Aim:
My aim is to apply my knowledge learned from my years studying in Computer Science to create
a web site to assist people in selecting gaming equipment that is suitable for their needs. My
website should be easy to access and should have a simple layout to attract more audience and
also to make sure that my audience and my client would understand the content of my website
precisely. Through this task, I can improve my knowledge on different types of gaming
equipment and improve my programming skills through the creation of a website as this is a new
form of product for me. Through this task, I can also improve my designing skills as I will need
to create a design for my product and website in which it needs to be both simple, yet attractive
to my client and audience. I have chosen this topic as I am myself a gamer I to me this topic is
very interesting which gives me the motivation. I also chose this topic as from my personal
experience, selecting a gaming hardware for people with little knowledge in these areas can be
challenging so I am designing a product to assist those people.
Introduction to the Topic:
Gaming hardware is unlike normal computer hardware. This is because each piece of hardware
needs to be analyzed carefully according to your needs and also according to the compatibility
for your other hardware. Secondly, gaming equipment needs to be more ‘advanced’ than
standard pc or laptops as video games require higher grade of processing systems and also
require higher specs to be able to run the programs. But not all gaming hardware are the same.
Selecting gaming hardware is a difficult task as you will need to reconsider many criteria and
factors. These factors can include your budget, gaming requirements (as different video games
require different specifications) and many other factors such as portability for a gaming laptop
and maybe style of grips for gaming mouse.
Identifying the Problem:
First, I will need to do extensive amounts of research to see which products are suitable for
different target audiences. Since the larger gaming industry dominates the gaming market, such
as Razor and Alienware, I will need to broaden my research to other smaller gaming industries
and products to see if they have a better quality, or maybe cheaper in price. Next, I will need to
identify my target audiences. Since gaming equipment are targeted to teens and maybe people in
their twenties, I will need to design my website and my make my information suit the more
mature audiences as it would attract them better.
Guiding Questions:
1. How will my product look like?
2. Is my product informative?
3. Is my product attractive to my audiences and my client?
4. How accurate are the information written in my product?
5. Is my product helpful?
Primary Software Chosen:
Composer
Primary Research:
Self-Evaluating Questionnaire:
1. Will I include images and videos in my product?
2. Will I need to download these images?
3. How will I obtain my information?
4. Should I also add my own opinion in my product?
5. What other programs will I need to improve my product?
6. How detailed should the information in my product be?
Analysis of “Self-Evaluating Questionnaire”:
I have created self-evaluating questionnaire in order to simplify my product. The purpose of my
self-evaluating questionnaire is to help me figure out the main points I have to keep in mind
when making my product and to finalize important details regarding my product. The answers
for my self-evaluating questionnaires may sometimes not be selected to be put into my final
product as this is the very early stage of planning and according to my perspective, some
modifications might need to be applied to produce a better product
Answering to Self- Evaluating Questionnaires:
1. Yes, I will need to add lots of images and pictures in my product to show the specific
gaming hardware so they will have an idea of the hardware they might be purchasing.
Images will have a large impact in my product as it would be the most effective way to
help people with selecting a gaming hardware. Videos are not compulsory in my product
as I would need to explain the product with my own words, and not someone else
explaining the hardware for me. Maybe when I come across a suitable video, I might put
it in my website
2. All my images will probably need to be downloaded from other sites for the reason is that
I do not own these hardware so I will need the images from other sources. I will probably
take the images from the game industry’s website to make sure I am able to get the most
accurate image of the hardware.
3. I will obtain most of my information from the internet as it would be difficult to obtain
product from smaller gaming industries from local sellers as they might not know these
products exist. I will try to also input the ideas and recommendations of others as that
would act as my secondary research. I can also input my knowledge of that specific brand
of gaming hardware.
4. I should also add my own opinion to my product as I need some originality to my product
to stand out from other preexisting websites. Without my own personal opinions, my
product will just be a compilation of the information from other websites which is not my
main goal.
