Cordless Vantage Headset
Written by John Yan on 9/9/2008 for
PS3
More On:
Cordless Vantage Headset
One nice thing about the PlayStation 3 is the ability to use any Bluetooth headset to communicate online. There are a plethora of them out there and Logitech’s got a few that you can use. Today though, they have a wireless Bluetooth headset branded specifically for the PlayStation 3 so I’m here to take a look at the Vantage Wireless Headset.
A look at the headset shows you a very sleek one piece wrap around design. The headband is small, light, and felt comfortable wrapped around the back of my head. One end features a small circular bulb to keep the pressure on one side of the side. The other side ends with the main ear piece and microphone setup.
You can actually wear the earpiece on either side by rotating the earpiece 180 degrees. It essentially flips the ear piece so it will hang down on either side of the face. You can also rotate the microphone and place it in a different vertical position by rotating the outer portion of the earpiece. The arm of the microphone is rigid so you can only change the vertical position.
On the earpiece, there’s a single switch that operates as the volume control and power button. By sliding the spring loaded switch to either direction, you change the volume of the headset. Holding down the switch will turn the headset on or off. I did have some minor problems actually getting it to turn on. It seems you have to have the switch in the center in order to be able to be held down and turn on. Otherwise, the operation of the volume control and muting was pretty simple and straight forward.
The main feature this is touting over the previous Vantage headset is that it’s completely wireless now and uses Bluetooth to communicate with the PlayStation 3. There’s a built in rechargeable battery in the headset and it’s charged via an included wall plug. The great thing about the headset is that the interface for the rechargeable battery is a mini USB plug so you can use any USB connection with the right cable to recharge the Vantage Wireless Headset. Since my phone, my console peripherals, and other computer peripherals take mini-USB, I have plenty of options to charge the headset and plenty of cables to use. I’m glad that Logitech went with the mini-USB making it pretty easy to find an option to charge it with.
Like I said before, wearing the Vantage Wireless Headset was pretty comfortable as it wrapped around my head and just above my ear. During long sessions with it, I never felt annoyed that it was there so you should be pretty good to go if you plan on wearing it for a long time. Although it might not be for everyone as I had some people who tried it out not like where the pressure points were to hold the headset in place. Like the PSP headset I reviewed a while ago, the Vantage Wireless might not appeal to all but I found it to be a better design than the PSP headset.
Performance seems very good also as I tested the headset with my PlayStation 3 and my cell phone. I placed a few calls and left a few voice messages to myself with my voice coming in clear and concise. I didn’t hear any break ups or static with the microphone being pretty sensitive to my voice allowing me to speak without having to raise my voice. The mic seemed to do a great job at picking up my voice and reducing background noise. Voices coming through the earpiece were loud and clear so I had no problems hearing the other person I was chatting with. The earpiece is large enough to cover the ear and I find that style more comfortable than the ones where they go inside. Overall I was very pleased with the performance, clarity, and volume of the voice when using the headset.
One thing I found weird and I don’t know yet if this is the PlayStation 3’s fault or something else but when I had the PlayStation 3 camera plugged in the headset would not work. It paired up fine and even when I selected it as the audio source, I couldn’t send any voice. It was only after I unplugged the camera was I able to use the Vantage headset without any problems. If you run into an issue of not being able to use the headset even when paired, make sure all other devices that can be used for audio are unplugged.
The wireless and rechargeable aspects do come at a price though as the unit is marked at $80. It has multiple uses though with it being Bluetooth so if you desire you could pair it to other devices as well. I like the design and I thought it performed well while being comfortable. If you really like Logitech branded products and want more for your PlayStation 3, the Vantage Wireless Headset will work well for you. For those that are just looking for a headset, the price might be a little high but you do get a good quality headset with the money.
A look at the headset shows you a very sleek one piece wrap around design. The headband is small, light, and felt comfortable wrapped around the back of my head. One end features a small circular bulb to keep the pressure on one side of the side. The other side ends with the main ear piece and microphone setup.
