Welcome to a New Age of Play with the Aurora Collection by Logitech G

[TheLostSwede]

Today, Logitech G introduced the Aurora Collection, a new collection featuring the G735 Wireless Gaming Headset, G715 Wireless Gaming Keyboard, G713 Gaming Keyboard, G705 Wireless Gaming Mouse and eight custom accessories. The new collection was designed to be gender inclusive, not gender exclusive, addressing the needs and wants of women gamers while also appealing to all gamers who are looking for a playful design and curated experience. The Aurora Collection has a distinctive aesthetic and design language while also allowing for personalization through custom accessories and color options. It also includes Logitech G's advanced gaming grade technologies like LIGHTSPEED high-performance wireless technology and Blue VO!CE microphone technology. The result is a collection of gear that invites all gamers to come as they are, while delivering the advanced feature set all gamers expect.

"Much of the gaming industry has been stuck in a one-size-fits-all mentality. But that hasn't reflected the wide range of consumers who are focused on self-expression and playing games for fun, and it certainly didn't fit Logitech's commitment to delivering solutions for all gamers. When we looked at our own gaming products, we realized we could be doing more," said Ujesh Desai, Vice President and General Manager of Logitech G. "With the Aurora Collection we've created a gender-inclusive collection centered around comfort, approachability and playfulness that supports our long-term commitment to enabling everyone to experience the joy of play."




The Aurora Collection was conceptualized based on the feedback from women gamers across the community and brought to life by a team of predominantly women innovation, design, engineering and marketing leaders at Logitech. The collection was created to meet the gaming desires and needs of an underrepresented segment of gamers and reimagine the future of gaming where representation is firmly present. And the design process was guided by the following three principles:

• Comfort: In the design phase, the team made sure to take things into account like longer hair, glasses, earrings, and smaller hand sizes. Not stopping at fit. The team prioritized products that felt and looked good to support longer play sessions, exploring different materials and finishes that were lightweight and soft to the touch.
• Approachability: To address areas of opportunity around approachability the team broke away from the typical sharp edges, black colorways and loud aesthetics to create a more welcome experience featuring softer tonalities, translucent materials and soothing out-of-box lighting.
• Playfulness: The Aurora Collection encourages self-expression. The products come in base White Mist with the ability to customize using Pink Dawn and Green Flash accessories. Players can also show off their creative side with thousands of customizable lighting combinations available in G HUB with Aurora Collection signature lighting that we call Play Moods.

"Our endeavor, to craft a gender-inclusive collection of gaming gear, challenged us to set aside old ideas—and really ask ourselves some essential questions about our own love of play," said TIffany Beers, Head of Gaming Innovation at Logitech G. "In setting out to design principally for women gamers, we achieved not only that but created a collection we hope is meaningful for an even larger segment of gamers beyond gender and stereotypes. We're excited for the Aurora collection and what it represents."

The Aurora Collection consists of:

• G735 Wireless Gaming Headset - Featuring a White Mist finish, ethereal RGB lighting, and on-ear dual-audio mixing, the G735 is a versatile option for any player. G735 is the first Logitech G headset with the new Blue VO!CE microphone technology features to modulate a player's voice and have the ability to save preferred audio settings in G Hub and directly on the headset. The G735 Wireless Gaming Headset also maximizes comfort for all players and is inclusive of smaller head sizes. Players can enjoy long gaming sessions with 56+ hr battery life (without lighting), and experience wireless freedom through Logitech G's award winning LIGHTSPEED wireless technology, and Bluetooth connectivity.
• G715 and G713 Mechanical Gaming Keyboards - The G715 Wireless Gaming Keyboard and G713 Gaming Keyboard deliver low-key vibes with high-key performance so players can express themselves and play their way. A compact, tenkeyless layout, and adjustable height ensure comfort all-day long. Pack it up and place it anywhere with a rechargeable battery that delivers 25 hours of non-stop gaming, and LIGHTSPEED wireless or Bluetooth connectivity. Both keyboards come with an included Cloud-Soft palm rest for all-day comfort.
• G705 Wireless Gaming Mouse -G705 Wireless Gaming Mouse is purpose-built for smaller hands with compact contoured fit, and advanced gaming technology. At just 85 grams, G705 is designed for long-lasting, lightweight comfort and performance. With a gaming-grade sensor, ultra-responsive LIGHTSPEED wireless, Bluetooth connectivity, and an easy-reach DPI-cycling button, gamers can play their best.
• Accessories - Take your collection a step further with eight new accessories including whimsical touches like the cloud-shaped palmrest, cable charm, and heart shaped carrying case. Other accessories include ear pads and boom mics, G713 and G715 keyboard top plates, keycap puller and brush, and mousepad for gamers to customize their play style.