5. A
6. My information should be as detailed and precise as possible. Since my client and target
audiences will need a definite decision when purchasing a very expensive hardware, I
will need to include as much information as possible to make it easier for my client to
decide on the gaming hardware they require.
Sample Research Questions:
What are the differences between a gaming hardware and a normal hardware?
Gaming equipment needs higher hardware specifications due to the very demanding gaming
programs they will be using. The main differences in hardware include:
Liquid cooling tubes that keep the CPU and graphic cards cool
High-end graphics cards
Top-of- the-line CPU
Fast processor
Large power supply
The next noticeable difference is that a gaming pc or laptop usually have a longer lifespan
compared to a standard pc or laptop. Since they are built to withstand longer hours of gaming
and built with better hardware means that as time goes on, newer applications will demand faster
pcs but since a gaming pc are built to be better than standard pcs, they are able to run standard
applications much longer than normal pcs.
What are some good quality gaming products in the market?
1. Mouse: I recommend Logitech mice as they are currently the most advanced in mouse
products. They are much cheaper compared to other noticeable mouse products such as
razor and corsair. The main reason is that Logitech have a larger price range. Price ranges
from as low as $30 to $160 for high quality mice.
2. Laptops: Asus rog is recommend for me. The reason is that again, they are much cheaper
than Alienware and Razer but delivers almost the same quality. They a very long lifespan
and have a very good design.
3. Headphones: Sennheizer ear and headphones are the best in terms of quality. They are
not too pricy, but in my opinion, they are the best in terms of quality. They have a large
variety of ear and headphones and their earphones can be used for many purposes.
Secondary Research
Survey
As a part of my research, I will need to gather opinion and maybe pre-existing knowledge of
certain gaming hardware in which they might have previously researched about or maybe
own come hardware.
Survey Questions:
1. Do you own any gaming equipment? If so, try to list them out
2. Do you plan on getting new gaming equipment?
3. If you recommend some good gaming equipment, what are your recommendations?
4. Which gaming hardware do you find hardest when searching for a new one? Why?
5. What gaming product do you not recommend? Why?
6. Do you think this kind of product is helpful for others?
Analysis of Existing Products:
http://www.razerzone.com/
This website is a very good example of a good website. As you can see, it has many features that
can attract audiences. The background, black with neon colors, are the types of colors that are
seen in the modern generation and are liked my younger audiences as it gives the feeling of
coolness and also gives the website a sense of simplicity. Next, as you can see, there is a large
image of the newest products which attracts people to dig deeper into the website for more
information for that particular product, which again, attracts more people. In the top of the
website, you can see a menu bar in which people could easily browse through the desired
product with ease. This is very helpful as it makes your website more organized and makes the
website less overwhelming when you list all the product in the front page. Lastly, as you can see
on the right corner, you can search a particular product in the search bar. This again, helps
organizes your website and also makes browsing your website easier for you audiences which
may attract more audience.
http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3
This next website has many noticeable features that may be included in my product. As you can see, the
background, again has plain colors like white and grey. The most noticeable feature is the compare
products in the top of the website page. This is very useful in my website as I could also let my audiences
compare products as decide by themselves on which hardware is one that suits their needs. Lastly, as you
can see, the website gives detailed information about the product while not elaborating each part. The
information are detailed, but not lengthy. The information is also organized in a table format which helps
make the website looks organized and simple as people can just scroll through the product’s
specifications.
Design Brief:
After conducting my primary and secondary research, I can organize my website into placing
gaming hardware in their respective types of hardware. In my research, I have concluded the best
types of each gaming hardware according to their price, quality, process speed and people’s best
preference. Here the list of gaming hardware:
Laptop:
– ASUS ROG G752VT-DH72: this is one of the most advanced laptop in the market due to
it being one of the most recent release. It has the best combination of price, performance,
and build quality compared to other laptops. It has top of the line cooling equipment
which is very important to most gamers as heating is a major issue. It has one of the
fastest processor, Skylake Intel Core i7-6700HQ quad-core processor, which is very rare
in most gaming laptops. Lastly, it has one of the highest rated keyboard according to
users.
