Hands-on with three new Power A peripherals
Peripheral manufacturer Power A had a major presence at E3 this year, residing in a massive booth taking up a fair amount of real estate on the main show floor. The company's product showcase was highlighted by three controllers which are due out later this fall for the PS3 and Wii. If you're a visual learner, you can check out a few images of each of these controllers in the gallery posted below. Otherwise, click past the jump to read our thoughts on these devices.
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3-in-1 Remote for PS3
While something of a novelty when compared to the manufacturer's more functional offerings, the 3-in-1 Remote is actually a slick little piece of hardware. It features all the navigation buttons you'd want on a Blu-ray remote, a slide-out keyboard similar to that of a T-Mobile Sidekick, and -- apart from the absent analog sticks -- all the buttons and functionality of a regular PS3 controller.
The lack of analog input dramatically limits its uses as a gaming controller, though we imagine it would still work just fine with some simpler PSN titles and PSOne Classics. The projected $39.99 price tag may be a tad too steep for a stick-less peripheral, but if you're in the market for a high-end Blu-ray remote, we suppose you could do a lot worse.
Pro Elite Wireless Controller for PS3
Power A's making a bold statement with this controller's projected $49.99 price point -- while most other third-party peripherals attempt to gain market share by offering a much cheaper alternative than the competition, the Pro Elite clocks in at just $5 cheaper than a DualShock 3. Is it worth the extra Lincoln to go with a brand with which consumers aren't nearly as familiar?
Honestly, it's hard to say. One of the key selling points of the Pro Elite is its sweat-proof grip, which is supposed to cut down on manual perspiration by letting air flow freely betwixt controller and man. I don't suffer from perpetually sweaty palms, so this wasn't much of a selling point for me. In fact, the grip just felt kind of rough to the touch, which didn't seem like a worthwhile trade-off for keeping my apparently freakishly dry hands free of any and all natural moisture.
Other than the grip, the controller's design is top-notch. It's got a nice heft to it, features inverted L2 and R2 buttons (a feature that makes the triggers on first-party PS3 controllers just seem ... silly) and an analog stick layout which mimics the design of the 360 controller. Your preferences may vary, but when it comes to first-person shooters, I prefer to keep my thumbs at 9 and 5, thank you very much.
Pro Pack Mini for Wii
Power A's most unassuming product actually turned out to be my favorite. The Pro Pack Mini includes a miniaturized Wii Remote and Nunchuck for just $49.99 -- which, at first read, might sound like a pretty ridiculous idea, as those two devices are already fairly diminutive in stature.
Still, Power A's take on the controller (which is 35 percent smaller than its first-party counterpart) just feels great, partly due to its compact frame, but mainly due to its sleek, rounded edges. As you can probably tell from the image above, the A, 1 and 2 buttons are all much larger than the Wii Remote's inputs, and are even backlit -- perfect for those intimate, moonlit Boom Blox sessions.
I didn't get to try the MiniRemote with the MotionPlus dongle attached -- given the add-on's flush fit with Nintendo's Wii Remote, it may feel weird when attached to Power A's much less boxy controller. Still, at $10 cheaper than the price of the two first-party devices, the Pro Pack Mini seems like a great third-party option for folks with small budgets (and even smaller hands).
