Connect with us

Technologies

Formula 1 Racing 2023: How to Watch and Livestream the Australian GP Today

Max Verstappen didn’t win last week, but his teammate did. Can Red Bull make it three for three this season? Here’s how to watch without cable.

F1 racing superstar Max Verstappen came in second in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, while his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez won the race. Red Bull has placed first and second in both races of the season so far, in what looks like a dominant car, and they look to do it again today in the Australian GP. 

Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso is also having a hot start to 2023, finishing on the podium in both of the first two races. Lewis Hamilton once again grabbed fifth place, with his Mercedes teammate George Russell taking fourth in Saudi Arabia.

Daniel Ricciardo, a fan-favorite Australian racer, will not appear in his home race for the first time since 2011. He does not have a seat on the grid for the 2023 season, as he was released from his contract at McLaren at the end of last season. He is currently signed on as a reserve driver for Red Bull — with whom he found success earlier in his career — in hopes of clawing back a full-time ride in 2024.

The Australian Grand Prix will be held Sunday morning at 12:55 a.m. ET (9:55 p.m. PT Saturday night) on ESPN.

The entire race weekend, including practice sessions and qualifying, will be shown in the US on ESPN’s family of television networks. Those looking to follow all the drama will need access to ABC, ESPN, ESPN 2 and ESPNews to catch every second of the action. 

No single provider has exclusive rights to the network, so there are plenty of ways to get ESPN and watch the races without cable. We’ve broken down everything you need to know in order to stream today’s race, and all the other F1 races this season. 

An overhead view of all 10 cars in the 2023 F1 seasonAn overhead view of all 10 cars in the 2023 F1 season

The 2023 F1 season is under way. 

Mario Renzi/Formula 1/Getty Images

What is F1 and how is it different from IndyCar?

Both IndyCar and F1 are open-wheeled, single-seater racing formats. This means that the cars can only fit one person and have uncovered wheels that protrude from the body of the vehicle. Despite their basic similarities, F1 and IndyCar offer very different experiences. 

In F1, there are only 10 teams, with two drivers apiece for a total of 20 drivers. Most races must go for 305 km, which is about 190 miles. Each driver needs to use two different tires in the race, so a pit stop is mandatory, though cars are not allowed to refuel. Races average around two hours in length and are held at venues all over the world. 

Teams spend hundreds of millions of dollars each year developing their cars. All cars must have certain elements — for example, gearboxes must have eight gears plus a reverse and last for six consecutive races — but teams have leeway to tweak and change some parts of their car, including their engines, in the pursuit of speed. 

In contrast, the cars featured in IndyCar are more standardized. They all have the same aerodynamic kit and chassis and can only be powered by one of two engines — either a Honda or a Chevrolet. That said, teams are allowed to develop some of their own parts, like dampers and some of their suspensions. 

IndyCar races occur on a wide range of tracks, from fast ovals to road and street courses. The length of the races also varies, with some, like the Indianapolis 500, lasting 500 laps and taking over three hours to complete. Not surprisingly, refueling during pit stops is a big part of the strategy during IndyCar races. Teams can field more than two cars, meaning that the amount of drivers on the grid fluctuates from race to race. 

IndyCar is mostly considered an American sport and does not have the same level of money and glamour associated with it compared to the globe-hopping F1 circuit. 

Why should I care about F1?

F1 races might best be described as a sort of action-packed chess match that takes place while drivers are throttling around a track at close to 200 mph. Teams need both strategy and skill to compete against some of the best minds in motorsports. 

F1 is also full of strong personalities. The Netflix documentary series F1: Drive to Survive follows many of the teams and drivers over the course of a year and has helped raise the profile of the sport in the US. Released in February, season 5 of the series chronicles last year’s rise of Red Bull and Verstappen and its effect on the other drivers. It also focuses on the internal battles between drivers on the same team, while giving viewers a peek into the tense, pressurized world of elite racing.

Does F1 stream on ESPN Plus?

ESPN does not air any F1 coverage on its ESPN Plus streaming service. If you want to watch the practices or races you will need a television provider of some kind or to pay for F1’s $80 per season TV Pro subscription.

When, where and what time are the races?

Races are held on Sunday and are usually spaced two weeks apart. Here’s the entire schedule, all times ET.

