Battery life could be prohibiting rumble in Sixaxis
by Ross Miller 
{ Jun 15th 2007 at 5:55PM }
Sources close to Inner Bits reportedly tell them that Sony unsurprisingly has been working for the past few months on engineering the Sixaxis controller to shake and rattle (it already rolls). The problem currently lies with battery life. "Between the rumble and the wireless support, the batteries are draining too fast to be acceptable for consumers," said the report. The project has been going on for months and Inner Bits believe (as do we) that Sony will manage to find an efficient solution.
One point the report brings up is Sony public relations, as they have in the past cited rumble as "not next-gen" (pending a now-settled Immersion lawsuit) and then getting those who already have rumble-less Sixaxis pads to upgrade. Rumble has rarely been used as an integral feature to gameplay (one exception includes finding hidden objects in Psychonauts).
[Via PS3 Fanboy]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Ken @ Jun 15th 2007 6:00PM
Hmm. Rechargeable lithium-ion? Ah, but then they would have to be replaced.
Quite a pickle actually :(
J @ Jun 15th 2007 6:02PM
Why does Sony always have battery problems? PSP and the controller now? Does any one now how long the Vaio batteries last? They really need to get it together. Nintendo (Wii) does fine with their controller and they use AA batteries. I mean whats the problem?
Hikaru @ Jun 15th 2007 9:09PM
Yeah Nintendo is doing fine...I have to change my wiimote natteries every few days.
T H @ Jun 15th 2007 6:13PM
@ #2: Im not sure what you're talking about.. I purchased a PSP two years ago and the battery life has been nothing short of stellar. My PS3 controllers ditto. But I can see how those motors would wear out the rechargeable battery much quicker... Funny thing is I thought I was really going to miss the rumble feature until, well, I got a PS3 and didn't miss it... :/
AoE @ Jun 15th 2007 6:14PM
J,
Keep in mind Sony was also the culprit behind all the exploding dell/apple/etc. laptop batteries last year. Batteries and Sony DO NOT agree...
T H @ Jun 15th 2007 6:30PM
@ #4: Sony was not the manufacturer of those batteries, but the distributor. big difference... and not entirely their fault. Pretty unrelated things if you ask me..
Renegade0304 @ Jun 15th 2007 6:19PM
Actually sony dont have bad battery life on all products. When it comes to phones, Sony Ericsson has the longest battery life.
Chris Putnam @ Jun 15th 2007 6:24PM
And yet the Wii remote does just fine...
Maybe they need to dump one of the motors in this thing. Having two doesn't make that big a difference.
Kind of hoping they go with standard AA batteries in this thing too. It would make things a hell of a lot more convenient.
Hatchetforce @ Jun 15th 2007 6:26PM
"Rumble has rarely been used as an integral feature to gameplay (one exception includes finding hidden objects in Psychonauts)."
You are kidding, right? Finding the sweet spot for your tensioner while lockpicking in Splinter Cell anyone? Another example is rumble letting you know you are being hit by incoming rounds. An effect in many shooters and it is integral to gameplay.
copa @ Jun 15th 2007 6:28PM
"Rumble has rarely been used as an integral feature to gameplay."
I disagree. Where rumble has always been very essential is for handling collision detection outside of the plane of view. Sports games, driving games, and shooters are three examples of where it is very important to know if you are hitting something (or it is hitting you) even if it is not immediately apparent from the camera angle or the level of graphical detail.
Rumble provides a subtle way of communicating this without lame ass gimmicks like, "Make the whole screen flash red."
T H @ Jun 15th 2007 6:30PM
Unfortunately, adding something like a AA battery would make what I consider the perfect controller somewhat unwieldy, in addition to adding WAY too much heft. That isn't the solution, and if it is, I'll be sticking to a rumble-less controller..
X_Arre @ Jun 15th 2007 6:46PM
Did someone just say the Wiimote has good battery life?!?
I love my Wii, but that remote Murders batteries even when I'm NOT playing it.
Dirk Dorkelson @ Jun 15th 2007 6:50PM
Rumble was key in Table Tennis, so you'd know how close to the edge of the table your shots are going to drop. Can't imagine playing that without rumble. Also, lots of recent baseball games have used rumble to signify when your pitcher's target is moving outside of the strike zone. Not to mention the other examples cited above.
jay @ Jun 15th 2007 6:53PM
Get good AA batteries, X_Arre. I'm running my Wiimote with 2400mAh's and it takes weeks to empty them. Get an express 15 minute charger and you're laughing.
'Course nothing seems to have beaten the Wavebird yet. Though that thing didn't have rumble...
Digi Smalls @ Jun 15th 2007 6:56PM
the Wii-mote battery life is NOT fine. who told you that?
as much as i loathe Sony for arrogantly assuming i didnt want rumble anymore, (and now after the inevitable outcry, making me buy a new controller)...
i do hope Sony at least licenses Immersion's newer rumble technologies. at least then they could keep their "last gen" statement and make the new Sixaxis ELITE controller worth buying.
still should've been in from the beginning though.
