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SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite review: $599 for premium, pricey perfection
Product Reviews

SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite review: $599 for premium, pricey perfection

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I’ve been hooked on SteelSeries gaming headsets ever since the Arctis Pro launched more than five years ago. The Nova range upped the quality with feature, fit, and software improvements, and the company is now going one step further with a $599.99 Nova Elite headset — a price that I’ve been questioning every day during my last month of testing.

With the Nova Elite, SteelSeries has created a category of luxury gaming headsets that doesn’t really exist right now. It’s banking on hi-res wireless audio, carbon fiber speaker drivers, a metal frame, and the ability to simultaneously stream audio from a PC, Xbox, and PlayStation to make it the best gaming headset on the market.

But is $599.99 too much, even for the best gaming headset?

$600

The Good

  • Excellent metal build quality
  • Better wireless signal
  • Hi-res audio with carbon fiber speakers
  • Swappable battery dock

The Bad

  • That $599 price tag
  • Cryptic low-battery audio alerts

Aside from the new sage and gold color option, the Nova Elite looks very similar to the existing $379.99 Nova Pro — especially when comparing the black versions. The frame and control wheel are both metal now instead of plastic, and the memory foam ear cups are more plush and feel more comfortable on my ears this time around.

The mixture of aluminum and stainless steel materials also makes the Nova Elite a lot sturdier than the plastic Nova Pro, which also makes it fit better for me. I have a fairly large head so the Nova Elite fits snugly over my ears, instead of slightly loose like the Nova Pro. And while the active noise canceling nub inside the ear cans irritated me on the original Nova Pro, I don’t even notice it on the Elite.

The Nova Elite’s frame is metal instead of plastic.

The plush memory foam ear cups are super comfortable.

There’s an adjustable band to improve the fit.

The GameHub DAC lets you control the headset and charge its batteries.

All of these material and comfort improvements are coupled with a first for a gaming headset: hi-res wireless audio. You can stream 96kHz / 24-bit audio over 2.4GHz with the included GameHub DAC or via Bluetooth with LC3+. It’s a little fiddly to set up thanks to the complex audio interface in Windows, and once enabled, you’ll really need the right game or audio file to tell the difference.

The hi-res audio support is a subtle enough improvement that I had trouble noticing it, but the overall sound quality improvements, along with the carbon fiber drivers, are more obvious. I played the Battlefield 6 beta for hours last month with the Nova Elite, and then I switched back to my Nova Pro headset. The explosions, tanks, and gunfire all sounded better with the Nova Elite, but it really depends on what games you’re playing.

In a game like Valorant, I could barely notice the difference, because there’s far less environmental sound and you’re really only listening for footsteps and audio cues. I wouldn’t buy the Nova Elite over the Nova Pro if you’re mostly playing multiplayer shooters.

SteelSeries has improved the microphone system on the Nova Elite for multiplayer games and Discord calls. You now have the choice between a retractable boom mic or a new on-ear mic if you don’t want the boom mic getting in the way. Neither come anywhere close in quality to replacing the Shure SM7B that I use daily, but they’re both useful if I’m using the Nova Elite on my phone or a game console.

You can easily hot swap batteries, and the Nova Elite intelligently turns back on.

There’s always a battery ready and charged in the included GameHub.

One of the best things about the Nova Elite is the way that it works with up to four audio sources simultaneously. I can connect to my phone over Bluetooth, which is useful to take calls while I’m working on my PC, and I can also connect to a game console, like an Xbox Series X or PS5, via USB-C at the same time. Omniplay, as SteelSeries calls it, can mix the audio from up to four sources. You could be chatting on Discord on your PC with the GameHub 2.4GHz wireless connection while hearing the audio from an Xbox game using the USB-C connection, listening to TikTok videos on your phone via Bluetooth, and even getting audio from yet another source through the 3.5mm aux port.

While I primarily used the Nova Elite with my PC, SteelSeries also has a mobile app that lets you control EQ levels and even game audio presets for consoles or mobile play. These presets already impressed me with SteelSeries’ Arctis GameBuds, and they’re equally great on the Nova Elite, allowing you to use custom EQ levels for more than 200 games.