F1 2023 schedule

Date Race Time
March 5 Bahrain GP 10 a.m. ET
March 19 Saudi Arabian GP 1 p.m. ET
April 2 Australian GP 1 a.m. ET
April 30 Azerbaijan GP 7 a.m. ET
May 7 Miami GP 3:30 p.m. ET
May 21 Romagna GP 9 a.m. ET
May 28 Monaco GP 9 a.m. ET
June 4 Spanish GP 9 a.m. ET
June 18 Canadian GP 2 p.m. ET
July 2 Austrian GP 9 a.m. ET
July 9 British GP 10 a.m. ET
July 23 Hungarian GP 9 a.m. ET
July 30 Belgian GP 9 a.m. ET
Aug. 27 Dutch GP 9 a.m. ET
Sept. 3 Italian GP 9 a.m. ET
Sept. 17 Singapore GP 8 a.m. ET
Sept. 24 Japanese GP 1 a.m. ET
Oct. 8 Qatar GP 1 p.m. ET
Oct. 22 United States GP 3 p.m. ET
Oct. 29 Mexican GP 4 p.m. ET
Nov. 5 Brazil GP 12 p.m. ET
Nov. 19 Las Vegas GP 1 a.m. ET
Nov. 26 Abu Dhabi GP 8 a.m ET

How to watch F1 online from anywhere using a VPN

If you find yourself unable to view the game locally, you may need a different way to watch the game — that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it’s also a great idea if you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.

Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.

Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.

James Martin/CNET

ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. It’s normally $13 per month, and you can sign up for ExpressVPN and save 49% plus get three months of access for free — the equivalent of $6.67 per month — if you get an annual subscription.

Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Livestream F1 racing in the UK

F1 in the UK is shown on Sky Sports and Channel 4 — Sky Sports airs the races, while Channel 4 gets practice rounds and qualifying. If you already have Sky Sports as part of your TV package, you can stream the game via its app, but cord-cutters will need to get the Sky Entertainment and Netflix package starting at £26 per month, plus an additional £20 per month to include Sky Sports. 

Sky Sports

Those in the UK will need Sky Sports to watch F1 racing in 2023. Those who subscribe to Sky will need the Complete Sports package or the £18 a month Sky Sports F1 package in order to get the games. 

Cord-cutters will need to spend £46 a month to get the Sky Entertainment and Netflix package, along with the Sky Sports bundle. 

Best options for streaming in the US without cable

Race weekends normally start on Friday with multiple practice runs and continue on Saturday with qualifying. The races themselves take place Sunday. ESPN typically airs practices and qualifying on a mix of ESPN 2 and ESPNews, while the races tend to air on ESPN. F1 events in North America often land on ABC. 

Here are some of the best ways to catch the entire race weekend without cable.

Hulu Plus Live TV is now cheaper than YouTube TV, and offers all the channels you need to watch every second of race weekend. As an added bonus, Hulu Plus Live TV comes with the rest of the Disney Bundle, which includes a subscription to Disney Plus, as well as ESPN Plus. F1 races don’t air on ESPN Plus, but the service offers a ton of other content for die-hard sports fans.

Read our Hulu Plus Live TV review.

 

You can catch the entire race weekend with a subscription to YouTube TV, but its price went up to $73 earlier this year. ABC, ESPN, ESPN 2 and ESPNews are all included in the package, which means you’ll have all the channels you need in order to watch every second of the action.

Read our YouTube TV review.

 

Sling TV’s $40 Orange plan might be a good choice for F1 fans who are primarily looking to just watch the races on Sundays. This plan is one of the cheapest ways to get access to ESPN and ESPN 2. Those looking for ESPNews will have to opt for the $11 Sports Extra ad-on. Sling TV lacks ABC, which could be a problem for fans hoping to catch the F1 races in North America.

Read our Sling TV review.

 

FuboTV costs $75 per month and includes ABC, ESPN and ESPN 2. The base package lacks ESPNews, but you can add it for an extra $8 a month with the Fubo Extra Package or pay for the $85-a-month Elite streaming tier that includes Fubo Extra. Check out which local networks FuboTV offers here.

Read our FuboTV review.

 

DirecTV Stream is the most expensive live TV streaming service. Its cheapest, $75-a-month Plus package includes ESPN, ESPN 2 and ABC, but you’ll need to move up to the $100-a-month Choice plan to get ESPNews. You can use its channel lookup tool to see which local channels are available in your area.

