Earlier today, SteelSeries unveiled a new range of Arctis Nova gaming headsets—the Arctis Nova 7, Arctis Nova 3, and Arctis Nova 1—bringing many of the features of the premium Nova Pro to a handful of different price points.
The Nova Pro came out a few months ago, boasting an impressive range of features and high-quality audio, but with a price tag to match: NZ $599.99 for a wired version, or $799.99 for wireless. By contrast, the cheapest of the new range will set you back just $149.99, with the flagship wireless version (the Arctis Nova 7) coming in at $449.99—still a lot, but a few hundred short of the Pro equivalent.
That price reduction comes at the expense of the Pro’s charging base, hot-swappable batteries, and a dock that lets you switch between devices at the tap of a button, and the audio hardware on the new models isn’t quite as audiophile-oriented (though still high fidelity). Other than that, the new range packs a lot of the same features: “Almighty Audio” that combines high-fidelity drivers with the Sonar Audio Software Suite for pro-grade parametric EQ adjustment, 360 degree spatial audio, ClearCast Gen 2 AI-powered noise cancelation, a fully retractable bidirectional mic, and memory foam ear pads.
The Nova 7 has dual wireless support, with both Bluetooth and 2.4GHz connections and the ability to use them simultaneously—for example, when you want to use voice chat on one device while getting game audio from another. While it lacks the Pro Wireless’ hot-swappable dual batteries, the advertised 38 hour battery life isn’t too shabby, especially with quick charge support. It’s multi-platform compatible across PC, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch by way of USB-C dongle; there are also Xbox and PlayStation-specific models that can connect directly to those consoles.
The Arctis Nova 3 and the Arctis Nova 1 are the cheaper options. They also feature “Almighty Audio”, ClearCast Gen 2 noise cancelling, spatial audio, and multiplatform support, though they lack the wireless capabilities (and therefore simultaneous audio function) of the Nova 7 and have a slightly cheaper build quality. The Nova 3 features RGB lighting and connects by USB-C; the Nova 1 has the most limited feature set, but has the flexibility of a 3.5mm audio jack and is available in either black or white.
All three models are available now from SteelSeries, priced at NZ $449.99, $219,99, and $149.99 for the Nova 7, Nova 3, and Nova 1, respectively. They’ll be available at local retailers soon, too.
