Rating: 
Summary: Disappointed
Review: The idea for the product is great, but quality is disappointing. Here's a list...
1. Probably already mentioned, but the orange thumb button is too stiff and not sensitive enough.
2. The thumb d-pad is maybe too sensitive. You cannot press a diagonal without triggering one of the main directions. (If you have the product, see for yourself by testing it in the profile editor.) And make the whole d-pad a little smaller for better control. That's just my personal preference as I like to use the tip of my thumb compared to the palm.
3. The placement of the wheel mouse makes it very hard to access. You have to reach too far in which usually takes your fingers out of position. It would have been better to just put another key there and somehow put the wheel mouse in the position where the orange button is now for the thumb to control.
3. On the subject of the wheel mouse, it is very flaky. On the first unit I bought, the wheel did not work at all and I exchanged it for another one across town. The second "worked" but it seemed to scroll both up and down at the same time, whether I was scrolling up, down or pressing the wheel straight down. After a little bit, it too died. I thought it might have been the drivers and reinstalled with the same result. The first unit, I assumed was a defective unit, but after the second it seems the product is just not very well made and/or tested. I expected more from Belkin. Maybe it's just a bad batch?
4. The thumb button which is mapped to the space key by default seems to be a little low and awkward to get to. That being said, I don't know if they can raise it much higher without interfering with the d-pad. If a better position cannot be found, I'd rather leave it where it is than remove it.
All in all, if you just want mappable keys with a d-pad, this product works well. However, the defective/flaky wheel and the two thumb buttons (which are basically useless) are the reasons for the low score.
I hope the next model will address these issues or maybe another company may offer something better in the future. Until then, dispite my disappointments, I'm still going to keep my unit.
Rating: 
Summary: Great controller - once you learn how to move the handrest!
Review: The reviews on here and elsewhere mention that you should give the handrest a "good yank" to adjust it. Well, I yanked and yanked, and it didn't budge... until I finally figured out that it doesn't slide back and forth! It lifts upward, off the unit! Lift it up to remove it. Then, you'll see two sets of holes - a set closer in to the keys and a set farther away from the keys. So, the hand rest has two settings. And, you can just keep it removed if you don't like it.I figured that if I can have this much problem trying to slide the hand rest out instead of lifting it up, then others might be having the problem too. Instructions are nowhere to be found on here, on the Belkin Web site, or in the boxed instructions. Unlike the other reviews, the keys on my unit are quite flexible... the stiffness is very minor. The unit is quite responsive. Plus, it seems to be very solidly built. The rubberized pad on the underside of the unit keeps it from sliding around too much on my desk. Being a tech, I tend to dislike using the software that comes with most hardware - printers, mice, etc. But after installing the Nostromo software, I found it to be pretty cool (looks like it takes up about a 4MB footprint). It's easy to use - plus, once you've got the keys mapped out for a game, you can set it up for automatic mode, so that each time that particular game is launched, that key map profile is automatically loaded dynamically. No manual switching of profiles is required!
Rating:
Summary: Great controller - once you learn how to move the handrest!
Review: The reviews on here and elsewhere mention that you should give the handrest a "good yank" to adjust it. Well, I yanked and yanked, and it didn't budge... until I finally figured out that it doesn't slide back and forth! It lifts upward, off the unit! Lift it up to remove it. Then, you'll see two sets of holes - a set closer in to the keys and a set farther away from the keys. So, the hand rest has two settings. And, you can just keep it removed if you don't like it. I figured that if I can have this much problem trying to slide the hand rest out instead of lifting it up, then others might be having the problem too. Instructions are nowhere to be found on here, on the Belkin Web site, or in the boxed instructions. Unlike the other reviews, the keys on my unit are quite flexible... the stiffness is very minor. The unit is quite responsive. Plus, it seems to be very solidly built. The rubberized pad on the underside of the unit keeps it from sliding around too much on my desk. Being a tech, I tend to dislike using the software that comes with most hardware - printers, mice, etc. But after installing the Nostromo software, I found it to be pretty cool (looks like it takes up about a 4MB footprint). It's easy to use - plus, once you've got the keys mapped out for a game, you can set it up for automatic mode, so that each time that particular game is launched, that key map profile is automatically loaded dynamically. No manual switching of profiles is required!