To complement the Aurora Collection, gamers will be able to elevate their game streams with a special edition Blue Yeti premium USB microphone, available in two new colorways, Pink Dawn and White Mist. These Yeti mics will also include exclusive Aurora Collection stream overlays from Streamlabs, which gives streamers the ability to style their stream for Twitch, YouTube and Facebook. Yeti also supports Blue VO!CE software, with fun vocal effects like DJ Robot or Helium Chipmunk, studio tools like EQ, limiter and NVIDIA Broadcast Noise Removal, and HD audio samples. Blue VO!CE can be accessed on Logitech G HUB.

Like all of our gaming products, the entire Aurora collection is certified carbon neutral, which means that we finance high-quality certified carbon offsets to reduce the carbon impact of the product to zero. The products include post-consumer recycled content, and the paper packaging comes from FSC-certified forests. By choosing these gaming products, you're doing your part to help support responsible management of the world's forests.

Pricing and Availability
All products for the collection are available on LogitechG.com and at global retailers. The Logitech G735 has a suggested retail price of $229.99. The Logitech G715 and Logitech G713 TKL Gaming Keyboards have suggested retail prices of $199.99 and $169.99, respectively. The special edition Blue Yeti USB microphone for the Aurora Collection has a suggested retail price of $129.99. The Logitech G705 has a suggested retail price of $99.99. Accessories for the collection are available at www.logitechg.com. For more information, please visit our website, our blog or connect with us @LogitechG.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site | Source

 

[dgianstefani]

Joke products.

The colour white has nothing to do with gender inclusivity, which is a non issue for gamers anyway. It's simply a departure from the obnoxious gamer styling that's the norm.

 

[Dimitriman]

"Hi there fans trying to eliminate gender and role definitions, here is a line of product to define you."

 

[Chaitanya]

Overpriced as overpriced can be.

 

[bonehead123]

It's simply a departure from the obnoxious gamer styling that's the norm.

yea but these all STILL have the rainbow merry-go-round, lite 'em up styling that is STILL sooooo f'n obnoxious IMO

If it wasn't for that, I might have recommended this line for a few of my clients that have ordered Snowblinder rigs but want absolutely ZERO R.f'n.G.f'n.B.f'n. accents

 

[Aquinus]

"Our endeavor, to craft a gender-inclusive collection of gaming gear, challenged us to set aside old ideas—and really ask ourselves some essential questions about our own love of play," said TIffany Beers, Head of Gaming Innovation at Logitech G. "In setting out to design principally for women gamers, we achieved not only that but created a collection we hope is meaningful for an even larger segment of gamers beyond gender and stereotypes. We're excited for the Aurora collection and what it represents."

What the hell is this rhetorical nonsense... They don't want to perpetuate gender stereotypes? What do they think that they're doing by making bright colored hardware? It's 100% for marketing because anyone with half a brain knows that grime shows up on white hardware extra fast, so I hope you like cleaning... oh wait, sounds like another gender stereotype.

 

[ZoneDymo]

why people get so emotional about this stuff ill never understand

 

[Nater]

Make it stop.

 

[Fzerox]

Gender Neutral

 

[BSim500]

"Much of the gaming industry has been stuck in a one-size-fits-all mentality. But that hasn't reflected the wide range of consumers who are focused on self-expression and playing games for fun, and it certainly didn't fit Logitech's commitment to delivering solutions for all gamers. When we looked at our own gaming products, we realized we could be doing more," said Ujesh Desai, Vice President and General Manager of Logitech G. "With the Aurora Collection we've created a gender-inclusive collection centered around comfort, approachability and playfulness that supports our long-term commitment to enabling everyone to experience the joy of play.""

^ Is this a joke? The most inclusive thing for gaming mice has been offering the option of ambidextrous design so us left-handers can play on something that isn't the wrong shape but that's probably not political enough for the modern gamer. And gamers usually don't "self-express" over hardware (unless it's the kind of games made by Kagura Studios which tends to be... a different kind of 'self expression'...)

"The Logitech G735 has a suggested retail price of $229.99. The Logitech G715 and Logitech G713 TKL Gaming Keyboards have suggested retail prices of $199.99 and $169.99, respectively. "

Ah, so THAT's what its about. As long as you continue to make exactly the same mice in grey/black for £30 for us "non self-expressive" gamers, carry on...

 

[eidairaman1]

Well Logitech's gone retarded.

 

[AdmiralThrawn]

There are definitely lots of people who wake up every day thinking that their problems would all be solved if logitech just made their keyboard gender neutral. Give me a break. NOBODY CARES!

All my peripherals are logitech and I love them, I will not be buying anything else from them if they shill this to customers.

 

[ZoneDymo]

Well Logitech's gone retarded.

