8Bitdo Ultimate Wired Controller for Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Windows 10 & Windows 11 - Officially Licensed (Black)

I’m an old man with kids and little time to “get gud” so when I need a new controller I’m looking for something comfortable, that lasts and is budget friendly. This one is it.More comfortable for my hands and fantastic controller. No drift issues at all so far and I can’t say that about any official XBox controller I’ve used this long. Cable is a decent length and I don’t have to worry about recharging/swapping batteries anymore.

Hall Effect (HE - IE: Magnetic) controllers are not a gimmick. 8bitDo is killing it in the value proposition with this controller. You get HE sticks and triggers, and a couple (2) of 'paddle' buttons underneath. Build quality is fantastic, and I've had zero issues with adjusting muscle memory or 'feeling' coming from either a PS4/5 DualShock or a Xbox Series X/S controller. The best part is the construction of the bumpers isn't some 2x1mm sliver of plastic for the button on the internals. These should last much longer than a standard Xbox controller, and at a fraction of the cost. Everything worked as intended right out of the box.

I bought this controller hoping it would be a controller I could keep using for the rest of my console's life without worrying about stick drift, and this was a fantastic controller that I was happy to use for as long as I used my xbox. I loved this controller, Like LOVE IT love it, which makes it all the more sad that it broke in less than a year, I bought this in July of 2024 and the right trigger stopped working in March of 2025. Very disappointing as I was taking good care of the controller and truly loved it. I do not treat my controllers poorly, neither of my 1st party Series controllers have had any issues in the years I've used them, but this one just up and broke on me randomly while playing Split Fiction. I liked the programmable buttons on the back and the great dpad and excellent sticks, and I will miss them when I'm back using the 1st party controllers, but at least those still work and won't stop anytime soon. I thought we were out of the era of 3rd party controllers being the cheap throwaway "little brother controllers" but I guess not. Heartbroken about this one because I genuinely loved it when it was working but I don't have the money to replace it with a new one.

Good so far, sticks feel nice with no drift after a few months

I'm writing this after having broke the controller. Was completely my fault, fell off the desk in a odd way and no controller would be guaranteed to survive it. During normal use, controller held up to the riggers of extended use.No issues or oddities to note. Problem was broken internal wire after the fall. I tried to repair it but did a poor job and the controller had to be replaced. I replaced it with another 8bitdo Ultimate xbox controller, but with the wire detachable...

This is so cute and works very well. I use it all the time and it allows me to play xbox with my boyfriend. I love it.

EDIT AND TL:DR- Basically buy their new xbox shaped ultimate controller, fixed all the previous issues, and returned with all of the features than other ultimate controllers have. Awesome controller cant reccomend the new xbox shaped Ultimate controller enoughEdit: I bought a 2nd controller, and after a week of playing on it, its already starting to give me the stick drift like the first one. They have a defect on the controller that causes the joystick to drift 15-20% randomly while stationary.I bought this controller on launch, and over my time with it so far i have put in about 400 hours and just started coming into my main manufacturer issues. As a focus understanding 95% of the hours were put on in Rocket League, so Right joystick didnt see much use but left saw alot, as well as heavy bumper trigger and face button use.TL:DRI like the controller alot, but i had joystick reliability issues when usually these guys make phenominal joysticks, and i didnt like the actuation of the bumpers and face buttons the most. I am being petty to a degree, but i am definitely buying another one, and still recommend this controller over other xbox counterparts. Just know the bumpers feel weird for some people (very usable) and the joystick (in my 1 controller experience so far) had reliability and major drift issues (but when it worked, it is one of the best joysticks i have ever used).First the pros about this controller.JOYSTICKS:out of the box the joysticks are extremely accurate, way higher quality of any xbox controller i have ever used. They are dead set to be perfect, no drift no slop when compared to other name brand xbox controllers. comparatively to Playstation controllers i would give these joysticks a very similar rating if i were to give them a score. They feel very similar and are both very accurate, i think these have less deadzone drift issues after the first 100 hours of use though, so they stay stable longer. More comments down belowTRIGGERS AND BUMPERS:another benefit are the bumpers and triggers, i feel the design after getting comfortable with them are well placed and great size and pressure, but with their own downsides. read below.FACEBUTTONS:When compared to standard xbox controller face buttons i feel these are of much higher quality and i dont get Ghost presses that i find i get on alot of xbox controllers elite or otherwise i have used in the past. But these are still dome shaped on a lightly curved surface, so they dont give the most desirable feel and accuracy when fat thumbing.ERGO:Its an xbox controller most of the way through, but back paddles dont feel great when you have middles on triggers and index on bumpers, if you only have index on bumpers and triggers, and use middle to press the paddles they feel fine.CONS:JOYSTICK:After 300ish hours of use my joystick started to stutter, and it seemed to be temporarily fixed if I used the Firmware software to reset the controller firmware (maybe i imagine the fix) But not at around 300 hours of use the joystick drift on the left joystick has reached an unusable amount for me, (IE: over 10% drift) and when i compare the experience with their Pro 2 controller, after 500+ hours my joysticks are still dead accurate, I find it hard to believe they may be different joystick designs, but there must be a lacking dust shield on this controller or something to cause this, or maybe i was unlucky getting one of the first prints.BUMPERS:besides the Joystick the Bumpers dont actuate well near the outside ends, and you can tell they are on a pivot joint rather than a diaphram or spring like Playstation bumpers. I got used to this by laying my finger across the bumper and moving the entire finger rather than a pointed grip, but still was annoying in the beggining of use.FACEBUTTONS:and to continue my thought on not liked designs, the curvature at the end of the B button causes fat fingering to not feel great, you can never properly get both buttons down reliably like you can on the flat face Pro 2 controller where the flat top buttons play really well with fat fingering and are generally some of the best feeling face buttons i have ever used.MISSING FEATURES:One thing i really wish they would bring back are all the features the Pro 2 controller held, they obviously have the software and hardware to make this happen, but must have had to leave it out for Xbox compatibility and partnership, it is what it is. But i would like to allow these features like Custom Macros and freedom of use the Pro2 brought for PC users. And a bluetooth version would be cool to have as well (im being petty)If my joystick wasnt drifting i would happily give this controller a 4 star review and maybe even a 5 star review for how accurate and great feeling it is, But im shy to give it a 5 star even if it had a good joystick, because i feel like 8BitDo has shown myself and its customers that they can make a controller with some of the best features, Face Buttons and most reliable and best designed joysticks ive ever used. But with the improves triggers and bumper from the Pro 2, they Missed the mark on Keeping up their previous achievements. Maybe this is a weak first rendition, but also it may be a final rendition waiting for a Bluetooth rerelease, I hope they Take this time to make the "perfect" controller for what they can do, even if its 20$ more i would happily pay for the quality I know they can put out. Rather than a step to the left that makes me disappointed in the lost potential they had.SUMMARY:Over all im very happy they made an Xbox style controller since i Have carpel Tunnel and the design is better for not irritating it, and im super happy the Joysticks seem to be the same design as their Pro2 Controller as even the Elite controllers have joystick slop very early on into use, not to mention Drift (average 8%) and other issues i have with them on quality. I definitely will be buying another one to see if i had a bad batch on the Joystick, because besides that this controller is really decent and honestly still performs better than most other xbox options i have used in the past, for a very competitive price. My only real griefs were in sections i have used their products and they have done a better job. So I only want to share my experience in hopes they can create a product I can enjoy my time with and in hopes that they as designers want to make their best product possible.