Read our DirecTV Stream review.

 

For gearheads looking to get every angle on the action, F1 offers its own streaming service. F1 TV Pro costs $80 per season, or $10 per month, and gives fans access to all races from F1, F2, F3 and Porsche Supercup. You’ll be able to livestream every track session from all F1 Grands Prix and have access to all driver onboard cameras and team radios. You’ll also be able to watch full on-demand races, replays and highlights, along with F1’s historic race archive.

F1 also offers a TV Access Plan for $27 per year, or $3 per month, which only gives you on-demand access to races once they have been completed. You will still be able to view all F1 onboard cameras, along with full replays of F1, F2, F3 and Porsche Supercup. It also includes the historic race archive.

Technologies

Tariff Impacts Are Real: These 13 Companies Have Confirmed Price Hikes

More and more companies are confirming price hikes as President Trump’s tariffs are poised to take effect — most recently, a popular smart lighting brand.

In many cases and for many products in the US, the biggest impacts of President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariff plans haven’t hit yet — but they could soon, unless the 90-day pause on some rates is extended. Still, numerous companies have already hiked prices or said that they’ll increase in the near-future — including, most recently, a popular and CNET-approved brand of smart lights.

The fact of the matter is that tariffs — a tax placed on the importing of certain products into a country — will ultimately cause prices to go up, with Walmart characterizing these eventual price hikes as «inevitable» during its earnings call last month. Given Trump’s push to place historically high tariffs on goods from almost every country in the world, you can also expect these price hikes to hit a huge variety of products.

This truth has begun to sink in for a lot of Americans. About 38% of consumers feel pressured to make certain purchases before tariffs cause their price to go up, according to a recent survey conducted by CNET. About 10% of respondents said they’d already made certain purchases in hopes of avoiding future price hikes, while 27% said they’d delayed purchases of products costing more than $500. Overall, these concerns about prices were felt the most around popular tech pieces such as smartphones, laptops and home appliances.

To help you keep score, I’ve put together a list of all the companies that have either confirmed or warned of price hikes due to Trump’s tariffs. As other companies make such announcements, you can expect new names to be added here.

Continue on for all those details, and for more, find out why it’s best if you wait on buying a new iPhone.

One item you won’t find on this list yet? The original Nintendo Switch, which will see a currently unspecified price hike on Aug. 1, but only in Canada for the time being. If that increase makes its way south of the border, we’ll let you know.

Best Buy

Without getting into specifics, Best Buy CEO Corie Barry told the Wall Street Journal late last month that it has already raised prices on certain products as part of its response to the tariffs.

e.l.f.

Known as an affordable option in the beauty world, e.l.f. announced in late May that it would be implementing a $1 price hike across its product line in response to the tariffs. CEO Tarang Amin claimed that the reaction from customers was positive, on account of the company’s transparency.

«We’re not trying to pull anything over on anyone,» Amin told Fortune. «This is exactly what we’re facing, and they understand.»

Macy’s

Speaking to CNBC in late May, Macy’s CEO Tony Spring said that price hikes will be implemented on some products due to tariffs, while also emphasizing that other tactics — like discontinuing certain products altogether — will also be a response to rising costs.

Mattel

Known for brands like Barbie and Hot Wheels, Mattel sounded the alarm over likely price increases during an early May earnings call. While it’s unclear how much the toymaker’s prices have increased since then, the company told investors that it would be, «where necessary, taking pricing action in its US business,» or to put it plainly, raising prices for consumers to mitigate the impact of tariffs.

Nikon

Camera-maker Nikon will introduce price hikes in response to Trump’s tariffs, effective June 23. This move will only target lenses and accessories the company makes and sells, so the cameras themselves are safe for now.

«We will be carefully monitoring any tariff developments and may adjust pricing as necessary to reflect the evolving market conditions,» a statement from Nikon explained. «We wish to thank our customers for their understanding and know that we are taking every possible step to minimize the impact on our community.»

Philips Hue

Parent company Signify announced that prices for its popular and highly regarded Philips Hue brand of smart lights will see price hikes effective July 1. The company also confirmed that this decision was made «as a direct result of tariffs.»

