Review: Megaman Limited Edition HD LED Headphones

Posted on February 18, 2016February 19, 2016 by Paul Mendoza

The Megaman Limited Edition HD LED Headphone is an officially licensed CAPCOM© merchandise by EMIO.

Quick Review Summary:

Pros:

Decent sound quality
Novelty factor
Nice packaging

Cons

Missing accessories
Cheap plastic material
QA/paint issues

Verdict: Although I was able to get this in-store at Php3.5k (around 74USD) vs the online price of 99.99USD, I think the price still does not justify the cheap material, bad quality control, and missing microphone cord. There are much better headphones within the price range. Normally, this would still be okay for collectors as most would be more concerned with the form rather than the function. It is far from being a collectible though. Stay away.

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The Megaman Limited edition headset was produced by Emio and is being sold for 99.99USD online. Was very excited to get one when it was first announced several weeks ago and I chanced upon a unit when I passed by a local game store. It was hyped a lot in several major sites:

Before we go to the actual product review, let’s take a step back and get to know more about Megaman.

Megaman X image from Megaman Wikia- http://megaman.wikia.com/wiki/Mega_Man_X_(character)

Nendoroid Megaman from Good Smile Company website – http://www.goodsmile.info/en/product/5208/Nendoroid+Mega+Man.html

My Figma Link, Metroid and D-Arts Megaman taking a pose.

Megaman (or more popularly known as Rockman in Japan) is a video game franchise by Capcom and is close to the heart of many Gen Y gamers as it was initially released in NES, Famicom and Gameboy systems in the 90s. Its mention reminds me of a very challenging side-scrolling game of a blue robot, dashing and boosting his Mega Buster to battle Robot Masters and save the world. I also used to watch a ton of Captain N: The Gamemaster on morning TV where he was also featured (albeit a different appearance as shown in below pics except in a fanart I got from Devianart).

captain_n__the_game_master_by_retro_ccn-d5iwluu

On to the review!

The packaging is really nice and makes you want to have the item if you see it on a store shelf. Megaman’s face is shown in the front and the headset part of his face is in transparent plastic to show the gadget inside. However, since not a lot of light enters the box it was a bit difficult to see the quality of the item from the outside.

First the accessories. You will receive a small manual, a cord to connect the headphone to the audio jack, a micro USB connector to charge the LED and a numbered Certificate of Authenticity. Sadly I later found out about a missing accessory which I will discuss later in detail.

The headphone is in a protective plastic with a cardboard of the robotic Megaman’s face in the middle.

The Headphone

The gadget has a glossy finish which looks nice from a distance. The access and controls can be found on the base of the left part which consists of an on/off button for the LED lights, a control on how the lights will appear (constant lit, blinking etc), and access ports for the audio jack and micro USB (for charging the device).

Let there be LED light! The light was not as bright as I hoped but it may be because I was doing my review in a well-lit room and the headphone was still running on reserve charge.

However as I observed more closely I had the impression that the plastic material used was cheap and there were some quality control lapses.

I found a few “rubbery” material near the foam area. It looks like a thread produced from a glue gun. It can be easily removed though, but kinda sucks that it was not properly checked before distribution.

The paint job was not crisp. There were unpainted portions in small areas, while some of the other paint bled.

The paint was chipped a bit in the corner.

This was how it looked like when I wore it. I was worried that it would not fit because of my big head but as with other headphones, you can extend the size to fit yours.

To be honest, I was expecting the sound quality to be bad especially since I got used to listening to my Steelseries Siberia Elite for more than a year. I was surprised to realize that the audio output of this headphone was actually decent.

Now, for my major gripe. I checked on the manual and found these:

This headphone should have come with a remote and mic (three-conductor stereo mini plug for iPod and iPhone with remote and microphone function), but it didn’t. I felt robbed, and went to the store to ask about it. The attendant asked their home office about it and apparently, IT IS THE SAME FOR ALL INVENTORY. At first, I thought that it was just misplaced, but the accessory was not included with the gadget at all! It was also the first time that the store learned about the issue and was as surprised as me. I guess their distributors will hear something from them.

It should be obvious at this point that I was not happy about this purchase, and the store attendant offered a refund. I know that it is not their fault and I decided to just buy another item instead (20th Anniversary Playstation Gold Wireless Headset, something I’ve been eyeing for quite some time now).

