When comparing Steam Controller vs Xbox 360 Wired Controller, the Slant community recommends Xbox 360 Wired Controller for most people. In the question“What are the best PC gaming controllers?” Xbox 360 Wired Controller is ranked 2nd while Steam Controller is ranked 7th. The most important reason people chose Xbox 360 Wired Controller is:
The controller is very comfortable to hold and allows you to play for hours without tiring your hands. The controller's shape is well-designed, the buttons are well positioned and not slippery. This is one of the reasons, the Xbox 360 controller has been the first go-to for many experienced gamers. Compared to the wireless option, this controller is lighter and less bulky, since it doesn't have a battery pack at the back of the controller. On the contrary, since it's wired, it does have a limited range. This means you can not move very far from the screen.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Developed specifically for PC games
The trackpads built into the controller make it simple to play certain games that would otherwise be impossible with a controller, such as Civilization and Cities: Skylines.
Pro Integrates well with Steam
Considering this is a controller designed by Valve, it should come as no surprise that the integration with Steam is quite good. The user can easily launch into Big Picture mode straight from the controller for ease of use. The controller is plug and play, so there is little to mess around with in order to get going. For those that would like to customize the button layout, Steam allows for this in their settings.
Pro Good battery life
A user can get around 80 hours of play out of a single charge on the device, which is a considerable amount of playtime. This frees the player up from having to constantly worry if their controller is charge on every use.
Pro Good mouse emulation
Some games don't support joysticks and you need to use a mouse. Joysticks are very poor at emulating a mouse, but the touchpads on the Steam controller do a much better job.
Pro Can also be used as a remote control
Since it emulates mouse and keyboard you can also use it as a remote.
Pro Comes with a wireless receiver
Comes with a wireless receiver to to avoid most of the Bluetooth issues.
Pro Professional use
You can assign the buttons to macros or shortcuts for other apps, such as the Adobe Creative Suite.
Pro Extremely flexible
Custom configurations for various apps allow it to be used in a massive variety of settings.
Pro Feels comfortable
The controller is very comfortable to hold and allows you to play for hours without tiring your hands. The controller's shape is well-designed, the buttons are well positioned and not slippery. This is one of the reasons, the Xbox 360 controller has been the first go-to for many experienced gamers.
Compared to the wireless option, this controller is lighter and less bulky, since it doesn't have a battery pack at the back of the controller. On the contrary, since it's wired, it does have a limited range. This means you can not move very far from the screen.
Pro Always available and underpriced on the second-hand market
There is a large supply of these Xbox 360 controllers on the second-hand market. This is an easy way to get them for a much lower price, especially since many people don't care about price they sell it at or just aren't aware of the value of this controller.
Pro Player number indicator
The controller has a green LED circle around the home button, which shows what number player you are from 1 to 4. This can save you from confusion while focused on gameplay.
Pro Convenient plug-and-play controller
It's a convenient plug-and-play controller. There's rarely any hassle - the controller tends to always work without problems. You never have to change batteries either, which saves you from another headache.
Pro Force feedback
The controller has a strong force feedback, which adds to the gaming experience. Since the controller is wired, the vibration is stronger than on the wireless option. In addition to Xbox, many games on PC can also make use of this feature.
Pro Almost instant response time
Since the controller is wired, it has a lower response time compared to wireless options. Though the difference is usually just a few milliseconds, then in competitive gaming every millisecond of reaction time counts.
Cons
Con Only for Steam games
Most features won't work without Steam.
Con Feels cheap
The controller does not have much weight or heft to it and the entire things is made out of light plastic giving it a cheap feel, something akin to a $20 controller for one Android or iOS device. The face buttons on the device are also small, with the shoulder buttons feeling stiff. Overall the lack of attention to detail with the buttons and the overall feel of cheap material gives a sense that this is not the most well designed or thought out controller on the market.
Con Emulated joystick on trackpad difficult to use
Con No D-Pad
No D-pad here.
Con Non-rechargeable
Needs two AA alkaline batteries.
Con No vibration motor
There is only an option to emulate force feedback with the haptic motor however its not strong enough to create a real vibration.
Con Small buttons
The ABXY buttons are very, very small, and positioned in an area that feels awkward, especially when compared to the XBOX or even the four buttons on a PS4.
Con Not as accurate as keyboard and mouse
The touchpads on the device are designed to emulate a mouse when playing games, but they are not as accurate and will at times require a lot of swipes in order to just turn a character around or even just look around. This lack of accuracy and delay in how long it takes to get the movement required may be difficult to get used to.
Con A-B / X-Y buttons are swapped compared to SNES controllers
The A-B and X-Y buttons are swapped on this controller, compared to SNES controllers. Swapped controls can be confusing if you mainly play SNES(Super Nitendo Entertainment System) games.
Con Need to buy an extra USB receiver
The controller needs an extra cable to convert the old connection to USB, if you plan to use it on anything else than an Xbox. The cable costs under $20, but can be found for much less.
Con Headset input is not standard
The headset input on the controller is 2.5mm, instead of the most common 3.5mm. Your headphones probably use a 3.5mm jack and you will need an adapter to use them with this remote.