Rage Guitar Controller Recall

By Geoff Duncan Published October 24, 2008

The Consumer Product Safety Commission and Performance Designed Products (PDP) have launched a recall on PDP Rage Wireless Guitar controllers for the Nintendo Wii. If the AA batteries the unit requires are installed incorrectly, what PDP describes as a “defect” in the circuit board can cause the batteries to leak, which might lead to chemical burns. The recall is based on a single incident of a customer being burned as a result of the problem.

The guitar controllers were sold throughout the United States from June through December 2008 for prices between $40 and $60; they were available in blue or white. PDP is urging customers to return the guitar controllers to the point of purchase for a complete refund, rather than contacting PDP directly. Customers should not contact Nintendo over the recall.

Recommended Videos

The AA batteries power the unit’s wireless capabilities as well as LEDs in the controller’s fret buttons.

Geoff Duncan

Former Contributor

Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

Gaming

The next Xbox may be backward compatible with every past Xbox generation, if publishers agree

A leaked memo details Microsoft's next console could play games from every Xbox generation, but there's a catch.

A leaked internal memo suggests the next Xbox console, codenamed Project Helix, could play games from every generation the company has ever released. If true, that would make it the largest game library on any console, especially since it's also said to support PC games.

Backward compatibility for four console generations

Gaming

Xbox may have a surprisingly smart plan for keeping physical games alive

Xbox’s leaked roadmap could rescue your old games from the disc-drive grave

The fate of physical game discs seems to be set in stone, with an all-digital library becoming increasingly inevitable. Microsoft, though, may at least give Xbox owners a way to bring their shelves full of physical games along for the journey.

A leaked Microsoft roadmap sent to game publishers details the planned rollout of Xbox’s Disc-to-Digital program alongside a much larger backwards-compatibility push. The document reportedly targets August for general availability, October for the full launch of original Xbox games on PC, and a gradual Xbox 360 rollout beginning in 2027.

Gaming

Pwnage’s new gaming mouse lets users adjust click force and travel with a screwdriver

The 49-gram Pwnage Vanta also features a movable sensor and 8,000Hz wireless polling

Computer Hardware, Electronics, Hardware

Gaming mice usually let you adjust sensitivity, polling rate, and button assignments through software. Pwnage’s new Vanta goes a step further by letting you physically change how each primary click feels.

The company describes the Vanta as the world’s first lightweight gaming mouse with mechanically adjustable clicks. Turning a pair of screws changes how much force and movement the left and right buttons require, without replacing the switches or adding more electronics.