Turtle Beach React-R Controller Black – Xbox Series X|S

 

I’ve bought several types of X box one controllers, none ever last more than a couple of months. I decided to give these a try for my teenagers and both say they are great and much better to use

 

exactly what i needed, loved this controller since i ordered my 1st one i’m now onto my 3rd, sound controls are perfect for CoD. Only shame is that there is no wireless option apart from that i have no faults with it and the price is spot o

 

Firstly the reviews when you look at them are not all for the ATOM.

The controller comes in a nicely presented box and looks smart. Using Turtle Beach headsets for years and having no issues I was expecting this to be very similar in reliability. It does not disapoint.

The controller inside the packaging comes in a neat little branded turtle beach cloth bag. A nice touch but doesn’t serve much purpose other than protection from scratches.

This is a 2 part controller that charges via USB C and does not offer connectivity via hard connection – Bluetooth only. The controller packs away to an oversized wallet size little bit to big to go in a pocket but perfect to go into a backpack.

The controller splits and attaches to the mobile device via a clamp in system. You will possibly struggle with any other case other than a thin silicone type. But if you don’t mind dropping the device out of its case its a much better experience, it feels nice and snug once clamped in.

Once connected the first part of the controller pairs with the second and works impressively well.

I have tested this using the Xbox remote play and other than graphics being slightly worse (nothing to do with the ATOM) most games are very playable and enjoyable as much as if you were using the TV. It’s nice to use if you fancy a quick game but don’t fancy going into the room where your console is or if your out and about.

Personally

 

THIS IS NOT AN IN DEPTH REVIEW. I will not cover the audio side of it or the programmable buttons.

I bought this replace an XBox One controller that was used for PC gaming. While I didn’t want to go back to a wired controller, it was something I was willing to consider.

The connection for it is USB-C, and the cable supplied is braided (feels quality), but also extremely long so if it’s going to be used at close quarters you might want to get a slightly shorter cable. As for installation it’s plug and play with Windows 10 and 11 (and probably earlier OS versions), and once it’s been detected by Windows, you’re good to go. Or at least you’d think so.

If the controller is shipped with the 1.03 firmware, after a while it can power itself down. Once this happens you have to unplug the controller from the PC and plug it back in again. This is far from ideal because there’s an added level of stress on the components and sooner or later something is going to break. After a bit of investigation, it turned out that the controller needed to have the firmware updated. I went to the Turtle Beach site, downloaded the software, and the firmware was updated pretty quickly. This seems to have fixed the issue, so if you have this problem then there’s the fix.

In use the controller feels sturdy enough. Flex is at a minimum (you really have to apply crazy pressure), and it’s not overly heavy nor unduly light. It’s got a really nice texture and it’s also not as prone to making your hands sweat. You can use this controller for ages and it not be a problem.

Something that counts in it’s favour is the travel distance of the triggers and sticks. They’re slightly less than on a standard controller and this leads to less input lag (smaller dead zone) and increased responsiveness. If you play FPS or racing games then it’s definitely better than a lot of other controllers out there. I play a lot of racing and simulation games, and I’ve noticed that my game has definitely upped ever so slightly. Anything that requires fine control (as opposed to fully depressing a trigger or going in a direction) will require a bit of refinement, but it’s not unduly difficult and pretty soon motor memory will kick in with the new values.

Something worth noting is that there are also trigger buttons underneath, and these can be mapped to functions. If you’ve ever driven a paddle shift car or used a paddle shift control wheel, it feels quite natural using these as gear shift buttons, but they’re also useful for FPS and simulators.

The buttons also have just the right amount of tactile feedback, and you can be fairly confident that a press has registered. Tactile feedback is also where it fails as well. The vibrations are mediocre at best. I’ve had controllers in the past that have been physically unpleasant to hold and I’m surprised they haven’t shaken themselves apart because of the vibrations, but this is a bit of a buzz (my XBox controller danced all over the desk, this doesn’t). I don’t particularly like overpowered motors, but these could definitely do with a little more oomph.

There’s the nice addon of a screenshot/video button. This seems to tie into the XBox PC app, and a short press grabs a screenshot, while a long press activates screen recording. This seems to be handled by the XBox client and overlay, but it’s useful enough to hit without requiring you to remove your hands from the controller.

As far as the lights on the controller go, they’re not bad. Visible in bright lighting, and not glaring in low light conditions. When you’re playing, you can easily reference what you want, but it’s not bright enough that it’s drawing attention away from the screen or ruining your vision in low lit areas.

If you’re a mid level gamer then you can do a lot worse than this controller. Everything seems to be done to the “just right” specification, with possibly the exception of the vibration motors.