Specialized Hardware for Poker Software

In this article, we’ll highlight hardware that works in conjunction with poker software.  You may not even be aware that some of these tools exist, but after you do, you’ll probably run out to your local electronics store to buy it or at the very least check it out.

Logitech G13 Gaming Keypad
MSRP: $79.99
Works Great With: Table Ninja

There’s a reason I listed this right at the top – it’s the single best piece of hardware I have ever bought for playing online poker.  This device is basically an add-on to your existing keyboard that is laid out ergonomically with a special wrist rest. There are 22 keys and three different preset buttons you can program.  There’s even a GamePanel LCD built in that can display information such as the helpful countdown timer and stopwatch, which help you time your sessions.

For online poker players, this will be the single best hardware investment you can make to multi-table.  Here’s how it would work.  First, open up Table Ninja or TableNinjaFT and go to the hotkeys section.  Assign buttons on the Logitech G13 device to appropriate commands at the table for folding, checking, calling, and raising as well as other actions you regularly like to do.

Personally, I assigned G10 to be the “A” key and made the “A” key fold.  Then, I made G11 and G4 correspond to calling and checking, respectively.  Finally, I made G12 correspond to the “D” button on the keyboard, which is assigned to bet.  The cool thing is that these specific keys on the G13 have a small indentation in them, so you don’t even have to look at them to know where exactly to place your hand on the device – your fingers will tell you.

Instead of clicking all over the screen and moving your mouse from place to place, you’ll simply hit the shortcut keys and be able to be much more efficient at the tables.  This one is a no-brainer, so check this out if you multi-table.

Blue Snowball
MSRP: $99.99
Works Great With: Camtasia / Skype

If you watch a lot of our videos, then you’ll know that the sound quality of the reviews we make is excellent.  Some of the work that we’ve done on other projects has produced excellent sound and it’s all thanks to the single best computer microphone I’ve ever seen.  The good news here is that this won’t break your wallet at $99.  The quality is amazing and it even works for music if you record yourself playing an instrument.  For Camtasia or talking via Skype, this unit is considerably better than the $30 webcam mic you are probably using right now.

23” LCD Monitor (1920x1080 resolution)
MSRP: $199.99
Works Great With: Anything

This won’t just be for online poker; getting a 24” monitor with a great contrast ratio (1000:1 native) and response time (5ms) will be great for just about anything you want to do.  The screen resolution is fantastic for online poker, although you could do better if you wanted to spend about $500 more on a single unit.  As it is, you can actually buy two of these, stick them side by side, and have two monitors for less than $400 before taxes.  This would allow you to play a ton of tables on your “featured” monitor and use the secondary one for other programs like your hand history tracking software or your poker site’s lobby.

128 GB Solid State Hard Drive
MSRP: $349.99
Works Great With: PokerTracker and Holdem Manager

If you are the kind of person who loves to get the maximum performance out of their computer, then you should try an SSD hard drive (Solid State Drive).  It’ll be fast as lightning compared to other drives you get.  There’s nothing to spin inside the drive, so it’s also extremely quiet.

Be careful when picking a drive to make sure it has enough space because you’ll want to use it as your primary drive and also have enough room for your poker software.  A 64 GB drive is probably cutting it too close, so we’re recommending a 120 GB to 128 GB drive.  Finally, be sure to get a reputable brand and also compare the read/write times on the drives you are looking to buy, as you’ll find a few extra bucks might mean a 25% difference in performance.