Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

With all the incompatibility out there among Guitar Hero / Rock Band instruments, it’s a real treat to see something like this. The Director of Publisher Relations at SCEA has posted an update that promises compatibility between instruments and software for upcoming titles; for instance, Guitar Hero: World Tour’s guitars and drums will work with Rock Band 2 and Konami’s Rock Revolution software, and Rock Band 2’s guitar and drum set will work with Guitar Hero: World Tour and with Rock Revolution. Furthermore, the team is still “working hard to ensure compatibility between the Guitar Hero and Rock Band titles currently on the market,” though we are told that an announcement on that could surface “shortly.” Rock ‘n roll harmony, baby.

[Image courtesy of BeSportier]

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Filed under: Peripherals

Just last week, Intel gave AMD, NVIDIA and a whole host of friends what they had been clamoring for: 90% complete USB 3.0 controller specifications. Now, the cool cats over at MaximumPC have churned out an encyclopedic writeup that details USB SuperSpeed remarkably well. The highlights include assurance that USB 3.0 will be backwards-compatible with USB 2.0 and that it’ll provide transfer rates up to ten times more than USB 2.0’s 480Mbps limit (that’s 4.8Gbps). Furthermore, we’re told that uploads and downloads are kept on separate lanes, the cables are thicker, it will charge more devices more quickly, and it will be much more mindful of energy waste. Go on and get yourself completely schooled in the read link below.

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Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

Whoa, wait a minute — Mad Catz signed on to produce Rock Band instruments? Sure enough, the deal was announced shortly before CES 2008 consumed our lives, and now we’re hearing whispers that the first products from said agreement could hit stores as early as next week. We’re talking a Fender bass ($69.99), Telecaster ($79.99), microphone ($59.99), portable drum kit ($49.99) and a premium drum set ($149.99). From what we can glean, everything listed above will be tethered, but we aren’t writing off wireless versions just yet. Oh, and be sure you consult with the SO before you up and purchase a second kit for the den — you can’t afford for that first one to get defenestrated.

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Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/gaming_news/Rock_Band_Stage_Kit_with_lights_smoke_leaked_by_GameStop’; As if playing Rock Band wasn’t one of the greatest group gaming experiences to come along in years, it appears that a new accessory is set to amp up the fun even more by bringing an “interactive light and smoke stage show” to your already thrashing performances. Apparently you can already pre-order this so-called Rock Band Stage Kit from GameStop for 100 bucks, although they’ve since pulled the box image from the product page, so you’ll have to rely on the screencap above to see what you’re paying all that money for. Ships on June 23rd, according to the retailer’s site, giving us plenty of time to install a proper stage and stadium seating in our game room.

[Via Technabob]

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Filed under: Peripherals

We thought Brando had finally reached the pinnacle of jokey USB armaments with its recent wireless missile launcher — the third such product in this evolving line — but apparently there is demand out there for a remotely-operated version capable of waging war over the internet. Filling this strange market gap will be the USB MSN Missile Launcher, which tacks a webcam onto the standard version and allows your buddies on the Microsoft network to randomly shoot at you throughout the day. Again, we’re not sure who buys a weapon whose main purpose is to attack its owner, so the $49 device may not be the huge hit its predecessors were when it ‘launches’ on the 18th.

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Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Wireless

We have no idea why luxury watch and occasional cellphone maker TAG Heuer would be getting into the PC peripherals game, yet according to an FCC filing we got our hands on, the 150-year-old Swiss watchmaker has a Creative Labs-built USB headset in the pipeline. And although this wireless unit is branded TAG and developed by Creative, the actual cans themselves will likely be sold by Listen To Believe (LTB) Audio, another accessories company with very similar products. Either way, what you’re getting here is reportedly “the world [sic] first digital wireless headset that delivers high-quality 2.0-channel stereo audio with extra sound clarity and soft, deep bass effects,” according to the manual. That’s certainly a lot of caveats, so we’ll have to wait for an actual product launch to really see what’s what.

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Filed under: Peripherals

As far as “world’s firsts” go this is a pretty minor one, yet we’d be neglect in our duties were we not to present you with the Silver Seal Antibacterial, Washable Keyboard and Mouse, which manufacturer Seal Shield claims to be the only set combining both of these hygienic features. Designed for use in hospitals and other germ-laden environments, the Silver Seal desktop features those same silver ion nanoparticles that have become all the rage among hypochondriacs these days, and is totally submersible (dishwashers, too!) to expedite regular cleanings. Hospital IT procurement specialists should start looking for the set next month, and although no MSRP is available yet, we’ll wager that you’re looking at diNovo-level pricing.

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