X360 Crossfire Wireless Gaming Receiver - Mini Review!

[Sumanji]

Hey,

Just got mine in the post this morning, so I thought I'd do a mini review for you all.



Cost me £12.99 delivered which isn't bad at all. The receiver itself is tiny (approx. 8cm x 4cm x 2cm). Average build quality; plastic and not very heavy at all. Comes packed with a driver CD and some manuals:





The software is not bloated at all. Just seemed to install some drivers and a tiny applet as far as I can tell. It starts up one new service (XboxStat.exe) which uses up a constant 10MB of RAM. I can confirm that it DOES work on Windows XP x64, which is ace! Once it's installed you can plug your Receiver in to a free USB slot and the green light should ping on:



Connection is pretty straightforward; turn on your controller with the "X" button, press the button on the Receiver, then press the connect button on your controller. After they sync, you can press the "X" button to bring up a tiny little status app that shows the controller's status:

[Sumanji]

Some screenshots of the software application and other stuff:








A summary of things I've noticed so far:


PROS
~ Great range & reception (worked from 10m away through a couple walls!).
~ No wireless lag that I could notice.
~ Ridiculously easy to set up.
~ Can be used in an XP x64 environment! (not tested on Vista x64)
~ Compatible with ALL Xbox 360 wireless accessories (though I have only tested control pads).
~ Headset can be configured with Voice chat programs like TeamSpeak (see House's post).

CONS
~ Force Feedback does not work (as of the latest driver/program release).
~ Possible problems with some button assignments (see kidkhaos' post). Although I have not had any such issues.

ISSUES
~ Have to resycn controller to X360/PC every time you swap between them (i.e. control pad can only be linked with one device at a time).
~ No way to manually power off control pads (have to physically detach battery, or wait 10 minutes for auto shut-off).
~ Need to unplug your Xbox at the mains everytime you re-sync to your PC, otherwise pressing the Guide button will turn your X360 on
~ USB sync issues, rather annoying! Detailed thread here. My personal experience is detailed here.


Will keep this updated with any other bits I discover... hope it is useful to everyone

Cheers,

Suman

[Parm]

Thanks for the quick mini review Sumanji, sounds like it does exactly what it says on the tin! Looking forward to hearing more of your thoughts after you've played some games.

I've got a £5 gift voucher for Game so I think I might just pick one of these up for myself. Quick question you might be able to answer; I have the Wireless Headset for the 360 (the new fancy one), will that work with this receiver? I plan on getting the Wireless Force Feedback Wheel too when Forza 2 comes out, be very handy if that worked on PC too.

[clearlyolly]

Yeah, and what about the media remote?

[Sumanji]

Hey,

As far as I'm aware the Wireless controller, steering wheel, and headset are all supported, although obviously I haven't tried the last two items. I thought the Media Remote was IR and not RF? In which case it will not work; the receiver is RF only.

Does anyone know any good demos I can download (sports or racing)? I was gonna try out CMR2005 and Xpand Rally which I have full copies of, but just remembered they use Starforce which I refuse to install unless anyone knows how to get round it

Cheers,

Suman

[longbow360]

Yep, here you go! Best driving game on the P.C. - GTR 2

http://gtr-game.10tacle.com/index.php?id=246&L=1

Give it a whirl. You'll need to configure the buttons heavily. I use the wired controller with it, and its a nightmare mapping all the buttons, but well worth it!

[longbow360]

By the way, are you using vista x32bit or x64bit with the controller?

I use 64bit and i'm having problems with some drivers etc.

Would be nice to know (a relief really) if this just plugs in and plays!

[Parm]

longbow, Sumanji mentioned that he's using it with XP 64bit.

Originally Posted by Sumanji

I can confirm that it DOES work on Windows XP x64, which is ace!

[Sumanji]

Cool thanks, I'll give GTR2 a go

Yeah I'm using an x64 OS, but it's good old XP, not Vista! I got the impression that Vista drivers were in the works but not out yet? The logo on the back says "Designed for Windows XP"...

Suman

[bee]

got one of these a few days ago aswell great stuff i think the wireless 360 pad is the greatest pad ever released, glad i own a 360 aswell though as its really quite pricey if u get the wireless dongle,pad and play and charge kit, works out at close to £60.

[Odc]

Nice little review. Thanks

[alexunknown240]

Is this controller PC and Xbox 360 Compatible?

thanks.

[dave87]

I would presume the latter, given it most likely came bundled with the console.

And yes to the PC part, once you've bought the receiver.