«Signify reserves the right to modify prices based on new or additional tariffs becoming effective in the future,» the company’s official statement explained

Ralph Lauren

Sales at the luxury goods retailer Ralph Lauren have apparently remained steady amid recent uncertainty, but the company is still forging ahead with a plan to combat tariff impacts by raising prices more than it had already intended to, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Shein and Temu

Trump’s tariffs have made a notable target of China, hitting the country with a 30% rate only after initially hiking it all the way to 145%. Online retailers like Shein and Temu rely on direct shipments from markets like China in order to offer the rock-bottom prices that made them famous, so it’s little surprise now that they’ve had to raise prices.

The Trump administration has furthered the issues faced by these companies by doing away with a rule known as the «de minimus» exception, which used to exclude smaller purchases under $800 from import taxes. With that rule gone, Trump’s China tariffs will now apply to both bulk orders of industrial building materials and those shoes you’ve been looking to buy from Shein.

Subaru

Subaru has hiked prices across almost its entire line. The increase ranged from $750 to $2,055, depending on the model, with only the EV Solterra avoiding any change.

As has become a trend with some companies, Subaru avoided attributing the price hikes to Trump’s tariffs, citing only the common refrain of «market conditions.» Trump has notably disparaged companies that explicitly lay the blame for price hikes on his policies.

«The changes were made to offset increased costs while maintaining a solid value proposition for the customer. Subaru pricing is not based on the country of origin of its products,» a Subaru spokesperson said in a statement to Car & Driver.

Stanley Black & Decker

In an earnings report published April 30, toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker addressed «Price Actions in Response to US Tariffs,» stating that it had «implemented an initial price increase in April and notified our customers that further price action is required,» and was also looking into ways to shift its supply lines to minimize the impact of tariffs.

Volvo

The price impact of tariffs at Swedish automaker Volvo are confined, for now, to just one model: the electric EX30. Initially it was set to start at $34,950 in the US — a competitive price for an EV — but tariffs targeted at imported cars forced the company to raise the price to $46,195, a 32% bump.

Walmart

The biggest grocery chain in the US, Walmart is perhaps the most prominent company yet to announce imminent price hikes due to Trump’s tariffs. During the company’s earnings call in May, CEO Doug McMillan said price hikes would begin by the end of May and impact things like food, electronics and toys.

For more, see why buying refurbished tech helps you dodge tariffs and helps the planet.

Continue Reading

Technologies

This Unique Controller Is Cool but Pointless for Most Gamers

The Turtle Beach Stealth Pivot has a unique 2-in-1 feature, but most people will never use it.

Pro-level game controllers have been becoming more mainstream over the past several years, offering gamers a host of new features not found on the controllers that came with their systems. These features include extra mappable buttons, swappable gamepads and other customizability options.

However, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a controller that offers two dedicated button layouts within the same device. The Stealth Pivot from Turtle Beach lets you physically rotate the gamepads to reveal a whole new, previously hidden, button layout — all without having to remove anything. It’s a unique take on what a controller can be and I’m here for it.

What I like about the Stealth Pivot

I’ve been impressed with Turtle Beach controllers for a while now, and the Stealth Pivot continues continues the company’s streak of great hardware. The buttons are clicky and responsive and the whole thing feels wonderful to hold. The design is nearly identical to Microsoft’s own Xbox controllers, which is a good thing.

The Stealth Pivot keeps many of the same pro features as its Stealth Ultra controller (and many other pro-level controllers), including adjustable triggers and four additional, remappable buttons. The Connected Command Display is carried over as well, although it’s much smaller than the Ultra’s 1.5″ screen. Amazingly, it keeps all the same features , including being able to adjust buttons and social media notifications.

On the connectivity side, you’ve got a wired connection for Xbox (there’s no wireless support), a 2.4GHz dongle for PC and Bluetooth for mobile devices and compatible smart TVs. There’s a headphone jack at the bottom and the USB-C port for charging or Xbox connection is up top. You can play and charge at the same time, which is a nice bonus.

Two controllers for the price of one

The biggest feature of the Stealth Pivot by far is its rotating gamepads. Basically, you twist down the two joysticks, unlock the gamepads, then literally rotate them 180 degrees to reveal the other set. This second set has a layout typical of controllers designed for fighting games, or really, any game where additional buttons are valuable. So instead of joysticks, there’s a D-Pad on the top left flanked by two two buttons. On the right side, the ABXY cluster shifts downward to make room for two additional, mappable buttons.