These presets are also available in the GG app on Windows. The GG app takes over the clunky Windows audio experience and makes it easy to manage what microphone you want to use and whether you want audio to play out of speakers or a monitor when you turn your headset off. SteelSeries’ Sonar software is also part of GG, and I really like how effortless it is to set up multiple audio channels so I can adjust the volume levels and sound profiles of media apps, Discord chat, and games individually.

The ANC on the Elite is very similar to the Pro. It’s good for a gaming headset, but it falls behind the ANC on Bose or Sony headsets I’ve used. SteelSeries does a good job of using AI-powered noise rejection to block out any unwanted sounds (like typing noises) from the headset microphone, so you’ll always sound clear over Discord or a call.

The GG app also pairs with the GameHub DAC that sits on your desk to give you volume information, battery level, and more control over the headset. You can adjust the headset volume and mute the microphone from the headset itself, but the GameHub also lets you customize the ANC levels, enable transparency mode, and even adjust all the microphone settings. The GameHub is relatively unchanged from the Nova Pro, but I did find that the wireless signal it provides is a lot better in the dead spots in my house where the Pro used to disconnect.

The GameHub also includes a charging dock for the Nova Elite’s battery. Like the Pro, the Elite comes with two batteries, so you never have to worry about battery life. Each battery lasts around 30 hours of use, and when it’s low, you simply swap it with the one charging in the GameHub. I love this system so much, and I wish every gaming headset had it.

The only thing I’ve found annoying about this headset are the low-battery alerts. At 15 percent battery, the headset starts playing a low beeping tone every five minutes. There’s no other indication of what’s going on, and the sound is close enough to those web chat bots that I kept hunting for a rogue browser tab at first. When the battery hits 8 percent, it plays a more urgent tone, and a light on the GameHub DAC starts to blink. There’s really no need for the 15 percent warning.

The Nova Elite is available in sage and gold or black.

After testing the Nova Elite over the past month, I don’t want to go back to the Nova Pro. The changes are often subtle enough that I only notice them when I do switch back, but then they’re obvious. Using the Nova Pro after using the Nova Elite feels like going back to a 60Hz panel after upgrading to a high refresh rate monitor.

The trouble is the price. SteelSeries wants to create a new category of luxury and premium gaming headsets, and how well it succeeds could come down to the $599 price tag, which is the same as an already expensive Xbox Series X console.

You’ll have to really want the compatibility with all game consoles, the hi-res audio support, the added comfort, and the material improvements in order to warrant the $220 premium over the Nova Pro. If you’re looking for one of the best gaming headsets on the market, then I’d pick the Nova Pro. But if you can stretch to the Nova Elite’s luxury territory, then I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Photography by Tom Warren / The Verge

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U.S. Silent Hill f fans slam pitiful Steelbook allocations as missing pre-order gifts pop up on pricey eBay auctions
Game Reviews

U.S. Silent Hill f fans slam pitiful Steelbook allocations as missing pre-order gifts pop up on pricey eBay auctions

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Silent Hill f fans who missed out on Steelbook pre-orders despite ordering early are slamming U.S. retailer GameStop and speaking out against opportunist scalpers.

Players were tempted to pre-order the physical edition of Silent Hill f ahead of time by the “free” addition of a striking Steelbook case for orders placed with Amazon in the UK, and GameStop in the U.S.

However, as orders began arriving across the States this week and fans stopped by stores to pick up their freebie, it became clear that GameStop did not have nearly enough Steelbook cases to satisfy demand.

Silent Hill f Review – An Occasionally Unsatisfactory Return To Form.Watch on YouTube

“Is anyone else having trouble trying to acquire their Silent Hill f steelbook?” asked one customer. “Preordered from GameStop months ago and went today just an hour after opening and they’ve run out of all four steel boxes they had in stock. All four. Called every GameStop in a 50 mile radius and NONE other store received ANY shipment of steel boxes at all.”

“Everyone is getting the shaft,” someone responded. “Stores that even got allocation were at like 10% or less compared to their pre-order number.”

