Manufactured By:   Guillemot

Retail Price: $59.99    

Review Date:  03-21-99

  Unlike 75% of the worlds population I am left-handed.   Designers have ignored the 25% of the worlds population that do things backwards.   We think differently, and in the minds of marketers at least, don't influence how things are made.  Cars, planes, computer mice, 3 ring binders, etc. are all made to make life easier- for righties.  The designers of the Jet Leader 3D Joystick probably considered the plight of the lefty when they were at the drawing board for the Jet Leader 3D.

    Te stick is very comfortable in either your left or right hand due to its ambidextrous design.  The entire stick is symmetrical in design.  The throttle wheel is placed at the center of the base and the contour of the stick itself is molded to be comfortable in either hand.  Like most other sticks, the upright has a hand rest to support your hand on the controller.  Unlike most other sticks, the Jet Leader 3D base is height adjustable and padded.  It can also be set askew from the center depending on how you hold the joystick.  This is a wonderful added feature that's time has finally come.  It would be great to see more manufacturers take the many shapes, sizes and preferences of the player into consideration when designing gaming gear.

  If I had to complain about anything it would be the lack of support for external throttle and/or rudder controllers.  Right now the Jet Leader 3D, and most other USB devices do not allow the use of external control devices.  This could easily be fixed with an updated driver, time will tell.  (Minor complaint, but the only one I could come up with.)

• Ambidextrous design
• Analog throttle wheel
• 8 buttons (2 triggers, 2 on face and 4 base buttons)
• 8 way hat-switch
• Adjustable hand base
• Trim controls (x and y axis)
• Button programmability

  I have to concede that I was concerned about my level of play without the benefit of rudder control but that soon disappeared.  I had become so accustom to having the additional control it did take a short period to familiarize myself with the manner that coordinated rudder controls responded  (I would still like to have the option to use my rudder pedals though).  Within 30 minutes I was flying up to par.  The Jet Leader 3D was not properly identified in Microsoft Flight Sim 98 but still worked using the suggestions offered earlier by another manufacturer (see FAQ).

  I also used the Jet Leader 3D in Need For Speed III.  Although I would never condone using a stick for a driving game it did the job well.  In everything I tried the stick performed quite well. 

Setup -
  Plug and Play for real!  Upon plugging the Jet Leader 3D Joystick into a free USB port, Windows 98 displays a message saying Windows has detected new hardware.   When prompted insert the Windows 98 CD and the driver will be installed.   Under the Game Controller icon the Jet Leader 3D will be identified as a "HID Game Controller: 3 axis 8 buttons with POV Hat" if you use the default Windows 98 "inf" but you should use the provided "inf" file to identify the controller as the Jet Leader 3D.  It must be identified as a Jet Leader 3D for the button program utility to work properly. 

  Since the Jet Leader 3D has trim controls it is highly recommended that you check the setup of the stick in the Game Controller Properties.  Enter the test panel and assure the crosshair is centered along the X and Y axis.  If the centering is off make the proper adjustments to the trim controls.  Click "apply" and you are ready to play.