Also Xbox controllers have garbage ass build quality. Valve seems to make pretty solid hardware. The only one I see as comparable is the PS5 dualsense controller, but it’s still missing some things like the extra buttons. It has a touchpad, but just one, and it’s not optimally placed, imho.
I like the Dualsense a lot at its best, but I go through roughly a controller per year probably. One of them something with the rumble loosened. Not noticeable in some games, but when I was playing Returnal it sounded like a jackhammer. Another the sticks got…sticky in a way that was really distracting. Stick drift on another, and my current one the right arrow stopped working. I had to re-map it to the left stick click to play Infinite Wealth, and other games like Elden Ring just won’t work with it.
Agreed though, when they work they’re comfortable, responsive, intuitive. At their best they’re the best controller I’ve used.
But for $80+ these days they should have hall effect sticks and mechanical switches. I’ve started buying https://www.gulikit.com/ controllers, which have both and are much cheaper, but not as comfy or responsive.
Last year my wife picked up a pair of regular Xbox pads for us to use when playing couch co-ops over Sunshine/Moonlight. When the pricing for the new Steam controller was announced, she went back and had a look at what she paid. They’ve gone up in price and are currently £80.
Each.
For an extra £5 you get haptics, touch pads, FAR better stick technology, and all in a package that’s as repairable as it can be.
Yeah, but is it really that much more expensive than other controllers? PS5 Dual Sense is 79€. Xbox Series X/S is 65€ with the Elite 2 at 200€. Considering the additional features of the Steam controller and current development of hardware prices, the pricing seems reasonable.
Edit: I should add, those are recommended retail prices (UVP), and the actual prices from individual stores can be lower.
Prices can’t be compared directly, because in Germany we have the taxes in the price included already. And the taxes in the US vary I think. So the difference is less than it looks like by just converting with current exchange rates.
Right? Just compare it to the glued mess that is the $90 Switch 2 controller or to a $200 DualSense pro (or whatever name Sony’s premium controller goes by).
Say what you will but Valve built the Steam Controller to last. I expect the first weeks to be a little bumpy on the software side (as is always the case with controllers) but it will quickly become very future rich. Likely more so than any other controller. And Valve is doing all that with a focus on Linux.
I am not one to easily praise US tech companies and Valve is far from perfect but the Steam Deck has a very good track record and this controller seems like it meets those standards as well.
It‘s a very good deal if repairability, full Linux support and feature richness are what you‘re looking for.
Sorry dude, I’m not paying $100 USD for a controller. The last controller I bought cost me ~$30 USD (GameSir T4 Kaleid) and has everything I need, including hall effect sticks. The steam controller having cool tech like touchpads and a gyro and whatever else is cool I guess, but I don’t need or want that. No amount of stuff like that is gonna make me spend that much on a controller.
So yes, the steam controller price raised my eyebrows, in the same way that basically all first-party controllers do. They’re all crazily overpriced imo.
They’re priced for all those things you don’t want that other people do. It’s a bit like complaining that a racing motorcycle is too expensive because all you need is a scooter to get around.
The original comment couldn’t understand why people were ‘raising their eyebrows’ at the price. I said because it’s basically a luxury item. Whether there are other alternatives that are even less value doesn’t factor into it. That’s the ‘door in the face’ fallacy.
Regardless of whether a Rolls Royce is more or less ‘value’ than a Lamborghini there’s gonna be a whole bunch of people that are gonna look at that and say ‘why would you spend X times the money when it gets you from A to B just the same as a Toyota Corolla’. That’s the answer to the original question.
Both of the other controllers you listed are already too expensive for what they are. That doesn’t really justify the price of the Steam controller imo. This isn’t a “pro” controller either. This is the only one Valve offers. Sure it has a lot of good tech and features, but its all stuff they have been putting on the deck for years. I would hardly call the price a steal. I feel like a fair price for a controller like this would have been about $70-80. Not to mention, Valve isn’t trying to only sell this to tech enthusiasts. They want this to be a widespread product. $100 for a controller is too steep for an average consumer.
WTF?
Only those that know nothing about the features and tech internal.
price is a steal.
With prices of hardware in general world-wide (non-ram related) we’re lucky this isn’t $120US or $150US
Switch 2 Joycon’s are the same price for fuck sakes…
Xbox Elite Wireless Controller is more expensive, and can’t do the things this controller can do.
Also Xbox controllers have garbage ass build quality. Valve seems to make pretty solid hardware. The only one I see as comparable is the PS5 dualsense controller, but it’s still missing some things like the extra buttons. It has a touchpad, but just one, and it’s not optimally placed, imho.
I have serious stick drift on Dualsense controllers after using them on and off for just a year. 3 controllers, all with the same issue.