While I expect conflict I would have to ask you to refrain from using that word.
You mean it to insult but if I would ask you if you had anything against people with down syndrome im sure you would say "no" so then it makes no sense to use it in a negative way.

There are definitely lots of people who wake up every day thinking that their problems would all be solved if logitech just made their keyboard gender neutral. Give me a break. NOBODY CARES!

All my peripherals are logitech and I love them, I will not be buying anything else from them if they shill this to customers.

Shill this to their customers...what? they literally want to sell products...that is their goal as is any companies goal that produces product.
And apparently you care a lot if you suddenly dont want to buy their products over this...says a lot about the impact it has on you and how you react to it.

 

[Valantar]

gender inclusivity, which is a non issue for gamers anyway

You're kidding, right? Gender inclusivity "is a non-issue" in possibly the most self-consciously, defensively and toxically masculine large scale subculture in existence? Man, you must have missed the part of the past decade where a large-scale misogynist hate and terror campaign ran rampant in gamer culture, or how large swathes of gamers still hold to those values. Weird.

And gamers usually don't "self-express" over hardware

Ehhhhhhhh ... what? So you've never showed off your rig to anyone? Never tried to make it look good, in line with your tastes and preferences? Never browsed the millions of build logs and posts online showcasing PCs built very clearly to look "cool" in various ways in line with cultural norms and trends?


As for these products - some of them look nice (I hope those headphones are as comfy as they look!), but I'm dubious about white peripherals due to dirt and cleaning, and even more dubious about the - arguably necessary, but also highly suspect - rhetoric of inclusivity used here. Whether genuine or opportunistic (or both!), it can't escape the spectre of capitalist exploitation, and the inescapable fact that moves like these as typically come from the recognition that most things historically sold mainly to average white dudes now have to branch out to other demographics to sustain any kind of growth, as that demographic is long since saturated with pretty much everything.


Though, to be fair, if anything the comments here are quite indicative of just how necessary measures towards inclusivity are in this hobby. The crying and whining about how terrible these things are is exactly the type of reactionary nonsense you see from an in-group desperately trying to defend their perceived privilege.

Well Logitech's gone retarded.

Please refrain from the ableist wording dude. Whatever your opinions of this, there's really no need for that.

 

[dgianstefani]

Go cry about it on the Ellen show. The rest of us will continue not caring about identity politics in a hardware forum.

 

[Valantar]

Go cry about it on the Ellen show. The rest of us will continue not caring about identity politics in a hardware forum.

The only crying I see here are from all the people complaining about how horrible it is that (gasp!) other people also like gaming and hardware (gasp!).

Just as in terms of race whiteness inscribes itself into society as aracial, neutral and default, hegemonic masculinity tends to do the same - and that is exactly what you're expressing by claiming you don't care about identity politics. What you either are firercely denying, or just fail to see, is that by saying what you're saying, you're enacting a specific form of identity politics. Your claim of neutrality and apoliticalness is nonsensical and absurd, and is completely transparent to anyone with even a moderate capability of critical thinking. The "obnoxious gamer styling" you mentioned in your first norm is an explicitly and self-consciously masculine style, and one that is built on the fundamental sense of insecure masculinity that has underpinned all kinds of nerd culture for decades. And there are of course many possible styles and forms of expression, but crucially, within tech most of them are quite explicitly masculine despite the huge diversity of people sharing these interests (and related jobs). Diversifying the available styles and modes of self-expression is purely a good thing, as it allows for a broader range of options for people to pick from, and thus a greater chance of finding something you actually like.

If you've got a problem with that, then you've got a problem with other people being themselves, which ... well, that's your problem, not theirs.

 

[dgianstefani]

The only crying I see here are from all the people complaining about how horrible it is that (gasp!) other people also like gaming and hardware (gasp!).

Just as in terms of race whiteness inscribes itself into society as aracial, neutral and default, hegemonic masculinity tends to do the same - and that is exactly what you're expressing by claiming you don't care about identity politics. What you either are firercely denying, or just fail to see, is that by saying what you're saying, you're enacting a specific form of identity politics. Your claim of neutrality and apoliticalness is nonsensical and absurd, and is completely transparent to anyone with even a moderate capability of critical thinking. The "obnoxious gamer styling" you mentioned in your first norm is an explicitly and self-consciously masculine style, and one that is built on the fundamental sense of insecure masculinity that has underpinned all kinds of nerd culture for decades. And there are of course many possible styles and forms of expression, but crucially, within tech most of them are quite explicitly masculine despite the huge diversity of people sharing these interests (and related jobs). Diversifying the available styles and modes of self-expression is purely a good thing, as it allows for a broader range of options for people to pick from, and thus a greater chance of finding something you actually like.

If you've got a problem with that, then you've got a problem with other people being themselves, which ... well, that's your problem, not theirs.

Having fun projecting?

