Xbox Wireless Headset Promises the Future of Gaming Audio

Earlier today, Microsoft announced the latest accessory for the Xbox family, the Xbox Wireless Headset.

The new device hosts a variety of features, from “low latency, lossless audio” to an auto-mute feature which silences your mic when you aren’t speaking to keep voice channels clear (you can, of course, also mute yourself manually as desired). “The headset supports industry-leading spatial sound technologies including Windows Sonic, Dolby Atmos, and DTS Headphone: X for realism and audio precision that fully surrounds you,” says Xbox Wire. “You’ll have the advantage by being able to hear all the subtle, yet critical sounds (like enemy footsteps sneaking up on you) that elevate great gamers above the rest.”

A neat feature shown in the video above is the rotating ear cup dials that allow you to adjust both volume and the balance between game audio and chat audio, not unlike those seen on the company’s Surface Headphones. Personally, I’ve always found fumbling for the volume controls to be a pain, so this sounds like a simple but effective improvement. An update for the Xbox Accessories app will also allow for control over various aspects of the headset, from auto-mute sensitivity to mic monitoring, bass boost, equalizer, and even how bright the mute light is on the mic.

Another high point is compatibility, as it uses Bluetooth to connect to the Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One consoles, Windows 10 PCs, and mobile devices (and you can pair to multiple options at once), all without the need for a dongle or base station. If there’s any real downside, it’s that for those who have multiple consoles (Nintendo Switch, PlayStation), it doesn’t extend to those. Understandable, in the name of branding and all that, but at the same time, it may raise the question of whether an interested consumer might want to get this and a separate set to use on the others, or try for something more all-encompassing. Fortunately, the headset can receive wireless updates from the console, so if Microsoft ever did decide to add such functionality, there’s an easy way to do it.

The battery life sounds pretty decent, too, with four hours of battery life coming from just 30 minutes of charging, while letting it charge for three hours can give you as much as 15 hours of battery life when it’s is not in use.

If you’re looking for the full scoop on what these are poised to bring to the table, you can find everything you need to know on Xbox Wire and the headset’s website.

The Xbox Wireless Headset will be available at retail on March 16th, 2021, for $129.99 CAD/$99.99 USD. You can also now pre-order at the U.S. Microsoft Store, though unfortunately, it seems it’s not available on the Canadian side yet.

Also unfortunate, as CNN notes? Much like the Model T and the Game Boy Player, you can have it in any color you want, as long as that color is black — which might be a minor quibble for owners of the all-white Xbox Series S and its matching controller.

If I’m so lucky as to get my hands on a set, I’ll be sure to tell you all about it here, but in the meantime? What they’re pitching sounds really good.

Thanks for reading!

—

David Oxford is a freelance writer of many varied interests. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.

David Oxford

David Oxford, or “LBD ‘Nytetrayn’,” as he is sometimes also known, is a freelance writer of many varied interests who resides in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.

For a full list of places to find him online, click here.