Between confusing implementations and unappealing prices, the first wave of iOS game controllers had a very rough launch, nearly killing a new accessory category that had the potential to be huge for Apple. Some of the earliest iOS game controllers only fit smaller iPhones and iPod touches, others had limited buttons, and most were originally priced at $70 or more. With the exception of Mad Catz’ more affordable, device-agnostic C.T.R.L.i series of Bluetooth controllers, iOS gamepads quickly racked up mediocre reviews and wound up in discount bins. The message to Apple and controller makers: follow Mad Catz’ template, and price the controllers more reasonably, or no one’s going to buy them.
Currently an Apple Store exclusive, Hori’s new HoriPad Ultimate ($50) is the latest acknowledgement that the lesson’s been learned: it’s the second Made For Apple TV game controller, including full MFi/iOS 7+ compatibility for use with iPads, iPhones, and iPod touches, plus Mac support. The pricing, design, and basic feature set are substantially similar to SteelSeries’ Nimbus, though Hori — a respected Japanese developer of game controllers — has outdone SteelSeries on the specifics. For the same price as Nimbus, you get a more PlayStation 4-like controller design with superior hand grips, twice the battery life, better-feeling buttons and a more substantial weight. HoriPad Ultimate uses a Lightning cable to recharge its battery, too…
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While Sony and Microsoft collectively established the template for recent iOS game controllers, it’s clear that Sony’s PlayStation 3 controller DualShock 3 had the most influence on both SteelSeries’ Nimbus and HoriPad Ultimate. A D-pad’s on the front left, two rubber-topped DualShock-style analog joysticks are on the front bottom, and four convex action buttons are on the front right — just like a DualShock 3 with Xbox-style button labeling. The metallic blue side grips are smooth hard plastic rather than DualShock 4-style textured rubber, but they’re still very comfortable in the hand.
Rather than Select, Start, and PlayStation buttons, HoriPad Ultimate just has a gently concave Menu button on the front center, the only sign that the controller was specifically designed with Apple TV compatibility in mind — earlier iOS controllers had a pause button, instead. Like Nimbus, four red lights indicate HoriPad Ultimate’s pairing status; they’re invisible on Apple.com’s official pictures, but found directly above the Menu button within an otherwise glossy (and fingerprint-attracting) surface.
Where Nimbus and HoriPad Ultimate differ the most is up top. Hori’s L1, L2, R1, and R2 shoulder buttons are almost identical to the ones on Sony’s DualShock 3, clearly separated from one another with prominent, angular pressure-sensitive triggers on the L2 and R2 buttons. SteelSeries went with more organic button shapes that physically touched one another, indirectly increasing the potential for accidental presses of the wrong button; Hori keeps the buttons distinct, like Sony did. Both controllers have the same center array with a power switch, female Lightning recharging port, and Bluetooth pairing button, neither comes with a Lightning cable for recharging. The switch and button on HoriPad Ultimate are a little smaller than Nimbus’s, but not problematically so.
HoriPad Ultimate’s most obvious benefit over Nimbus is something you’ll only notice when you hold the controller: how it feels. Nimbus is somewhat lighter than you’d expect from a good controller, while HoriPad Ultimate has a greater density that’s most notable in the very center. Similarly, the buttons and D-pad all feel as precisely executed as you’d expect from a Sony DualShock. HoriPad Ultimate doesn’t feel cheap in any way, though it’s worth mentioning that Hori’s rubber-tipped analog sticks don’t have the delicate textures found on some controllers; they’re nearly smooth to the touch, rather than deliberately grippy.
The controller’s extra weight is partially attributable to a bigger battery. Just like Nimbus, HoriPad Ultimate includes a relatively power-efficient Bluetooth 4.1 chip, but promises 80 hours of play time compared with Nimbus’s 40. That’s a significant benefit, as Nimbus’s run time was on par with (if not better than) most console wireless controllers, while HoriPad Ultimate is at least twice as long-lasting as a DualShock 3 or Xbox One Wireless Controller. The iOS-to-console comparison’s not exactly apples-to-apples, as MFi controllers don’t have rumble vibrations, headphone ports, light bars, touchpads, or gyroscopes to worry about. But being able to actively play games for two weeks without recharging is great by controller standards.
