At the2011 Consumer Electronics Show, Android and Windows 7 tablets, tablet and smartphone accessories and 3-D televisions dominated a large portion of the expo floor. Oh, and headphones and headsets. Lots and lots of headphones and headsets. It takes a lot of uniqueness to stand out at CES if you’ve got something to offer that comes from these types of products. With the in-development Admiral, and especially the Admiral Touch headsets, NOX Audio managed to achieve that rare feat of standing out from the crowd of categorically similar product.
I was taken to a sound-isolating room in the booth to demo the headphones with Brad Schlachter, the vice president of marketing and sales for NOX Audio. What both the Admiral headsets have in common are the usual top-shelf specs you’d expect from good gaming-class audio products. Both Admiral headsets come equipped with 7.1-channel Dolby surround sound; Bluetooth connectivity; fully rotatable earcups for loudspeaker mode, retractable boom mike; rechargeable lithium ion battery with six hours of use time and 12 hours standby time; and USB connectivity for power.
The premium Admiral headset earns its “Touch” designation, though, through its 2.4 inch LCD screen with gesture-based controls, about on the same size and scale of a smartphone screen that’s running on Android OS. Essentially it’s a simplified Android computer running in an earcup, compatible with all consoles and mobile devices — one that’s also got voice activation and full Wi-Fi connectivity. What’s the point of a touchscreen computer with Wi-Fi on a headset? The most obvious applications could be wireless Skype calling and listening to Pandora via an Android app, and more. Over 500 MBs will be built in for app storage, with the ability to give the headset much more memory breathing room with a microSD card slot. The tie-in of applications to the headset are, according to Schlachter, “too early to predict what could be done with them, but exciting with limitless possibilities.”
There should be no more buyer’s remorse if one buys the Admiral but later wishes to have the features of the Touch. With a plug-in module that covers the additional features of the touch, an Admiral owner can upgrade the headset to the full capabilities of the Admiral Touch.
I tried a prototype of the Admiral Touch, which is built a little more heavy and almost certainly won’t reflect the final spec sheet or sound quality of a production unit. I’m pleased to say the Dolby Surround Sound so far sounded better than many surround sound headsets I’ve tried, which often sacrifice the sense of surround sound for the bass — which few gamers would want to do without. The expansiveness of the sound in the demo was wider without compromising the balance and punch of the sound. If NOX Audio can build off that sound quality I heard through to the production model, I expect they’ll at least have the fundamentals down cold. The intriguing question is whether they’re going to succeed with unlocking the potential of the innovative hardware and app possibilities the Admiral Touch brings to the equation.
Again, since it’s fairly early in the prototyping process, there’s no price point set just yet for either the Admiral or Admiral Touch. NOX Audio is expecting the Admiral line of audio products should be available later in 2011.
Xenocipher has been involved in the game industry in various roles for about 10 years. He know the ins, outs and in-betweens of the industry, but sometimes, he thinks it's just fun to sit down and play a title as a gamer ought to see a game. When he's got the time, he's into photography, travel, a good party every now and again, and of course, playing games. One day, Xenocipher will write the great American novel and travel Route 66, but until then, he's enjoying the ride.
