Google’s Stadia Controller to Get Wireless Support for Phones, Desktops in 2020
- Mehedi Hassan
- Nov 30, 2019
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Google Stadia has had a pretty poor launch. With the company delaying several headline features, and complaints about the game-streaming service not offering 4K or 60FPS gameplay, the launch has been nothing less than a big mess for Google.
Although the company just recently delivered one of the main perks for the early adopters of Stadia, the company is yet to launch another major feature for the Stadia Controller: wireless functionality. As you may remember, Google quietly announced in October that the Stadia Controller will only be wireless for those using the Chromecast Ultra.
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And that means if you are playing Stadia on any of the other supported devices, including the Pixel Slate, Pixel 3, Pixel 3a, Acer Chromebook Tab 10, or the HP Chromebook X2, you will need to connect to the controller via a USB cable. Google said the company will add wireless functionality to the Stadia Controller for other devices soon, but the company has now stated a more concrete timeframe for the feature’s full launch: 2020.
The eagle-eyed folks at 9to5Google noticed that the Stadia Controller’s Google Store listing now says the controller will get wireless support for laptops, desktops, phones, and tablets in 2020, but it still won’t provide an exact launch date just yet.
Wireless functionality for the Stadia Controller is a big deal for one main reason: the controller uses built-in WiFi to directly connect to Stadia servers when you are playing games, meaning it will be able to reduce input lag. And without the support for wireless connectivity, most Stadia users won’t be able to make use of that feature unless they have a Chromecast Ultra.
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Conversation 3 comments
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willc
<p>Stadia has not had a "poor" launch. Once you get past unrealistic expectations, you'll find that Stadia just works and does what people want it to do. I'm loving it so far, and I'm sure most people without pre-determined biases feel the same. </p>