Joystiq video: Xbox 360 Wireless Headset review
by Kevin Kelly 
{ Nov 9th 2006 at 10:15AM }
We picked up one of Microsoft's Xbox 360 Wireless Headsets and put it through the paces in a video review. It's been fantastic so far, especially when we've been fragging people in Gears of War. It's light enough that you hardly feel it (bringing you that much closer to the game! -- says Sony), and look ma, no wires! Seriously, we've tried to walk away to the phone, kitchen or bathroom with our old headset still connected more times than we can count. It's a little disconcerting when your controller goes skittering across the floor after you, tethered by the headset cord.
Anyhow, after a couple of days with this thing we still love it. A couple of minor complaints are that it uses a wall charger instead of a handy USB cable. With the Xbox 360 having so many ports, it would have been nice to have the option to charge it through the console. Also, the section of the headset that holds the earpiece on is slightly delicate. You have to be very careful when you change them out because there is some pushing and pulling involved. Other than that, it's a solid little sucker that you'll enjoy adding to your smacktalk arsenal.
It's a bit steep at $59.99, so stick it on a Christmas wishlist. Amazon has it for $49.99, which is the lowest price we've seen. It's worth trying to find a sale, even if it does make you look a little bit like Lando Calrissian's assistant dude.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Matt @ Nov 9th 2006 10:24AM
I am still loving the headset. Was overnighted to me on Friday night, received it saturday, and, man, it is good.
MyMorningJacket @ Nov 9th 2006 10:26AM
Lobot!
Intentless @ Nov 9th 2006 10:29AM
Looks good, might pick me up one...
Dru @ Nov 9th 2006 10:38AM
It's beautiful but I can't buy one because of the price. It's next in line after I get drunk and step on my current headset.
Hoffer @ Nov 9th 2006 11:19AM
I have one and so does a friend. Both of us are having issues with it. Whenever we play in online games, people are constantly yelling at us due to our headsets making funky background noise. We switch back to the wired headset and things are all better. I have a second friend who bought one, had the same problems and returned it a day later.
I think I'm going to call Xbox support this weekend to see if they know what's going on. It seems to me like there is some kind of interference. It really annoys me to read about people that don't have an issue. I want this thing to work so bad.
just_somebody @ Nov 9th 2006 11:00AM
the Best Buy product info (link) advertises with these sweet features:
Product Features
Digital quality and performance with no wires to hold you back
Removable ear grip provides a comfortable fit in your ear
30' cord lets you move around freely
Eight hours of battery life allow for long periods of wireless gaming
On, off and mute controls are easily accessible
A whole 30 foot cord! ( I have noticed this with several other wireless items)
Davinche @ Nov 9th 2006 11:04AM
Nice review Joystiq! However this is one of the worst parts so far of “next generation” gaming: Accessory pricing (and of course micro transactions). Honestly, the prices of the controllers, headsets, battery packs and basically anything you may need to pay extra for with a console is too much. I understand that everyone wants to make money and you need to subsidize the cost of a console from somewhere but come on!
I would really like to have a wireless headset but the idea of deciding over a game (say Gears of war) or a headset is ridiculous isn’t it? Surely the prices shouldn’t be the same.
Personally, Id like too see that companies lower the prices of accessories rather than consoles in the future. Prices for accessories are much above their actual cost to produce (In fact a wireless 360 pad only costs Microsoft $11 to make http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=180201706&pgno=3)
Of course, it’s not as attractive in getting new customers then lowering the actual units costs, but overall I believe that existing consumers and new consumers see the price of accessories when factoring in which console to purchase. I do realize that I am wrong to a certain extent since Sony seem to have hardly dropped accessory prices for the Playstation 2 without having a problem selling them, but the prices have risen significantly and with much more accessories to buy (hard drives, cameras attachments, recharge packs, wireless headsets etc) companies need to make the pricing more reasonable on these products.
Steve @ Nov 9th 2006 11:14AM
Screw the headset. Where the hell is the racing wheel? It was released 2 days ago and I can't find the friggin' thing anywhere.
