This wheel represented a number of firsts for me. This was the first Force Feedback wheel I had
ever raced and it was also the first USB wheel I had ever installed.
The Looks
The Sidewinder is a 10" plastic wheel with grey rubberized grips at the 9 and 3 o'clock positions. When
force feedback is active the word "Force" glows green in the center of the wheel. This was the
first indication I had that this was a toy.
The pedal unit is lightweight textured plastic with realistic looking drilled gas and brake pedals.
Convenience
Wow, USB is very cool to set up. Hopefully more steering wheel makers will embrace USB. Plug everything
in and my PC recognized it on the fly, installed the drivers for it and I was ready to race.
The wheel clamp is a "rocker" arm that pivots under the desk to hold the wheel in place. You tighten it
down with a knob. The wheel also features a quick release handle but my experience with that is that the
handle doesn't loosen the clamp enough. I still had to twist the knob down manually to remove the wheel.
The Feel
The Sidewinder seems to have only one way to express it's effects, all out. Getting the car a little
loose off the corner in Bristol starts a wrestling match with the wheel that is overwhelming. I've never
actually driven a Winston Cup car at Bristol. But there is no way that the wheel jumps out of your hands
like this when you get a little loose.
Also, although the Sidewinder has nice rubber grips at the 9 and 3 o'clock positions, I drive with
my hand at the at the 1 o'clock position. This means I'm squeezing plastic instead of the nice grips.
The Sidewinder ships with Monster Truck Madness 2 so I tried out the wheel with that game. Strangely
enough the wheel really adds to the raw fun of a racing game like this.
The pedals look nice and are at a comfortable angle but are just too light. The spring tension on the
pedals was also very light. This makes it very hard to feel the pedals under your feet and dance the
car through the corner.
Other Features
The six programmable buttons and two fingertip paddle-buttons are a great feature. This allows you to
program any button to perform any keystroke. You can call up the standings, change air pressure, etc without
taking your hands off the wheel.
Overall
The pedal unit really needs some improvements before the Sidewinder will make it to my recommended list
of products but the force effects are strong and the programmable buttons are a great addition that make
the Sidewinder an OK choice in the Force Feedback category.
Pros
- 8 totally programmable buttons
- USB support
Cons
- Pedals are cheesy
- Rubber grips only on the sides of the wheel
Rating: 71/100
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