While I expect conflict I would have to ask you to refrain from using that word.
You mean it to insult but if I would ask you if you had anything against people with down syndrome im sure you would say "no" so then it makes no sense to use it in a negative way.



Shill this to their customers...what? they literally want to sell products...that is their goal as is any companies goal that produces product.
And apparently you care a lot if you suddenly dont want to buy their products over this...says a lot about the impact it has on you and how you react to it.

Retarded, or to retard means slow in French. Simple. It's not a catch all term for people with down syndrome? People will use the descriptive language they want to, and you have no rights to tell them otherwise.

 

[ZoneDymo]

Retarded, or to retard means slow in French. Simple. It's not a catch all term for people with down syndrome? People will use the descriptive language they want to, and you have no rights to tell them otherwise.

I actually have every right to tell them otherwise....or as I did, request them to do otherwise...just as they have the right to say what they want (well regarding government prosecution atleast, whatever this website does its up to them) I have the right to request them to stop.

Apart from that, ok...do we hate slow people now? should someone born slow be used to insult people who arnt slow but just do things you dont like?

 

[dgianstefani]

I actually have every right to tell them otherwise....or as I did, request them to do otherwise...just as they have the right to say what they want (well regarding government prosecution atleast, whatever this website does its up to them) I have the right to request them to stop.

Apart from that, ok...do we hate slow people now? should someone born slow be used to insult people who arnt slow but just do things you dont like?

Noone is hating on slow people - the term is being used to describe the decision of a peripherals business.

 

[ZoneDymo]

Go cry about it on the Ellen show. The rest of us will continue not caring about identity politics in a hardware forum.

also a ironic statement coming from you who so clearly cares a LOT about this you should wonder yourself why this gets you so riled up.

Noone is hating on slow people - the term is being used to describe the decision of a peripherals business.

Wait you are claiming they ment that logitech was being slow with this addition? that they should have just came out with this years ago?
and you actually believe that is what they were saying when they called the company "retarded"?

 

[dgianstefani]

Keep playing word games and projecting, the rest of us will most likely shop elsewhere.

 

[HairyLobsters]

Well Logitech's gone retarded.

Why? Is appealing do a differant dimmagraphic so bad? It's good to see something other than the red and black edgelord dragons viper athletic.

 

[kiakk]

New age: living the time of Idiocracy.

 

[BSim500]

Ehhhhhhhh ... what? So you've never showed off your rig to anyone? Never tried to make it look good, in line with your tastes and preferences? Never browsed the millions of build logs and posts online showcasing PCs built very clearly to look "cool" in various ways in line with cultural norms and trends?

Honestly, no never. I've always liked that "minimalist" plain black look. No RGB, no window, no fuss (think Carbide 200 style and before that 'old school' Rosewill Line-M. Turns out blowing cold air straight onto the hottest components via 2x side intakes actually makes sense...) Same for mice - been using a Logitech G300/G300S for years. Ambidextrous, 9 remappable buttons, highly functional, onboard memory = no bloated software needed running in the background. Cost £25. Never had any urge to buy an "dirt magnet art piece" mouse for 3-4x the price, then frame it, hang it on the wall and invite people round only for them to leave with "Damn, that is one weird guy" mutters under their breath...

Though, to be fair, if anything the comments here are quite indicative of just how necessary measures towards inclusivity are in this hobby. The crying and whining about how terrible these things are is exactly the type of reactionary nonsense you see from an in-group desperately trying to defend their perceived privilege.

I think you'll find people are more bashing the "bandwagon jumping" marketing phrases than the minorities in question. Example - "Approachability = It needs to be white not black". So 'black is unapproachable' now, is it? Probably not quite what they mean but amusing as to how that could be interpreted...

 

[Operandi]

Diversifying the available styles and modes of self-expression is purely a good thing, as it allows for a broader range of options for people to pick from, and thus a greater chance of finding something you actually like.

This is 100% correct, could not agree more. Aside from emitting radioactive unicorn vomit (which for some reason we aren't over yet), most "gamer" looks menacing, and aggressive, with hard angles and usually all black. It makes sense that most hardware would have that aesthetic because it reflects the theme of the majority of games and the people that play them but it certainly dosn't reflect all games and gamers so as a product this is a good thing.

The problem I see with this is the marketing campaign behind it. There is a group of gamers where the typical all black aesthetic is not something personally care for because it dosn't fit their personality, or for whatever reason its not to their preference. This addresses that and thats a good thing because nobody should feel unrepresented in society but this marketing and identity politics as a whole which this falls into is doing everything they are supposedly against by exploiting stereotypes and promoting exclusiveness twice as hard literally saying out loud the type of person that should be buying this. Its all very clumsy, heavy handed, insulting and ultimately counter productive to the people that felt marginalized in the first place.