After years of enduring the horrible wired headset that comes as standard with an xbox 360 controller (god knows how many replacements I have had now, they just break!) I finally decided to upgrade to the wireless version.
Upon receiving the headset the first plus in it's favour was the packaging. Gone are those bloody infuriating hard-plastic sealed xbox peripherals that require power-tools to open! The wireless headset was easy to get in to & this was achievable without having to destroy the outer box.
The mic itself appears to be really well made, it just looks & feels like a quality bit of kit & comes with a charging lead & decent instructions.
Obviously, the first thing you need to do is charge the battery which is sealed within the mic unit & in itself is not replacable. The intitial charge took about five hours & small led lights indicate when the battery is at full capacity. It's worth noting that the xbox does not need to be switched on for charging, just plugged in...neither does the xbox appear to be in low-power mode to refresh it as is the case with charging a controller battery. The headset is connected to one of the xbox usb-ports via the small connecting cable provided, but the mic cannot be used during the charging period so probably best to keep hold of that wired set as a back-up.
A word of warning here...One of the reasons I was reluctant to switch to the wireless headset was hearing that a friend had burned through three of these mic's within a month, each one appearing to be faulty...he wasn't happy, getting replacement after replacement. It turns out however, that he had been charging his headset using the usb slot on his pc & that was the root of the fault. There are no indications in the instructions that this is not ideal but it seems an easy mistake to make, lesson learned.
So, once charged the wireless mic is good to go & works beautifully! It's comfortable on the ear even for long periods & communication both ways is clear, no drama. I haven't done a range test but from what I gather so long as you are within 20-30 feet of the xbox, it will work fine without distortion or loss of signal.
I personally use the Xbox wireless racing wheel & it's fairly well documented that although the wired-headset is supposed to work with the wheel, it just doesn't! The wheel has to be plugged into the mains for the force-feedback to be enabled which renders a wired-mic unusable...the noise you emit whilst using the two together is a friend repellent!...just ask anyone who's had to listen to it. The point being, since the wireless headset connects directly to the xbox & not the controller/wheel...I can now use the two together & play driving games whilst talking at the same time, no more billy-no-mates everytime I want to play F1 or Forza 3...result!
So, The wireless headset is a great bit of kit, no more snagging cables or yanking the wire out of the controller. The charge lasts a good 8-10 hours before it needs a top-up & although it's £30 cost isn't exactly cheap, it's worth every penny!