04-Jan-2007, 09:07 AM
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#1 (permalink)
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Wireless Sensor Bar Hath Arrived!
Originally Posted by IGN Gear
We discovered pretty early in our time with the Wii that the console's Sensor Bar that wires into the Wii isn't quite as complex a piece of the operation as we originally thought. No data flows between the sensor bar and the console, and the wire is used for nothing other than drawing power from the Wii. In fact, the sensor bar does nothing other than shine infrared lights at the Wiimote, which calculates its position by triangulating between the IR-emitters on either side of the sensor bar. A candle on either side of a TV does just as good a job communicating with the Wiimote as an official sensor bar, and candles aren't attached to the Wii with an annoyingly short wire.
It was only a matter of time before enterprising accessory manufacturers went to work to offer a self-powered sensor bar, and the first appears to be ready to ship. Wirelesssensorbar.com is offering a 9-volt battery powered model for $24.99 + $5.99 shipping for American customers. The device is said to operate for more than 48-hours on a single battery, and rocks a convenient front mounted power button and indicator light in front.
We haven't done any hands on testing of the product yet, and the company producing it is a small time operation making use of PayPal billing and Gmail email. Considering, however, the simplicity of a device that does nothing but power two infrared-LEDs, we're guessing it's unlikely they're messing anything up.
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