.
BPM @ Jun 15th 2007 6:58PM
Ideal solution:
Make batteries easier to replace. Sell additional rechargable batteries.
bobartig @ Jun 15th 2007 7:15PM
@9: Initially, when I first got my hands on the sixaxis controller, I was really taken by its lightness and form factor. I thought its featherweight approach would prove important for long-term play.
After living with either a PS3 controller or x360 controller in my hands all last summer, I have to say that the x360 controller wins in terms of long term comfort for my hands. Even though the off-center analog sticks eventually made my hands hurt, just the shape of the PS3 controller cramped my fingers over time. The trigger/shoulder button placement is also much better on the x360 than sixaxis.
My perfect controller: x360 shape, symmetric analog sticks near middle like PS3, but the x360 analog sticks, PS3 R2/L2 triggers, all other aspects pretty much x360-ish.
duerra @ Jun 15th 2007 7:19PM
"Unfortunately, adding something like a AA battery would make what I consider the perfect controller somewhat unwieldy, in addition to adding WAY too much heft. That isn't the solution, and if it is, I'll be sticking to a rumble-less controller.."
Dude... wow. I guess I can't ever say that I've ever in my life come across somebody who had such a hard time handling the TREMENDOUS HEFT of a AA battery. Amazing. -_-
Poisoned Al @ Jun 15th 2007 7:21PM
@BPM/Jay: But then Sony would have to redesign the shape of those rotten bloody pads! Can you imagine those things with a battery pack slung underneath them? And yeah, this is the first plesulable reason why the six-axis didn't have rumble. Sony are not famed for their batteries, not in a good way at least.
AoE @ Jun 15th 2007 7:33PM
@T H,
so if they're just the distributor (and keep in mind there's a difference between distribution and OEMing, which I believe is what they were actually doing, though I'm too busy to go verify right now), they're not responsible for the quality of the products they distribute? Sorry, it doesn't work that way... read the headlines from last year and you'll find that they had to cough up roughly half a billion dollars to all the various laptop mfgs. Low quality controll resulting in a half a billion dollar loss? Yeah... that actually is their fault (as evidenced by the half billion dollars they got to pay out)
Either way, batteries and Sony aren't a good paring.
Pr3z @ Jun 15th 2007 7:43PM
I actually heard directly from a Sony dev friend of mine that the real reason is that their is no space plus the fact that rumbles fcuks witht he motion sensors. It's coming later this year when Sony shifts to a new manufacturing process.
Poisoned Al @ Jun 15th 2007 7:47PM
@Pr3z: yeah, that sounds like a real reason too. Knowing Sony, it's probably both.
Adam @ Jun 15th 2007 8:26PM
Don't any of you remember Sony saying that rumble was "not possible with sixaxis" and immersion software replying that they could do it with no problem! When will you people stop beliving all of Sony's blatent lies...you should know by now that it was the lawsuit that those two companies were in... Sony's arrogance and constant lying are starting to turn more of thier "loyal" gamers toward the other systems...i manage a game store and the sell through numbers dont lie!
h0mi @ Jun 15th 2007 8:27PM
Sixaxis needs to be redesigned. No replaceable batteries. That was a good idea.
Aberu @ Jun 15th 2007 8:48PM
Breaking news! Rumble is the most overhyped and unnecessary function in controllers ever! Omg my controller shakes when stuff happens. Omg I get Carpal Tonnel from it!
Aberu @ Jun 15th 2007 8:52PM
@Adam
The sell-through numbers that show in the first six months the PS3 sold, only in America, at the same rate as the 360? Yet the 360 is a success to all you fanboys. Let alone the fact that the PS3 greatly outsells the 360 in Japan and Europe. Combine those things and you have a system that IS selling better than it's MAIN competitor the 360. It just got released later.
cc123 @ Jun 15th 2007 8:52PM
Just read up on Immersions's newer tech and it sounds really nice. Here's the link:
http://www.immersion.com/gaming/video_pc/next-gen/index.php
Near the bottom where it mentions motion control/wireless/easy on power it's almost like they were talking specifically about Sony.
I would buy that in a heartbeat. =)
Matt B @ Jun 15th 2007 9:00PM
24. Breaking news! Rumble is the most overhyped and unnecessary function in controllers ever! Omg my controller shakes when stuff happens. Omg I get Carpal Tonnel from it!
Posted at 8:48PM on Jun 15th 2007 by Aberu
Thank you, I could not have said it better. Rumble is more of an annoyance for me anyway. Keep your cell phone on vibrate for everything and see how long the Battery lasts. It is bigger than a AA.
MaulerX @ Jun 15th 2007 9:18PM
The problem here is that the batteries cannot be replaced. Anyone with a cell phone knows that after the constant charging and re-charging these batteries
capacity to hold a charge dwindles.
Bad design of the Sixaxis.
Chris Putnam @ Jun 15th 2007 9:57PM
@26:
If that's what Sony is trying to put in, it's something to get excited about. Maybe even worth the delay.