Rating: 
Summary: A must for the serious FPS Gamer
Review: This device provides a good combination of ergonomics and functionality. It is certainly more comfortable than a standard QWERTY board.
I have only two complaints. The big red thumb button requires too much force to push. To get it to work will almost always force the entire pad to slide to the left if not countered by holding down the unit firmly. Because of this, I would only find this button useful when pressing other keys at the same time is not needed. The other problem is the thumb switch, which mimics the placement of the "space" bar on a QWERTY board. This key is much farther from the other keys than it needs to be and also is a bit "finicky" in how it responds.
In conclusion, the Nostromo is well worth the money for anyone who spends considerable time with a FPS. I have only been using it for a few hours now and already I have seen improvement in my game and less fatigue on my "keyboard hand".
Rating:
Summary: Great device
Review: This is a great little gaming device. The macros and it's application are terrific. Definately a worthwhile investment if you're a fps gamer. My only complaints are these:
The thumb-button that is supposed to represent the spacebar is too far away from the keys. You have to really stretch your hand to reach it. Like everyone else has said, the orange button above the thumb-pad takes too much force to press. It's virtually useless unless you can get it to soften up some. Other than that, I love this little thing. I wondered whether or not I would when I was playing my first few games, but now i am sure i made a good investment.
Rating:
Summary: Must have!
Review: This is an absolute must for serious gamers. I've been gaming for many years and I've never seen such a useful product for so cheap. It takes about a month to condition your hand and reflexes but once you do you will never go back. It's not perfect, the thumb button is a bit stiff, but the hardware and software are still well above par and I can't play without mine anymore. I can't wait for the upgrade.
Rating:
Summary: Not For Rights
Review: This Is very Bad Get A Joystick Or Stay With the Keyboard, And if you are a righty this is not for You, the only good thing is It Can Be Good For RTS Games Like: Empires Dawn Of The Modern World And I have A Life This Is SO BAD I AM Making A review + it got lead in it SOoooooooo
Rating:
Summary: Give that hand rest a good solid yank and all is well.
Review: Yes, this is a review of the N52. I bought the N50 a few years ago when it first came out and it was and still is great, but it had some things that should have been changed. The D-Pad was awkward, if not useless as a directional controller (though it worked fine as crouch/jump/whatever). The "throttle" was not usable in most video games (joysticks for flight sims have throttle). Each color mode had to have a key dedicated to it (couldn't use one key to swap configurations). It could have also used a few more keys. However, Belkin seems to have listened to gamer peeves that were posted on gamer sites all over the web and fixed the things listed above. Wow, a company listenning to customers? What a concept! The N52 now has a more functional D-Pad (though I still prefer the main keys) and two thumb buttons. Four more main keys have been added in a row below the original main keys. The throttle has been replaced with a scroll wheel (which can be programmed to any keys or actions you want). You can now use a single key to change configurations on the fly (yay). My only complaint with the N52 is that the keys need a good deal of "massaging" before they lose their sticky stiffness. Also, the hand rest comes stuck pretty good to the unit (in a very uncomfortable position for normal/large hands), though a good solid yank up will free the stuck pegs, allowing you to move it to the second set of holes. After abusing it for a week and setting the hand rest further back, the N52 becomes my pick for best FPS/RTS accessory on the market.
Rating:
Summary: Great for MMOs and RTS games; maybe not for shooters?