Pairing HoriPad Ultimate to a device is nearly effortless: once the controller’s turned on, you just press the pairing button, go into the Bluetooth (iOS) or Remotes (Apple TV) settings menu on your device, and select HoriPad Ultimate. When connected to an iOS device for the first time, HoriPad Ultimate suggests that you should download an app from the App Store, but no Hori-specific app appears on the recommended downloads list. There’s only one reason a Hori app might be useful: SteelSeries offers its own Nimbus Companion App, primarily for firmware updates, and the automatic app download prompt suggests Hori is planning something similar. For now, it’s not needed, as the controller works perfectly with iOS and Apple TV devices straight out of the box.
Apart from the absence of a firmware app, software support for HoriPad Ultimate is virtually identical to Nimbus, which is to say that Hori’s controller is compatible with the same (slowly) growing library of iOS and tvOS games that began to add official Apple-sanctioned game controller support after the release of iOS 7. You can play cross-platform games such as Asphalt 8, Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions, and Oceanhorn using any of these controllers, as well as presently tvOS-exclusive titles such as Beat Sports. Hori’s analog controllers and buttons are perfectly calibrated, so I felt perfectly natural — and far, far better than with on-screen controls or the Siri Remote — steering my ship and pointing my weapons in Geometry Wars 3, which is just one of a bunch of iOS/tvOS games that practically beg for the dual analog sticks included in good iOS game controllers.
As a lifelong gamer who has been waiting for great controllers to use with iOS games, I’m glad that HoriPad Ultimate even exists — particularly at a competitive $50 price point. Two years ago, it seemed obvious that the “right” iOS controller would be device-agnostic, include Bluetooth, and offer PlayStation- or Xbox-like features at a PlayStation or Xbox-like controller price. SteelSeries came close to “just right” with Nimbus, and thanks to improved ergonomics and battery life, Hori has come even closer with HoriPad Ultimate. With the exception of rumble vibrations, there’s little more I could want in a console-style game controller; otherwise, Hori has basically nailed the concept here. If you’re looking for an iOS or Apple TV game controller, HoriPad Ultimate is the best option currently available.
| Manufacturer: Hori |
Price: $50 |
Compatibility: iPhones, iPads, iPod touches with iOS 7+, Apple TV 4 |
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It’s a shame they place the left analog stick where they do. When you grip the controller your thumb naturally goes up towards the location where they placed the D-pad. I’ve never understood why Sony also has this strange placement, which requires you reach your thumb to the right to control the analog stick. It’s not nearly as ergonomically as it would be had they swapped the D-pad and analog stick.
100% this. That has bugged me to no end. With that being said, this is a step in the right direction regarding iOS controllers. Next step, get rid of smooth top analog sticks. Surface should have some grip.
Sony has sold somewhere in the neighborhood of 200-300 million controllers with the analog sticks in the same location. While sales alone wouldn’t make a bad design good, one would think that they wouldn’t have kept the design across 4+ generations of controllers if they had received complaints about the left stick.
Absolutely. Can’t deny the wild success of the PlayStation. Though I would argue that most people simply don’t notice these types of things, and that the PlayStation has done well despite the poorly designed controller, not due to it. I think it’s more to do with the fact that’s symmetrical and more pleasing to the eye to have the dual analog sticks in the fashion they are. Just hold out your hand as if you were giving a handshake. Your thumb points up. That’s its natural, comfortable resting position. Holding it off to the side is indisputably not as ergonomcial. This is one of the few things Microsoft got right with their Xbox design
Really a question of how the sticks are getting used. Sony built its original analog controller at a time when there were a bunch of “left to walk, right to shoot” games, some overhead/isometric and some early true 3-D. Putting fingers on both analog sticks at the same time was a secondary, somewhat seldom use of the controller compared with the the dominant 2-D gameplay. I personally have found the Xbox position of the left analog stick to be troublesome for playing fighting games like Killer Instinct, and prefer Sony’s design. My feeling is that one’s perspective likely depends on the type of games one plays most often.
yeah, if you’re primarily using the D-pad then the playstation style dual shock is for you, since the D-pad is in the more ergonomical and natural position for your thumb (no constant reaching to the right). Though most modern video games make much more use of the analog stick, which is why I prefer the analog stick be in that natural location.
Oh my. They better not sell this in New Zealand… ‘Hori’ is a racial slur here against Maori people… it’s basically the ‘N’ word.
