PS2 wireless controllers?

[fujishig]

My wife, bless her heart, went to Bestbuy to get me a birthday present. Since she already had gotten me a couple of games through the KB deal, and she has no idea what's good, she bought one of those MadCatz 900 Mhz wireless controllers for the PS2.

I never buy third party accessories since an Interact paged PS1 memory card purged my Final Fantasy 7 save many years ago. But it's a present, right? Then I found out how much it costs... 60 bucks! Ouch.

Still, I decided to keep it. We went to Target on some errand, and I found the exact same controller, in different packaging, marked down to 30 bucks. So we bought that one, returned the old one, and saved 30 bucks. I figure, for 5 bucks more than a regular controller, how bad could it be? It came with a little docking station and everything.

I don't know if this is indicative of all wireless controllers, but there is definitely a lag. I noticed it when doing kickoffs on NFL 2K3... my timing was off on the kicks. Doesn't this put you at a disadvantage in multiplayer games? Especially for stuff like FPSs... where you have to target on the fly?

Also, it frequently presses the start button automatically. And it doesn't seem to work at all with Simpson's Road Rage (which I got on the same Target trip). I had originally envisioned buying several of these controllers, but to hook up more than one, you have to manually press the button on all the wireless recievers after the game is turned on.

So my question is... why bother? Who buys these things for 50 bucks or more (whether it be the Madcatz or Logitech or whatever), and why? Are there better controllers out there (I know the Wavebird is pretty good for GCN). I could see if you have a huge TV or something... but with my puny 27" TV, if I go any farther away than a normal controller can go, I can barely see the game.

[chess]

i have extension cables for every console i own...they don't bother me...and i'd never buy batteries for a controller.

but i need extensions because my TV is huge.

[jeffdsmith]

Originally posted by fujishig

So my question is... why bother? Who buys these things for 50 bucks or more (whether it be the Madcatz or Logitech or whatever), and why? Are there better controllers out there (I know the Wavebird is pretty good for GCN). I could see if you have a huge TV or something... but with my puny 27" TV, if I go any farther away than a normal controller can go, I can barely see the game.

Well. my experiance is limited to the WaveBird, however it's not just about cord length. Having the Wavebird means no messy wires. Until you have it it's hard to really appreciate how nice it is. It performs flawlessy, and lasts forever on 2 AA's.

The Wavebird uses an entirally different type of technology then other wireless controllers which is why I think you might find it performs much better then the rest.

The cost of the waebird is $35 bucks. $30 on sale. I got mine for $15 after trading in a used regular controller. I realize that all this doesn't really help your PS2 situation, but I felt it important to share my love of the device. :) I ended up liking it much more then I thought I would. (The whole reason I bought one is because I borrowed my friends...)

[fujishig]

The wavebird uses a different technology?

I thought the only revolution it had was to use radio signals (900 MHZ) instead of IR, so that line of sight was no longer a problem. The Madcatz does this as well. Does it have some other innovation?

BTW, I have heard that it is an incredible controller. Wish Sony would come out with their own (though they do license the Logitech one, I guess).

And the Madcatz wireless doesn't waste batteries, it has a rechargable battery pack and a docking station for the controller. In that respect, it's pretty cool.

[jeffdsmith]

Originally posted by fujishig
The wavebird uses a different technology?


I'm sorry, I was incorrect. I had mis-read some info a long time ago and had just woke up. Wasn't thinking. :) I apologize for the confusion.

The Wavebird also uses 900MHz RF. Here is a full product review.

http://gear.ign.com/articles/361/361933p1.html

[squidget]

I have the wavebird, and i've played with the logitech wireless controllers for the ps2 on multiple occassions.
I perfer wireless. less cords equals less mess ( i have 6 consoles hooked to my tv, I wish they were all wireless)
i have a tendency to get 'into' my games (like moving the controller around in the air helps) no wires means no chance i can pull out the controller or pull the whole console down.
I can go to the kitchen and get a soda and continue fishing in ac.
if someone wants to play and is to lazy to get off my coach sitting 10 feet away i can toss them the controller.
small children can go running by in front my me and i dont have to worry about them tripping over cords, now i just have to get them from blocking the tv...
as you can see many good things come from wireless.

for the ps2 the logitech wireless performs damn well! no lag no loss of signal. the issues i had with the logitech was to controller itself. it was too big, i didnt like the analog sticks (cheep plastic feel) and it was a little too heavy for my taste. the logitech if i remember correctly uses 2.4 ghz maybe this is what prevents the lag. it can go a pretty far distant too without any problems

ok im done rambling now... i return you back to the scheduled post, already in progress.