How do you remember which commands you assigned where? Well, you print out a key list of course! But you can also opt for printing out a graphical picture, much like the one at right. If you have a color printer, you can get this image in full color, all your key assignments labeled and in place. We've come a long way, baby!

Now in case you are wondering, you can program a total of 24 commands to the 12 buttons on this stick, including the four hat positions. This means that with your thumb and forefinger alone you can access eleven functions including the trigger. Not enough for F4, but for a WW2 sim you're almost there!

Impressive in a stick in this price range. But that's not all! You can also adjust this stick to your individual preference. You're left handed and have small hands? Not a problem. A small allen wrench tool is included, mounted with a slide fit on the stick front. Slide it up to remove it, insert in the right key hole, and reshape this stick to fit your needs. Wow!

You can adjust the height of the hand rest as well as the tilt of the stick head. I moved the hand rest up one notch and tilted the head a bit more level. Perfect!

As I said, I find this one impressive package. The stick and software are an excellent combination, beautifully done. No, Saitek isn't paying me to say this. I will likely give one of these as a gift this year, and if you know someone on a budget who needs a solid entry level programmable stick, you are going to want to get some hands on time with this one so you can also recommend it!

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For an excellent entry into the joystick market, we award the Cyborg 3D our Top Pick! (Note: this does not apply to the USB version, which only has six programmable functions).

Ed.Note: As time passed we received some complaints on these sticks, but Saitek has addressed the issues regarding the trigger.