New Sensor Bar Concern, Plus Sunlight Myth Debunked

[teqguy]

While answering a post in another thread, it recently came to my attention that there's another concern with the sensor bar: mirrors.

Any reflective surface will throw the sensor bar off if given a signal from the Wiimote. In some instances, you might get a duplicated command, while in others, it might just go squirly.

I do believe that they've compensated for this by limiting the signal to a certain range of frequencies, but there's still the possibility that a close reflective surface could do some harm.

It's just another thing to look into when setting up your Wii.


Furthermore, while on the topic of the sensor bar, I was looking into the whole sunlight issue.

In looking at a picture of the bar, you'll notice that the front is a dark semi-transparent plastic. The reason it's so dark is that the purplish-black color is actually a UV filter.

This, in addition to the IR LED's restriction of frequency, should take care of any problems sunlight would usually cause.

 

[Arcadium]

I will take a look at it when I buy my wii

 

[Sam_Harris]

yeah i dont have any mirror in front of my telly so it doesnt worry me

 

[registerednerd]

ooh, I hadn't thought of reflective surfaces. That is so obvious that I didn't even think of it. Maybe if there are two signals, it will only act on the strongest one.

 

[Carnage]

Never thoguht of it but good idea

who has a mirror infromt of the tv? we hardly have mirrors at all mums all fun shie or what ever lol

 

[Jenova]

It's a good thing I don't play video games with a mirror sitting in front of me.

 

[NateTheGreat]

It's a good thing I don't play video games with a mirror sitting in front of me.

Yeah, you'd have to be pretty vain to do that. *winks at self in mirror under TV* :wink: :lol: jk

 

[Ronan]

crap i have a mirror near my tv and i get lots of sunlight.

p.s i just got a 40" hdtv Yea!!

 

[Wiitime]

worse comes to worse, take a blanket and cover your mirros everytime you play, then take it off when your done.

 

[Sovieto]

Oh man this is a huge problem for me on the count I keep mirrors in my living room!

 

[Wiitime]

get a bunch of blankets and cover it up.... I have a closet in my room and its behind my tv, but its right next to each other. so if its a problem for me i am going to take a blanket and just cover it.. Then no problem!

 

[Quatsch]

Sorry to burst your bubble

Furthermore, while on the topic of the sensor bar, I was looking into the whole sunlight issue.

In looking at a picture of the bar, you'll notice that the front is a dark semi-transparent plastic. The reason it's so dark is that the purplish-black color is actually a UV filter.

Actually, it's designed to only pass light at infrared frequencies, which means it also filters visible light and probably most of the rest of the electromagnetic spectrum.

This, in addition to the IR LED's restriction of frequency, should take care of any problems sunlight would usually cause.

If this were a perfect world and the sun did not emit infrared light, this would be true....but it's not a perfect world, and yes, the sun does emit infrared light (Look here if you wanna be sure).

So unfortunately there is no quick fix for this problem except to keep the sensor bar out of direct sunlight

-Q

 

[teqguy]

Actually, it's designed to only pass light at infrared frequencies, which means it also filters visible light and probably most of the rest of the electromagnetic spectrum.

No, the diode itself filters visible light, but peaks just before UV, which is where the filter comes in.

If this were a perfect world and the sun did not emit infrared light, this would be true....but it's not a perfect world, and yes, the sun does emit infrared light (Look here if you wanna be sure).

So unfortunately there is no quick fix for this problem except to keep the sensor bar out of direct sunlight

-Q

The sun doesn't emit infrared light at every spectrum. The frequency at which most infrared technology operates is microns above and below the frequencies that it does emit.

Want proof? Take a TV remote out in the sun and try taking a picture of it while it's on with a digital camera. You'll still be able to see traces of the light in the picture.

As far as the whole sunlight debacle is concerned, it originated from an unusual setting in an unusual circumstance. At home, users will most likely be playing in a dim to dark setting- hardly the direct sunlight that plagued the demo setup.

In a usual setting, sunlight would create noticable glare on a screen before ever interrupting the controller, which is a concern that gamers and TV viewers alike have long compensated for.

End of story.

 

[Wiitime]

so i guess a blanket wont work???

 

[teqguy]

so i guess a blanket wont work???

A blanket would work, but why not just position your sensor bar decently?

As long as you place it relatively centered to the way you'll be facing, make sure it's at about the height of your torso, and don't intentionally point your Wiimote something other than the sensor bar, you should be fine.