PC World

I entered the store and told a member of staff that I wanted to buy a device for a relative who was mad on PC gaming. I wanted to get him something special and a bit different, adding that he liked first person shooters and also, on occasion, flight simulators.

She pointed to a two metre bay. "This is a special keyboard for PC gaming," she said, holding up a Logitech G15, priced £68.49. "What is different about this keyboard to normal keyboards?" I asked. Pointing to the front of the box to a LCD panel on the keyboard, she said: "This screen allows players to see options from the game – a must if you’re into gaming."

Thinking about flight games, I asked if there were any replica jet fighter joysticks. There were three joysticks available – a Logitech Force 3D Pro Joy Stick priced £49.99, a Logitech Attack 3 Joystick priced £39.99 and a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro Twist Joystick priced £29.99.
Score: 6/10

Computer Warehouse

A counter ran along the width of the store and a glass cabinet was to the left with various computer products locked inside. A salesman smiled and asked how he could help as I approached. I told him I was shopping for PC gaming peripherals such as FPS keyboards, joysticks and the like.

"I have just the thing," he said, bringing out a Logitech G15 priced £59 – the lowest price I found all day. "I also have this," he added bringing out another keyboard, this time, the Razer Tarantula, priced at £69.99.

I asked him about other products that he felt would be beneficial to PC gaming. He pointed to a cabinet where there was a Logitech Attack 3 Joystick priced £21 – again the cheapest I found all day. There was also a Razer Mouse Copperhead priced £37.99. This was a high precision laser gaming mouse with programmable buttons, which aided game-play – this was good, some great advice from this store.
Score: 8/10

Currys

As with most Currys, this was a busy store. Pretty much all staff were busy with other customers when I first walked through the store’s doors. I perused a few aisles before finding two bays with a broad range of keyboards, mice and webcams.

Trying to get the attention of one of the store’s staff was proving to be a game in itself, so I walked back to the front of the store where I saw a shop assistant. At the time he was with another colleague, who was helping a customer with a TomTom device. I approached and asked for help.

Telling him what I was looking for elicited a response I wasn’t looking for: "We only have standard keyboards, you should try PC World," he said. He did look disappointed that there wasn’t going to be sale today, though.

With nothing available, I didn’t see any point in sticking around, so I left to continue my quest to find gaming devices.
Score: 4/10