I sort of agree with some people here that rumble tends to be more of an annoyance than anything, but if this new version can do all they say, that could change in a hurry.
mccomber @ Jun 15th 2007 10:37PM
"The problem here is that the batteries cannot be replaced. Anyone with a cell phone knows that after the constant charging and re-charging these batteries capacity to hold a charge dwindles."
First, that has nothing to do with rumble, and second, it's 5 screws to open up a ps3 controller, then one connection for the battery. Or, you can send it in and have it replaced, like Sony has said you could do right from the start. Easier than an iPod, I'll tell you that.
Unless this new rumble really adds to the experience in a way that makes me stop and say "wow", I'll stick with my light, long-life SIXAXIS, thanks.
donssword @ Jun 16th 2007 12:07PM
That is an absurd claim for Sony. The 2nd gen Logitech wireless controllers for the PS2 had hundreds of hours of battery lifespan with their double-As, and the Japan only Sega Surfwave controllers by Fountech/ArcadeMX for the PS2 had thousands of hours of battery life running on AAs as well. Sony should have never embedded the batteries. Given that a rumbling PS3 controller is on the horizon, Sony should make the move to disposables and ditch the rechargeables.
MinorHavoc @ Jun 15th 2007 11:29PM
@10
That's the first time I've heard that Sony was only the distributor and not the manufacturer of those flawed batteries. Sony's own press releases say things like "battery cells originally manufactured by Sony", "Sony-manufactured lithium-ion cells" and "Sony has introduced a number of additional safeguards into its battery manufacturing process...".
Not to doubt your word, but can you give a source that says Sony was only the distributor and not the manufacturer?
John Stamos @ Jun 16th 2007 12:41AM
My girlfriend's clit doesn't like Sixaxis as much as rumble.
SeNiLe911 @ Jun 16th 2007 5:25AM
Best to just sell your PofS 3 and get a Xbox 360 with one of the five best game console controllers of all time.
http://www.xbox360fanboy.com/2007/05/25/the-360-controller-is-the-best-of-the-best/
The battery life last for days with many hours of gaming and when you need to you can charge it with a Play & Charge Kit or pull the battery out and place it in a Quick Charge Kit. No AA batteries needed and it has Rumble!!!
James @ Jun 16th 2007 10:44AM
I can't believe this has gotten out to 30+ posts and nobody has mentioned the heartbeat sensor in Metal Gear. That rocked. And I don't think Psychonauts was the only game that used rumble to detect secrets -- Ocarina of Time, maybe? One of the Zeldas, right?
Anyway, there are a lot of games where rumble is just frills, but there have been some genuinely useful uses as well. At grad school, on of my TAs was working with a military sim to make a vest for VR training so that when you were walking around, you'd know if you e.g. bumped your shoulder on a door frame (which is outside your field of vision when you're looking ahead). Games that rumble when you get shot from behind accomplish a similar effect.
Sony was just too lazy to do it right, and underestimated how much it would be missed. It's the same thing with the PSP battery -- they mandated that all games must *underclock* the CPU so that the battery life (which is quite good IMHO) would look better. Just be honest about these things and don't hobble your own products, dammit. If people want longer battery life, they can avoid high-drain games or turn off rumble in their PS3 settings.
Negativecool @ Jun 16th 2007 11:29AM
James-
While I do agree that rumble in Metal Gear was hot, and I do agree the the other reasons given thus far are compelling reasons to have rumble, none of them were ESSENTIAL to beating the game.
You an play through any game without rumble and still beat the game, but you NEEDED it in Psychonauts is what Miller's point was.
GWolf @ Jun 16th 2007 2:17PM
Sony's controller design is terrible and dated to begin with; why do you think they tried the boomerang in the first place.
I have a solution, someone make an adapter so the 360 controller can be used instead, problem solved.
Brad Lee @ Jun 16th 2007 4:15PM
Originally, I was kinda pissed about the 360 controller because it seemed excessively expensive for very little improvement upon the Controller S. But then I got used to it, and by comparison I just think the 360 controller is lightyears ahead of the PS3 (or 2, or 1) controller.
Don't get me wrong, for its time the PS controller was amazing. But nowadays, it seems as though Sony is just trying to blatantly rip off the competition as opposed to adopting it and modifying it for the better. The original Playstation controller adopted an SNES like feel, only modified it for the better. But now, we get a (seemingly) tacked on home button ripped off from the 360, which just looks awkward by comparison. And the L2R2 buttons also feel like ripoffs of the 360's triggers, and finally the tilt functionality, which, as many gamers have said, feels like a Wii-ripoff.
If Sony took all these ideas and modified them for the better it would be a different story. But as it stands, the PS3 controller now just looks like a Frankenstein to me.
The 360 pad, on the other hand, looks like an evolution and when you play games it just feels like a more advanced and evolved form of the Controller S. It may be expensive as hell, especially if you want your own rechargable batteries and recharge station and so on, but it's well worth the money. Not so sure about the PS3 pad, even if it's less expensive.
And I'll reserve judgment on the Wii, when it has more time to prove its worth.