Hori is a Japanese company. It’s been around for nearly 50 years, and making gaming accessories for over 30. Perhaps they’re sold under a different brand where you live?
Probably just not sold at all I’d imagine. We’re probably too small a country to bother with making separate branding etc
Hori stuff is sold here in Australia, so I’d be pretty surprised if they weren’t selling in NZ and under the same name. This stores product listings suggests as much also: https://www.mightyape.co.nz/search?i=All&prev=&s=hori&SearchButton=Search
I have a couple of the original Horipads. They’re okay, but I expected more from a premium brand such as Hori. I would have picked up one of these Ultimate ones but Hori don’t seem to be bothered about releasing them in the UK unfortunately.
Does anyone else find MFI pass kind of laggy though? Compared to a PS4 or XO pad, I notice some latency.
The original HoriPads are substantially different – more expensive, yet with a cheaper-looking design. It seems like Apple went to a few of the better MFi controller makers and suggested improvements for Lightning versions, with better prices. Ultimate is a nice step forward.
One other thing I’d like to add is I wish they would include a retractable hold for my iPhone to sit in. Then it could double as a controller for home on the tv as well as 1 on the go I could take with me.
The Mad Catz C.T.R.L.i controllers mentioned in the review come with those holders if you want them.
But I’m not too sure if they’re compatable with the Apple TV? I could be wrong.
They work with the Apple TV, and the cradles are detachable.
What gets me is how come no controllers have gyros? I play Asphalt 8 a lot and that is the main reason I contenu to just use the Siri remote for the games. I find it more natural to turn the controler to steer the car than it would to use a d-pad or sticks. Now if the can make a controler that dose have the gyro in it I’ll get it.
It’s due to the guidelines provided by Apple. They specified which inputs are allowed on external MFi controllers and so far motion controls aren’t one of them. Games also lack support for external motion controls and to introduce that would require a major update of the entire controller framework.
It’s possible to add this in a future update, though that would also require a ton of hardware updates on the controller manufacturers’ part.
The theory is probably that if you want motion controls and sensors, use the ones in your iOS device. I know that’s typically not practical to do in conjunction with the external controller, but that’s most likely the thinking behind it.
Pretty sure if you want to use gyroscopic control with he Apple TV you can use your iPhone/iPad/Ipod as a controller,
Talk about embarrassing design and ultra cheap looking
I had my doubts from the screenshots and the box image but I think that it looks and feels very appealing when you actually see and hold one. D-Pad and analog sticks feel great; the build quality is very solid.
A nice surprise was that all buttons are analog, including the D-Pad and all shoulder buttons. I don’t know if every MFI controller has to be this way, but I thought it was nice.
Also, surprisingly easy to switch between using it with a Mac and an iPad (hold down the pairing button, pair it with another device without having to unpair the previous device first). Considering how painful it is to share bluetooth keyboards/headphones between mac/iOS, this was really refreshing.
It’s an accessory for an accessory… But none can beat the pill dude.
Gunna try this out- I just wish fighting games like street fighter and marvel vs capcom 2 had controller support, makes absolutely no sense
As a fighting game fan, I agree 100%. They generally preceded game controller support in iOS 7, which is highly unfortunate. I believe Capcom lost Marvel license rights recently, which suggests MvC2 won’t be updated to add support, either. The first company to release a reasonably priced port of a major arcade fighting game for ATV (imagine Virtua Fighter 3, 4, or 5) could make a killing.
This is the best MFI controller made to date. I bought it the same day I saw this review. The build quality is good and it has a good weight to it. The only thing I would change is swapping the left analog with the d pad. Battery life os excellent.
Bought a couple of these for my sons for Christmas. Only had the chance to use them once. I can say, without question, the build quality is top-notch. My only frustration was that without the touch pad that the Siri Remote offers, I immediately ran into an issue that I couldn’t resolve. My very first test was meant to be a simple one — try out multiplayer Crossy Road. I wanted to see if you could play it with two MFi controllers instead of one person on their iPhone. In order to get that menu you must swipe up. Only, there’s no way to do that on the Horipad. After about 5 minutes of trying everything, I had to go find the Siri remote and use it to get to the player selection menu.
After the tvOS 9.2 update, this controller can’t fast forward during video playback anymore. Any firmware updates? or Apple updates ?