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  • Thraxen
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1Dec 06

I want to use my wireless controllers

We all love the freedom of going wireless. No longer tethered, we can move around wherever we want and place our objects anywhere.

But going wireless comes at a price: batteries.

I have made compromises in the name of battery life. I wanted Audible support in my portable music player, but I couldn't find one with adequate battery life so I purchased one without. There are thinner, lighter mobile phones than mine, but few (if any) come close to the 12.5 hours of talk time per charge I get from my thicker, heavier mobile phone.

But game controllers were-note the past tense-one area where one could go wireless without worrying about battery life. PlayStation 2 and GameCube wireless controllers from Logitech, Hori and Nintendo could be used for hundreds of hours before their batteries needed to be replaced.

You won't get 50 hours of battery life out of a PlayStation 3, Wii or Xbox 360 wireless controller.

With the new generation of game consoles, you have to more often replace or recharge game controller batteries. The former gets expensive over time, and requires one to keep a stash of batteries if one wishes to play with minimal interruption. The latter frequently turns a wireless controller into a wired controller, and with it a regular loss of freedom of movement and placement.

And both of those make life just a little more frustrating. Perhaps a lot more frustrating, considering you have to deal with not one, but as many as seven regularly dying wireless game controllers per console.
  • Posted Dec 1, 2006 2:46 pm PT
  • Category: Editorial
  • 12 Comments

12 Comments

  • BlueBirdTS

    Posted Dec 1, 2006 3:25 pm PT

    Umm, have you heard of this? http://hardware.teamxbox.com/reviews/xbox-360/57/Xbox-360-Quick-Charge-Kit/p1/

  • Thraxen

    Posted Dec 1, 2006 3:35 pm PT

    Yes, I have. But when your battery is charging in there, it isn't in your Xbox 360 controller, so you can't use your controller wirelessly.

    Unelss you also buy a second battery, which is expensive. And buying four kits and eight rechargeable batteries (for all four controllers) to never have to deal with dead batteries is really, really expensive.

  • yurik

    Posted Dec 1, 2006 8:52 pm PT

    PS2 Logitech wireless controller is 50 hours (as advertised), not "hundreds."

    In addition, you can probably expect a PS3 offering from Logitech, at some point. Don't know about 360.

    It's really not a big deal.

  • Thraxen

    Posted Dec 1, 2006 9:45 pm PT

    Key words: as advertised. (It's 50+ hours, not 50 hours, by the way.) Nintendo, Logitech and Hori were all ridiculously conservative with their battery life estimates.

    And the number you quoted was with vibration enabled. You would get well over twice as many hours if you disabled it.

    Not a big deal? To some, maybe. But they're not as obsessed with battery life as I.

  • yurik

    Posted Dec 2, 2006 12:01 am PT

    Actually, let me correct myself.

    It IS a big deal. I actually think I'm as annoyed by it as you. However, I just don't think it's any worse than it was in the previous generation with wireless controllers. (OK, I'm not sure about Wii, as I don't have that. I would imagine battery life is horrible.) For 360 and PS3, it feels quite comparable.

  • Stillmatic91

    Posted Dec 2, 2006 12:22 am PT

    THAT IS A PROBLEM> I think the best solution in like the play & charge for the 360

  • Demodocus

    Posted Dec 2, 2006 6:44 am PT

    The quick charge is perfect dude. First it has two slots, (so you wouldn’t need to buy four as you suggest). Second, I’ve never had a fully charged battery run out on me, so unless you are playing a game for 12 hours or more, I see no conflict between battery life and use of your control. That said if you do play games for 12 hours or more, take a break! Eat something. People need to recharge too…
    Also the play and charge kit comes with a lithium battery, and you wouldn’t need to buy 8 batteries for 4 controllers unless you and your friends are crazy and play 4 player games for 12 hours straight.

  • Thraxen

    Posted Dec 2, 2006 7:40 am PT

    I know you don't need four Quick Charge Kits, but my obsession with battery life and my (irrational) fear that all 8 batteries might need to be recharged at the same time would eventually lead me to get four kits.

    Rechargeable batteries don't recharge an unlimited number of times, so I tend to let them run out of power before I recharge.

  • Thorpe89 Site moderator

    Posted Dec 2, 2006 8:15 am PT

    Well, wireless is better than having wires. You got to think about that and so there will be a downfall on buying batteries all the time. At least you don't have to worry about any wires going everywhere. The controllers can easily be put away in a bag without no wires getting tangled up - ideal for going to a friend's house.

  • michelle_moraes

    Posted Dec 2, 2006 12:16 pm PT

    I'm still not into wireless because of bateries... I still prefer just plug them into my console...

  • digi_matrix

    Posted Dec 2, 2006 7:12 pm PT

    I'm definitely a fan of wireless after having played one controller on my friend's 360. I've always had problems with people tripping over my long wires (im not like most gamers who sit right next to their tv, i sit on my couch 7 meters away) and mom vacuuming over them. battery life should be no problem with charge kits. unless all you do day and night is play games. in that case....GET A LIFE!

  • Funkyhamster

    Posted Dec 2, 2006 7:57 pm PT

    I agree with you on some points... but it seems to me like having 50 hours of rechargeable batteries is better (more cost effective/convenient) than having 100 hours of disposable batteries.

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