– MSI GT72 Dominator G-831: MSI produces some of the best quality gaming laptops in
the market, but some people ignore this product because of the expensive price tag. It has
the same Skylake Intel Core i7-6700HQ quad-core processor, one of the best NVidia,
which is the GeForce GTX 980M, Full HD eDP Non Reflective 1920×1080 screen and
Steel Series Full-color Backlight with Anti-Ghost key + Silver Lining keyboard.
– ASUS G751JT 17-Inch Gaming Laptop: This laptop is recommended as has the best
price tag, with good gaming quality hardware. It costs about $1,350, which is much
cheaper than other gaming laptops but has good hardware. It has a large 1 TB 7200RPM
Hard Drive, NVidia GeForce GTX 970M and like all Asus rog laptops, the best cooling
design which is the ‘Intelligent Thermal Design’, with rear venting design which directs
heat away and separate thermal modules.
Mouse:
– Logitech G900 Chaos Spectrum: Unlike other gaming mice, this mouse is wireless so it
can be used on most surfaces. It has a 1 millisecond report rate and a highly optimized
2.4GHz wireless connection. It also has a PMW3366 optical sensor, which is the best in
the most accurate optical sensor in the world to date. It has a 36 hours battery life with 11
programmable buttons, and also 16.8 million lighting colors on the mouse.
– Mionix Castor: It features an award winning ergonomics, which means the best mouse
grip in the market with 4 layers of rubber to ensure comfort and sustainability. It has 6
programmable buttons with 16.8 million different lighting. For performance, it features
10,000 dpi sensor and a max tracking speed of 5.45m/sec or 215 IPS, which is the fastest
in the world. It is also the most recommend mouse in the world.
Headphones:
– Logitech G933 Artemis Spectrum: It has the highest rated headphones in terms of quality
and design by both analyst and gamers. It features 7.1 surround sound with Dolbyreg and
DTS Headphone X Surround Sound, which is the best surround sound product. It has a
multi-platform compatibility that is compatible with almost gaming platforms. It also has
3 programmable G-Keys on the headphones to control your audio profiles. Lastly, it also
customizable audio settings in which it can auto customize and sound or music.
– SteelSeries Siberia 840: In the headphones industry, the steel series products are among
the highest quality. The Siberia 840 uses continuous frequency-hopping technology to
prevent lag between your game and your headset. It also has the 7.1 surround sound like
the Logitech G933 and a display panel on the headphones which could display battery
life and volume. You can also customize the audio and the headphone also works with
Bluetooth.
These are the main types of information in my product. These information are the most
relevant to my product after analyzing many other gaming products. I will not include
gaming pc in my product as most gaming pc are custom built according to my research so I
will not display each form of hardware in my product.
Criterion B: Developing Ideas
Design Specification:
Layout Of Background – In my product, I would use dark colors as
the majority and use neon colors as
decoration. I believe this is the design that
suits my target audience as this are the most
modern colors in technology websites, other
than white.
– The designs in the background will not be
too complicated as that will not appeal to
younger audiences. The background will be
mostly plain black or dark colors with neon
writings and designs in some places.
Organizing Data – I would organize the products of
gaming hardware by the different
types, for example, laptops, mice, etc.
I also will make a separate section in
which I could place 1 product of every
type on which is the best product in
my opinion based on the quality, price
and explain why they the best in my
opinion.
– I would organize the information for
each hardware in a table format, like
the second product analysis. I would
make separate tables for each
specifications like processor, graphics,
etc for each gaming equipment.
Forms Of Conveying Information – Short and specific information about
the specifications of each device for
convenience
– Pictures of each type of hardware to
show the design of each hardware.
Programs Composer, Google Chrome, Microsoft Word
2013
Main features Of Website – Shows detailed information about the
product that covers every
specifications.
– Accurate image of each gaming
hardware.
– Easier to find desired product due to
separating each hardware into
sections.
