Logitech Prodigy brand targets peripherals at mainstream PC gamers

Logitech has a lot of fans among hardcore gamers and esports players. But it also recognizes that there are a lot of weekend warriors out there who play games on a more casual basis. So the Logitech Prodigy brand is for those players.

The company is unveiling the brand and four new peripherals at an event at the PAX West fan festival in Seattle today. The products all carry low price tags, high-quality components, more mainstream designs, and fewer customization features compared to the hardcore products.

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I got a look at them in a briefing by Andrew Coonrad, technical marketing specialist at Logitech. They include the Logitech G231 Prodigy Gaming Headset, which is designed to provide quality stereo sound for both PC and console gamers.

“PC gaming is so mainstream that the marketing style of this exclusive edgy gamer thing is not viable anymore,” Coonrad said, in an interview with GamesBeat. “We want to celebrate the gamer in all of us. We want to play and have fun. The challenge is making a product for everyone.”

The $70 headset is available today at Logitech’s web site. It features 40-millimeter neodymium drivers, a lightweight and comfortable design, with washable performance-sport cloth ear cups. It’s nice to know that you can wash them after a marathon gaming session with a lot of heat and sweat. The controls for the volume and microphone are on the cable that plugs into the PC or console. The cable is two meters long, which is nice so that you can move around with the headset.

The ear cups swivel up to 90 degrees, so the fit is pretty snug on my ears. Because they can turn to lie flat, they’re less prone to breaking. The No. 1 cause of death for my headsets is either stepping on them or crushing them with my rolling chair. It has a breakaway cable that could very well save the headset’s life when I roll around on the chair.

Then there’s the Logitech G213 Prodigy RGB Gaming Keyboard. Also priced at $70, the keyboard is available now on Logitech’s web site. It’s a full-sized keyboard with customizable RGB lighting. The keys are comfortable and responsive, and there are dedicated media controls. It has a spill-resistant design, an integrated palm rest, and adjustable feet.

You can personalize five individual lighting zones from a spectrum of up to 16.8 million colors. You can change colors to match your setup, specific games, or showcase your favorite colors, and synchronize lighting effects with other Logitech G devices using Logitech Gaming Software (LGS). There’s low light leakage around each key cap, which means more light comes through the lettering and less spills out around the key caps, making it easier to find your keys in the dark.

The responsive feedback is up to four times faster than standard keyboards, Logitech says. The anti-ghosting gaming matrix is tuned for optimal gaming performance, keeping you in control when you press multiple gaming keys simultaneously. It’s pretty light at 2.4 pounds.

The Logitech G403 Prodigy Gaming Mouse is also priced at $70. It has a comfy ergonomic design and an advanced gaming mouse sensor that Logitech says is the world’s best. It has responsive buttons, offering gaming-grade performance without unnecessary complexity. You can customize the lighting, the buttons, and DPI settings, but you don’t have as many choices as you do on high-end esports mice. It weighs less than a quarter of a pound.

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Logitech designed the mouse for long gameplay sessions, rubber grips on the right and left sides to give you more control of the mouse. It has a removable 10 gram weight that lets you increase the weight if you prefer a heavier mouse. Each mouse has advanced button tensioning that helps keep the left and right mouse buttons primed to click, reducing the force required to click while delivering responsiveness.

The G403 Prodigy features the PMW3366, an advanced gaming mouse sensor that Logitech uses in its high-end models. It has programmable lighting with a palette of 16.8 million colors. Advanced users can configure the six programmable buttons to simplify in-game actions and quickly execute tasks. On-the-fly DPI shifting lets you program and switch between up to five sensitivity settings, from pixel-precise targeting (200 DPI) for sniping, to lightning-fast maneuvers (up to 12000 DPI) for fast 180-degree turns. You can save your preferences to the onboard memory on the mouse and use it on any PC you take it to. That’s convenient for a lot of pro gamers who play at tournaments.

There’s also an option to go wireless for $99. Logitech is also selling the game peripherals at PAX West.