Logitech: PS3 controller alternative, or shenanigans?
by Nick Doerr 
{ Jun 14th 2007 at 10:30AM }
For $40 and the added joy of repeated AA battery purchases (50 hour battery life? Hats off, if possible), did Logitech really think this peripheral through before releasing it to the masses? If it's going to be a PlayStation 3 controller, it should include both rumble and motion. It's called forward-thinking. PS3 will have rumble eventually, but motion is an integral part of the system. Bottom line: if you want to play your PS2 games wirelessly on the PS3 with rumble, this is a decent option. Don't try to play Lair with it, though. Your dragon will never, ever, ever move.
[via Joystiq]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
WhackMushroom @ Jun 14th 2007 11:34AM
whos to say that ps2 style rumble will be the same as the ps3 style rumble? from a code standpoint is it the same?
Wii360dsPC @ Jun 14th 2007 11:24AM
AA batteries rock. Easy replacement and you're never tethered for charging. Keep a set of rechargeables around and you've got infinite gaming.
By going with AAs on the 360, Microsoft demonstrated the right way to power a controller.
Don't try to play Lair with it? I can't play Lair with the current PS3 controller, let alone Metal Gear Solid 4, or GRAW 2.
SectionZMusic.com @ Jun 14th 2007 11:36AM
AA batteries are bad for the enviorment.
J @ Jun 14th 2007 9:49PM
The PS3/2 controller sux, always has imo. My favorite alternative was the Logitech wireless for the PS2. Once they make a full featured controller I will gladly buy one. But for now I just can't, I don't want to be left out once someone makes a game with motion controls that actually fit into the game well, every game I have played on my PS3 w/ motion controls feels forced and distracts from the game. Sony's LAME for adding motion controls in the first place. When I want fun, innovative controls I turn on the the Wii, when I want pretty graphics I turn on the PS3.
mccomber @ Jun 14th 2007 11:56AM
"By going with AAs on the 360, Microsoft demonstrated the right way to power a controller."
Is that why they also sell the "play and charge" kit? I'm glad my PS3's controller came with that already built in. By using a long-life, light-weight rechargable built into the controller, Sony demonstrated the right way to power a controller.
And also, when it finally dies, you will be able to send it in to be replaced. Just like you do with a 360 console when it quits working.
I plug my ps3 controllers in when I'm watching a movie, or on the rare occasion they run low during a game, either swap for the second controller that's always charging if nobody else is playing, or just plug in the 10 foot usb cable I have and keep playing. I'd rather do that then spend my money on AAs, or pulling them out constantly to recharge them in a seperate charger.
Stef Geiger @ Jun 14th 2007 11:58AM
@2: Very good point. I'm pretty certain that the rumble functionality will only serve PS2 games. I think it's a pretty safe bet that the PS3's rumble will be significantly more advanced (there's lots of talk about immersion's newer haptic tech).
@3: Yes, they may teach you that in grade nine science, but the lithium ion batteries inside the sixaxis controllers, despite being "recyclable" aren't exactly environmentally friendly either. Regardless, there are many varieties of rechargeable AAs that aren't that harmful. NiMH batteries these days carry a LOT of charge an can be reused hundreds of times. And if you're concerned about batteries harming the environment, you MIGHT want to start protesting the billion or so cell phone and iPod users out there.
borland502 @ Jun 14th 2007 12:06PM
"AA batteries are bad for the enviorment."
Then use rechargeable ones hippy =-.) If you still feel bad about the power draw, then get a solar powered battery charger. You may have to wait two days for a full charge, but if that makes you feel better....
It still surprises me that some faux-environmentalists target the wrong things in their quest to save the planet. I think I recent study of US land fills found that diapers are 2%, while paper is more than 40%.
Besides, most AA batteries aren't even sealed-lead or cadmium. There are better things to comment on. And speaking of comments, I think I led myself astray.
massive_98 @ Jun 14th 2007 12:36PM
"Just like you do with a 360 console when it quits working"
I love that comment. It made me smile...I have to write a Social Exam today. Not gonna be fun. Not at all.
