We're clearly shameless, otherwise we wouldn't be here writing this piece starring a modded Xbox 360 gamepad with Engadget logos all over it. At least that's what we imagine you saying, dear reader, while ogling the logo-laden controller above. Despite appearances, however, there's more to Evil Controller's Vision line than flashy blue and white logos that make us feel loved -- the rear plate of the standard Xbox 360 gamepad gets replaced with a custom one featuring Evil's custom LED lights, a micro USB charging port (in addition to the proprietary one), and a much, much more serious battery.
A lithium ion nestles into the backplate (significantly more comfortably than two AAs or Microsoft's own rechargeable battery solution), which offers a supposed 60-hour battery life. That's a dramatic difference compared to Microsoft's batteries, which last (at most) around 15 hours in our experience. The hardware out front retains the quality we've come to expect from 360 gamepads, and that's because it's mostly the stock 360 gamepad you'd buy from Microsoft; the only replacement hardware on the front is the analog sticks, which swap concave for convex. This is essentially the only poor decision on the controller, but one we're willing to overlook for that tripled battery life.
Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Microsoft