So now, instead of having to buy multiple controllers or remove and swap out gamepads (like PDP Victrix Pro controllers), in just a few seconds you can switch from snapping headshots in Call of Duty to beating up bad guys in Mortal Kombat or Tekken. It’s certainly not something I’ve ever seen on any other controller and it works surprisingly well. You can even save up to five digital profiles on the controller so you can have different layouts for each game.

I was impressed by just how good the buttons and everything are on the Stealth Pivot, even with having to cram double the amount of most everything into the same space. Granted, the controller is a bit thicker than most other controllers, but it’s not that noticeable. The hardware and engineering that went into this controller is remarkable.

What I don’t like about the Stealth Pivot

There are some compromises that come with this quick-switch capability, however. The first is that Turtle Beach wasn’t able to include its microswitch buttons, which personally I prefer over the more standard buttons on the Pivot. The joysticks are still Hall Effect, which is nice, but the rest of the buttons are standard. The buttons aren’t bad, they just aren’t as good as on the company’s other pro controller.

Secondly, making room for those rotating gamepads means space had to come from somewhere and the most obvious place was the battery. Turtle Beach says the Pivot gets about 20 hours of battery life, which is probably a bit optimistic. I wouldn’t say it’s terrible, but it’s not great. This is somewhat mitigated by the fact that you have to be physically plugged into your Xbox anyway, and you can play while charging — but PC users may want to keep a cable handy.

Also, while you can use the company’s Control Center II app to customize the controller on Windows, Xbox, iOS and Android, the app itself is not very good. The UI is basic and there are some annoying bugs including the inability to rename profiles on the Xbox version. It’s also hard to tell if anything saves after you make changes. There’s no indicator or save button anywhere, and while it does save things in real-time, it would be nice if it let you know it’s happening.

Lastly, it’s disappointing that you can’t connect wirelessly to the Xbox. Wired is fine, and it avoids battery issues, but wireless is obviously more convenient. 

Should you buy the Stealth Pivot?

The Stealth Pivot is a really solid controller even without the dual personalities. Personally, I’m not really into fighting games so I don’t need the second set of controls. And super hard-core, e-sport-level gamers would probably want something like a Fight Stick or a more dedicated fighting game controller.

However, if you’re a more casual gamer who enjoys fighting/button heavy games alongside games that use joysticks — and wants to level up your fighting style — the Stealth Pivot might be worth a look, especially since it’s only $130. That is more expensive than a standard controller, but for everything you get with it, that’s a hard price to beat.

Continue Reading

Technologies

I Loved Using This Keyboard, but There Was One Thing I Just Couldn’t Get Used To

The Turtle Beach Vulcan II Mini Air is a great gaming keyboard, but it won’t replace my current one.

Gaming keyboards are everywhere these days, and with a plethora of options available it’s not hard to find a good one. They can also be expensive, so it can be difficult to know if the investment is worth the money. It’s with that in mind I got in the new the new Vulcan II Mini Air from Turtle Beach. I have some thoughts. 

Turtle Beach bought the company behind these keyboards, Roccat, several years ago, but it only started phasing out that branding in May of 2024. So you might still find the Roccat branding on Vulcan II Mini Air (you can see it on my review sample here) if you buy one in the near future. 

What I like about the Turtle Beach Vulcan II Mini Air

First things first, the size. The 65%-sized layout is my perfect setup because it still includes the arrow keys. True FPS gamers may prefer a 60% design, but I tend to mix my genres, and I’m also a writer in my work life, so I prefer having arrow keys (and Home/End keys — don’t you dare take those away from me). I don’t miss the dedicated media keys or functions keys too much, but this is certainly subjective.

The Vulcan II Mini opts for optical switches over the more traditional mechanical switches. At the risk of generalizing, optical and mechanical switches primarily differ in how they register the actuation of each key. Mechanical switches use physical contact between two metal plates while optical switches use beams of light to detect the actuation. 

I hadn’t used optical switches much before testing the Vulcan II Mini but I can see their appeal for hardcore gamers. The idea is that the light-activated sensors allow for a much shorter actuation point for key presses, meaning there’s less time between when your finger moves to press the key and that key press being registered by your computer.  

Turtle Beach says the actuation point of their Red Linear switches is 1.4mm, a decent improvement over the 2mm of most mechanical switches. That said, you’ll likely only notice the shorter actuation point if you’re a hardcore gamer who needs to prioritize every millisecond. Personally, I couldn’t tell a difference compared to my main keyboard with Cherry mechanical switches. 