Can't you use DualShock controllers with your PS3. I like how Sony names there controllers. It is alot easier to call it Sixaxis instead of that Xbox 360 controller.
I love all the posts, so much to talk bout.
SectionZMusic.com @ Jun 14th 2007 12:58PM
also .. AA batteries are a chocking hazard for toddlers.
OrganicShadow @ Jun 14th 2007 1:10PM
I agree with #4.
The built-in batteries seemed lame until I actually got my PS3, and then the convenience of them made sense. You guys can take the "yeah well you PS3 owners aren't playing very many games so you don't really have room to complain about controllers losing charge yet" angle, but even with playing RFOM online, Oblivion, and Motorstorm nonstop for a weekend the charge time and charge life hasn't bothered me or anyone else I know that owns a PS3 yet.
I salute the 360 for going with AA's so that people can make use of that convenience, but it's still nowhere as convenient as just directly charging while you play and not having to swap out batteries. Yes, Sony should have made the battery removable like the PSP for third party battery manufacturers, but that's a small thing to get angry about, and they can always built that option into the rumble-enabled future version.
Popfrogs @ Jun 14th 2007 1:57PM
"By going with AAs on the 360, Microsoft demonstrated the right way to power a controller"
HAHAHhahaha..oh man, most ignorant comment EVER. You fanboys really crack me up sometimes. 2 heavy AA batteries or 2 light expensive rechargeable AA batteries? How much have you just tacked onto the price? How lame is it pulling batteries in and out all the time? We just plug our controllers in via a tiny USB cable and forget about it. And they're wireless. And sense motion.
Microsoft = old gen tech FTL.
davebo @ Jun 14th 2007 2:21PM
Getting back to the lack of motion, I'd love for all ps3 third party controllers to drop motion. I think it's annoying and too heavily relied upon by Sony for actions that would be better accomplished with the buttons. Let's just pretend it never happened, get the rumble back and move on. I swear if they stick some retarded action in GTA4 where every time I accidentally tilt the controller while playing, my player trips or crashes into a building, I'm gonna go insane. It's cute in tech demos, its annoying in real games.
borland502 @ Jun 14th 2007 2:43PM
#12
Don't be too quick to dismiss the motion functions. My wife loves Rub-a-Dub. It got awful reviews, but it is one of those few "casual" games the PS3 can call its own. I agree that they shouldn't throw support in for the hell of it, but they did that with rumble at first too. Then they learned that some games benefit and some do not.
Since she is now getting use out of something she rolled her eyes at...I shall not turn my nose up at the sixaxis. Of course, she's also loving Sudoku and the Media server functions now.
borland502 @ Jun 14th 2007 5:07PM
@14
"so my controller never gets charged"
First, simmer down buddy. Second, use a usb hub or spend $20 to get that Nyko crap. There are also cheaper knockoffs that just have two mini-usb plugs coming out of a transformer.
I do folding@home, so charging isn't a problem. But there are other ways to charge the things than ranting at the uncaring universe.
steve @ Jun 14th 2007 6:31PM
@ Rob Holiday: so, basically, what you're saying is you hate everything about your ps3, never use it, and you're buried to far up microsoft's ass to say anything nice. why did you buy the ps3 again? dumbass.
J @ Jun 14th 2007 9:49PM
@ Rob Holiday
Read The Manual. The batteries in the sixaxis are replaceable. Using AA's is stupid, burn thru batteries like crazy, that's why rechargeables for the Wii and 360 are selling so well. About charging, you said yourself it hasn't lost it's charge since you got the system and you've only charged during updates. Sounds like a good thing, yet you use it as a complaint. Oh and it's USB, you can plug it into a computer to charge too don't tell me you don't have an empty usb slot on the computer you're using right now to post that witty reply.
Kagetora @ Jul 14th 2007 9:45AM
I'm not sure if anyone noticed, but in the PS3 manual it saus you take the 4 screws out of the back of the sixaxis controller and you can change out the lithium ion battery. The battery is like a cordless phone battery.
Previous reviews on the web do not mention this. Personally I don't understand why Sony did not put a battery door on the controller. Maybe more Apple mentality.