If you plug the dock into your computer, it acts as a pass through for the 2.4 dongle (so you can just leave the dongle in the compartment in the dock)

Solid review, great viewpoint and I think you've added some perspective to people considering controllers for different use cases. I initially watched ETA primes video and was leaning towards the more expensive one but you made it clear for me to understand that's not necessarily the best direction.

I was just looking this up yesterday and couldn’t find anything about it. Russ you are always on the money!

preordered mine when they went up last week and I can't wait to get mine in, xbox-like design with the razer style charger stand bundled with it and hall sensor sticks... 8btido, wow

the dock is the game changer. would pick this up for christmas. thanks for the review.

I've been using a PS4 dualshock pro. The touchpad is recognized as a mouse which really helps when using Moonlight and for the desktop mode.

UPDATE #3: Valve has fixed the compatibility issues with their latest SteamOS preview build: www.gamingonlinux.com/2022/12/steamos-34-preview-adds-support-for-8bitdo-ultimate-wireless-controller-dongle/ UPDATE #2: Here is a community solution to get the 2.4GHz version of the controller to work with the Steam Deck properly: www.reddit.com/r/SteamDeck/comments/ymv653/guide_to_setup_the_8bitdo_ultimate_24ghz_wireless/ UPDATE: it turns out the 2.4GHz version of the 8BitDo Ultimate controller is not as compatible with the Steam Deck as I initially thought. Someone pointed out that it has compatibility issues with many recent games, where the right analog stick doesn’t register and the triggers aren’t detecting an analog input. For example, this morning I tested more games and God of War and LEGO Star Wars Skywalker Saga don’t register the right analog stick or triggers. I got lucky in that all the games I tested for my review video worked fine with this setup. At this point we can either hope for 8BitDo to upgrade their firmware (unlikely), or Valve to improve x-input compatibility (more likely but not guaranteed). However, if you pre-ordered this controller specifically for playing with a docked Steam Deck (like I did), then you may want to cancel the order and wait to see if a fix is incoming. I apologize for the confusion, this is frustrating that 8BitDo’s implementation of this otherwise exceptional controller is so haphazard.

thanks to your review of the 8BitDo 2.4GHz, just got mine a day after seeing your breakdown, feels awesome and plays awesome! Thank you! 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 worth every penny!

I would really like to see a version of this with the aligned stick or PlayStation layout. I would love to have hall affect sensors, trigger stops, and mechanical face buttons. I am looking to getting the buttons from Gulikit and putting that in my Pro2, but I am not to enthusiastic about swapping my thumbstick with a hall sensor but I would probably do that if/when I do get stik drift. 8BitDo really does make some really good controller, the quality feel, back buttons, software, and price just put it above nearly all others for me.

I believe the Bluetooth model DOES have D-input. It's a little confusing and these two controllers should PROBABLY have been named VERY differently so that people didn't mix them up. The hall-sticks make the the $70 version much better for the sake of longevity and accuracy and should actually be considered EVEN if the user never touches a Nintendo switch. Stick drift is one of those issues that might never be a problem or be an issue out of the box. The bluetooth controller feature set is suggesting "one controller for everything" in a way and I think getting a more robust stick will pay out value when it doesn't need to be replaced. Even if it simply doubled the lifespan it would be worth the $20.

Glad to see the update where this is fixed. Just ordered one.

Exellent review as always! I'm kinda sad though that they've gotten rid of the exchangable battery...

I have seen some other reviewers mention that the $70 BT version uses D-Input for Bluetooth mode, while X-Input for 2.4ghz. However, these cannot be changed and are locked to the respective connection.

Hey Russ, thanks for this review. I bought the 2.4 ghz model for my steam deck and i have to say i love it. It feels great and works till now totally fine in d-input. The connection is good and there is no recognizable input lag for me. If the controller could wake the deck up, i would have been in heaven.

For me, when using the dongle with the steam deck dock (as the title of this video suggests,) the deck and/or certain software confuses the right analog stick with the left analog trigger. That is to say, I have to tilt the right stick to get left trigger functions in-game and the left trigger isn't doing anything as far as I can tell. Sometimes the left trigger works correctly though! Any idea what that's about?