I like the Dualsense a lot at its best, but I go through roughly a controller per year probably. One of them something with the rumble loosened. Not noticeable in some games, but when I was playing Returnal it sounded like a jackhammer. Another the sticks got…sticky in a way that was really distracting. Stick drift on another, and my current one the right arrow stopped working. I had to re-map it to the left stick click to play Infinite Wealth, and other games like Elden Ring just won’t work with it.
Agreed though, when they work they’re comfortable, responsive, intuitive. At their best they’re the best controller I’ve used.
But for $80+ these days they should have hall effect sticks and mechanical switches. I’ve started buying https://www.gulikit.com/ controllers, which have both and are much cheaper, but not as comfy or responsive.
Ackshully, the PS5 touchpad has two sides that can be individually configured. But you’re right that it’s not optimally placed.
The Index conttollers were a bit of a joke, in terms of both build quality and ergonomics. I had like 3 RMAs.
Build quality is debatable, but I thought the ergonomics were great. What didn’t you like about them?
Never had a problem with mine and I have smacked them into solid objects pretty hard a few times.
Anecdotal RMAs aside, I think the ergonomics are fantastic and they blew every other VR controller I’ve tried out of the water.
Last year my wife picked up a pair of regular Xbox pads for us to use when playing couch co-ops over Sunshine/Moonlight. When the pricing for the new Steam controller was announced, she went back and had a look at what she paid. They’ve gone up in price and are currently £80.
Each.
For an extra £5 you get haptics, touch pads, FAR better stick technology, and all in a package that’s as repairable as it can be.
Yeah, £85 is a fucking bargain at this point.
£85 GBP is pretty much $120 USD (it’s $114).
And that’s very much what the yanks will pay for it. American prices are always before taxes.
Polish prise is 420 pln wchich is also 115$
Not everyone is in us. 99 euro no matter how reasonable prices a lot of Germans out
Yeah, but is it really that much more expensive than other controllers? PS5 Dual Sense is 79€. Xbox Series X/S is 65€ with the Elite 2 at 200€. Considering the additional features of the Steam controller and current development of hardware prices, the pricing seems reasonable.
Edit: I should add, those are recommended retail prices (UVP), and the actual prices from individual stores can be lower.
Prices can’t be compared directly, because in Germany we have the taxes in the price included already. And the taxes in the US vary I think. So the difference is less than it looks like by just converting with current exchange rates.
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Right? Just compare it to the glued mess that is the $90 Switch 2 controller or to a $200 DualSense pro (or whatever name Sony’s premium controller goes by).
Say what you will but Valve built the Steam Controller to last. I expect the first weeks to be a little bumpy on the software side (as is always the case with controllers) but it will quickly become very future rich. Likely more so than any other controller. And Valve is doing all that with a focus on Linux.
I am not one to easily praise US tech companies and Valve is far from perfect but the Steam Deck has a very good track record and this controller seems like it meets those standards as well.
It‘s a very good deal if repairability, full Linux support and feature richness are what you‘re looking for.
Sorry dude, I’m not paying $100 USD for a controller. The last controller I bought cost me ~$30 USD (GameSir T4 Kaleid) and has everything I need, including hall effect sticks. The steam controller having cool tech like touchpads and a gyro and whatever else is cool I guess, but I don’t need or want that. No amount of stuff like that is gonna make me spend that much on a controller.
So yes, the steam controller price raised my eyebrows, in the same way that basically all first-party controllers do. They’re all crazily overpriced imo.
They’re priced for all those things you don’t want that other people do. It’s a bit like complaining that a racing motorcycle is too expensive because all you need is a scooter to get around.
If it’s priced like a racing motorcycle then you shouldn’t be surprised when people raise their eyebrows at the price.
Do you often look up the prices of racers to be shocked by the price?
Only when people comment that ‘the price is normal, actually’, and that I ought to buy one because they’re so cheap.
In comparison to comparable devices. Are you incapable of understanding context?
The original comment couldn’t understand why people were ‘raising their eyebrows’ at the price. I said because it’s basically a luxury item. Whether there are other alternatives that are even less value doesn’t factor into it. That’s the ‘door in the face’ fallacy.
Regardless of whether a Rolls Royce is more or less ‘value’ than a Lamborghini there’s gonna be a whole bunch of people that are gonna look at that and say ‘why would you spend X times the money when it gets you from A to B just the same as a Toyota Corolla’. That’s the answer to the original question.
Both of the other controllers you listed are already too expensive for what they are. That doesn’t really justify the price of the Steam controller imo. This isn’t a “pro” controller either. This is the only one Valve offers. Sure it has a lot of good tech and features, but its all stuff they have been putting on the deck for years. I would hardly call the price a steal. I feel like a fair price for a controller like this would have been about $70-80. Not to mention, Valve isn’t trying to only sell this to tech enthusiasts. They want this to be a widespread product. $100 for a controller is too steep for an average consumer.