Review: [ EDIT: I revised this review 12-17-03. See below for additions. ] The Belkin n52 is the successor to the n50 Speedpad. Like the n50, the n52 is a mixed bag of plusses and minuses. Belkin has marketed the n52 as the n50 "remodeled by gamer feedback," with added buttons and functionality. They've also said that it'll give you "Faster and More Intuitive Frags!" or some other market-eze. I had wanted the original n50 for quite a while to help me out when playing MMOs and RPGs (AO, DAOC, NWN) and shooters (NOLF, Deus Ex). When I finally decided to buy one, I heard that Belkin was shortly releasing the improved n52. So I grabbed one, and here's the scoop. Installing this thing was a snap, and using the profile software is also amazingly easy. In only a few minutes of use I was making my own custom profiles. Macros are easy to write. The profile software has a few bugs in it, which I won't get into here. Hopefully Belkin will fix this stuff in the next few weeks. The bugs I describe are really just inconvenient - they won't stop you from using the product. Construction is a mixed bag on the n52. In it's favor, the n52 generally feels sturdy as hell and doesn't move a bit during heavy play. Despite this it's a compact little thing - I have a cramped desk and I managed to easily fit the n52 between my keyboard and the edge of the desk. I have big hands and the unit fits comfortably under my palm with my fingers resting on the buttons. The hand rest fits right into the curve of my palm and makes the whole thing feel very ergonomic and natural. The hand rest is supposed to be adjustable but I think some n00b at the factory glued mine down, because I can't make it move the slightest bit. More strong points: Belkin expanded the n50 quite a bit by adding new buttons. The n52 has a total of six new buttons: four new keyboard-type buttons were added in a row under the original ten; a big orange button was added over the directional pad; and a "thumb bar" was added on a little extension that sticks out from the unit on the right side. The original n50 speedpad had a throttle wheel that a lot of people described as useless; this has been replaced with a very useful mouse wheel. In addition, Belkin has apparently heard gamer feedback that the directional pad on the n50 was junky and inaccurate; the n52 features a big, sturdy, and seemingly very accurate directional pad that I really like using. But the drawbacks: Unlike the regular keyboard buttons you're used to, the action on all the buttons is a little stiff. I don't know if this is intentional design or what - maybe they were thinking that the control will get heavy wear, so some extra stickiness is actually good? The keyboard-style hotkeys are kind of sticky when I press them, and sometimes I have to press twice to get the button to register the keystroke. To push the new orange button by the directional pad, I have to grip the front of the controller with my fingers for leverage. Finally, the "thumb bar" also takes a bit of pressure to activate, and has sometimes not fired unless I push it very deliberately in the "right way." Likewise the mouse wheel has a funny, cheap feel to it. Clicking the mouseclick action on the wheel is a little harder to do that I'd prefer, and the wheel itself rotates too easily and doesn't lock firmly into place like a normal mouse wheel does. The stickiness of the buttons leaves me thinking that I won't be using it in shooter type games - I can't be pushing a key over and over in shooter games that require instant reactions. If the buttons loosen up a little over time, perhaps I'll change my mind. Still, I'm very happy with the n52 despite the flaws I've described. Using it in AO, DAOC and NWN, the thing is nothing short of miraculous. Having all of your crucial commands literally "at your fingertips" without any fumbling, reaching, or looking at the keyboard is a very, very nice thing. Hitting a button and having a macro run a series of keystrokes, saving a lot of time and distraction, is also a godsend. My impression is that it would be great in any RPG / MMORPGs and RTS type games - ones that don't require much sensitivity and reactivity, and benefit a lot from short macros due to their complex command systems. After only using it for a few days, I can't imagine playing without it. [ EDIT 12-17-03: This thing has been plenty responsive for shooters. I've bumped my rating up to 5 stars. Although sticky, the buttons work great, and my sense is that Belkin was trying to build this thing as tough as a brick - and they succeeded. A month and a half after buying it I cannot imagine playing ANY game without it. It's a truly phenomenal product. ]
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