I got the pricier model, mainly for the hall effect sticks. Longevity is worth the added price IMO (although I wish they had a replaceable battery like their Pro+ and Pro 2 models). For fun, I dusted off and booted up my old Windows 7 machine and to my surprise the controller works, dongle and wired (I don't have bluetooth on this PC) despite it being advertised as Win 10 and 11 only.

I wonder how well those charging pins and pads will hold up over time. I've had several wireless mice with similar setups and they always ended up being unreliable and needing constant cleaning. But then maybe it's different with mice being rubbed around on a desk all the time instead of controllers that are held. Hopefully these aren't like that, but it's made me much prefer either simple USB cables for charging or 'wireless' induction chargers. -- Looks like another cool 8BitDo stick, in any case. Their software and configurability is a real killer feature; especially being able to configure things via a phone while the device is still actively paired and being used on a gaming system (assuming it's like the older 8BitDo Pro I have).

Never understood why people say you need D-Input for android. I've only ever used X-Input on my Android devices and it's worked perfectly fine. Android has had support for X-Input for years.

Hi! If you dont consider the dock and 2.4ghz. Would you say the 8bit is still better then the gulikit overall? Hand feel, build quality, battery size, etc. I like the look of the gulikit but unless it was better as a controller then it wouldnt justify missing the dock and 2.4. Edit: what wire is the dock? Usb A-C or USB C-C?

Nice overview. Are you outputting at 4k over uSB-C here or via hdmi?

What an incredible review. Kudos man! Im not even kidding and not making comments like this often!

Russ, I which of the more budget handhelds work with a dongle system like this? You’ve recommended the 8bitdo dongle in the past and I’m keen to get a budget handheld working in this way and then have the option to plug into my TV via HDMI. I’m thinking specifically of getting the RG552 or the Retroid Pocket 3 for this purpose.

I would love to see an input latency test between the controller connected with 2.4 ghz dongle and the bluetooth controller on the steam deck.

Your review is just perfect, I was going for the Bluetooth version for the HAL effect joysticks but this review and the comments below changed my mind just for the fact you can just plug the dock and passthrough and the D-Input signal. Very insighfull

If you had to choose between 8bitdo 2.4G and king kong pro 2, which one would you choose and why?

Now I know what I'm getting for Christmas to pair with my AYN Odin

1:55 nope, I just got my Bluetooth edition of this controller. In Bluetooth mode it is Dinput, when using the dongle on 2.4GHz it is Xinput. Seems to be exactly the same as the dongle-only model, it just also has the Bluetooth and Switch compatibility

Great video, as always, Russ! One question I have is, can you connect multiple controllers to the same 2.4 GHz dongle?

Thanks so much for this review, I'd been wondering about this, now it's a no brainer. Love your channel, btw, keep up the good work!

Do you need to remove vibrate for the controller on the Steam Deck in order for it to work properly? I'm having this issue with other controllers.

Thank you for the detailed controller review. I’ve recently got a gaming laptop and bring it to work. Playing both current Forza games works great with my regular Xbox controller but if I want to play Halo infinite or later COD games on gamepass or shooters on in general it’s not the best and not looking to bring my Elite 2 out the house and risk dropping and breaking it on tile floors. I remembered the company 8bitdo and the fact I can adjust the triggers is what I need. I wish it was on the fly like the Elite 2 controller or newer PS5 pro controller. Do you mind sharing how good the trigger feels when you change them? Do they feel like an Elite 2 controller or what? Now all I need is 8bitdo to make this same exact controller well the $70 one for the PS5 and I’ll be complete.

I'd definitely go with the $70 version, even if you don't own a Switch. having gyro and BT available is a huge plus, and so are the hall effect sticks. and maybe I'm just lucky, but I never had any issues settings up Xinput controllers on Android devices.

The dock also has a USB passthrough to the dongle.

I got a SN30+ Pro as a Christmas present a few years ago and is my favorite controller without a doubt. I use it mainly with my Switch and pi and I really enjoy it. This new iteration looks awesome!

