Jio Game Controller Review: Why Does It Exist?
Jio has launched a game controller in India, promising an 8-hour battery life on a single charge.
The Jio Game Controller, which is available on the official website, is Jio’s first gaming device after focusing on smartphones so far.
Jio Game Controller Introduction
The Jio Game Controller is compatible with Android tablets, Android TV, and other devices, according to the official website.
According to the firm, the optimum experience with the game controller is with the Jio set-top box.
Jio Game Controller Compatibility & Support
Now first things first this controller only works with android devices android TVs tablets and phones regardless.
I tried connecting it to an iPhone as well but of course, it didn’t even show up in the Bluetooth settings.
Jio Game Controller Specifications
You know what this controller uses the latest Bluetooth 4.1 technology and has a range of 10 meters which sort of works.
Because you’re not going to be sitting much further away when you’re connected to a tv.
Of course, it looks very similar to Microsoft’s Xbox controller and the layout is very similar too.
Jio Game Controller Buttons
It has a whopping 20-button layout you, of course, get these two joysticks a four-button d-pad that goes eight-way in a direction.
You have these three you know navigation buttons at the bottom which sort of connect to your tv and you can navigate around the UI with those buttons and
you have these four face buttons as well apart from that, of course, you’ve got the shoulder buttons and the triggers on the top and you have the start select button and the jio button in the center anyway.
Jio Game Controller Build Quality
it does look good no doubt in this matte black color which is the only color that’s available for this controller. Still,
the material is such that it attracts a lot of dust and grime and you’ll have to keep cleaning it occasionally
you know in the long-term usage plus the finish of a lot of parts of the controller is bad the alignment of the d-pad is off.
You know what there are these led uh you know lights on the top. That sort of bleeds through the micro USB port at the bottom yes this is 2022 and
Jio uses micro USB on its gaming controller oh and also this micro USB port can only be used for charging you cannot connect it to you know your device and
use it in tethered mode or wired mode however since you will not be looking at the controller a lot once you start using it I think these finishing issues won’t matter after a point of time.
Jio Game Controller In-Hand Feel
But the in-hand feel is what will matter and that’s good on the jio controller it just weighs about 200 grams which makes it very light and comfortable to use for long gaming sessions.
Jio Game Controller LED Indicators
now coming back to some of the design choices you’ve got this geo button in the center which you press to start the controller which makes a lot of sense.
Still, there are four LEDs placed on top of it of which only two are useful because the ones that are blinking right now are the ones that indicate if it’s connected to a phone or not
It starts blinking rapidly so that’s how it works.
I have no idea why these two LEDs exist because even for if you want to know whether the battery is low or
if the controller is charging then the geo button on the center is illuminated and that’s the one that gives you the indication anyway.
Jio Game Controller Connectivity & Usage
I used the controller with an android phone tv and a tablet the connection was powerful and
it never dropped connection once so that’s good but jio mentions that this is meant to work the best with the jio set-top box which I’ve never used so I don’t know.
Jio Game Controller with Android TV?
Now when you use the controller with an android tv you can use the joystick to navigate through the UI and select you to know shows or apps of your choice and
you can also use the navigation pad at the bottom to sort of go back and go home all those things it works well no problems no concerns there at all but then
I tried it with games and of course, the android tv games ecosystem is very very limited and android TVs are not that powerful in general so
I played beach buggy on it with this controller and it works fairly okay
but then again when you don’t have so many games what’s the point of using a controller with it and
what’s the point of using the controller as a glorified remote for your tv because your tv will anyway come with a remote and just these buttons for you know that price just doesn’t make sense to be fine.
Jio Game Controller with Android Smartphone/Tablet?
So what about connecting with an android phone or an android tablet well it works well with many games
I’ve been playing a lot of diablos immortal which just launched recently and you know I connected the controller to play with it and it connected seamlessly and
it mapped the button seamlessly as well and the gaming experience was elevated as a result actually I enjoyed playing on this controller
the joysticks are actually very well-tuned and the trigger buttons are nice and clicky as well plus you don’t get any stickiness in the face buttons actually have a good journey too
now whether these joysticks develop a stick shift later is something that I cannot test right now but for now, it works absolutely fine essentially what I see with this gamepad is that the fit is good
but the finish is not which means that the joysticks the shoulder buttons the triggers the face buttons all of these offer great tactile feedback and
are useful when you’re actually giving so that are the gaming buttons that you’re going to be using a lot but what’s not good are the basic things.
Jio Game Controller Games Compatibility
I mentioned earlier it works with many games, not all games for example it doesn’t work with the call of duty mobile
it doesn’t actually detect it and that’s generally the case with a lot of controllers that I’ve used in the past they do have problems with sometimes being detected in certain games and
that’s not necessarily a problem of the hardware itself but the fact that the game devs don’t actually support that many controllers.
Jio Game Controller Vibrations/Haptics
The controller has two vibration motors inside to offer haptic feedback but the only time
you’ll have any semblance of you know vibration or haptic feedback is when it gets connected to a device most games on android don’t support haptics and
even if they do they don’t support the jio controller for example call of duty.
Jio Game Controller Battery
Now one of the good things about this controller is that the battery is rated to last for eight hours on a single charge and
it does last for eight hours on a single charge which is very good that’s probably one reason why a lot of people could consider this so basically
the jio controller is meant only for android devices phones tablets and televisions which is fine.
Jio Game Controller Pricing & Alternatives
I don’t understand the price of the product it’s priced at rupees 3,500 what in the world were you thinking I mean if you want a gaming controller for android you have many options in the market out there
you know brands like red gear ram kit Logitech all of these which are of course available for a lower price than
you know the jio controller and sometimes even available for less than half the price of the jio controller.
it’s not like Jio is providing a discount on the controller if you bundle it with the jio stb or something.
Jio Game Controller Verdict
It just doesn’t make sense to me who do I recommend this to it’s not a bad controller or anything.
I mean it works fine especially when you’re gaming but then again it doesn’t work with all the games and again.
The ecosystem is limited I’m just really confused so that was my review of the jio controller.
Originally published at https://www.entirelydetails.tech/
