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Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 Revealed

Celcius

°Temp. member
I'm surprised to see a new controller so late in the console's life when the new consoles are coming next year. Makes me wonder if the next-gen xbox will use the same controllers...
 

Kacho

Gold Member
So glad Phil said accessories would be forward compatible. Definitely copping this controller for the customizable thumbstick resistance. 🤗
 

HUELEN10

Member
I'm surprised to see a new controller so late in the console's life when the new consoles are coming next year. Makes me wonder if the next-gen xbox will use the same controllers...
It's not an Xbox One Elite Wireless Controller, it's an Xbox Elite Wireless Controller. It's for Xbox the platform, not tied to a specific console. This controller works with at least Xbox One, Xbox One S, Xbox One X, Scarlett, iOS Devices, tvOS Devices, iPadOS Devices, and PCs running Windows 10.

And I think that's wonderful.
 
Who are these disposable battery scrubs?

Fuck shelling out money on batteries, this isn't 1989.

If the pad dies, slap the charge cable in or buy a 5M one so you can game.

I'm not a tree-hugger but there are little things we can do to no fuck the planet, and wanging batteries in the bin every 24 hours is one of them.
 

HUELEN10

Member
No one is complaining about rechargeable batteries.

If you want to use regular rechargeable batteries on the elite, that's fine.

If you want to use an official rechargeable battery pak on the elite, that's fine too.

If you want to use the elite wired and light-weight, that's fine too.

If you wanna be like me and spend a mere 6 bucks a year on disposable AAs for Best Buy thanks to their insane sales for the 48-pack, that's fine too.

What is not fine and becomes a valid tort is the fact that the series 2 is a step back. Built-in, proprietary, non user-accessible, and non user-disposable batteries are bad for the environment, bad for your limits in choice, and bad for your wallet.

The built-in rechargeable battery is a step backwards.
 

Ornoku

Member
Who are these disposable battery scrubs?

Fuck shelling out money on batteries, this isn't 1989.

If the pad dies, slap the charge cable in or buy a 5M one so you can game.

I'm not a tree-hugger but there are little things we can do to no fuck the planet, and wanging batteries in the bin every 24 hours is one of them.
I have a play and charge kit inside my current Elite controller. I'm not very upset about the new battery style. But it isn't bad being able to change play and charge kits.
 
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If you wanna be like me and spend a mere 6 bucks a year on disposable AAs for Best Buy thanks to their insane sales for the 48-pack, that's fine too.

What is not fine and becomes a valid tort is the fact that the series 2 is a step back. Built-in, proprietary, non user-accessible, and non user-disposable batteries are bad for the environment, bad for your limits in choice, and bad for your wallet.
The internal battery isn't a step back in any way. While people who already have Eneloop kits will have to find another use for them, a built-in has no real down side.

Assume you have the controller for 5 years. $6 a year for Best Buy AAs over 5 years is $30, more than the price increase of the V2 over the V1. The cheapest batteries Best Buy sells are Universal 50 packs @$10.99. Even if you only replace them once a week for 5 years (520 AAs) you've spent over $100 on batteries. But that would limit you to one controller charge a week or less than 10 hours a week of play time. An Eneloop AA charge kit (which I use with my V1) is $18 on Amazon, which is comparable to the price increase of the V2 over the V1 and will last more than 2000 charges. So even if we went with the $6/year number, you'd be throwing money away using standard AAs over Eneloops making the Eneloops a no-brainer. The time between charges is much higher with the built-in li-on in the V2 at 40 hours vs about 10 with Eneloops and even less with Best Buy budget batteries making the built-in a no-brainer over the Eneloops and especially over the Best Buy budget batteries.

Though it's minor, swapping AAs is also a hassle that the built-in eliminates. Even if it's only 10 seconds once a week, that's almost 9 whole minutes a year! For me it's even worse, as I keep my charger in another room out of the way. I could change the oil in my car with that extra time, or take my dog for a short walk if I had a dog. The V2 charges when you put it away at the end of the day.

That brings up another point, with the built-in, you don't need to keep a box of Best Buy budget batteries or a charger around taking up valuable space or occupying a socket. The only devices I own that don't have a built-in battery are my Xbox controllers and my old controllers like the Wiimotes and 360 controllers. Built-in li-on batteries just make more sense on most devices and as such, most devices have moved to built-ins.

If you're really worried about the environment though, a single built-in battery is much better than hundreds of Best Buy disposable alkaline AAs chucked in the bin over the life of the controller. Even if you only swapped batteries once a week, over 5 years you used over 500 AA batteries. If you really want to dispose of the V2's battery you can always just drop off old electronics at most recycling facilities when you take all your Mountain Dew cans in for recycling.

I expect that Microsoft will go with built-in batteries for all of it's controllers going forward. Given how incredibly easy it is to work on the Xbox controllers I suspect replacing the battery will be a 5 minute job (pull grips, 5 screws, done). The lifespan of the li-on battery should be sufficient enough for it to last the console cycle for most people though. My WiiU Pro controllers are still holding extremely long charges after seven years of cycles, and my Switch Pro controllers are still performing like new. The Elite V2's 40-hour charge should give people ample time to plug it in before it depletes completely eliminating the need to swap battery packs, run into down-time, or need to charge while playing. Since the charger is housed in the case, there's no reason it wouldn't be fully charged every day, so unless you really want to play over 40 hours straight you should be set.
 
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quickwhips

Member
Who are these disposable battery scrubs?

Fuck shelling out money on batteries, this isn't 1989.

If the pad dies, slap the charge cable in or buy a 5M one so you can game.

I'm not a tree-hugger but there are little things we can do to no fuck the planet, and wanging batteries in the bin every 24 hours is one of them.
Except they make rechargeable batteries that fit multiple devicee and give more options.
 

Nikana

Go Go Neo Rangers!
Local Wally World had these out anyway and tried to buy one but the register wouldn't let me. Damn it
 
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