Hi Russ, seeing your Deck setup made me think: do you think you can make some sort of guide for the SD docked mode and optimal settings vs performance? Like in emulation and all that stuff. Because I noticed you don’t use fullscreen hacks in Dolphin while in handheld you suggested to use it. Hope it could be a new video idea. Love your content, bye :)

I have an 8bitdo arcade stick which i love. I might get this for my Steam deck!

I had the Bluetooth version preordered for last month and it was supposed to be delivered Monday. Ended up cancelling it and though about buying this version, but didn’t pull the trigger. Now I see this and am completely second guessing LOL

Wouldn’t 40$ version also work with switch in docked mode tho? Also do you prefer the 8bit pro over an Xbox elite control for steam deck? I have a few 8bits and love ‘em jus looking for a new beast for my steam deck.

@retrogamecorps did you have to do anything special for this controller to work with the Odin? It's not working for me. I got this for Christmas because I saw it work in your video.

You said in your video that the Ultimate Bluetooth can only connect to the SteamDeck via Bluetooth, not via Dongle. I have bought the same Controller and both Bluetooth and the Dongle work great, seems like Steam fixed it :)

Steam deck owner here. This is great and will be getting soon

Great Review, maybe add some weights to the bottom of the dock?

In your review, I noticed you mention that you don't use the super dock for the AYN Odin. I already own the super dock and am wondering if this controller would work with it?

One extra thing about the bluetooth model to keep in mind: it comes with Hall-Effect Analog Sticks like the Gulikit controller, which should make the sticks last significantly longer then the lower-end model. As a more technical player, many of my potentiometer sticks have lost too-much accuracy for many games, so I have a lot of controllers I don't use anymore. Even if you don't have a switch: I'd still consider the Bluetooth model (it comes with a 2.4 GHz dongle too).

Thinking of getting this for my PC tbh as it would make an excellent replacement for the ageing Xbox one controller I use for it.

When putting the controller into d-input mode to connect to the 2.4ghz adapter, are you able to get the steam/home buttons to work for pulling up the overlays. Mine doesn't work on my SN30 Pro plus, and wondering if I'm doing something wrong.

glad I watched this review before buying!

Please make a video comparing Ultimate with previous controller (Pro2). Let us know which one is for which type of player. Thanks!

Thanks! Amazing review, especially against the Bluetooth version and the Gulikit.

This may be just an issue with some piece of my hardware. But could you see if the controller works as intended with the 3rd party docks? My controller is not getting right stick or r2 L2 functionality. Using the JSAUX 6in1 dock.

would you say this is worth getting over the xbox controller? ill have no issues with any game compatibility? What about vibration quality? Do they both feel the same?

On the PC side does it come up as an Xbox 360 controller or Xbox One controller? This is important to me, because some games work only with the 360 controller (dead rising as an example)

Bro you really have my back steam deck wise

I’m experiencing dual input when using the 2.4 GHz dongle. Any game that has split screen or even imu deck has double input. Is there any weight to prevent this from happening?

Do you think this controller for the SteamDeck in docked mode is better than an xbox controller in bluetooth ? And can you connect several controllers with only 1 dongle? Thanks

The dock is a nice touch but I think the shape of the controller might feel weird. I personally like the 8bit do pro 2 shape a little better

Does it work that well? It fails to register trigger presses for me on Steam Deck Game Mode. Using the 2.4 Ghz dongle on D-Input mode (didn't work with X-Input mode). It's kind of weird because the 8BitDo M30 controller is the only one that properly registers all buttons for me on Steam Deck Game Mode when using a pad with 6 buttons.

I got the 2,4G version, cheaper and with the Xbox/PC layout buttons, yes, I bought new buttons for my Gulikit to make it "right", I could pay more for the BT version if I had the option of layout. I really like that dock, that´s a complete package, a lot better than connect a cable or worst change batteries, reason my Xbox controller is retired.

It support switch, you have to plug the reciever into switch dock. Speaking of gyro, there is a bluetooth version that perfectly supports switch with gyro.

