Gaming Headset

Turtle Beach announced some of the new XBOX 360 and PS3 gaming headsets at CES last week, one of them, the XP400. It's Turtle Beach's flagship gaming headset, featuring adjustable Dolby 5.1 virtual surround sound, a non-AD2P dual-pairing Bluetooth radio for picking up phone calls during gaming sessions, a 15 hour rechargeable battery and dual-band 2.4/5GHZ built-in WiFi. The actual over-the-ear pieces have a much better layout from previous models, though there are almost as many buttons as there are on the controller with volume up / down, chat volume up / down, mute, Bluetooth pairing, limiter button and tone buttons. The included dual-band WiFi adapter that connects to your gaming console of choice is small and pretty minimalistic in design. The adjustable surround angles feature is a nice edition.

The XP400 has a crisp and loud sound, and noise-cancellation also worked well. Turtle Beach also announced the XP300, a stereo version of the XP400. They're essentially the younger siblings of the company's PX5-rooted XP500, featuring a similar design with totally wireless connection to the Xbox 360, thanks to TB's Xbox Chat Adapter, and a dual-pairing Bluetooth radio for taking calls while gaming. Both headsets improve upon the XP500's in a few key areas including better button placement on the earcups, a new 2.4/5GHz dual-band WiFi 2.4GHz transmitter to avoid interference from nearby wireless devices and an included 15-hour rechargeable battery.Read more

This fall, PlayStation 3 gamers will have a new option when shopping for a wireless headset. Sony just announced that the official PS3 Wireless Stereo Headset will be joining the PlayStation 3 accessories family in September 2011.

Featuring 7.1 virtual surround sound, the Wireless Stereo Headset lets you hear in-game audio crystal clear - whether you're in the middle of a firefight in a first-person shooter game or racing for the checkered flag in Gran Turismo. Volume controls and microphone mute are easily accessible too, so you never have to interrupt gameplay to fumble for buttons. On-screen headset status updates also display battery status and sound controls. Just want to listen to music or play a single player game? The mic is retractable, so it's out of your way.

The official PS3 Wireless Stereo Headset will be available for $99.99 at retailers nationwide this September.

There are computer headsets and then there's gaming computer headsets. While you might think there's not much of a difference…just ask any gamer. The latest gaming headset from Harman - the AKG GHS-1 - sounds so good, it will seem that explosions, blasts and more are taking place right in the room.

Lightweight and portable, the headset features a cardioid (directional) boom microphone which filters out background noises, and passive noise reduction seals out most ambient sounds for a clear voice signal. The in-line microphone is also designed so that the volume can be adjusted right on the cable, allowing players to keep their mind on the game instead of messing with another volume source.

The AKG GHS-1 portable headset is available now in three color combinations: black and orange; white and green; and camouflage and blue for $79.95.