creative-labs posts

In 2010, Creative Labs' Sound Blaster division released its World of Warcraft-branded gaming PC headset in both wired and wireless versions. During CES 2011 this week Sound Blaster announced its newest gaming headset, the Tactic3D Omega.

Sound Blaster claims the wireless headset is the first that can work for PS3, Xbox 360, PC and Mac platforms. It doesn't require extra attachments to work with the consoles or the PC as the technology is integrated into the headset itself. Voice and game volume controls are housed around the earcups and it also comes with a detachable microphone. PC and Mac users can also use the THX TruStudio Pro software for even more features and improvements. The headset is scheduled to be available in February for $199.

The World of Warcraft-branded PC gaming headset (in both wired and wireless versions) has been released by Creative Labs' Sound Blaster brand for a few months now. Now the company has released an optional extra for that headset that will allow players of Blizzard's hit MMO to hit a push-to-talk button without using their hands.

The Sound Blaster World of Warcraft Tap Chat product is a foot pedal that can be used to activate a chat program or indeed any World of Warcraft macro which leaves a player's hands to do ... well, something else useful we would imagine. The device is now on sale for $29.99. As a bonus it also comes with new lenses for the World of Warcraft headset with the game logo.

World of Warcraft fans, and indeed fans of PC gaming oriented headsets, have been looking forward to getting the long awaited Creative Labs-made Sound Blaster World of Warcraft headsets. Now it appears that the headsets (the wired and wireless versions) are finally being shipped to those who have pre-ordered the products via Amazon.com

The news comes from the Sound Blaster Facebook page which has a number of fans who pre-ordered the headsets. They are now reporting they have started to receive the headsets. While Amazon.com is the only US retailer who is handling orders for the product at the moment the Sound Blaster Facebook page reports that the headsets will officially launch in various retail stores (including Best Buy and Fry's) and other online outlets on March 22.

After a delay in its previously planned fall 2009 release, the much anticipated World of Warcraft gaming pc headsets from Creative Labs' Sound Blaster line are now available for pre-order. As expected the price for these high end PC gaming headsets is pretty expensive. The wired version of the product comes in at $119.99 while the wireless version will set you back $159.99.

Our sister site WoW.com has gotten a chance to check out the final versions of the headset and they seem to be pretty impressed. As we have reported before the product will have interchangeable headset lenses for the Horde and Alliance sides and more will be offered later such as lenses for each of World of Warcraft's 10 playable classes. There's still no word on when the headset will actually ship to customers.

Last December we put Creative Labs' upcoming World of Warcraft-branded PC gaming headset in our Vaporware section since the company was supposed to release the product by the end of 2009 but failed to do so. Now it looks like the company is gearing up to finally release the headset. As evidence the company has now launched a dedicated web page for the product.

There's a lot more info about the headset itself in terms of its technology and features, but Creative Labs is still being cagey on a release date and price. Their FAQ page does say they will be taking pre-orders in "early 2010" and will ship the headset (in wired and wireless versions) shortly after pre-orders are launched. The product looks like it will be worth the wait but the question is how much longer will we have to sit around before Creative Labs brings the headset to light.

As the US version of Thanksgiving approaches, folks who might have a hardcore PC gamer on their list might be wondering what to get them for the upcoming holiday season. Oh sure, you could go the easy route and actually get them games but that's actually pretty simple; just ask your PC gamer what titles he or she wants and get them. What's hard about that?

While we will give you some ideas of what games to give your gamer this holiday in the near future, we want to do something a little different today and offer some non-PC game suggestions that we are sure to please the hardcore PC gamer. From gaming mice to books to comics to even movies there are lots of things that we think should be on your gift giving list... or maybe even your "want to get" list.

Click on the image above to continue reading Big Download's 2009 PC Gamer Holiday Gift Guide

Remember that teaser on the the Sountblaster.com web site we mentioned earlier this week that seemed to hint at a new World of Warcraft product? Well, the web site is teasing no more. It has now been revealed that Creative Labs plans to release a World of Warcraft-branded wireless headset.

The headset will be shown later this week at BlizzCon and as you can see the ear cups have Horde and Alliance glyphs that are illuminated by LEDs. It will also be the first product from Creative that will use the THX TruStudio PC audio technology . . . which sounds good. The headset will also come in a wired version and will support both PC and Mac platforms. Unfortunately there's no word yet on pricing or a release date.

The PC hardware company Creative Labs is best known for their Sound Blaster line of sound cards. Now the official SoundBlaster.com web site has posted up a Flash based teaser image of . . . something. Whatever it is, it's related in some way to World of Warcraft. Our sister site WoW.com has identified the symbol as a Horde crest and there's some other WoW related imagery in there.

Creative Labs is one of the exhibitors at this year's BlizzCon so it stand to reason that whatever the product is, the reveal will be made there. But what is it? A World of Warcraft-branded sound card? That's possible but also a little odd. We should know something later this week.

The news on the HP Firebird gaming PC was leaked out last week but this week HP and its subsidary Voodoo PC made the news official this week. The slimmed down and powered down gaming PC product will be made available for purchase online later this week with the starting price of $1,799.

However, many people (including some of our comments at Big Download) have questions whether the new HP Firebird is indeed a bargain at its price with some saying they could make a PC using the same or better componants for less. On his official blog site, Voodoo PC owner Radul Sood says HP worked with Nvidia to create new video cards that are smaller but have comparible perfomance to their larger counterparts. Creative Labs was also asked to make a smaller version of its X-FI sound card for the system.

That and other changes make the Firebird unique, according to Sood. He states, "You're going to hear a lot about the HP Firebird with VoodooDNA, because I truly believe it breaks new ground for the performance PC industry. It's the first of its kind, not only for HP, but for all of our partners." He adds, "Sure there will be people who say things like 'I can build one for less' – but they simply cannot. You will not be able to build a PC that offers a balance of performance, silence, size, scalability, reliability, and efficiency for less."