Turbo Fire 2 Bluetooth Controller with Rumble

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $39.99
Sale Price: $29.99
Today's Bonus: 25% Off

I bought this after returning a Nyko Raven controller that didn't work right at all. I didn't know what to expect with this controller because it didn't have very many reviews, and most of the reviews I could find only talked about the Turbo function instead of things like build quality and performance.

The controller itself is much bigger than the Dualshock 3 and it's much closer to a 360 pad in size. In fact, the original controller was almost a complete copy of the 360 controller (which means they probably changed it for legal reasons). It feels a bit heftier in the hand and more solid than most comparable controllers. It uses Bluetooth to connect to the PS3 so no annoying dongles that make you waste a USB port. Unfortunately it uses an external AA battery pack like the 360 controller and there are no rechargeable packs or anything like that so be sure you have plenty of batteries ready. The other problem the battery pack brings is that the PS3 can't accurately gauge the battery life of the controller and will randomly put up low battery messages.

The D-Pad is slightly clicky and loud, but not too bad. As long as you aren't playing a game that requires expensive use of the D-Pad it serves its purpose fine. The face buttons all feel fine. I'd say they're somewhere between the hard feeling of the 360 buttons and the soft feeling of the PS3 buttons when pressed. The analog sticks are a bit more resistive than the Dualshock 3's, but they feel a bit smoother in some ways, but that may be because of the height difference. The sticks themselves are set higher, but are also shorter. The top of the sticks has a blue coating that looks like it may be for grip, but it's actually quite slippery. The start and select buttons are horribly placed and require you to reach pretty far, which can hurt a bit when you're trying to check the score in a game like Call of Duty. Finally the shoulder buttons are different. The triggers are shaped a bit more like real triggers but are still a bit off. They're also fairly resistive and not as sensitive as the Dualshock 3's. The L1 and R1 buttons are digital buttons instead of analog meaning they feel more like the 360's bumpers and not like the L1 and R1 buttons normally do.

Now a lot of the reviews I've seen state that they have problems with the turbo working in most games, and this is not the fault of the controller. Most game developers cap the amount of times you can press a button in a set time period. Often this completely breaks the turbo function. In Black Ops, they coded it to disable your controls for a few seconds so don't use the Turbo function in a game and expect it to work.

The Breakdown:

Good:

+ Good build quality compared to other 3rd party controllers

+ Bluetooth compatible, no USB dongle

+ All buttons are responsive

+ Turbo can be useful in games like Resident Evil 5 with "Press X quickly to not die" sequences

Bad:

Bumpers instead of regular shoulder buttons which feel uncomfortable when a game doesn't properly support switching to triggers

Start and select buttons are poorly placed

D-Pad isn't good for anything beyond a basic quick press

Uses AA battery back instead of rechargeable built-in battery.

Overall I'd say this is a decent controller for most games and it's a decent buy if you really need to save $15 on a controller (buying retail not on Amazon). The Dualshock 3 is still better overall and with a set of $5 Real Triggers will serve you much better.

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The controller worked at first, but can not switch between a regular controller to a turbo controller in the game to use rapidfire. After a few months of use R1 stopped working first then L1 also stopped working. Forget trying to get a hold of these guys for Tech support, they are in Europe No customer service. No phone and they do not answer e-mail

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I read many reviews before purchasing this controller. I didn't see many negative reviews at all. The "D"pad was really the only part that was taking hits. I'm not a "pro-gamer" nor was I born under the PS or Xbox generation. I just like to unwind with a good video game or play one with my kids. I do, however, take my game play seriously. I own both a PS3 slim a Wii and I love them. I have played the Xbox as well and love it too. They are all great gaming systems, each with its' own advantages and disadvantages. For example, I like the feel of the Xbox controller because I have big hands, but I don't like the offset joysticks. So, this controller is perfect for me. Yes, the "D" pad is a little loud and takes some pressure to activate the buttons, but this is an extremely minor point and nothing to get bent about when selecting controllers. As far as the Blueray function: It functions exactly like the PS3 controllers in every respect. It does not miss a beat, no lag. Buttons are only slightly less smooth as DualShock3's but, no less responsive. My only real qualm is the charging the batteries; I don't think you can charge while you play. No worries, the LiIon rechargeables and NiCads I have last a good, long time. That's about it. It works like a champ and has everything I like. BTW, I don't sell or review these things on a regular basis (first time). But, I wanted to throw this out there because it's really a great compromise controller for those looking for a larger, DualShock3-like controller. It's great.

UPDATE: Several months later, the pad is still working great, no dead spots like others have said. I did notice that if you try to use the turbo function in COD BO, you might get banned. Sony appears to have disabled that function and blacklists those who use it. I guess that's justified. It's a cheat, right?

UPDATE: Over a year later. The joystick is still a great joystick, save one important flaw; there is a nagging message that appears saying that the joystick is low on power. It appears periodically and is large enough to distract you from game play. I believe it is a Sony attempt at discouraging the use of a non-proprietary joystick that also has a turbo button. I never use the turbo, but I think Sony picks it up just the same and sort of penalizes you for its use. That's my best guess. Nothing I've tried stops this from happening, even if I plug it in while playing (as I mentioned previously, I don't think it is chargeable in the usual fashion. Batteries must be removed to charge as far as I know). Overall, if you can get over the badgering messages, it's still pretty good.

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i like this controller becouse you dont need to dongle or wires its connect directly to the ps3 and its work with the ps3 wire without battery but you wil face problem of control the player in call of duty if you but the sensitivity 8 to 10 hard to control it .

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Haven't had a chance to hook up and test the controller yet so my review may be edited at a later time. The thing that bothers me about this is that the product picture does not remotely look like what I received. For example in the picture you see a silver inset with blue controller sticks. What I received was totally black with a lighted selection screen on the controller. I'm not saying the controller I received isn't a good substitute but it was totally different from what I was expecting.Buying on the internet product pictures are really important.

Update: After playing with the controller for about a week I found that whenever I clicked the right thumbstick it would turn the controller off. Imagine playing a fast paced game and then right in the middle, everything freezes and you have to reconnect the controller. As you might imagine this is totally unacceptable from a playing point of view.

So in summary, doesn't match the picture and then doesn't work properly. What more do you need to know to go to a different controller.