Gadgetory

having a powerful console is great but without a good controller it doesn't mean much both the Xbox one and ps4 have made a lot of changes to their controller since the last generation unlike the DualShock 3 which is mostly unchanged from the original PlayStation the ps4 gamepad is a huge step forward it's wider and more comfortable with a subtle pattern on the grips which is nice especially for extended gaming sessions the thumb sticks are now concave to give your fingers a nice place to rest and they've got a grippy rubber coating this feels good while gaming but there have been issues people like my friend Lou from unbox therapy have had the rubber wear out and peel with plenty of others having the same problem this seems to mostly be an issue with launch ps4 I haven't had a problem with my controllers so unless you log some serious hours it shouldn't be an issue the Xbox one controller might not be such a huge change but it's seen some improvements as well the grip feels a bit bigger and more comfortable in my hands but the 360 controller didn't leave a lot of room for improvement the thumb sticks have been updated with a nice textured grip which feels tighter than the smooth finish on the older controller after a year and a half of use my left thumb stick has started to get a bit loose but other than that it's held up fairly well the triggers on the ps4 are nicely shaped with decent travel and I definitely prefer the shoulder buttons to us on the Xbox one but the Xbox triggers are larger and have a nicer feel the big advantage though are the impulse triggers in addition to having Rumble motors in the controller Microsoft to fit an extra motor and each trigger to give you feedback in game it's especially noticeable in racing games like Forza where you can feel the triggers vibrate as you start to lose traction but it's also useful in other games like shooters to give you more detailed feedback than just shaking your entire controller you get used to it quickly it's a really nice feature that I've come to appreciate on the ps4 you'll find the traditional X square triangle and circle buttons on the right side along with the solid d-pad which is about as good as it gets for a console controller where you used to have start and select buttons you'll now find share and options options is basically the pause button and share allows you to grab a quick screenshot or video clip along with streaming your game square in the middle of the controller is the touchpad similar to what you'll find on the back of the Vita this is used in games to pull up a quick option but some titles like tearaway unfolded do a much better job of taking advantage of the sensitivity there is also a speaker in the controller to listen to ingame audio logs for things like a radio speaking of audio every ps4 controller has a built in 3.5 millimeter headphone jack to be able to gain quietly with headphones there is a port you can use with a Playstation headset but having the option of using your own headphones is a big plus the Xbox one has needed a proprietary headset for a while however they've recently released an updated controller that includes a headphone jack but bigger news though is the elite controller this brings replaceable thumbsticks which can easily be swapped and interchangeable d-pad with a cool faceted design and for programmable paddles for easier access to things like your face buttons it also has a hair-trigger bump stop for shorter actuation and a dedicated switch to move between setups it's a legitimately cool controller but with a hefty $150 price tag it's not all that practical all three versions of the Xbox one controller come with double A batteries considering the ps3 shipped with rechargeable batteries nearly ten years ago this really isn't cool having to pay an extra 15 dollars for the play and charge kit is a big pain on the other hand it is usable as a wired controller on both the Xbox one and PC which is really useful the DualShock 4 is bigger more comfortable and adds a lot of features that range from decent to downright useful the Xbox one controller takes one of the best game pads of all time and improves it but at the end of the day the PlayStation 4 just barely takes this one of course there's more to it than just controllers so stay tuned this comparison is far from over