I used Xbox Elite Series 2

This text will be a laurel. Full of peanuts in honor of the most expensive gamepad on offer from Microsoft. Xbox Elite Series 2 is absolutely sensational. The problem is that regular Xbox controllers are also great.

I am not even going to try to discuss the dispute over the many years of the superiority of DualShock over Xbox Controller. I can't even refer to ergonomics research. Some of them show that the form promoted by Sony is better, than others by Microsoft. Subjectively, I prefer pad to Xbox. It is more comfortable in the hands, has more comfortable front buttons, the distribution of buttons and joysticks is perfect. However, I do not intend to discuss with DualShock fans. I'm afraid that in our small dispute we are all right and both solutions are great. The rest is an individual matter.

However, Microsoft has two controllers on offer ( I do not count the Adaptive Controller adapted for the disabled ). Basic and elite. The latter has just been refreshed and appears in store offers. It costs ridiculous 700 PLN, which means that if it is a bit different from perfection - it is not suitable due to the price to buy. Fortunately, I have good news. Although there is a catch.

Xbox Elite Series 2: we'll find a lot in the box. A lot

The biggest feature of the Elite line is the ability to customize the controller to your liking by ... replaceable spare parts. Along with the gamepad we get three sets of joysticks differing in height and surface for the finger and two sets for D-Pad. There are more possibilities for customizing the controller, but more on that in a moment.

The gamepad also comes with a case and a charger. Yes, unlike the traditional Microsoft gamepad, the Elite version is equipped with a battery. We can charge it with an ordinary USB-C charger or use the included docking station. What's nice and ingenious, we can put the docking station in the case, and this has a hole for the charging cable. So we can conveniently charge it while traveling, without removing it from the case.

Quality? It's probably the best computer equipment I've ever had in my hands.

There is no exaggeration in this. When it rains, feel immediately what we spent our hard-earned money on. The device is perfectly balanced and gives the impression of extremely durable. It is covered with material with a very strange texture, sometimes rubbery, but also very pleasant to the touch. It does not slip and somehow causes the palms to sweat much less when playing. Although the latter may be a placebo effect.

Resistance of joysticks and triggers, click of buttons - everything here is absolutely perfect. It is clear that the gamepad was made in a much more precise technological process than the mass product. I know that in the context of a gaming controller it sounds funny and exaggerated, but it's even watchmaking precision. Only that the device is also very durable.

At the bottom of the gamepad there are odd-looking blades. However, their role is to duplicate the other buttons on the pad. Each blade can be assigned any of the buttons. For what? This works great in some games. For example, in Tekken, where the specific keyboardology causes that we hold the rain a little differently. A short and sure click on the blades at the bottom works much better than the buttons on the front of the controller.

Hardware and software regulations

Joysticks and D-Pad can be customized to suit your needs. Replacing the knobs is child's play - they stick to the gamepag with a magnetic lock. All you have to do is remove one using a small force and put on the other. Despite this the hook is durable. Not once did the replaceable element fall off the gamepad, although I did not save it in games. Only when I accidentally dropped it, did it fall apart into components as if it was built of Lego blocks. You can also adjust the resistance of the knobs.

We can also configure trigger buttons. However, we do not exchange them for others, but we can adjust the depth of the stroke - for each trigger separately. Three settings are available. From very deep, through shallow down to almost digital click. We regulate it with appropriate switches under the pad.

But it's not over yet.

Surely you noticed an additional button is raining in the pictures, it is raining in the middle. This is the button for changing the device's program profiles. We can have as many as three saved in the controller's memory and use this button to switch between them. In each of the profiles we can customize ... basically everything that is possible.

From assigning any function to any button, by adjusting the way rods are measured to dead zones. After all, different settings work for different games. And we can jump between them in a second. The rada programming application is available for PCs with Windows 10 and Xbox One.

I'd like to talk about the battery, but I haven't managed to discharge it yet

According to the technical data provided by Microsoft, the gamepad unloads after 40 hours of playing. Looking at the level of consumption after a weekend spent on intense fun with this controller, I fully believe this declared value. I spent about 10 hours in two days with the pad. The level of charge according to the indicator dropped from the factory 85 percent. up to 60% Considering the disadvantage of meters, as a result of which the more discharged the battery, the faster the charge values ​​fall - my experience is fully consistent with Microsoft's declarations.

Wow.

This is definitely the best gamepad on the market. I will advise most of you: don't buy it

The greatest enemy of Xbox Elite Series 2 is not DualShock. Microsoft will never convince Sony fans - and vice versa. The biggest rival is a regular Xbox controller. It is absolutely sensational. And you can also buy a dedicated battery if the AA batteries used in it are a disadvantage.

So what do we gain by buying Elite? The battery included, paddles under the gamepad and the possibility of wide customization falls under your own needs. Oh, and a nice case and even better finishing materials. Is it buy or not?

A lot depends on your needs. Maybe I will write like this: I love video games. I wouldn't spend PLN 700 on raining, despite my great love for the game console. It offers me much more than I am interested in. On the other hand, if I have to send back a device rented from Microsoft, I will miss it very much. Elite v2 is wonderful. Elite, as the name implies. Absolutely brilliant. Although, in my opinion, only for the largest and wealthiest enthusiasts.

I used Xbox Elite Series 2