I got one, and I never thought of using it with my Deck in 2.4ghz mode, I definitely will.

So with this one now requiring a bunch of tweaks to get it working on Steam Deck. Is there a better plug and okay 2.4ghz controller to get? Feels like all my Bluetooth controllers (dualshocks, Xbox ones, dual sense, etc) feel laggy when used to play a game on the Deck on the TV.

Can you map the back buttons to a keyboard key, like f11?

I'll preface the following with this: I am a fan of 8bitdo products. I own some 7 different controllers from their various lines and models. I just want to mention, that 8bitDo actually offer a separate "dongle" accessory, which can pair with not only their own controllers, but a wide variety of other controllers as well. The dongle pairs once and stays paired unless you make it otherwise, even if you unplug it and place it into a different device. I have the older orange model, I don't know what they've done with the new black one, but it's my go-to solution for when I want to play on a machine with no bluetooth. Windows actually registers the dongle and controller as a wired X-box controller, which is also cool (I tested it with various modes of various 8bitdo controllers, it always registers as a wired xbox controller, also tested it with a switch pro controller). So if you are looking for a dongle experience, but do not wish to swap your fav controller for a new one - there are options, and I'm certain 8bitDo aren't the only ones who offer a product like that.

Does anyone know if it's possible to disable the LED on the controller and stand? I really hate having distracting glowy bits on my peripherals

Thanks for the detailled review. Can I wake up my Steam Deck while connected via its Docking Station with the controller?

Nice video! Thank you Sir.

Is the bluetooth model the only 8BitDo controller that actually has the Hall Effect sticks?? I find their individual controller specs confusing.

I have an issue where if I plug in a 2nd 8bitdo wireless adapter, either only one of the controllers works, or both controllers will be recognized as player one. I can't seem to get 2 of the 8bitdo's to work at the same time on my steam deck. Have you experienced anything similar? Thanks.

Just got myself a F40 edition. I wished the grip handles were a bit longer, like SN30+. The rest is great especially the analog stick, super precise and smooth.

thank you! can you confirm local multiplayer functions out of box with emulation? im struggling to get 2 players without going into desktop mode

I'm getting one for my docked Steamdeck!

Probably going for this one. I have been using a PS4 controller for PC gaming but it's so annoying that you have to have a third party software to make it X input and then a lot of games won't have the proper button layout. On top of that, I can't use it and use a bluetooth headphone because both devices interference with each other. The 2.4g connection will come in hand!

How do multiple controllers work on the steam deck? I’m using some knock-off xbox controllers and sometimes they randomly disconnect when I’m playing with a friend. Considering switching to wired controllers to avoid this problem

I bought the 8bitdo Xbox Wired controller a few months back for retro gameplay, and I was absolutely shocked that a wired controller would not work for the Nintendo Switch or the Nvidia Shield TV. I understand that companies have unique features in their controllers and also like captive audiences, but it is still disappointing that there is not one controller (or two) to rule them all.

Anyone else having an issue in which in D-input and connected to the dock their steam deck won’t recognize it? The white light is solid but it appears that nothing happens when trying to use the controller

Can the bluetooth mode be paired with multiple devices? Or do you have to repair everytime?

have it 1 years playing very well until today stopped worling but have led all, but not working on game why?

I emailed 8BitDo and asked them if I can use the Bluetooth version with the 2.4G receiver and if I'd be limited to D-input then. Their response : "This product comes with a 2.4G receiver. You can use it to connect PC wirelessly." "Switch/D-Input/X-Input The mode can be changed through the receiver connection." Shout out to Jimmyi from 8BitDo Support!

Ooh, and A is at the bottom on the cheaper one 😍

How good/bad is the input lag? My PS4 controller died recently and I really like to dock the Steam Deck and would like to play from the couch.

Have you experienced issues with double input? It appears to only happen in Emulation Station. Any idea on fixes?

Does anyone know if/which of the two would work with the analogue pocket. The other 8bitdo controllers work with it does this one?

