Here are the electronic chess computers that we recommend for retirement age players who want to enjoy chess and keep the brain cells active.

Chess Classics Exclusive is very comfortably sized, looks beautiful, and allows for natural movement of the pieces without pressing on the squares. It has a large modular display and all the moves are shown on the board with bright LEDs. It's easy to setup and easy to play and select levels and features. It's one of the best overall investments for getting back into the game and staying sharp.

Centaur keeps things simple. It really is k.i.s.s. Three levels, just move the pieces and follow the lights - all in a modern black and white design. The plus here is that the computer is adaptive strength so it tries to play at the estimated level of the player. It's not the highest quality but it has been bringing a tremendous amount of satisfaction to players from youth to retirement age.

King Performance offers some savings over the Exclusive and has a classic wooden look as well. The move input is pressure sense type, not auto sensing. It is more hands on when making the moves. The computer is self-contained with no external engine module. So it's just plug in and play. You can add a ChessVolt for power and a ChessLink for internet play if desired. This is the same with the Chess Classics Exclusive.

Square Off Grand Kingdom is more than a novelty that allows you to watch the pieces move (yes, truly a self-moving chess set!) where you can observe other games and follow them through from low to world championship level players. This one connects up to the Square Off server or to Chess.com in order to play against other people or engines. In the standard mode, you make your move on the board and the computer will move its own pieces. Get two of these - one for a friend and you could be enjoying the game remotely while watching the others moves played out for you on the board!