Another big advantage of optical is similar to the advantage Hall Effect switches have in keyboards like the Vulcan II TKL Pro. Since the sensors are activated by light and not physical contact between two plates, there’s less friction with each keypress. So the switches should last quite a bit longer. Most traditional mechanical switches are rated for about 100 million presses. These are rated for 200 million. That’s a pretty significant advantage if you don’t tend to upgrade your keyboard very often. 

To be honest, it took me a little time to get used to the feel of the optical switches. They’re aren’t mushy by any means, but they are noticeably softer than the traditional switches I’m used to. Thankfully, they’re more tactile than Hall Effect switches. After a few hours, though, I couldn’t notice much of a difference anymore between the feel of the Vulcan II Mini and my regular keyboard.

The Vulcan II Mini’s build quality is top notch. The aluminum top plate gives it a nice solid feel with no creakiness or give that I could detect anywhere. At 578 grams, it’s also not very heavy either. The included braided cable also feels well-designed. It’s nice that it’s available in white, although I do wonder how clean it will stay long-term. The two-position kickstands allow for some nice ergonomic options. 

Customization is one area where Turtle Beach levels things up a bit. Via the Swarm app, you have access to many of the typical customizations for gaming keyboards. But Turtle Beach also adds a secondary function to 29 keys, so you can quickly trigger another action. These Smart Keys are also equipped with dual LEDs that will indicate when the secondary function is active. On top of that, you can store up to five different profiles, so you can set up the perfect configuration for your favorite games. 

No self-respecting gaming keyboard would stop you from customizing the RGB lighting to your heart’s content. So of course you can choose from a variety of lighting effects. That includes the AIMO effect, which synchronizes all your Turtle Beach accessories together so the lighting effects are coordinated.

Battery life

Being a wireless keyboard, battery life is important. Turtle Beach says the Vulcan II Mini can clock 240 hours of continuous use without the RBG lighting active, which is a bold claim. I haven’t used the keyboard exclusively for the approximately four weeks I’ve had it, but even with heavy usage, I still haven’t managed to kill it, and that’s with the RGB lights still on. Suffice to say, battery life has been awesome for me. 

One trick Turtle Beach uses to accomplish this is a proximity sensor in the keyboard that automatically detects your presence to turn the lights on and off. Logitech does something similar in some of its keyboards, so it’s not revolutionary, but Turtle Beach lets you adjust the effect somewhat by changing the sensitivity of the sensor. At least, that’s the theory. I couldn’t get the Swarm app to save the settings for this when I changed it, so I can’t speak to how effective it is. 

As the «Air» name might suggest, this version of the Vulcan II Mini is wireless (there’s a wired option for $119). It can connect to four devices: Three via Bluetooth plus one via an included 2.4Ghz wireless dongle. The only downside I found when connected via Bluetooth was that I could never get it to show up in Turtle Beach’s Swarm app. It showed up fine when using the dongle, but not on Bluetooth. 

What I didn’t like about the Turtle Beach Vulcan II Mini Air

As cool as the optical switches are, the typing experience wasn’t great. I’m a writer by day, so I always prioritize a great typing experience first and a good gaming experience second. Even after using the Mini exclusively for more than three weeks, I just couldn’t the same level of comfort typing on it as with my Keychron Q81 Pro. I’m willing to acknowledge that much of that could be attributed to the II Mini’s low profile design, which I’ve never found to be as comfortable as a full-size profile. 

The wake time for the Vulcan II Mini Air is also significantly slower than many other keyboards I’ve used. I’m not sure if this is because of the proximity sensor or something else, but it sometimes takes up to 10 seconds for my computer to begin registering key presses. 

Should you buy the Turtle Beach Vulcan II Mini Air?

Overall, it’s a nice keyboard with plenty of excellent features for someone looking for a serious gaming keyboard. The small size means it doesn’t take up much space on the desk, the optical switches provide fast response times and greater durability, and the customization options are nearly endless. For me, though, I struggled to use it as a daily keyboard as it just didn’t offer me the tactility and feel that I prefer, but if you’re looking to upgrade your gaming keyboard, or just dive into the world of gaming keyboards for the first time, the Vulcan II Mini Air is a great choice. 

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © Verum World Media