I really applaud PDP for identifying and serving the need for a decent voice-chat solution on Wii. However, there are several problems I can see with this device, without even having used it. (I did get to try a non-functional model at E3.)


- It's not wireless.
- It's not compatible with Wii Speak games.
- Still hampered by Friend Codes.
- It's not packed in with Black Ops (was supposed to be with Conduit 2 before that game's delay).


Potential problems that remain to be clarified:


- Audio quality
- Cross-compatibility with Wii Speak (can you only talk to others who have the Headbanger?)
- Limited adoption by developers

I am still not sure why they never made a Bluetooth compatible set.  I think I remember reading that the Wii had 5-6 slots for Bluetooth devices, up to 4 for controllers so they could add one.

Ultimately I think they had to make a decision based on making it corded, and cheap or Wireless and more expensive.  It could also have been required to keep the packet size small and the lag low. 

I fully plan to buy this, I have Black Ops on pre-order now.  I want to know how Treyarch plans to use friendcodes, and how flexible they will be allowed to make it, but they won't release any info until the game itself comes out.

It may not be wireless but how long is the cord? I play in a small room & the console is fairly close so a wired headset may be doable for someone with a set up like mine. If the quality isn't the greatest but still better than Wii Speak it may still be worth looking into depending on the selection of titles that are compatible with it.

I'm not exactly sold on Black Ops so I can wait for the various opinions of the thing to surface before Conduit 2...

I actually like this heade set, but I wish that it was wireless and hope that it is compatible with Monster Hunter 3. If so, I might buy it to use with that game and Conduit 2 when it comes out. Any word on whether it be compatible with Goldeneye?

The Nintendo-licensed headset features a noise-canceling microphone, an oversized speaker, mute and volume control, and a 10-foot cord.

Goldeneye doesn't even support Wii Speak, last I heard. And Monster Hunter 3 won't work with the headset because it was released earlier, and the headset isn't compatible with Wii Speak.

So it is only compatible with games going forward, right?

It's only compatible with games that use the headset specifically.

This is getting absurd.

It's a good thing Nintendo got some glasses to fix that nearsightedness of theirs.....

A corded headset in this day and age is pretty damn ridiculous.  The ten foot length reminds me of the Super Advantage joystick for the SNES.  It specifically advertises "extra long cord" on the box yet when my brothers and I did a direct comparison the cord was WAY shorter than those on the standard SNES controllers.

I am convinced that 90% of all products released are never once used by their creators in a practical situation.  I can just imagine the design team for this testing their ten foot corded prototype in their office at their desk three feet from the screen and thinking everything worked hunky dory without ever for a second considering playing in a realistic environment like a living room.

Still as a dumb as it is, why does the Wii not already have headsets as an option?  That's the sad thing about the Wii.  No matter what it is you can always tie it back to some questionable decision on Nintendo's part.  They're never innocent.  You can always say "well if Nintendo hadn't done this..."

This headset is licenced by Nintendo? Interesting. I hope that means it is a quality accessory.

I think this is extremely likely, because the Wii Speak functions in an entirely different way. It doesn't look like Call of Duty Black Ops has support for the Wii Speak anyway; does The Conduit 2?

How much would a basic blu tooth head set cost these days? I mean the head piece looks kind of outdated. My friend recently bought a head set for his PS3 and I encet him because all he does is stick it on his ear and call it a day. Although I have to admit that this headset looks more professional than Wii Speak. Could Nintendo make games compatible with the Headbanger via firmware?

Ok fine it doesn't have wireless, but why does it need USB ? Why can't they just connect it to the wiimote and have a splitter so you can still use the nunchuck

There might not be enough bandwidth to do it over bluetooth with reasonable quality.

Will Wii Speak work as well? Cause I already have that, not buying this regardless.

Wired is a deal breaker. I'd rather just use Wii Speak then have some stupid wire connected to my head, with me having to lean in so the wire doesn't come out.

All licensed means now is that they have permission from Nintendo, there are a lot of third party accessories that are licensed but are terrible or mediocre in quality. It's the same thing with their official seal, it just means that the game will work on their system.

Nintendo now requires licencing for accessories? I wonder what brought that on, did some third-party junk destroy some systems?

- no WiiSpeak support or support for the upcoming PDP HeadBanger Headset