Pelican Controller Puts Distance On Your Side

It's always one of the benchmarks, isn't it? Although it's not likely that anyone will want to play their PS2 from over 20 feet away, 'distance' always seems to be used as a (sorry for the pun) yardstick by which a wireless controller is measured.

But, when you think about it, the distance from which you can play is directly affected by signal strength and, as such, does help to indicate the reliability one can expect from a controller. Typical boasts of 20 feet are often heard. They are also, as of E3 2002, blown completely away.

Pelican is introducing a new type of wireless setup for the PS2; the Wavestation. The Wavestation supports 2 players simultaneously and acts as a dual wireless 'extension cable'. It is designed to be used with any 1st or 3rd party controller (including steering wheels and arcade sticks!) and is powered by either 4 C batteries or an AC adaptor. The Wavestation utilizes a powerful RF signal to allow for 40 feet of range. That's the claim. In print. The reality is much more impressive.

Kris showed me one of their wireless controllers that uses the same RF technology and then proceeded to start backing up while playing. Twenty feet and he was out of his booth. Forty feet and he was starting to pass Sony's booth. He kept going. And going. He went what had to be between 80 and 100 feet away! (He was literally starting to disappear into the crowd!) I suggested that Pelican consider putting some sort of scope on their controllers...

In all seriousness, being able to play video games at over 80 feet away may be a neat parlor trick, but its the fact that obstacles don't interfere with your game that really counts. ...And with the number of people that were in between Kris and the console, I don't think you'll have a problem.

Now you can finally sit back a bit from your PS2. (Your mom will be sooo proud...)