The Hall Effect sensors make the $70 option infinitely better and that's almost literal given that the magnetic setup prevents internal mechanical wear and tear (drifting) virtually forever!

Will the Bluetooth one work with the dongle in the Odin dock? I tried pairing it via BT to Odin but it didn't seem to recognize it

The xbox one, and the xbox series x/s controllers actually have Hall Effect triggers, just like the KingKong 2 controller, and they feel amazing.

Iam having a problem with both controller whenever I try to play over retroarch or lunchbox the controller goes crazy buttons are stupid remapped like x button pauses the game and a button fastforward Whatever I do remapping buttons won’t do anything

I am planning to connect two 8 bitdo 2.4g Wireless Ultimate using their own receivers on a single android device via a dock to simulate a player 1 / player 2 experience. Will they interfere with each others signal? Do they need their own receivers attached in different usb slots to work? Or do they only need one connector?

Hows the vibration compared to something like the Switch pro controller or Dualsense? I'm looking for a controller for my PC/Docked Steam Deck for the TV.

is this dongle the same as the 8bitdo 2 dongle? can you connect an xbox elite controller through the 2.4 dongle?

Strange, I don't have the option for enabling dpad 4-way ouptut like the option your ultimate app gives you. I have the ultimate bluetooth model, and would like to use this toggle to just two directions for dpad in Tetris. I also try the android ultimate app, but both on window and android I don't see the dpad 4-way toggle like on this video at 10:29

I can’t get the star button to work on my Steam deck. I would love to be able to map it to different keys (for example escape key when playing Remote play on my PS5).

Please help, I have the ultimate and the 2.4g connection won't work for my steam deck. How do you switch the input modes?

Hey I seriously need your help... I recently got the RG353V and it's my very first handheld and I absolutely love this thing but recently I have encountered a problem that is I have to press really hard on the volume down button to make it work the volume up button works fine though. I know that it is not an OS issue as the volume down key itself is not registering when pressed with normal force... I REALLY WANT IT TO BE PERFECT PLEASE HELP ME.

I wish they kept the easily replaceable battery and AA compatibility the SN30Pro/2 has. Honestly maybe they could just add hall effect joysticks to that controller. Also hall effect aside you don't want to forget the importance of the more expensive controller having a gyro.

Great review, but my eyes must be broken. So many times in this video could not convince myself that the controller was pink and not some off white lmao

The black king kong 2 pro controller you have, you can buy a kit to swap between the xbox and nintendo style face buttons.

isnt the bluetooth version better for the hall effect joysticks? that way they will almost never drift

8bitdo released an update for the 2.4gh version which makes it compatible with the switch on the dock, theres is a few steps you have to do to put the controller on switch mode. Dont know why but they only say this on the FAQ for this controller, not on the main page. Here is the steps. 1. Go to system settings--Controller and Sensors--Turn on [Pro Controller Wired Communication]. 2. Plug the 2.4g receiver into the Switch dock. 3. After turn on the controller(mode switch on D/X), press and hold [minus+LB] buttons for 5 seconds, the controller will enter in Switch mode after a short moment of vibration. Please note that NFC(amiibo), motion control, IR, HD rumble and wake up function are not supported.

Got this for my steam deck and can't use 2.4g on the ultimate controller for some reason? And also no way to program the back paddles?

I recently bought this controller to use with my PSC Emulator, as well as my Switch. I managed to pair it with my Switch no problem, but I’m having major issues getting it to work with my PSC. I’ve tried it in both the Bluetooth mode, as well as the 2.4G. The Bluetooth won’t connect at all which is odd because I figured it would be a standard plug and pair up like my other Logitech 710 controller but apparently not. And then in the 2.4G mode, it seems like it connects as the white light on the controller go’s solid and the dongle is also a solid blue, indicating they are paired, but I can’t get any sign of life from the controller after because nothing seems to happen when actually pressing buttons on it. Once I’m in RetroArch on PSC, I can see the notification that it’s recognized and paired, but then disconnects right away. (This is when it’s on 2.4g mode) So it’s attempting to pair, but won’t stay connected. Any suggestions?