PS4-20th-anniversary-gold-headset — Not Megaman. But I am a happier man.

Would you happen to own the Megaman Limited Edition Headphone yourself? How was your experience? Did you receive the missing mic/remote in your package? Where did you buy it? Comment below and let’s discuss further.

Part 2/2: WonFes 2016 (Warning: Picture heavy post)

Posted on February 9, 2016February 9, 2016 by Paul Mendoza

Very heavy post ahead~. (Part 2 of 2)

Check out Part 1 here – A brief narration of my morning experience in WonFes + tons of pictures.

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Prime Studio has a lot of impressive, high-quality statues- ranging from Transformers, DC characters etc.

Collection of the other pictures taken:

GSC Nendoroid Booth to celebrate their 10th Anniversary.

Pokemon Center Sapporo – An Unexpected Visit

Posted on February 9, 2016February 14, 2016 by Paul Mendoza

My wife and I chanced upon a Pokemon Center across the Sapporo train station while we were hunting for winter boots. It is located in the 8F ESTA building near the video arcades. When she went to go shoe shopping, I decided to follow the trainer in me!

As soon as you come out of the elevator you will be greeted by a big display of Piplup, Pikachu and Fennekin. On the base are familiar signatures.

We have been Pokemon Trainers since Blue (me) and Ruby (her).

Masuda-san is one of the founding members of Game Freak and produces/directs some of the games.
This signature was beside Masuda-san’s but I can’t read Japanese. If you can read it please post in the comment section.

Everywhere you look is eye candy for any fan. Lots of pics below!

Even the elevators are nicely decorated!

I would like to try the games but they are in Japanese.

Apart from Pikachu, it seems that the other 3 original basic starters are popular as well. They also highlight some of the other basics which were released in the later games.

Some announcements. Wait… is that Nendoroid?

I was surprised to see this ad. Apart from the reissue of Red in Championship edition to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the game, I didn’t know that they will also release both Ash and Gary. The poster says that it will be opened for preorder for about a month starting Feb. 27th and will be released in July. It seems you can only order it in Japan though.

These will be good additions to Red, N and Cyntia. Now to find a way to buy…

Red Championship edition is like a reissue of the rare Nendoroid which costs tons of $$$ in secondary market. It is essentially the same figure as the previous, but with completely evolved versions of its Pokemon (the previously released contains basic versions).

There were a few capsule machines available but what caught my attention were the ones with Pikachu cosplaying as other Pokemons. Like other “gashapon”, what you get is random. I tried my luck and managed to get 5 of the 7. Will post pictures of them by the end of this post.

Got some multiples but was never able to catch the white ones. If you have them hit me up for trade in the comments~

Plushies galore!

The first thought in my head when I took this picture was “Hey couldn’t that tummy in the upper right be…”

These are the cosplaying Pikachus. You can actually see them all over, from Akihabara etc.

Oooh a sleeping Ditto! Time to breed some Pokemon!

Some other cool merchandise are available as well.

As promised here is a parting shot of the gashapon Pikachus together with a Moncolle Pikachu sporting a trainer hat.

GSC Catalogue 2016

Posted on February 8, 2016 by Paul Mendoza

Took some pictures of Good Smile Company’s Nendoroid and Figma releases on the first half of 2016.

Part 1/2: WonFes 2016 (Warning: Picture heavy post)

Posted on February 7, 2016February 19, 2016 by Paul Mendoza

Final update. Apologies for the super heavy post.

This is Part 1 of 2. Check out Part 2 here.

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As soon as the people alight from the train station, they dashed towards the hall.

It takes around 10mins to walk towards the halls. There were guides with placards leading the traffic. We were greeted by this sign near the entrance.

To be able to enter, participants need to purchase the guide book. There was advanced selling last January and it was all sold out. It’s good to know that there are still a lot for those who didn’t get it.

This us how the guidebook looks like. Inside is a map of the booths + guidelines, but mostly in nihonggo.

After getting the guidebook, people were asked to fall in line. This was how it looked around 8:20AM (hall opens at 10AM).

These guys are veterans. Lol.
The line moves a bit every around 15mins. This was how it looked like at 9AM, Front and back.

Was able to come in at around 10:10AM. I went straight to the GSC booth to purchase the Hatsune Miku-Snow Owl version Nendoroid.