– Personal opinion on the best products.
– Simple layout and simple information
to understand.
Design 1
Design specification of design 1
This is the first design if my product. This product design is the most simplest among the
other 2 designs but this design should still be effective. The areas surrounding the title would
be dark colors but the title should be written in light or neon colors. The title should be large
to look more attractive. The first part is the recommended hardware selection in which I had
reviewed many product and selected one or maybe 2 of each type of hardware and using the
factors of price, quality and design, will select the best to show in that area. The image
should be large and clear so that people might be attracted to that hardware when they see
that it has a good design. The specifications should be written in short sentences and in points
covering the main specifications of the hardware. Below the specifications is where I will
write my general review and opinion about the product about why I had selected that product
as my favorite. The rest of the website will be about the other types of hardware and have the
same structure as recommended hardware. But, instead of my opinions, I will be rating each
product based on the same factors.
Design 2
Design specifications for Design 2
Design 2 is more organized than design one in terms of information placement. The title
design is the same as the first design with a dark background and the title written in light and
neon colors. The first part of the website will be about the recommended hardware. The data
would be organized in the table format in which the name of the hardware, the image and
each specification which be placed in separate cells or boxes. Unlike the first design, there
will not be a personal review as this design will try to be as efficient as possible in the
amount of information, but would still deliver relevant information of the hardware. The rest
of the website would follow the same structure with each type of gaming hardware.
Design 3
Design Specification for Design 3
Compared to design one and two, design 3 will be the most complicated to produce. The title
design is the same with dark colored background and light or neon colors for the title, but the
way the information is organized is very different. The first part of the website is the
recommended hardware where I will be showing my audience the recommended hardware in my
opinion. The information will be placed in the form of slide show in which my viewers could
change the slide to look at different products. The name of the hardware will be written in the top
left of the image and the size of the image will be larger compared to design one and two as I
will only need to show one image at a time so I can increase the size of both the image and the
writings. The information will be organized in the table format, like design 2 and since I have
more space, I could input more data. Beside the image and the information would be the slide
change arrows in which my viewers can click on it and change the slide to see the next hardware.
The rest of the website will be about different types of gaming hardware with the same format as
the recommended hardware.
Chosen Design
For my final product, I have decided to choose design one as my chosen design. First, it is the
simplest design compared to the other 2 designs in which it would benefit the viewers, the
information is easy to understand, and would also benefit me as I could change or manipulate my
designs in the later stage of the production of my product. The main reason why I had selected
design one is that design one includes my personal opinions and personal input. In criterion A, I
have written that I would need to make my product as original as possible so, inputting my
personal review and rating each hardware gives my website its originality. Third, unlike design 2
and 3, the spacing in design 1 is more comfortable for people to view. I design 2, since the data
in organized in a table format, space would be limited and the data would look too clustered. In
design 3, there would be too much free space and it will make the website look to bare.
Fourth, compared to the third design, the viewers in the first design is able to look at more data
in a short period of time compared to the third design. This is because in the third design, the
viewers could only see one hardware per slide but in the first design, one page could contain the
data of more hardware so my viewers could browse faster than in design 3. Also in the first
design, you also could compare one hardware to another as each hardware would be placed side
by side so you could compare them. Lastly, compared to the second design, the first design is
more appealing. In the first design, the image of the hardware is placed first, not the brand name.
Most of the time, the image of the hardware is more appealing than the hardware name so people
would be more interested to view the hardware.
Requirements for the creation of the chosen solution
Selecting relevant data:
There are a lot of data regarding the gaming hardware so I will need to input relevant data and
also to make sure that I don’t miss out any important data. I have drawn a mind map to assist me
when inputting data in my website.
Developing composer skills
In order to produce this kind of product, I will need to develop me composer skills quickly as I
will need to try to input as much things as I can to my website to make it more appealing. I have
watch many videos on the basics of composer and hopefully I am able to use that knowledge in
creating my product. I will also need to develop my design skills as I will need to select suitable
colors in my website to make it more appealing.