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Review: Logitech Cordless Precision Controller for Xbox

I was so enamored with the Logitech Cordless Action Controller for PS2 I picked up a few weeks ago, that when I heard Logitech had released a second-generation wireless gamepad for Xbox, I ran out and picked that one up too. And sure enough, it's pretty much the Xbox equivalent of the PS2 controller. It's a huge step up from the batarang-esque first-generation gamepad, and just like the PS2 controller is closely modeled after the DualShock, the Xbox one is modeled after the Controller S. This is a good thing, of course. Like the PS2 controller, it features excellent control, force-feedback, killer battery life (50 hours -- with force feedback -- off just two AA batteries), and is easily among the best third party controllers I've ever used.

I do have two small complaints about this one though. The first, is that while the gamepad itself has gotten significantly smaller and easier to manage from the original Xbox wireless controller, the base station has not. I realize that this is so the base station retains the dual-port expansion slots from the stock Xbox controllers, but it just makes it much bulkier than the svelte box that attaches to the PS2. The second is not really a fault of the gamepad, but just a problem with using a wireless controller with the Xbox -- if you want to use Microsoft's Xbox Live headset, you need to plug in a wired controller. Logitech's Cordless Headset for Xbox ships this week, and I might just round up all my now useless wired gamepads and sell them back to my local GameStop in order to get this instead. Being completely free of wires is so great, that it's a real step backwards every time I go to play on Xbox Live.

But really, those are minor complaints. This is a great piece of hardware, and I can just as easily recommend it as I can its PS2 counterpart. It's taken a while, but there are finally top-notch wireless controllers available for PS2 and Xbox. My GameCube is still out of luck, as I won't use the force-feedbackless WaveBird, but I use my GameCube so rarely these days, that it's not much of a loss.

Posted by jason at November 14, 2004 12:25 PM | TrackBack | Read more: Games , Reviews