Excellent controller and very affordable!
The Nova Lite 2 is incredible, especially for the price. I bought it when it was $30, but it first caught my eye when it was on sale for $24. The ABXY buttons are the same type used on a regular Xbox controller. Higher-end GameSir controllers, like the G7 Pro, use micro switches instead. The joysticks are Hall Effect, so they should never develop stick drift. The orange glide rings at the base also help the sticks move smoothly. There are also short-throw trigger switches that make the triggers move only a short distance. I believe GameSir calls this feature "rapid trigger." I do not really play FPS games, but it does make Genshin a little more enjoyable. The D-pad uses micro switches, and this is a welcome change from the contact pad style used on Xbox controllers. I like it a lot. The Home + button modes are also a nice feature because they make it easy to switch between different devices. Home + A puts it into Bluetooth pairing mode for Android, Home + B is for Bluetooth pairing with Sony PlayStation compatibility, Home + X uses the included Wi-Fi adapter for PC, and Home + Y is for Nintendo Switch. One of the cooler features is Home + RB or LB for Android devices that do not support X-Input. This switches it to G-Touch mode, which requires the GameSir Android app and lets you map the Nova Lite 2 buttons and sticks to areas on the screen for touch controls. The Windows application is not too bad. It lets you customize the LED light for the Home button, toggle rapid trigger mode, remap buttons, change joystick curves, and update the firmware for both the controller and the Wi-Fi receiver. After a firmware update, you may have to re-pair the controller to the receiver, but the receiver does have a built-in pairing button. The extra buttons on the back take a little getting used to. There is no lockout switch to disable them, but you can leave them unmapped so they do nothing if pressed. There are only a few drawbacks, and for some people they may not be a big deal. First, the battery capacity feels small to me at only 600 mAh. GameSir claims 10 hours of use, but based on how much the charge meter drops in the Windows app during a 3-hour session of Genshin Impact, I think the battery life is probably closer to 6 hours. That is just my opinion, though, since I have not done a full battery test yet. That leads to my second drawback: there is no user-replaceable battery. With an Xbox controller, I can swap in rechargeable AA batteries or use larger aftermarket battery packs if needed. That said, GameSir does have a decent solution. They sell a charging dock for the Nova Lite 2 for $15. The dock has a USB passthrough, so you can plug the wireless adapter into the base. The controller turns off automatically when placed on the dock, then turns back on and reconnects to the last good connection mode when you pick it up again. Overall, I think this is a very good controller for the price. It has a few drawbacks, mainly the battery, but the features and feel make up for it for me. Read more






























