More info needed on Elite 2 Bumpers

Paul, can you please go in depth with the Xbox guys on how the bumpers on the new Elite 2 controller were redesigned, which is a pretty nebulous word, as well as how long they expect them to last, as well as why. The bumpers on the Xbox controllers, as well as the Elite are a sore point for me. Since buying my Xbox One soon after it came out I have had to replace 6 bumpers on my controllers. I will be replacing the third broken bumper on my Elite controller probably tonight (it is broken but hanging in there) so I am going onto 7 now. All but one of these breaks came from normal use (I am an FPS guy as well), the one possible exception being a wayward grandson that accidentally knocked it off a table (the bumper broke soon afterwards)

When I bought the Elite I was expecting a well crafted piece of hardware since it was sold that way. The cheap, literally 50¢ piece of plastic they used for the bumpers, quickly dispelled that illusion when I had to replace the first one. From a mechanical design these look like they are literally designed to fail over time from stress wear on the plastic material connecting the two bumpers together that they are using as a spring.

Before spending $179 plus 10% sales tax, I would really like to know that Microsoft has a much better design now.

I would also like to know more about the battery since it appears to be built in. I would like to know how replaceable it is. We all know that rechargeable batteries wear out over time. I use my controller a lot and I do not want to be looking at having to get rid of my controller over a dead battery in it.

Is it using a wireless charging system with the case (the video makes it look like that could be the case) or do we need to plug the cable into the controller itself? I currently run with 2 rechargeable batteries, one charging while the other is in use, which means I never have to plug a cable into my controller. I find this preferential since in my experience cables get pulled on and then controllers go flying (back to my experience with my grandson) where they easily can be broken.

I hope your contacts can answer these concerns.

Conversation 4 comments

  • Patrick3D

    10 June, 2019 - 12:49 pm

    <p>The 19-20 second mark of the reveal trailer for the new controller shows the bumper part in an exploded view: <a href="https://youtu.be/SYVw0KqQiOI?t=19s&quot; target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">https://youtu.be/SYVw0KqQiOI?t=19s</a&gt; On the Xbox website you can view the controller backside which clearly does not have a removable battery cover and states that the battery is "internal". The site also states that you can charge the controller inside or outside the case with a USB-C charging cable. The case simply has a hole for the cable to connect to the dock through, but it appears the dock can be taken out of the case if desired. The dock itself does not have a battery built in to it. <a href="https://www.xbox.com/en-us/xbox-one/accessories/controllers/elite-wireless-controller-series-2&quot; target="_blank">https://www.xbox.com/en-us/xbox-one/accessories/controllers/elite-wireless-controller-series-2</a></p><p><br></p><p><br></p&gt;

    • Mr_MDavis

      10 June, 2019 - 8:20 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#434430">In reply to Patrick3D:</a></em></blockquote><p>I looked at your video and unfortunately I could not really see the detail required to see how the new bumpers work, due to the other parts being in the way. The good news though is that I can see enough to see that it is not using the same bumper technology as the current elite. So that’s a plus, or should I say the removal of a “minus”.</p><p><br></p><p>I am sorry to see that the battery appears to be completely encased in the controller. Rechargeable batteries wear out over time, so that is why I am asking how much will it cost to replace it (as well as how difficult). I am pretty sure the initial warranty will be over long before it loses it’s charge but long before the rest of the controller is unusable. My experience with rechargeable controller batteries leads me to expect about a year of usage at most before they no longer last more than a couple of hours on a “full” charge. Being able to easily replace them for about $15 on a yearly basis is acceptable. I am not sure I see that as an option with the Elite 2.</p><p><br></p><p>As for the need to plug in the controller to recharge the battery is also a disappointment to me as I have had USB ports wear out on me in the past. Also, as I mentioned before, charging cables can be dangerous to a controller as they are an easy way to knock/pull a controller off a table and onto the floor. Of course charging a controller in its closed case can help to protect it, but it needs to be easy to use if people are to take advantage of it.</p><p><br></p><p>Speaking of cables, I think it is a huge advantage that they are supporting Bluetooth in the controller, at least it is if we can now use Bluetooth headsets with the controller. To me it is a huge plus to get rid of the cable between the controller and the headset (see I am not all negative). This cable has almost lead to my controller flying off of a table several times. The use of Bluetooth headsets is also probably one of the ways the Elite 2 gets longer battery life since it no longer has to drive the speakers of the headset directly.</p>

      • Mr_MDavis

        10 June, 2019 - 8:38 pm

        <blockquote><em><a href="#434506">In reply to Mr_MDavis:</a></em></blockquote><p>I just saw the detailed picture of the charging dock and the bottom of the controller. It looks like it is the dock that plugs into the cable through the case and not the controller. This is clearly a better solution than what I thought you were saying. I am okay with the cable staying plugged into the dock through the case and then the dock, using the multiple contacts, recharges the controller while the case protects it. I am hopeful though that the controller or dock will give some form of audible/visual or tactile feedback when the controller is placed on the dock and starts recharging. Taking a controller off the dock and finding out at that point that it has not recharged because of misalignment or that something like oils from a finger or food prevented good contact will definitely lead to a very disappointing experience with controller.</p>

  • Briggzcountry

    13 June, 2019 - 5:00 pm

    <p>You should check out this session from E3 where they did a panel on the new Elite Series 2 controller. I do remember them discussing the design of the bumpers… it was a good watch!</p><p><br></p><p>https://youtu.be/TblK1kWMxiE</p><p><br></p&gt;

Windows Intelligence In Your Inbox

Sign up for our new free newsletter to get three time-saving tips each Friday

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Thurrott © 2024 Thurrott LLC