Attendees raising their guidebooks so marshalls can check before they are allowed to enter.
The event occupies all the halls so you would have to know beforehand where you should be going. The Nendoroids and Figmas are in Hall 1 so I turned right.

Entrance to the hall.
I sprinted to the end of the hall where GSC is located and was welcomed by the long lines.

Maximum of 2 per person for the exclusives.

I was so close to being unable to buy. Apparently they only accept cash and I only brought a limited amount with me.

After buying the Nendoroids, I fell in line again for more GSC products (the exclusives are separated from the other products).

A snapshot of the GSC stage where they hold various programs. Just finished a while ago was an interview about the new upcoming releases- too bad I was far from the stage because of the line so I wasn’t able to catch it (plus pictures and recordings are not allowed + language barrier).

Afternoon updates===========

Miku’s Snow Owl version of Nendoroid and Figma were SOLD OUT before noon.

My iPhone was about to run out of battery so I decided to just take as many pictures as I could. Check them out below:

Part two of the pictures can be seen here!

This Week in Game Trailers: Dark Souls 3, FFXV, Starcraft 2, Persona 5, Minecraft and more! [3rd week of September 2015]

Posted on September 22, 2015 by rinchupeco

Attack on Titan trailer: [PS4, PS Vita]

release date: 2016

Persona 5 gameplay trailer [PS4]

release date: summer 2016

Gravity Rush 2 Tokyo Gameshow trailer [PS4]

release date: TBA

Doctor Who game maker trailer

release date: TBA

Street Fighter 5: Karin reveal trailer

release date: 2016

The Witness Release Date trailer

release date: January 26, 2016

Just Cause 3 – Tokyo Game show trailer

release date:

Dark Souls 3 trailer

release date: TBA

Final Fantasy XV: Dawn 2.0 trailer

release date: TBA

Minecraft: Story mode teaser trailer [PS3, PS4]

release date: TBA

For Honor: Tokyo Game show 2015 trailer

release date: TBA

Starcraft II: Legacy of the Void opening cinematic

release date: November 10, 2015

Asia Pop Comicon Day Zero Sneak Peek

Posted on September 18, 2015September 18, 2015 by beholdthegeek

Asia Pop Comicon, the new pop culture convention about to make its mark in the Philippines, opened its doors yesterday, September 17, specifically for people who registered for a free Pro Pass. We were fortunate enough to get Pro Passes, which meant we got to see what the fuss was all about before the big event.

The first thing that greets you once you step through the event hall doors is Marvel’s massive LED display flanked by life-sized statues of Captain America, Iron Man, and Ultron from Avengers: Age of Ultron. Nice!

It looks like the day was set aside to give the media, bloggers, and a few working professionals like us a first look at their setup before the big day(s), but there wasn’t much to see or do since the event doesn’t happen until Friday. Most of the booths are already set up, with a few exhibitors putting the final touches to their displays.

Being the ginormous geeks that we are, we hovered around the general area of the Hot Toys‘ booth as they unboxed their 1:6th scale figures for display, grinning like giant schoolchildren that saw their favorite toys through the shop window.

Singapore-based Comicave Studios is also in the building, bringing with them their impressive collection of die-cast figures based on the successful Iron Man 3 and Age of Ultron movies.

But the one thing we’re quite sure people will be lining up for is their life-sized Hulkbuster statue. Life-sized. Hulkbuster. With the cockpit opened up so you can take a pic of yourself piloting it. Madness!

The Guest Area booths are also up, ready to be filled with fans wanting autographs of their favorite comic book artists, writers, and cosplayers. And getting autographs from them is free. Now we know where we’ll be spending a good chunk of our time in!

With the caliber of talent and branding that will be converging this weekend at the World Trade Center Manila, we can’t help but feel positively stoked for APCC 2015, and we can’t wait to experience another geeky fun weekend.

The hype is strong with this one!

‘Agent Carter’ star Chad Michael Murray and Pro-Wrestler Bill Goldberg to Fly to Manila for AsiaPOP Comicon 2015

Posted on September 12, 2015September 13, 2015 by Paul Mendoza

More celebrities have just been announced to attend the Asia Pop Comicon happening on September 19-20. Despite the backing out of Jason Momoa (Aquaman, Khal Drogo) due to prior commitments, it was recently confirmed that Paul Bettany (voice of Jarvis, and later portrayed Vision in the Avengers: Age of Ultron movie) had agreed to attend. Also present will be Arrow’s Colton Haynes and Game of Thrones’ Bettany Hayes.