You can actually wear the earpiece on either side by rotating the earpiece 180 degrees. It essentially flips the ear piece so it will hang down on either side of the face. You can also rotate the microphone and place it in a different vertical position by rotating the outer portion of the earpiece. The arm of the microphone is rigid so you can only change the vertical position.
On the earpiece, there’s a single switch that operates as the volume control and power button. By sliding the spring loaded switch to either direction, you change the volume of the headset. Holding down the switch will turn the headset on or off. I did have some minor problems actually getting it to turn on. It seems you have to have the switch in the center in order to be able to be held down and turn on. Otherwise, the operation of the volume control and muting was pretty simple and straight forward.
The main feature this is touting over the previous Vantage headset is that it’s completely wireless now and uses Bluetooth to communicate with the PlayStation 3. There’s a built in rechargeable battery in the headset and it’s charged via an included wall plug. The great thing about the headset is that the interface for the rechargeable battery is a mini USB plug so you can use any USB connection with the right cable to recharge the Vantage Wireless Headset. Since my phone, my console peripherals, and other computer peripherals take mini-USB, I have plenty of options to charge the headset and plenty of cables to use. I’m glad that Logitech went with the mini-USB making it pretty easy to find an option to charge it with.
Like I said before, wearing the Vantage Wireless Headset was pretty comfortable as it wrapped around my head and just above my ear. During long sessions with it, I never felt annoyed that it was there so you should be pretty good to go if you plan on wearing it for a long time. Although it might not be for everyone as I had some people who tried it out not like where the pressure points were to hold the headset in place. Like the PSP headset I reviewed a while ago, the Vantage Wireless might not appeal to all but I found it to be a better design than the PSP headset.
Performance seems very good also as I tested the headset with my PlayStation 3 and my cell phone. I placed a few calls and left a few voice messages to myself with my voice coming in clear and concise. I didn’t hear any break ups or static with the microphone being pretty sensitive to my voice allowing me to speak without having to raise my voice. The mic seemed to do a great job at picking up my voice and reducing background noise. Voices coming through the earpiece were loud and clear so I had no problems hearing the other person I was chatting with. The earpiece is large enough to cover the ear and I find that style more comfortable than the ones where they go inside. Overall I was very pleased with the performance, clarity, and volume of the voice when using the headset.
One thing I found weird and I don’t know yet if this is the PlayStation 3’s fault or something else but when I had the PlayStation 3 camera plugged in the headset would not work. It paired up fine and even when I selected it as the audio source, I couldn’t send any voice. It was only after I unplugged the camera was I able to use the Vantage headset without any problems. If you run into an issue of not being able to use the headset even when paired, make sure all other devices that can be used for audio are unplugged.
The wireless and rechargeable aspects do come at a price though as the unit is marked at $80. It has multiple uses though with it being Bluetooth so if you desire you could pair it to other devices as well. I like the design and I thought it performed well while being comfortable. If you really like Logitech branded products and want more for your PlayStation 3, the Vantage Wireless Headset will work well for you. For those that are just looking for a headset, the price might be a little high but you do get a good quality headset with the money.
While it's a little expensive, the Cordless Vantage Headset for the PlayStation 3 works well. It performed great and I didn't have any problems talking or hearing the people on the other end. It can even be used with other Bluetooth capable devices.
Rating: 8.1 Good
* The product in this article was sent to us by the developer/company.
About Author
I've been reviewing products since 1997 and started out at Gaming Nexus. As one of the original writers, I was tapped to do action games and hardware. Nowadays, I work with a great group of folks on here to bring to you news and reviews on all things PC and consoles.
As for what I enjoy, I love action and survival games. I'm more of a PC gamer now than I used to be, but still enjoy the occasional console fair. Lately, I've been really playing a ton of retro games after building an arcade cabinet for myself and the kids. There's some old games I love to revisit and the cabinet really does a great job at bringing back that nostalgic feeling of going to the arcade.
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