With the Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2, Microsoft offers a high-end controller for gamers that has an extremely high-quality finish, but at the same time is extremely expensive with an RRP of € 180. We have tested the second generation and will report to you today whether the investment can be worthwhile.
This is what the Xbox Elite Controller offers
The Xbox Elite Controller is very similar in structure to the normal Xbox controller, the shape of the controller does not differ. However, the controller has completely redesigned hardware inside and a few additional buttons.
One major difference is that the Xbox Elite Controller has a built-in battery as standard. With the normal Xbox controllers, you can buy a battery at a later date .
The material of the housing is also fundamentally different. If you find hard plastic with the normal controller, which is slightly grooved to allow a better grip, the Xbox Elite controller is almost completely rubberized, partly also provided with a texture to enable further improved grip.
Even here, the materials used feel extremely high quality, and due to the slightly higher weight, when you pick them up you can tell that this is a far higher quality product.
If you play with the controller for a while or just try around a bit, you will notice further details that have been significantly improved on the Xbox Elite Controller Series 2. The joysticks can be removed and replaced with the joysticks included in the scope of delivery. This includes, among other things, the shape of the joystick of the Xbox 360 generation.
As if that weren’t enough, the hardness of the joysticks can also be adjusted with the included key. So if you are a fan of a little more pressure here than with the normal Xbox controller, this can be wonderfully set in three stages.
And not only the joysticks can be adjusted, the two rear shoulder buttons, which work axis-based and have a very low pressure point on the normal Xbox controller, can be adjusted in three stages, thus drastically reducing the release distance. This enables a significantly higher reaction speed, for example with shooters.
The control pad on the Elite Controller is also of a significantly higher quality. You can switch between a normal control pad, only made of metal, or a control pad plate, which also allows you to press two direction buttons at the same time, e.g. “Northeast”.
The rest of the buttons on the Elite Controller have also been redesigned and feel a little different than on the normal generation of Xbox controllers. The pressure points are sometimes a little more detailed and the responsiveness more reliable.
As if that weren’t enough, the Xbox Elite Controller also offers additional back buttons, which are not available at all in the normal version. It is up to the player which buttons the back buttons represent and can be configured accordingly. For me, the position of the keys is also ideal; how well you can actually reach them, but it depends on the size of your own hands. The buttons can be uninstalled if desired.
The box contents of the Xbox Elite
You can also tell from the scope of delivery that this is a premium product. With the normal controller, at least in the basic configuration, there is actually nothing in the scope of delivery, apart from the controller itself. The Xbox Elite Controller 2, on the other hand, has a lot in the scope of delivery.
What is immediately noticeable when unpacking the Elite Controller: There is a transport bag in the scope of delivery. The controller is already in here.
The other attachments for the joysticks and the control pad can also be found in the pocket.
There is also one thing in the scope of delivery that we particularly liked: A docking station with which you can charge the Xbox controller without consciously plugging it into the power supply.
Microsoft actually came up with something here, the docking station can be used both in the pocket and outside the pocket on the table. This is also possible through a connection option through the bag.
Like the controller itself, the docking station also has a USB Type-C port. A correspondingly long cable, which is also very high quality, is also included in the scope of delivery.
As already described, the quality of the accessories is also extremely high, the number and existence of the individual parts make the Xbox Elite Controller a very special product in this respect as well.
More functions
The Xbox Elite Controller also offers some setting options, especially in the software. The buttons can be freely assigned, so it is not mandatory that the buttons correspond to the actual position. For example, you can place the B button on the A button, or one of the back buttons on the A button.
Here you have a free hand and can actually adjust everything the way you want it. So that you can quickly switch between different settings, the controller also offers the option of saving three profiles. There is also a standard mode in which no settings have been changed.
Like the normal Xbox controllers for some time now, the Xbox Elite Controller can optionally be connected directly to an Xbox, with Bluetooth with a Windows PC, an iPhone, an iPad or an Apple TV. If there is no electricity, or for whatever reason you cannot or do not want to use radio, you can also connect the controller to the PC with the USB Type-C cable.
Is the Xbox Elite Controller worth it?
The Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 is a particularly high-quality product which, thanks to its extremely high processing quality, ensures a very special gaming experience. For a price of 180 €, the controller is anything but cheap. For this price you would get three normal Xbox controllers. The product is actually only worthwhile for gamers who spend extremely long hours in games. Microsoft itself states, for example, that editors of gaming magazines and websites, who invest thousands of hours a year in games, are the perfect target group. But even players who gamble for many hours privately will definitely have fun with the controller. In spite of all this, the controller should not be the focus of investments.
