General Information
Opening the box you're met with a USB-C cable for USB mode, an RF dongle for RF mode, two raised thumb stick grip caps, and finally the controller itself. The OPS v1 has its evolutionary cousins' iconic looks and feels, though with a nice tactile grippy pattern covering the underside, bumpers, and triggers.
Features:
- Hall Effect Thumbsticks and Triggers - Reliable Hall Effect sensors built into the thumbsticks and triggers deliver a more precise and fluid response.
- 3 Connection Options - Reliable connection via low-latency 2.4GHz wireless, Bluetooth, or Wired USB for the most flexibility on various gaming devices
- Mappable Buttons - Boost your effectiveness with 4 customizable Advanced Gaming Buttons that let you adapt to any gaming experience
- Rechargeable Battery - Get up to 20 hours of playtime with an integrated 550mAh rechargeable battery. Includes USB-C™ charge cable
- Comfortable Ergonomic Grips - Textured grips and carefully engineered ergonomics let you game comfortably for hours.
- Made for PC, Cloud, and Mobile - Optimized for gaming on PC desktops and laptops. Connect to cloud gaming devices such as compatible Smart TVs, and Android smartphones and tablets
- 3-way Trigger Locks - Adjustable trigger locks customize the trigger throw to help you optimize efficiency for different games.
- Turbo Button - Activate the turbo function for ABXY, LB/RB, and Select/Start buttons to enhance your input speed while reducing fatigue.
- Dual Rumble Motors - Experience the immersive tactile details of your favorite games with dual rumble motors.
- Removable Analog caps - Two additional textured non-slip caps provide thumbstick control options to suit your preferred playing style.
- App Support - Test and calibrate your controller with the free Windows App
- Two Year Warranty - This product is backed by a 2-year limited warranty
Simple, Comfortable, Stylish
You could be forgiven for thinking this is an Xbox controller with its logo button at the top in the middle, the YXBA buttons, and three buttons in the center of the pad. The three buttons are Start, Select, and Turbo, the logo is not an X but the PowerA logo, and the YXBA are strictly black and white.
Holding the PowerA logo for several seconds ignites the controller, with an LED on the face lighting white to confirm its status. On the top under the shoulder buttons is another LED, lighting up to signify charge status, and a sync button is next to that to enable pairing of the device in BT mode only.
Activating the turbo function couldn't be simpler: press the turbo button and the button you want to activate at the same time. To remove the turbo, just do it again! I don't use turbo buttons, but it's a nice feature to have for automating shooting sections or hammering a specific button in QTE segments of various games. It's cheating, but not really, right?
On the rear of the controller are the switches for trigger locks, USB/BT/RF mode changing, and a Program button, next to the four extra triggers. These are easily programmable by simply holding the Program buttons down for three seconds, tapping the button you want to clone and then tapping the paddle you want to clone it to. It's really that simple.
In hand, the controller feels great; it fits my hands perfectly and has that grippy feel. The buttons feel clicky, responsive and nice on the triggers, especially when locked out to position "T1" for minimal travel. The sticks feel as smooth as silk and have a very slick action to them, they're Hall Effect after all. I like the way they feel, and they just look like any other stick, but with much better longevity than those more traditional. This entire controller is a wolf in sheep's clothing, it's fantastic.
The D-Pad and face buttons also have that air of quality about them that press nicely, feels perfectly suited, and rebounds back every time. The D-Pad, in particular, is wonderfully clicky and there is no level of mushiness at all. The triggers, like the sticks, are also hall effect, and the snappiness of both of them is perfect thanks, in part, to the lockout positions as well.
Three Ways to Connect, No Frills Otherwise
Speaking of animal similes, let's clear the elephant in the room; there is no iDevice support! I tried every which way and I could not get the controller to successfully pair with my iPhone 12 Pro Max (on IOS 18), nor my iPad, whatever gen or version it was. The pad shows up in pairing mode, connects, but never stores as a connected device, and the pairing light never stops blinking. Eventually it turns the controller off completely as if it was not successfully paired.
I thought this was strange given that the Bluetooth stack has been opened up and I had hoped to use this on the go with my iPhone and some emulators I recently sideloaded, though this was not to be. The OPS v1 worked seamlessly with my Android-powered Red Magic 8 Pro though, connecting perfectly and playing games and emulators in mere seconds. To be fair to PowerA, iOS support isn't listed on the product page, but it's still disappointing to see.
This issue aside, the OPS v1 is fantastic for PC (RF or BT) and Android (BT) device usage. You can even use it on your Steam Deck via a dock with the USB RF dongle, though sadly I tried it on my Switch through the same dock I use for my Steam Deck and it wouldn't recognize it either. However, it can also be used on Smart TV's, Firestick, Batocera, Mac, and Linux, with very little tinkering!
Finally, the battery lasted easily around the 20-hour mark and provided consistent and reliable input throughout my testing. As such I think this controller nails the brief in giving good value for money whilst maintaining its core pillars of being comfortable, lightweight, smooth, drift-proof, and ergonomically sound, even for long periods of play.
There is no RGB lighting, no braided cables and no charging dock, but it's a superb controller. I wish it covered more than just Android in the mobile cloud gaming space though, as this is a bit of a blow for Apple fans who are just getting into emulation or gaming on their iDevices in general.
