Whether you’re in an office or working from home, having to hustle your hardware just to get through your daily duties can be a real drag. That’s doubly true for creative types, where touchpads almost always spell trouble – and a mouse and keyboard isn’t necessarily much better. Enter Logitech’s new MX Creative Console, a pair of dedicated controllers designed to send your image edits supersonic.
The MX Creative Console is one part keypad with dynamic display keys, and one part dialpad with customisable hardware keys. The nine configurable mini-screen buttons on the keypad are a lot like the Stream Deck-style controllers loved by game streamers and home broadcasters, only here the focus is entirely on creative work.
Logitech teamed up with Adobe for a set of dedicated plugins, which play nicely with some of the creative world’s most-used software. Photoshop, Lightroom Classic, Premiere Pro, After Effects, Illustrator and Audition all have presets that put frequently used tools, features and settings in easy reach – no confusing keyboard shortcuts required. The Dialpad then makes multi-directional scrolling, brush tweaking and layer settings a breeze.
Everything is customisable through the Logi Options+ software across Mac and Windows machines. Plugins and profiles can be uploaded and shared through the Logi Marketplace, which should make setup easy even if you’re still learning the ropes with your creative app of choice. Each MX Creative Console includes three months of Adobe Creative Cloud All Apps membership, too.
The keypad is wired over USB-C, while the dialpad runs on two AAA batteries that should be good for months of 9-to-5 working. The jog dial is machined from aluminium for a high-end feel, while the casing is made mostly from recycled plastic.
The MX Creative Console is up for pre-order right now, directly from Logitech. It’ll be launching in Pale Grey and Graphite colours on October 14, for £200.