Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Ever since video game hardware and accessory makers got the inspiration to create wireless controllers, it became the case that they always managed to screw up at least one of two things on each new design: either the controller is awful, or the wireless aspect is worthless. Nintendo changed all that with the release of their Wavebird wireless controller, the first wireless controller that worked as well as, and felt just as good as, the wired controllers it was meant to replace. So the Gamecube got an excellent wireless pad on the first try... not so with the PS2. Sony refuses to take a hint from Nintendo, and so leaves the development of wireless pads to third-party developers. The end result has been a steady stream of crappy pads. Logitech's first controller had excellent wireless response, but had an awful controller design. The Pelican wireless controllers seem to exhibit just a little bit of wireless lag. And the Airplay controller drops signal randomly. But this, Logitech's *new* controller, bucks the trend, and finally gives us a wireless PS2 controller that stands up to the task. It's well sculpted, so it's comfortable in the hands. Even with batteries, it's a good, balanced weight. The directional pad is simple and reliable. The face buttons have a nice, tactile click, without being too stiff. The sticks aren't as domed as the Sony pad's are, but they are textured, so your thumbs don't slip off, and the translucent blue orbs that the sticks extend from look pretty cool (too bad they don't illuminate!). The controller itself also has a kind of matte texture which seems to reduce, if not eliminate, Sweaty Palm Syndrome. As controllers go, this is a good one so far. But how is the wireless performance? Well, the good news is, *it rocks*. I've noticed no lag whatsoever, and no signal dropouts. The rumble feature is quite adequate, and the battery life is outstanding (50+ hours on a set of 2 AA batteries). The range is more than most people will need (30 feet or so... now I can play games from my kitchen!), and the receiver unit is surprisingly small. I'm used to big, ugly wireless receivers sticking off of my PS2, but this thing is tiny... only barely larger than the actual connector piece from a wired controller, in fact. Neither the controller nor the receiver has any kind of "channel" setting, so I was somewhat worried that only one of these could be used at a time. I seem to have underestimated Logitech, though... apparently, the controllers are smart, and can self-adjust, finding frequencies far enough apart so that they don't interfere with each other. Brilliant. This is a great controller in every aspect. Highly, highly reccommended.