On this, the day Apple is expected to reveal the iPad 2, Microsoft is expected to confirm the death of the SideWinder range of PC gaming peripherals. It’s not the first time Microsoft has killed the SideWinder brand, but there does seem to be some finality about it this time.
VR-Zone says Microsoft is pulling out because there’s too much competition out there to make it worth their while. Companies like SteelSeries and Razer and Logitech have done a pretty good job of providing PC gamers—and sometimes their console brethren—with high-quality mice, keyboards, headsets, etc. Such a good job, in fact, that the SideWinder has been ousted to the sidelines.
Matt Burns, well-known gentleman, kindly reminds us that the SideWinder brand was one of the first brands in the PC gaming world. Its mice and keyboards, such as the legendary SideWinder X8 (pictured here) were among the first specifically targeted at PC gamers.
Microsoft still makes hardware peripherals—the Comfort Mouse 6000 was announced a few days ago—but the SideWinder brand is no longer with us.