HEADSETS

For the true gamer, nothing can beat the sonic experience of a multi speaker surround system. However, terrific as these are, your housemates and neighbours won't necessarily share the same enthusiasm for your gaming exploits. Equally, at LAN parties it's vital that everyone is enveloped in their own audio world.

As such, the arsenal of any self-respecting gamer must include a decent set of headphones. But there's no point in getting just a regular set of headphones. What you really need is a headset. But banish those painful memories of those pathetic pieces of wobbly plastic that you got with your sound card five years ago - headset microphones are now of a much higher quality.

What's more, with lots of designs to choose from, there's no need to worry about looking like a telesales exec, who's ready to 'quote you happy'. There are several alternatives to conventional designs, such as the neckband-style Sennheiser PC140s. You can also choose between open-backed designs that are lightweight and easy to wear, or closed-cup designs that are heavier but better at keeping out external noise. But it's the microphone that's the most interesting part, as this can transform how you use your PC.

The classic use is for office tasks, such as dictating letters. Despite the hype, this hasn't taken off as much as many predicted. Some may point to the lack of PC intelligence, but we think it's more to do with the fact that blokes prefer dictating to attractive secretaries rather than machines.

However, they're now being used for many other functions, including making phone calls over the Internet. Programs such as MSN Messenger and Skype enable people to communicate worldwide and put two fingers up to BT at the same time.

Even better is the increase of voice communications in games. Although Counter-Strike started to popularise voice comms a few years ago, recent games, such as Unreal Tournament 2004, take it to a whole new level.