeware – worked spotlessly.

• Mazera – great fun using Gamepad. Reminded me of my Gameboy days.

• Mummy Maze – slight delay, but had no effect on gameplay itself.

• Turbo Invaders – Gamepad played better than my XDA keypad.

Clearly, not playing games using my XDA keypad will increase the longevity of my pda/phone. It also allows me to allow my kids to play on my device, safe in the knowledge they won’t damage my PDA/Phone buttons.

In conclusion this is one an amazing piece of equipment, highly recommended and brings enhanced gameplay to loads of games. Any new high scores J

If you have any feedback or questions please contact me at gavin palm247 dot com.

Review by Gavin Fabiani-Laymond