http://www.amazon.com/Generic-Bluetooth-Controller-Wireless-Joystick/dp/B00AR9JEQU/


I've had the Ipega Bluetooth Controller for about a month and a half now. Been absolutely loving it. It feels wonderful to play games from my childhood with emulators, and not having to use touch screen controls. Been rather addicted to playing Advance Wars 2 and all the 2D Zelda games on the go. Got to play the GBC Zelda Oracle games for the first time in my life.

The controller looks like an SNES except with GBA/DS-Lite "clicky" shoulder buttons. Oh and 2 control knobs that I haven't had a chance to test out yet. In your hand, though, the controller feels almost exactly like you're playing the GBA. Except with 2 extra face buttons, so you can play more SNES-style games.

The controller fits well in my hand, and my phone also fits perfectly, even with the cover on (which is recommended you keep on so that you don't accidentally scratch the sides of your phone). Sometimes my volume buttons get pushed so that the volume gets muted, but that can be fixed by sliding the volume up, holding it there, and then pushing the power button at the same time. At least that works on my Galaxy Nexus.

I'm gonna compare and contrast why I chose it over the 2 Mogas, which seem to be the most well-known Bluetooth controllers that you can clip your phone on to.

http://www.amazon.com/MOGA-Mobile-Gaming-System-Android-2-3/dp/B0096L2SJ0/ref=pd_sim_cps_3


The Moga seems to be the most well-known of the Bluetooth Controllers. I'm not informed on this issue, but I would speculate it because it was one of the first "good" ones, and it got brand recognition from it. It's on display at a lot of places that sell phones. I saw it at Best Buy and my Verizon store. It gives a lot of people the chance to try it out. I tried it out at my Verizon store, and, ultimately, while I liked the concept, I had a major problem with it. And it was its left joystick "knob". I didn't like that I could ONLY use that left knob as my primary directional control. I knew that it would be kind of annoying to play a lot of games with it. As someone who grew up on the SNES/Game Boy/DS my entire life, I very much prefer classic D-pads. And playing emulated games from the SNES/GBA eras just wouldn't feel quite as right on a "knob" as it would with a D-Pad.

So I searched around the internet and found that I'd probably like the Ipega more because it actually had a D-pad. Not only that, but it was also cheaper than the Moga. And it would also work on iPhones, should I want to ever go that route in the future. So a D-Pad and a cheaper price seemed to make this a no-brainer to me. The Ipega was better than the Moga in every single way for what I was looking for.

http://www.amazon.com/POWER-Mobile-Gaming-System-Android-Smartphones/dp/B00BTDBSXU/ref=pd_sim_cps_2

(Shoulder buttons are not displayed in the listing)

Now we have the Moga Pro. And in my opinion, it's actually the best mobile phone controller I've seen so far from a purely control standpoint. It's essentially a combination between the DualShock 3 and the Gamecube controller. It has the Gamecube's left Joystick layout and ergonomic design that fits into your hand, and the DualShock 3's basic layout and twin Trigger/Bumper buttons, And the two extra shoulder buttons open up a lot more games you could play with them. If I were to have gotten a controller based solely on how well I think it would control, I would have gotten the Moga pro. If for no other reason that it has 2 extra shoulder buttons to play Playstation games that require a DualShock controller.

Note: I do not know if the Moga Pro has the same "clicker" buttons on the Joysticks that the Xbox/Playstation controllers have. I would GUESS no.

However, I didn't just base my buy on just how many buttons it has. I also based it on the fact that I would be carrying the controller in my POCKET. And while the Moga Pro isn't as available for testing at stores like the original Moga is, I've seen the boxed item in-person. And even from the pictures itself, you can probably tell that it's about the same size as a DualShock 3/Gamecube controller. And with joysticks that are elevated that high from the base (i.e. they're not "knobs"), along with the size, I would be worried about carrying it in my pocket without wearing them down or damaging the joysticks EVENTUALLY. Now I am actually fine with control knobs, like on the Ipega. My issue with the Moga 1 was that it didn't also have an option to use a regular D-Pad. As long the option to use a regular d-pad exists, control knobs are fine because they're harder to wear down/damage than joysticks in the style of traditional console controllers.

And I mostly play 2D games on my phone, so I actually prefer the Playstation Controller-like layout of the Ipega.

Now the size of the Ipega controller is actually slightly smaller than the Gameboy Advance. The proportions are roughly the same, just shrink it down a little bit due to the fact that it doesn't need a screen in the middle of it. Your phone's gonna be the screen that you're attaching to it. I'd estimate that it's about maybe 4/5ths or 5/6ths the size of a GBA. That fits into your pocket really well. In general, the controller feels almost exactly like you're playing the GBA. Which makes GBA games a joy to play on them.

So ultimately, my opinions would be that if you don't plan on carrying it in your pocket, the Moga Pro would actually be the better controller. It has 2 extra shoulder buttons (pressure-sensitive triggers that Xbox and Playstaiton controllers have), can play a wider variety of games, and it fits comfortably in your hand. It's just a little big to be carrying around in your pocket. I'm going to be carrying the controller in my pocket, so I went with the Ipega. And unless you like only having a joystick knob as your only directional control and being 9 dollars more expensive, stay away from the Moga 1.

So TL-kun, what are your thoughts on these types of controllers?