SuicideNinja @ Nov 9th 2006 11:25AM
It's still cheaper than the 3rd party options. I think it was Datel that made a Bluetooth one that cost $120.
I'm going to buy it right now and Gears of War later (damn FedEx for delaying the shipment to my area). $120 is too much for the day...LOL
tostada @ Nov 9th 2006 11:34AM
I and others I've talked with are having problems with dropped connections. From time to time, the sound will shift back to the TV, the headset will then beep, and it will reconnect.
Besides the connection drops, the headset is otherwise an improvement on the corded unit. Very comfortable. Better sound quality.
RanWitScissorz @ Nov 9th 2006 11:34AM
Picked up my wireless headset last week, I absolutely love it. When playing with friends they say my voice actually comes through more clearly and there is less background noise coming in, very satisfied with it.
sully @ Nov 9th 2006 11:58AM
Hey, great video guys. Didn't know you were doing this. Bit of a high-pitched hum in the background but I'm wearing pretty high-end earphones so maybe not everyone is getting that.
You've pretty much sold me on the headset, though it's $69.99 CDN up here in Toronto, Canada. Maybe I just have an oddly-shaped head, but the standard wired headsets are plain uncomfortable. I miss the old Xbox behind the ear style ones.
Kevin @ Nov 9th 2006 12:11PM
#11 - Thanks! We're trying to spice things up with our own video every now and then. The hum isn't your headphones, it's my camera. I'm using the video function on my digital camera. Not the best, but a temporary solution.
Scott @ Nov 9th 2006 12:03PM
@12
It's your Canadian Head. The Flappiness is making the headset uncomfortable....buddy!
*Farts*
HA HA HA HA HA HA
baby sea tuna @ Nov 9th 2006 12:05PM
I got one and I love it. The sound is really crisp and it doesn't give me a headache like the other one did. A.
Steve @ Nov 9th 2006 12:27PM
"13. @12
It's your Canadian Head. The Flappiness is making the headset uncomfortable....buddy!
*Farts*
HA HA HA HA HA HA"
As a Canadian I MUST say that....
You sir, are a racist! It's not aboot headsets, it's aboot respect. You guys are dicks. Release Terrence and Phillip NOW! Operation get behind the darkies will fail.
Bwahahahahahahaha. FART. Suck my balls!
gib786 @ Nov 9th 2006 12:29PM
great vid guys, i can get the headset for £26 over here in the uk via amazon, which equates to about $50. My only problem with the standard headset is the poor sound quality ,the whole uncomfortable geeky call centre style look I can live with. Hopefully the sound on this wireless headset will be much clearer, and less echoey
PsionStorm @ Nov 9th 2006 12:48PM
I've had my headset since Monday, and the jury's still out on it.
Setup is incredibly easy, and if you've synced up a wireless controller before, you'll have no problem setting this up. Press the sync button on the system, press the sync button on the headset. Done.
The sound quality is fine. Comparible to the regular headset. It's very comfortable too (I wear glasses and it provides absolutely no issues with my glasses at all).
I have encountered some... feedback, I guess you could say, where I hear my own voice on the headset about a second or two after I speak. It's very annoying. Admittedly though, this is an issue I've had with the wired headset.
The range isn't all that spectacular. I can walk around my room just fine but if I walk out of my room into the bathroom down the hall (maybe 20 feet away) I lose connection. Forget about trying to go downstairs! I live in an old house though, with thick walls, so perhaps this is the issue.
Oddly enough, I have had the headset randomly disconnect itself while in use. I do have a wireless router and a wireless telephone in the room, so this might be causing some interference, but I've never had controller issues, so I'm not sure what the problem is here. The headset will drop it's connection (sending the voice to the television) and then reconnect in a matter of seconds. Not a major hassle by any means but when someone is shouting orders at you it's pretty important that you're able to hear them and not miss words.
I should note that my 360 is not connected to the internet wirelessly. Even though I have a wireless router I have the system hooked up via a wire.
I enjoy the headset, but I'm not 100% satisfied with it based on my experience. The wireless freedom is certainly nice and I find it MUCH more comfortable to use than the wired headset but there have been occassions where I've wanted to chuck it across the room.
