Millennium King Performance or Millennium Exclusive,?

[Wildy]

Hi
Advice please.

I'm fairly new to chess, would like to improve my game and I'm looking to buy either the Millennium King Performance or the Millennium Exclusive.
Which would you recommend? I'm edging towards the king performance. Yes it's pressure sensors but it looks better value to me?

Any advice and reviews from owners of these would be appreciated.

Thank you.

[fourthirty]

Hi Wildy,

Welcome to the forum.

I own the Exclusive, however, the Millennium King Performance is certainly a better value.

The Exclusive does have auto-sensory pieces which are very nice. If you elect to go with an Exclusive, I would highly recommend the new Chess Classics module, or find an older "The King Element" module (both have The King program). In my opinion the The King program is more interesting than the original Lang "Exclusive" module.

Good luck,
Greg

[Larry]

I don’t know of anyone who owns both. I did read somewhere the other day that the King Performance
has slightly more RAM, but any strength difference would be negligible. I agree the better value unit
is the KP. I’m personally quite comfortable with the pressure squares, and the KP’s pressure is set
just right. You are in for a bag of fun with either machine.
All the best…Larry

[Wildy]

Thank you Greg and Larry.
I'd love to splash out on the exclusive and yes I'd get the classics version t think but it is quite a lot more money. I suppose you need more desk space as well with the exclusive than you would with the king? I don't know.

Larry, I take it you have the king performance then? Whats your overall opinion of it and when you say the pressure is set just right, do you mean it's a nice light or firm press?

Cheers

Gavin

[Larry]

It’s not a firm press, just comfortable. It’s lots of fun because you can tinker with the
relative values of pieces/pawns and the playing style. The clock speed is also adjustable.
Four lights per square. Regarding strength, it’s in a higher league than the likes of
Atlanta, Berlin Pro and Montreux. No buyer remorse from this purchase.
Larry

[Wildy]

Cheers!
I think I'll no doubt have to get the KP as I can't find the exclusive cheap enough. The KP is £300 big ones over here in England. I like the fact the computer is part of the board as well.
Is position set up easy enough?
Might sound like a daft question but what is the lowest rating it can play to? I'm still working my way up to 1000.

Soz for the Q &A!

[Tibono2]

Yes Gavin, position setup is easy.

There is a dedicated menu for this, few lines are offered:
- clear board (to start from scratch, if that is convenient)
- a single line of pieces symbols, alternatively white & black pieces --> you just move a brackets cursor on the piece you want, then press the square(s) you want this piece to be (repeated pressure on the square sets/removes the piece, materialized by the square's red LEDs on or off)
- select the side to move and you are done; unless you would like to change the castling conditions or the move number, which are part of the very same menu.

Maybe worth pointing out you can also setup a position using the USB PC connection and Millenium's PGN Tool. This assumes the position you are interested in is part of an existing pgn file (eventually, create the pgn using any chess application).

Comfort levels include an adaptive "Play & win" level. All is in the name. Next step would be "Friendly" level (then: "Normal" and "Advanced").

Cheers,
Eric

[Wildy]

Thank you Eric.
That's great information.
That seems really easy to set up a position and from what I'm hearing here, it sounds like a really versatile bit of kit.

If you don't mind me asking, how long have you had your KP and what are your thoughts on it?

Like mentioned in a lot of reviews some people DO NOT like the fact you have to press the pieces down to move and I don't understand why that's seriously a bad thing?
However, I'd just like to be sure before buying one.

Cheers

Gavin

[Tibono2]

Hi Gavin,
I have had it for more than 2 years (late 2019). It is very sincerely the best chess computer within my small collection. So versatile. The one that is always on my desk and ready for use (I only need to plug the power mains adapter). Others, I have to get them from where they are stored, and set them up. That's a difference!
The push-sensitive system is fine, and I am much used to it because I use many other chess computers featuring the same. Pieces detection & pieces recognition are nice to have; whilst push-sensory is certainly not bad. By the way, I use my fingers to push, not the pieces. It's easy to grasp one or even two pieces (if a capture occurs) and keep one finger free to gently press the squares.
With pressure sensors it is silly simple to replace pieces, or change for a nicer set.
With auto-sensory detection you play the moves in a natural way (as with any chessboard) and you can eventually blitz, but you need a compliant set (usually with inserted magnets).
Pieces recognition enables most natural position setup in addition, but requires the exact original set. Or the exact recognition "tags" to be reproduced.
You might want to read more/my thoughts about the King Performance here (bottom of the page)
Best,
Eric

[Wildy]

Hi Eric
Thank you again for taking the time to reply.

I've come to the conclusion that auto recognition is not my top priority at the moment as I am just beginning my fun with chess and I won't be playing blitz or the like for some time until I've grasped the fundamentals of the game.
I'm able to do everything on the king performance that you could do on the exclusive like setting a position etc.
Longer games and using it as a learning tool will be great and for now I don't think push sensors are something I'm fussed about, especially if it's only a light press anyway.
I've read the link to your article and it seems just the job for me.
I have just ordered one and it should be with me tomorrow.
Is it correct that you are able to set the KP to analyze your moves throughout a game to tell you if your moves are a good, bad or a blunder etc?

Thanks

Gavin

[Tibono2]

Is it correct that you are able to set the KP to analyze your moves throughout a game to tell you if your moves are a good, bad or a blunder etc?

Yes, you may choose to enable "Tutor" mode. Except for "Play & Win" and "Fun" levels it will warn you of any blunder before applying it, and let you choose either to continue (if you think your move is correct) or take back your move. It also displays the drop in its evaluation the bad move would cause.

As an alternative you may also switch the display to one showing the computer's evaluation during the game, so you can appreciate on the fly the quality of your own previous move. If bad, you can of course take it back (but that's closer to cheating than tutoring, as you get such information with each and every move, not just a blunder notification). And just for completeness sake, you may also play without any displayed computer information or tutor warnings, then rewind the game and replay it with the analysis mode enabled (post-mortem analysis).

Best,
Eric

[Wildy]

Thanks again.

Looking forward to playing on it with the advice you've given.

Cheers

Gavin

[bikemartyn]

How are you getting on with the King Performance?

I treated mine to the (volt) battery pack, chesslink and 'Luxe cabinet' and now it is a kind of integrated 'standalone' computer. As in, I can pick it up as a single unit and take it anywhere and play wireless either against the computer or on the Internet via my phone.

Oh and you can also use it with Hiarcs

[Wildy]

Hi Bikemartyn.

Sorry I've just recently seen your post.

I'm getting on great with the King Performance thanks. How about you?
I'm not a great chess player so the way it adapts to an individuals moves is brilliant. I don't think there's anything else out there like it. It's true when they say that it's almost human like in this respect. Also the fact that it has a built in computer makes things so much easier for playing a game rather than it just being online like most of the others these days.
Having said this, I have, like yourself, just recently bought the volt and link to give me this option and I'm looking at the cabinet you have also. If you don't mind me asking where did you get it from as I notice that you're in the UK like me?
Before this though, I'm desperate to upgrade my chess pieces for it if you have any recommendations?
Cheers!

[pr1uk]

I bought the Millennium King plus battery pack, it's great. The only chess computer I have now and will ever need. It does it all nice size real wooden pieces and a real joy to use, would highly recommend this one to anyone.