Page 3 - Software and Usage Experience
The software for the VelocityOne Flight, Turtle Beach Control Center, can be downloaded from the Microsoft Store. It is about 200MB, and the only thing it is used for is updating the firmware on your device, which is a simple procedure. As you can see in the screenshot above, it can also be used to update your Turtle Beach Recon Controller, which my colleague Aaron Lai reviewed last year. If you are wondering what the difference between the two Recon Controllers in the screenshot is above other than the fact one is black and one is white, well, the only difference is that one is black and one is white.
Although this is not the first simulator hardware in my possession, the Turtle Beach VelocityOne Flight is the first flight simulator yoke I have ever owned. I have always been interested in flight simulation, so this gave me an excuse to whip out my American Express and hand over some money for the latest version of Microsoft Flight Simulator. Thankfully, I came just in time for the Steam sale, which knocked 20% off the regular price.
Anyone who has played any version of Microsoft Flight Simulator will know it is really hard to play with a keyboard and mouse, given the complexity and the level of analog input required to fly a plane. Therefore, I was quite excited to try it out with the Turtle Beach VelocityOne Flight. To start, I mounted the yoke to my desk. I found the integrated mounting clamp itself was more than enough to secure the device to my desk, but if that is not enough, there are also suction tape and even screws that can be added, all of which are included out of the box.
In terms of usage experience, everything I am going to talk about here has already been alluded to on the previous page, but I will talk about them again here in case you skipped the last section or want a more consolidated narrative on just the usage experience.
To start, I found the yoke to be well-sized and grips comfortably. The shape, contours, and materials of the yoke are all made well. All of the buttons feel like they are of high quality, like an OEM Xbox controller. I also find all buttons to be easy to reach, but not easy to be accidentally pressed.
The yoke's center rod is made out of aluminum for maximum structural integrity and slides smoothly forwards and backwards up to approximately 4.5cm in both directions for a total travel of about 9cm to control the elevators for the pitch of the plane. The spring inside the VelocityOne Flight will automatically return the yoke to neutral position. Although the action is pretty smooth as mentioned, the actuation force is not completely linear, and you will find a small dead spot in the neutral position. This may bother the pickiest of flight simulator enthusiasts, but I personally find it perfectly reasonable in day-to-day use.
The Flight Management Display, or FMD, has pretty good resolution, viewing angle, and contrast for what it is designed for. However, I feel like the FMD is a bit underutilized, so hopefully more features will be added in the future. I also like the Status Indicator Panel, or SIP, located behind the yoke. Unfortunately, the SIP does not work at the time of review. A firmware update is still in development.
On the throttle quadrant, I found the vernier-style controls to be well-designed, featuring solid aluminum rods that feel properly weighted. The trim wheel is well-weighted and precise when used in-game as well. On the other hand, the four throttle levers feel too light. In my opinion, they can be weighted a lot more for a more realistic and substantial feel. I do like how they are notched so you can get some tactile feedback for the user to feel what the idle and lowest settings are.
All in all, the Turtle Beach VelocityOne Flight provided an overall very positive experience in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 as an entry-level yoke. It is missing foot pedals for rudder control, so hopefully there will be something down the line to satisfy the cravings of the enthusiast looking for more.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Hardware
3. Software and Usage Experience
4. Conclusion