Now a cast member of Agent Carter and a pro-wrestler are added to the mix, making the event a more exciting time for geeks. Check it out below.

PRESS RELEASE: More good news awaits the pop culture lovers around the region as two more international stars are set to fire up Asia Pop Comicon Manila 2015 (APCC Manila) slated on September 17 to 20 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City.

Among the headliners for this mega pop culture gathering, Hollywood heartthrob Chad Michael Murray of Marvel’s hit TV series, Agent Carter, will showcase his brooding good looks and share his acting talent at APCC Manila, together with professional wrestler and actor Bill Goldberg.

Murray

Goldberg

Murray, who resides in Wilmington, North Carolina, is known for his role as Lucas Scott in One Tree Hill (2003). The 6-foot tall model-turned-actor has also serenaded Jamie Lee Curtis with Britney Spears’ “Baby One More Time” in Freaky Friday (2003) and became Hilary Duff’s “Prince Charming” in A Cinderella Story (2004). Murray also starred in the B-horror flick House of Wax (2005) and The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia (2013).

For Goldberg’s part, he is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). He is notable for his lengthy undefeated streak in singles competition. Goldberg is a two-time world champion: a one-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, and one-time World Heavyweight Champion in WWE. He is recognized by WWE as the first undefeated world champion in the history of professional wrestling, and the first man to hold a version of the Big Gold Belt in both WCW and WWE.

As an actor, Goldberg has appeared in movies such as Santa’s Slay, Universal Soldier, and The Longest Yard, to name a few. He was also part of the cast of Donald Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice.

Goldberg is set to invade APCC Manila together with the cast of his new film, Checkpoint (to be shown in 2016). He will be coming together with Mindy Robinson, Kenny Johnson, Tyler Mane, and William Forsythe.

Catch these stars and more on September 19 and 20 at Asia POP Comicon Manila. Tickets are now on sale at the official site: https://asiapopcomicon.com/manila/tickets/book- tickets/. Tickets are priced at PhP500 (one-day pass), PhP800 (two-day pass), and PhP 1,000 (three- day pass) and will give the ticket holder access to stage activities, performances, and the main show floor.

‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘Furious 7’ Star Nathalie Emmanuel to Sizzle at AsiaPOP Comicon Manila 2015

Posted on September 12, 2015September 12, 2015 by Paul Mendoza

PRESS RELEASE: There seems to be no stopping Hollywood stars from flying to Manila for the biggest pop culture gathering to hit Asia this year!

Bringing some women power to AsiaPOP Comicon Manila 2015 (APCC Manila)—slated on September 17 to 20 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City—is English actress Nathalie Emmanuel, who currently stars as Missandei in the critically acclaimed HBO series “Game of Thrones.”

Emmanuel most recently made her US feature film debut in the seventh installment of the massively popular Fast & Furious franchise, “Furious 7,” opposite Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, and the late Paul Walker. The film was released on April 3, 2015 and has grossed over $1 billion at the box office, becoming the highest grossing film of the franchise and one of the highest grossing films of all time.

As one of the most sought after sultry Hollywood actresses to date, Emmanuel will next be seen in 20th Century Fox’s “Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials.” This is the second installment of the popular young-adult franchise that is based on the book series of the same name by James Dashner.

Catch Emmanuel and more stars on September 19 and 20 at AsiaPOP Comicon Manila. Tickets are now on sale at https://asiapopcomicon.com/manila/tickets/book- tickets/. Tickets are priced at PhP500 (one-day pass), PhP800 (two-day pass), and PhP 1,000 (three-day pass) and will give the ticket holder access to stage activities, performances, and the main show floor.

There will also be exclusive VIP and Experience convention passes that will offer special entitlements to its holders, such as exclusive APCC items, priority VIP seating, and photo opportunities with celebrities, among others.

For more info on ticket prices, passes, and event updates on APCC Manila 2015, please visit www.asiapopcomicon.com/manila, like APCC Manila on Facebook (facebook.com/apccmanila), and follow on Twitter @AsiaPOPComicon.