Microsoft Launching A Tweaked Xbox One Controller Next Month

By way of a support document, Microsoft have accidentally revealed that a small adjustment will be made to Xbox One controllers to include a 3.5mm headphone port at the base of the pad instead of a non-standard design that requires adapters and proprietary cables in order to hook up to the pad.

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The DualShock 4 pad has always had the headphone jack which enables players to plug in whichever set of headphones they want to use, whereas the Microsoft pad has stuck with their proprietary port since launch. As the image above suggests, the new 3.5mm port will only be available on controllers released after June 2015.

It appears that the rest of the controller will remain untouched, although with E3 just a couple of weeks away there is nothing to say that Microsoft won’t surprise us with some more new features.

Source: Xbox Support via Eurogamer

18 Comments

  1. I wish they’d get rid of those awful clicky LB/RB buttons. I thought I might get used to it but it just doesn’t feel natural.

    • Nothing wrong with them. Are you pressing them with your fingertips? Because you’re meant to use the middle of your index fingers, and/or “bump” upwards.

      In regards to the minijack, I wish they’d done it before I owned three controllers and an adapter.

      • I do like the XB1 controller as a whole but those bumper buttons feel really off to me. I’m not sure exactly how I use them (probably a mixture of both) but I find the clicking motion really distracting. Especially when you have to press it multiple times in quick succession. It reminds me of clicking the buttons on a mouse or that board game where you press the plastic dome in the middle and it clicks/rolls the dice inside. The fact that it makes an audible ‘click’ sound makes it worse but I just don’t like the feel of it either. Bring back cushioned bumper buttons I say.

      • I can relate to the loud click being an annoyance, but I’ve never had any issues with using them. You just gotta make sure not to press the inner-most part. I know it’s silly, they should have made it easier to use because I keep reading about people having trouble, but it’s usually that they press the inner-most part with their fingertips which is not how they’re meant to be used.

        They’re called bumpers and not shoulder buttons for a reason. And just to be clear I prefer the ones on DS4.

    • I agree when I had Xbox One I found them horrible no matter what part of my fingers I used,the old 360 bumpers where way better.

  2. Again, I’m quite surprised how many awful design decisions were taken when building the XBone.
    Good thing they’re correcting all this rubbish now.

    • It’s no secret Mattricks reign of darkness was a low point for Xbox. The current leadership is exactly what was needed, it’s just a shame they have to work with what the old guard left them.

      • He was probably Ballmer’s best buddy, both of them messing up all business areas of Microsoft for many years to come… ;o)

      • Thank god almost the entire cast of higher-ups have been replaced with competent people.

        I hope their E3 will be as good as last years.

  3. “you know those £25 adaptors you bought so your headset would work?, well now you don’t need it!”

    I wish all gadgets would just use the standard connections and stop making their own.

  4. Still no rechargable battery in the controller the controller then.

    • You can buy them.

      • You shouldnt have too. Its just another example of MS scraping every last buck out of you. They used to charge £70 for a 360 wireless adaptor and dont get me started on HDD prices for the 360.

        They did again with the one, want to use an older headset, buy a £25 adaptor!!!! Dont want to buy new batteries every few days, kaaching, heres a £20 power pack.

      • I bought a 3rd party battery pack with cable for £6. Problem I had with locked in battery packs is when they wear out you can’t replace them. My PS3 rumble pad runs out in less than 2 hours. I much prefer being able to choose, even if you have to buy it yourself.

      • You can replace the battery in DS3 controllers extremely easily, all you have to do is undo a few screws. You can even replace it with a much higher capacity battery than the original because Sony used a generic standard of battery pack.

      • “extremely easily” and “undo a few screws” doesn’t go together for me.

  5. Hurray for using common, open standards. My controller is in good shape so won’t be getting a new one for a few years I think. DS4 on the other hand…

  6. I think that Sony need to look at a redesign for the DS4 and it’s battery power consumption. That bitch needs charging after every gaming session unlike it’s ever glowing predecessor which lit up the halls for a lifetime!

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