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Gaming in the family room.

EliteLamerEliteLamer __BANNED USERS regular
edited March 2010 in Help / Advice Forum
Good chance I am getting a 50-60inch 3dtv in the next few months. I would like to put it in the family room so all my roommates can enjoy it too. I would like to be able to game on the 60 inch while at the same time have the ability to switch the back to my CRT in my room.. So while I am in the family room that I will be sharing what type of table would be good to use a mouse and keyboard on?

So I am thinking all I need is a really long range wireless keyboard and mouse.. With some type of portable table thing to put them on. I will keep the desktop in my room.

The remote I am going to be using for the Boxee is wireless on my phone so I don't have to worry about running an RF cable.

Anything else I am overlooking?

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Posts

  • DogDog Registered User, Administrator, Vanilla Staff admin
    edited March 2010
    a coffee table?

    Unknown User on
  • EliteLamerEliteLamer __BANNED USERS regular
    edited March 2010
    robothero wrote: »
    a coffee table?

    Eh.. I guess nothing will beat my computer desk and chair huh

    EliteLamer on
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  • VoroVoro Registered User regular
    edited March 2010
    I don't think that using a coffee table from a couch would be comfortable. You might be able to find a breakfast tray or something similar that would work.

    Voro on
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  • VeeveeVeevee WisconsinRegistered User regular
    edited March 2010
    This may seem odd, but sitting on the floor makes the average coffee table at perfect height for general mouse and keyboard use.

    Veevee on
  • CrowlestonCrowleston Registered User regular
    edited March 2010
    I just put my keyboard on my lap and my mouse on the cushion next to me. Works well enough and it's more comfortable than leaning over your coffee table. If you don't think your mouse will work on the cushion well enough, try a lap desk.

    Crowleston on
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  • musanmanmusanman Registered User regular
    edited March 2010
    Veevee wrote: »
    This may seem odd, but sitting on the floor makes the average coffee table at perfect height for general mouse and keyboard use.

    If I'm ever spending a lot of time on my laptop in the tv room I always sit on the floor with my back on the couch.

    musanman on
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  • Al_watAl_wat Registered User regular
    edited March 2010
    Crowleston wrote: »
    I just put my keyboard on my lap and my mouse on the cushion next to me. Works well enough and it's more comfortable than leaning over your coffee table.

    This is what I am doing right now, typing this. It works pretty well but to tell the truth I haven't done a lot of gaming in this position. One thing to look out for though is that optical mice don't work well with all types of cushions. My couch has one mismatched cushion to the right of me... good thing I don't really care about how it looks.

    Al_wat on
  • The Black HunterThe Black Hunter The key is a minimum of compromise, and a simple, unimpeachable reason to existRegistered User regular
    edited March 2010
    get a plywood board

    The Black Hunter on
  • ScrubletScrublet Registered User regular
    edited March 2010
    Crowleston wrote: »
    I just put my keyboard on my lap and my mouse on the cushion next to me. Works well enough and it's more comfortable than leaning over your coffee table. If you don't think your mouse will work on the cushion well enough, try a lap desk.

    I do this. As long as you don't want to have the precise control you get sitting at a desk right next to the monitor just putting the mouse on the couch cushion should work for most.

    Scrublet on
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  • Eat it You Nasty Pig.Eat it You Nasty Pig. tell homeland security 'we are the bomb'Registered User regular
    edited March 2010
    Yeah, if you get a good wireless optical you can just put your (wireless) keyboard on your lap and mouse on a couch cushion (or on a convenient magazine or other solid object.)

    works pretty well

    Eat it You Nasty Pig. on
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  • MadpandaMadpanda suburbs west of chicagoRegistered User regular
    edited March 2010
    I got an ikea coffee table top and added adjustable legs to it. The lowest setting is about perfect size for doing basic stuff from the couch, web browsing, mmo's etc. If I want to play fps or something I move the table forward a bit and put a nice chair behind it.

    This is the closest I have come to computer desk + chair with an HDTV while still having flexibility for more social gaming. The table is easily moveable if a bunch of people want to play 360 or something.

    Madpanda on
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  • exmelloexmello Registered User regular
    edited March 2010
    I have a wireless keyboard and mouse and just have the keyboard on my lap and have one of those fancy feng shui storage boxes flipped upside down beside me for my mouse.

    I find that the coffee table and any glasses sitting on it sometimes interferes with the wireless devices. They say "work up to 10 meters" but they aren't really reliable for anything over a couple feet.

    If you're doing a lot of gaming I would recommend just getting a couple usb extension cables since I find input lag annoying on my mouse.

    exmello on
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