WaveBird - Will MS & Sony Follow??
 

hello all...

picked up a wavebird last week, and what can i say.. i'll be picking up 3 more very shortly... just curious - will MS and Sony take advantage of this new technology and give us good wireless pads for their systems??

this would do wonders for me, owning a GC, XBOX, and PS2, 4 controllers + extensions on each... it's a mess... what do you all think?

I'm in the same situation, 3 systems = tangles galore.

I hope they follow suit, my Entertainment center needs it :)

Sony isn't known for copying others ideas in the video game industry but I think they'll make an exception in this case. ;)

M$ might just buy Nintendo and have them make Wave Bill's for the Xbox. Seriously though, I wouldn't be surprised if they had some wireless hardware for the PC, so they should be able to follow suit rather easily.

I think every system should come with wireless controllers in the future. Seriously, its too damn awesome not to have. I was a skeptic because I was dumb thinking that a controller can't be "that" cool? Well I was wrong and really surprised, it is cool! This controller is best thing to happen to controllers since the analog stick.

Once I tried it there's no going back!! :)

Well, even if Sony and Microsoft don't do it, Logitech announced a little while ago that they're making wireless controllers for all the systems. Hopefully they won't suck.

I hope so. I love the Wavebird and I'd buy a wireless Dual Shock 2 in a heart beat.

Hopefully every system will come with wireless controllers in the future.

Wireless controllers have been around for at least 10 years-- why is this one so cool?

because it works.

Wireless controllers in the past have sucked. You had to have a direct line of site to the receiver and you had to point the controller at it, like a TV remote. It was more restricting than playing with a cord. The wavebird uses radio frequencies and you don't have to point it at anything. It's the first controller to truly give you freedom to move wherever you want.

It's 900 mhz and works from nearly everywhere, through walls (or entertainment system doors, under covers, and from a great distance away. No lag in control, and no need to point the controller at the receiver.

The old ones used infrared beams like a remote control. You pretty much had to point them right at the receiver, or they wouldn't work. Lag in control was also a problem.

Logitech makes some pretty darn good wireless stuff for the PC so I don't think that they would have any problems.

My one gripe is that I feel Nintendo helped boost the demand for a wireless controller by giving the regular corded cube controllers such insanely short cords. I've got two corded ones and extension cords, but with all the mess or wires, I think I may pick up one or possibly two wavebirds for future controllers. I'd wager that if the normal controllers had longer cords, the Wavebird wouldn't be selling quite as well as it is. Having said that, it seems like an amazing controller anyway and the only thing it's lacking is rumble (which is understandable).

Heheh, curse nintendo for making you get a wavebird!! :)

Actually the Gamecube controller cords are longer than the N64 ones, which were really small.

For some reason I have to sit close to the TV to play games so cord lengths are never a problem. The Wave Bird is very cool though and its nice to have a decent first party option for once. I'm tired of junk from Interact and Pelican.

I would definitely like to see more wireless controllers that use radio frequencies instead of IR for transmission. Right now I have a PS2 with 2 dualshocks, 1 guncon, 1 GT Force wheel, and 3 joysticks. I also have 4 controllers for my Xbox. The cables can get to be a mess!

Got a wavebird tonight. Very nice. Suprisingly, I don't really miss the rumble mutch. I'm impressed. As far as the cord length, I never had an N64 so I can't imagine how I'd deal with cords shorter than the cube's. In my dorm room, the PS2 controller cord is barely long enough to reach the couch. In my room at home, the PS2 cord is plenty long but the cube cord is still short by a good foot. I figure the wave bird will be used primarily and I'll fall back on the corded controllers for multiplayer and games that really need the rumble.

A wireless controller that doesn't suck? Cool. Hopefully they'll have some for the PS2 that are just as good. :)

When has Nintendo ever came up with something that other companies didn't try their damndest to imitate? ;)

Check the new issue of Gamenow. There is a blurb about wireless controllers for X-box and PS2. I think they are being made by logitech and will sell for around $50. Not sure when they will be released.

http://www.virtual-boy.org/images/vblogo.gif

BTW descartes, that Logitech wireless controller is going to be $70, according to IGN.

I heard the the Logitech wireless controllere will be only $59.99 from GameNow magazine. There is already a wireless 3rd party controler out for PS2 also, and I belive it is $59.99 too. I really like the vibration feedback on controllers, so I think paying an extra $20 bucks would be worth it.

Vibration will really suck the batteries dead though.

I'm not concerned about the wireless feature not working, it's just simply that third party console controllers almost always suck. They're usually not as ergonomical and comfortable to use as the first party controllers, and are usually of a lesser quality. Plus many times the analog sticks and analog buttons aren't as sensitive.

I'd agree ... I just picked up a GC & Wavebird last week ... finally accumulated enough Gift Cert's & Store Credit to get it (so I could play RE, which I purchased it's first week out), and it would be hard for me to go back to a corded controller ... this thing's response is great. I thought I'd miss the rumble, but I prefer sitting on the couch instead of the floor.

The Gamecube controller lengths are fine...that's not the issue.

Like someone said, these are so innovative because they finally work flawlessly. Every other wireless console controller has sucked donkey balls.

That said, there is no question Sony and Microsoft will follow suit; I'm sure we'll see a PS2 and XBOX wireless controllers, but every console in the future will come with a wireless controller. It was bound to happen sometime soon....

And hopefully they'll be just as good, if not better!