The Chess House - News: Travel Chess Computer

So what's the best Travel Chess Computer you ask? well first of all lets narrow down the category. What are you really looking for and expecting out of a travel chess computer. I will run down a list of the most popular chess computers, i'll give you all the facts on the advantages and disadvantages of the leading travel chess computers.

Maestro Travel Chess Computer: More Statistics.
The maestro travel chess computer is designed to use in all lighting conditions, whether you lighting is good or whether its bad, I can still be able to play a game of chess with a friend or against the computer itself. I'm able to do this because the maestro travel chess computer has the coolest backlight feature, it wont matter if its pitch dark you can still manage to play chess with it. Just a warning to parents, if you buy this travel chess computer for a child, you might want to peep in on him/her at night, just so they get some sleep! It isn't shockproof, and it sure isn't waterproof! It also comes with a leather carry-case. Maestro travel chess computer can play a tough game of chess, and you can tone down the level if its to hard.

Deluxe Talking Travel Chess Computer: More Statistics.
supposedly the worlds best chess computer, the Deluxe Talking travel chess computer has a great estimated chess rating of 2000! I don't think its quite as user friendly as the Maestro but it whups it at a tough game of chess, it doesn't have the backlight feature though. But there isn't called Deluxe Talking chess trainer for nothing! Yep this travel chess computer really does talk, it's great for people who cant see as well. Another great feature is the LCD screen on this travel chess computer has more detailed chess pieces than any other LCD screen chess computer so once again its great for people that cant see as well. This travel chess computer comes with a leather carry-case as well. Newly added feature! The Deluxe Talking Chess Computer now has a back light screen for nocturnal play!

Mephisto Expert Travel Chess Computer: More Statistics.
With this travel chess computer I never have to puzzle over which piece is which. it comes with 3D peg style pieces, The only disadvantage with this is the pieces can get lost. I lost some but phoned Saitek and got the replacements so that worked out fine. The 3D chess pieces fit snugly into place on the holey chess board if it gets a little bumped around, say in the car or plane, they will stay in place and only if it is jarred pretty badly will they ever come out. Another great feature of the Expert travel chess computer is the great lid design; the lid is designed to be placed over a game of chess while the pieces are still in place! So a game is easily stored and saved. The designers of this chess computer knew people would be worried about losing their chess pieces, but they wanted a travel chess computer with real in-your-hand chess pieces, so they conveniently made 30 little holes off the actual chess board. So whenever I capture an opponents piece, i place it in one of the little holes off the board. You might be thinking why 30? there are 32 pieces! well, the kings never come off the board!

There are several other styles of travel chess computers but the ones I have chosen to post on are in my opinion the best travel chess computers made. I have had the opportunity to play and operate each individual chess computer, and have been using them for years. The travel chess computers I have posted on have excellent feedback not by just me but by many other satisfied people. But thats not to say those are your only options there are several other travel chess computers.

Labels: Chess Computers Electronic and Portable, Saitek Mephisto Electronics, Travel Chess Stuff

1 Comments:

At 8:06 AM, Anonymous said...: I have to say, my experience of owning the Saitek Mephisto Expert Travel Chess Computer has not been a good one. As the main article states, the pieces "will stay in place and only if it is jarred pretty badly will they ever come out". Why couldn't they have designed it just ever so slightly better so that the pieces never come out? Bear in mind, the last thing I want is to open the lid and have loose pieces fall out. I also don't much care for the lid itself - there's no effective way to 'store' it when it's open, and it gets in the way if you want to play as black without the tedium of setting up all the pieces the other way around.

One other point I'd like to pick up on is the 30 holes for captured pieces. Whilst it is true that only 30 pieces can be captured in a game, the set comes with 8 spare pieces (2 pawns and 2 queens for each side). So, as I diligently practice my king, knight and bishop vs king endgame, I run out of places to put the spare pieces.

It could be that I’m just unlucky but, after barely using the machine, one of the LEDs used to indicate squares on the board now only works intermittently (the one that indicates the E file). This is very frustrating in a new machine, although a couple of hard taps usually gets it going again.

My last issue is around the programming itself. The machine does have an impressive range of options, and can play chess from beginner to advanced level (I can’t confirm how advanced though, as I’m certainly no grand master). However, if I set it to its ‘Fun’ levels and then try to set it back to its normal modes, it is suddenly stupidly easy to beat. This was explained in a loose piece of paper in the packaging – apparently, the fun levels restrict its search algorithm, but they forgot to program it to remove this limitation when it’s switched to the other modes. There is a workaround – it involves using the master reset button, but this loses all your settings. This has probably been fixed in later versions, but it’s no help to me.