Enosh99 @ Nov 9th 2006 12:52PM
This is definitely on my list of accessories to buy, however it's probably going to have to wait for Christmas. It was either Gears now and headset later or headset later and Gears now...
yeah, I should check where my GoW pre-order shipment is...
Iscariote @ Nov 9th 2006 12:54PM
"I have encountered some... feedback, I guess you could say, where I hear my own voice on the headset about a second or two after I speak. It's very annoying. Admittedly though, this is an issue I've had with the wired headset."
I had that too, and I fixed the feedback by turning down the headset volume in the system blade to 8 from 10. Give it a try!
PsionStorm @ Nov 9th 2006 12:58PM
@#20
I certainly will! Thank you for the suggestion! :-)
A_B @ Nov 9th 2006 1:44PM
"I have one and so does a friend. Both of us are having issues with it. Whenever we play in online games, people are constantly yelling at us due to our headsets making funky background noise. We switch back to the wired headset and things are all better."
Last night, playing GoW, I had the same problem. I was pretty embarrassed since I absolutely hate the "static guys" when I play online. I never have static with the wired headset. The static went away only occasionally.
The other problem I had, which others mentioned, is switching audio to the TV. It came as quite a surprise last night when I got up to get something to drink, and all of a sudden, yelling and swearing came piping through my TV to fill my apartment. That's incredibly annoying. Since I don't want that to happen, I'm forced to take the headset off if I decide to get up, which of course now means I can't hear people talking when I walk away.
Hitting mute now requires me to take my hands off of the controller, which I also don't like.
The audio quality for listening is much improved.
All in all, I wouldn't recommend it.
lil jamie p @ Nov 9th 2006 1:53PM
Does this mean I am now going to have to listen to people take a leak while I am playing Gears of War against them now? I think I kinda like mic being tethered to the controller.
Timur Tabi @ Nov 9th 2006 4:04PM
Does the headset fit comfortably under a pair of headphones? I have to wear headphones when I play Xbox, so any headset I use has to fit under them.
Rey @ Nov 9th 2006 4:52PM
This cool but i got my eye on this bad boy
http://hardware.teamxbox.com/reviews/general/60/Audio-Xtreme-360-Headphones/p1/
vex vegaz @ Nov 10th 2006 10:09AM
picked it up on launch, pretty damn slick , sound quality is much improved from the wired ver. i was also able to head outside with out dropping connection , overall i think its a great product,but i do wish it was a bit cheaper $39.99
Nytemare @ Nov 10th 2006 3:18PM
LOL! Netscape :P
I might pick one of these up sometime in the near future, wait till' they fix some things with it.
shooterfan @ Nov 12th 2006 4:24AM
holy jesus mary!!! What a nub u are. How in the world do you put a 360 on your carpet. Does ur carpet have burn marks yet? Has it blown up? Get that thing off the carpet. I'm soooooooooooooo disssssssssssappointed by u . Can't freaking believe u actually have a 360 on carpet. That's a holy sin! U call yourself a gamer that reports. or whatever it is jeeeeeesssszzzzzzz!!1
ting ting @ Nov 23rd 2006 6:00PM
wow just what i was looking for superd video OUTSTANDING even!!! i fell in love with it even more when i saw your video, going to get one tom cant wait!!!! want one now!!! www.myspace.com/martiny673
EvilPeace @ Nov 25th 2006 6:14PM
nice vid, very convincing and im gonna get one after xmas, just one thought tho "holy jesus mary!!! What a nub u are. How in the world do you put a 360 on your carpet. Does ur carpet have burn marks yet?" - wtf is a nub u n00b lol sry had to be done =D
stickman @ Dec 1st 2006 1:01AM
Picked one of these up three days ago. I'm very disappointed. Neither of the earpieces is comfortable for me. That's probably not MS's fault, I might have wierd ears. The sound cutting out betweeen the headphone and the tv is the most annoying thing that can happen during a game. Finally, the static feedback is embarrassing, since everyone is yelling at you about it. The wired headset is much better.