NES Classic wireless gamepad mini review.

[Howard_Casto]

So my Chinese wireless gamepad finally got here from the slow boat from China.  To my surprise... it isn't crap!  Not only that but it is quite good! 

It looks and feels identical to the original nes gamepad except for the removal of the Nintendo logo (duh) and the inclusion of a small power button icon below the start button.  The A/B buttons are spot on in terms of throw and feel.  The d-pad is nearly identical as well.  The only thing I noticed (and something that non-fanatics probably wouldn't) is that the corners of the d-pad are ever so slightly sharper than the original.  This is probably due to less finishing after pulling the parts from the mold or something.  I assure you, you won't notice unless you run your fingers along the outside of the d-pad.... it doesn't effect gameplay.  The start and select buttons don't feel exactly right, but they are close and aren't gameplay buttons anyway. 

Connectivity is really good.  You plug the dongle into the nes classic, power the console on and then hold the start button until the red light comes on inside the gamepad, which doesn't even take a second.  There doesn't appear to be any significant lag.  It's hard to measure that sort of thing, but I quickly went to Piston Honda in punch out and didn't have any trouble.  The gamepad will go to sleep after several seconds, but the good news is it immediately wakes up after the first button press... the handshake must be really short or non existent because I purposefully let it sleep during a round and then punched.  It woke up quickly enough to have the punch connect. 

Something that really surprised me was the box.  It has one!  And in English no less!  They had a ball with the retro throwbacks.  The box looks quite similar to the original nes gamepad box.  You'll find tongue-in-cheek humor all over it.  The front boasts "space age wireless technology!" and on the back the ergonomic design is also played up.  My phone is on charge so I'll post pics of everything this evening.  It's a shame that the box is partially crushed due to being shipped in an e-packet.

As for battery life, ect... well I haven't had it long enough to know.  I'll update this when I've used it for a while.   

I've really only got two complaints about the thing and they are very minor.  The wireless dongle is the same color as the gamepad instead of black.  I'm sure this was to save in mold costs.... it was most likely pulled with the gamepad shell, but it's still a tad bit ugly.  I'll probably print out a black case later.  Also the charge cable is usb but uses a phono mini jack on the gamepad end.  Now for the record I think this was the right call.... the socket fits inside the hole that a cord would normally come out of the gamepad so while charging it looks the part.  Also it's just less fiddly to plug in.  The only thing is if I ever lose that cable my guess is it'll be hard to replace.

Anyway it's 10 bucks on aliexpress. and the link is below.  Judging by the surprising quality, and the all English box I'm thinking that this was a product originally meant for western markets that maybe couldn't be shipped over due to copyright concerns.  If you need a good wireless gamepad for the nes classic or wii/wii u I highly recommend it. 

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Wireless-Controller-Gamepad-for-NES-Classic-Edition-Nintendo-Mini-Console-controller/32795495551.html?spm=2114.13010608.0.0.AqCRGi

[pbj]

Looks like a standard USB -> Phono jack cable to me.  MP3 players used them to charge.

[Grasshopper]

I've really only got two complaints about the thing and they are very minor.  The wireless dongle is the same color as the gamepad instead of black.  I'm sure this was to save in mold costs.... it was most likely pulled with the gamepad shell, but it's still a tad bit ugly.  I'll probably print out a black case later

It looks like they also sell black ones that come with a matching black dongle. So, if you really want black and can spare an extra $11.00 buying a black one might be a better bet.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Wireless-2-4G-USB-Plug-and-Game-Controller-Gamepad-for-Nintendo-for-NES-Mini-Buttons-Classic/32794489556.html?spm=2114.01010208.3.253.bjQfER&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_1_10152_10065_10151_10068_10130_10136_10137_10060_10138_10155_10062_10156_10154_10056_10055_10054_10059_10099_10103_10102_10096_10148_10147_10052_10053_10142_10107_10050_10051_10084_10083_10080_10082_10081_10110_10111_10112_10113_10114_10179_10181_10078_10079_10073_10070_10123_10124-10051,searchweb201603_10,ppcSwitch_5&btsid=e2712677-b61d-432d-bb9b-52a227886f53&algo_expid=36602787-bb81-4c4c-8df2-007cf158f664-34&algo_pvid=36602787-bb81-4c4c-8df2-007cf158f664

[Howard_Casto]

Eh the gamepad is black though.  I'd have the opposite problem then. 

pbj:  I didn't know that mp3 players used that typed of plug... all the ones I have either use mini usb, micro usb, or some annoyingly proprietary connector. 

[Howard_Casto]

As promised, some pics.  The pad on the right is the wireless one while the left pad is the one that comes with the nes classic. 

[Howard_Casto]

Just for fun, here are a few box shots.  It's a cheap box, but you can tell they tried and some of the text blurbs are clever.  I think I'll keep it and stick it on a shelf somewhere. 

[pbj]

Yeah, that definitely looks like it was intended to be a mainstream retail product.  The kind of thing I expect to see on super clearance PDQ.  Might pick a couple up to rob the parts to refurb my original controllers.

[Howard_Casto]

That's not a bad idea.  The rebuild kits out there do an adequate job, but they still aren't quite right. 

I popped it open btw.  The inside reveals a rather thin pcb and one of those batteries commonly found in a small mp3 player.  When you open up the dongle there is a surprisingly small pcb inside.  The led has rather long legs to make it stick out far enough.  So yeah that giant glob of gray plastic is going away.  I'll either heat shrink it or print out a better enclosure.

I want to lookup the chip # later on.  It's a rather tiny chip but it isn't surface mount, so it would be great for hand making adaptors. 

[bigster]

Too bad this does not have a home button bc it sounds amazing

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[Howard_Casto]

It doesn't need one.  Modding the kernel allows you to return to the menu via down+select.

[bigster]

Great news.  I'm going to mod and buy controller. 

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

[Howard_Casto]

Before you do a bit of a warning.  I tried it on my Wii U today and I couldn't get the system to detect it in Wii or Wii U mode.  It could be that there is a different syncing procedure (it didn't come with a manual) but that's just a warning in case it doesn't work.