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Does a sensor bar upgrade exist to extend the range of the GamePad?

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riemedev
Posted 2/1/2013 8:02:06 AM
My cats got into a tussle and somehow got to the sensor bar cord and tore the wire. I will need to purchase a new sensor bar but I wanted to find one that had extended range for the GamePad. With the one included with the system, the range was a few feet short of reaching my bathroom throne, an obvious necessity.

I checked out the local game store, they had a few sensor bars that improved range for wiimotes but I could not find anything that, I could confirm, had improved GamePad range.

Has anyone had any luck with sensor bars improving the range of the GamePad? And if not, has anyone heard of a future sensor bar that is expected to improve GamePad range?

Thanks in Advance
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nintendo3000
Posted 2/1/2013 8:04:57 AM
Isn't the senor bar only for Wiimotes?
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icarus231
Posted 2/1/2013 8:07:28 AM
nintendo3000 posted...
Isn't the senor bar only for Wiimotes?


Yes. Gamepad uses RF
TheStarCore
Posted 2/1/2013 8:09:30 AM
The Gamepad has nothing at all to do with the sensor bar, that is purely for Wii remote use
riemedev
(Topic Creator)
Posted 2/1/2013 8:12:24 AM
Darn. So no shot of some device in the future increasing GamePad range?
That's a mini letdown.
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The_Hyphenator
Posted 2/1/2013 8:15:14 AM
The sensor bar is an IR projector that creates a reference point for the Wiimotes. The Gamepad works on a RF signal. They're two different things.

Now, if you're asking if there's a RF relay that can extend the Gamepad's range, the answer is "not yet." However, apparently the company that co-developed the RF transmission process the Gamepad uses says that it would certainly be possible to make a relay that would extend the range of the Gamepad without increasing latency. So I would expect to see them commercially available before too long.

Here's an article on the RF tech the Gamepad uses, if you're interested in doing further reading:

http://www.polygon.com/2012/11/16/3653294/wii-u-range-test-gamepad
icarus231
Posted 2/1/2013 8:19:15 AM
riemedev posted...
Darn. So no shot of some device in the future increasing GamePad range?
That's a mini letdown.


They could at somepoint release a repeater much like the ones used for wifi range extending
TheFallenPriest
Posted 2/1/2013 8:48:13 AM
http://www.amazon.com/Next-Generation-Remote-Control-Extender/dp/B000C1Z0HA is an RF thing that extends the range of RF devices. NOt sure how it works though. Looks like it communicates with the battery? That would be sad. Perhaps it could communicate with any RF device. The lag it could cause could make it unusable if it did work though.
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darkjedilink
Posted 2/1/2013 9:50:58 AM

(edited)
TheFallenPriest posted...
http://www.amazon.com/Next-Generation-Remote-Control-Extender/dp/B000C1Z0HA is an RF thing that extends the range of RF devices. NOt sure how it works though. Looks like it communicates with the battery? That would be sad. Perhaps it could communicate with any RF device. The lag it could cause could make it unusable if it did work though.


The Wii U doesn't communicate to the GamePad via RF, though. It uses a proprietary modification to wireless-N.
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