Gizmodo: racing wheel

Logitech G27 Racing Wheel Helps Race Fans Shift Gears

Danny Allen — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 04:01:00 EDT

Many virtual rev-heads knew it was coming, but Logitech has now officially replaced its G25 Racing Wheel with the G27. The update adds shift-indicator LEDs that you help know when to up/down gear, and more programmable buttons on the wheel.

The 11-inch, leather-wrapped wheel now has a total of six buttons (three for each thumb), compared to just two previously. This, and the shift-indicator LEDs on the six-speed gear stick are the core of the updates. Dual-motor force feedback returns, along with steel gas, brake and clutch pedals.

The G27 works with supported games under Windows XP/Vista, and on the PS3 or PS2. It should be available this September, for the same $299.99 asking price as its predecessor. [Logitech]

Blazepro Offers Realistic Wii Racing Wheel For Better Mario Kart Control

Sean Fallon — Thu, 22 May 2008 15:00:00 EDT

If you haven't quite earned a license for Mario Kart driving, you can bypass the tacky training wheel and head straight for a realistic, grown-up solution. Blazepro is now offering a beefed-up racing wheel for the Wii that promises better driving accuracy. And, since the base can be attached to any desktop for better stability, chances are it can deliver on that promise. When your skills improve, you can even detach the wheel for traditional in-air gameplay. Available for only $5.87. [Superufo via Wii News]

Logitech's Driving Force GT Wheel For Gran Turismo 5 Prologue Has Force Feedback, Shifter

Jason Chen — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 16:40:59 EST

Logitech's no stranger to racing wheels, but their latest PlayStation 3 wheel looks even fancier than its predecessors. There's a 900 degree lock-to-lock turn, which means you can maneuver it much like an actual wheel on your Toyota Corolla when sledding about the tracks of Nurburgring. There's also a horn, shifter, the standard PS3 controller buttons and measures 11-inches in diameter. Best of all, it's even backward compatible with Gran Turismo 3 and 4 on the PS2 so you won't have to wait until April for the PS3 GT5 Prologue. [Logitech via Crunchgear]

Xbox 360 Racing Wheel Now $99

Jason Chen — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 13:30:57 EST

The official Xbox 360 racing wheel is getting another price drop, this time down to $99. Hopefully these are free of defects, but either way, it's our favorite wheel for the 360. [Xbox]

Xbox 360 Racing Wheels Not That Broken, Return Boxes Coming In

Jason Chen — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 14:00:57 EDT

The Xbox 360 Racing Wheel Retrofit program that Microsoft instituted back in August is well underway, with people getting letters like the one above that we personally received.

If you signed up for a "retrofit", you'll be eventually sent a shipping container that you can shove your wheel for Microsoft to repair and ship back to you about 2-4 weeks later (an eternity in game time). However, if you want to take your chances, Microsoft's said there have only been 70 "incidents" in the field, which taken out of 230,000 sold units, isn't all that many. So it's up to you: a house slightly on fire or a month of having to play Forza 2 and PGR4 with a regular controller. [Next-Gen Biz via Kotaku]

Microsoft Starts Xbox 360 Racing Wheel Retrofit Program to Prevent Your House From Burning Down

Jason Chen — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 11:40:45 EDT

Similar to the way that the power cables on the original Xbox had problems with possibly catching on fire, the Xbox 360 Racing Wheel can possibly cause your wheel to "overheat" and "release smoke." Thanks to a couple instances of this happening, Microsoft is instituting a program where you can get an AC adapter replacement for your wheel free of charge.

You can still use your wheel now on battery power (wirelessly), but they recommend that you quit using it while plugged in—which means there's no force feedback—until you get the replacement adapter. [Xbox via Microsoft]

Xbox 360 Racing Wheel Gets Price Drop: $129

Jason Chen — Fri, 25 May 2007 12:00:06 EDT

Hey folks, just a quick note to let you know that the Xbox 360 Racing Wheel just got a price drop to $129. And if you're curious as to whether it's worth it (hell yes), hit up our review from before. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Amazon]

Even PS3 Racing Wheels Don't Have Force Feedback

Jason Chen — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 16:50:58 EST

Thanks to the fact that the standard SIXAXIS controller doesn't have vibration, most game developers aren't going to program in vibration functions to their games on the odd hope that someone will pick up a PS3 Racing Wheel. In turn, PS3 racing wheels—like this one from Logitech—won't have vibration functions either. Oh joy.

Hit the jump to hear what we think about this (warning, self-playing audio).

– Jason Chen

Force Feedback on PS3? Not So Much [1up via Kotaku - Suck it McWhertor]