People ruin everything
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“I went to a GameStop earlier today as they opened, and they only got one,” commented someone else. “And I was the second guy in line. Supposedly, they should get another shipment. But it’s really stupid that there is a shortage of Steelbooks, and on top of that, online preorders require you to go in store to pick up the Steelbook. I wish Amazon US or Best Buy had the Steelbook, ’cause at least they would ship it with the game. I guess I’ll check in and see if they ever get more in the upcoming weeks.”

Other players claimed GameStop employees confirmed to them that each store received only a handful of Steelbook cases irrespective of how many pre-orders the stores logged, with some saying their local store “didn’t even get a single Steelbook…”

“I work at GameStop. We got a total of nine Steelbooks… for 30+ preorders,” explained another commenter.

If this all sounds very familiar, that’s because it is. When Silent Hill 2 Remake pre-orders began shipping in the UK in October 2024, GAME customers similarly received their game without the steelbook sweetener they’d hoped to get when placing their orders, and it took several weeks for GAME to fulfil delayed shipments. This time around, however, Konami partnered with Amazon UK to distribute the Steelbook pre-order bonus, which seems to have been more successful this time around.

What’s particularly galling for some fans, however, is the number of Steelbook cases that have made it onto online auction sites like eBay. Despite being given away for free, the collectible case is being auctioned for anywhere from $30 to $205, both with and without the game bundled alongside it.

In a thread entitled “people ruin everything” with hundreds of upvotes, one fan wrote: “What [is] really disappointed me even more was going on eBay just to see what resellers were up charging for the cases, ruining it for other people by being greedy. I know [the] Silent Hill franchise ha[s] always been expensive, I’ve gotten my fair share of games over the years, but for people to sell a case for more than market value is sickening.”

With most retailers advertising the freebie as available “while stocks last”, however, there’s very little customers can do, as demonstrated by this email response from GameStop customer care, who told one player that “even with online pre-orders, the Steelbook must be claimed in-store” and “these items are extremely limited and available only while supplies last.”

We’ll reach out to GameStop and update as/when we hear back from the retailer.

Regarding Steelbook
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Whilst slow to get going and a little cumbersome early on, I had a good time with it in Eurogamer’s Silent Hill f review, calling it “a return to form worth sticking with” and awarding it four out of five stars.



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Samsunga9
Game Reviews

Forget Pricey Tablets From Apple and Samsung, This Galaxy Tab A9+ Plus Is Going for Nothing Before October Prime Day

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If you’ve been perusing for a fancy new tablet, do take note that the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ just got its price chopped down over at Amazon. Usually this Samsung tablet starts at  $220, but right now you can score the 11-inch Android for just $159. The 28% discount amounts to a savings of $61. That’s for the 64 GB model by the way. Double your storage, and you can still save as the 128 GB model dropped from $270 to just $209. That one is a 23% discount which works also out to you saving $61. Both versions are available in either black or silver.

This 2024 Galaxy tablet has a nice and large 11-inch LCD screen which can display in resolutions of up to 1200p with a refresh rate of 90 Hz. According to the product page, the Galaxy Tab A9+ can deliver a “cinema-like audio experience,” which is, uh, an obvious embellishment. No one is expecting something you can hold in your hands to match that of an AMC theater. What this is really saying is the tablet has Dolby Atmos support. You can expect terrific sound that’s loud and clear as far as tablets go coming from the on-board speakers.

See at Amazon

The build of the Galaxy tablet is slim and light, yet durable —exactly what you’d hope for on a device you’d likely to take with you out and about. Bring it from home to your office, down to a coffee house, then over to a friend’s no problem.

Storage we covered. You have a choice between either 64 GB or 128 GB. The price jump from one to the next is an even $50. If you expect to be downloading a bunch of movies or TV shows or storing tons of photos, you may decide it’s best to splurge. Otherwise if streaming and documents saved to the cloud will be the main way you use it, just stick with the cheaper 64 GB.

Full Flexibility

Android OS is able to run multiple apps at the same time, allowing you to view them side-by-side. This is excellent when multitasking, letting you work more efficiently. You can even view multiple tabs in you web browser next to each other. Transferring files is easy as Quick Share allows you to send stuff to another nearby device with just a couple button presses.

If you have little ones at home, they can enjoy your Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ as well. The Samsung Kids app is filled with all sorts of playful and colorful content to keep them entertained.

See at Amazon



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