Hall Effect Controllers combine magnetism and gaming

There are literally hundreds of different gaming controllers to choose from these days. From the most basic and affordable options to the top-of-the-line ones that don’t matter, there’s something for every budget, personality, and play style. For most casual gamers, the controller that comes with your console, or even many of the cheaper ones, will be fine for when you need to kill an hour or two (or zombies). But for more hardcore gamers, or even if you just want a smoother feel and more durable sticks on your controller, you’ll want to look into what’s known as a Hall Effect controller – essentially a gaming controller with Hall Effect joysticks and/or triggers.

Although Hall Effect technology has been used in gaming controllers for decades, it is only now that we are seeing more and more controllers utilizing this technology.

What are Hall Effect Controllers?

The Hall effect is named after its discoverer, physicist Edwin Hall. In short, in 1879 he found a way to use magnets to accurately measure differences in electrical potential across a conductor to determine distance and direction. (Here’s a more in depth explanation.)

A company that claims to have a Hall Effect controller means that it has built its joysticks using magnetic sensors rather than physical sensors. But it’s not just joysticks that can incorporate this technology. Some companies are also using Hall Effect technology in their triggers, which provides a better gaming experience for more of the controller; the Xbox Elite Wireless Series 2 controller has Hall Effect triggers, for example.

The Hall effect is so effective at improving the durability of joysticks that they have been used in heavy equipment for decades.

Are Hall Effect Controllers Better?

For sticks and switches, Hall Effect components mean that no physical contact is needed to generate the measured current. This differs from the typical potentiometer mechanism, which sweeps across a resistive film to create the measured voltage. This introduces friction, which wears down the contact areas, and worn areas increase the variability of the voltage.

Switching potentiometers offers gamers a couple of significant benefits. The first is longer lasting controllers. Potentiometer wear means that the part will eventually need to be replaced. This is really only an issue with extremely heavy use, so only the most hardcore gamers who play for hours a day would likely encounter this problem.

The biggest benefit for gamers is that Hall Effect joysticks help eliminate a problem known as “stick drift.” Because most of the friction occurs around the stick’s default position — the center — because you’re always moving away from it, stick behavior can become odd. Stick drift has become a bane for many gamers in recent years, especially Nintendo Switch players. In addition to wear and tear, stick drift occurs when dust or debris interferes with the connection between the stick and the sensors, causing them to register inputs incorrectly. So essentially, the joystick is doing something different when you try to direct or aim the camera somewhere.

To reduce the effects of stick drift, potentiometer joysticks have a so-called “dead zone”, an area directly around the central home position of the joystick where no movement is detected. The idea is that stick drift with a dead zone takes longer to detect until it simply becomes too bad to continue using the controller.

With Hall Effect controllers, there is no need for a dead zone. While this may not make much of a difference for more casual gamers, especially those who don’t need the sticks to respond to small movements, are off-center, or play FPS or fighting games, it can be a pretty significant benefit, in addition to keeping the controller working properly for longer.

What are the best Hall Effect controllers?

Console manufacturers do not ship controllers with Hall Effect joysticks, although the second generation Microsoft Xbox Elite controller has Hall Effect triggers, but several manufacturers make great Hall Effect controllers, and they’re a lot more affordable than you might think. My current favorite is the Gamer G7 SE controller for Xbox and PC, and costs about $45 on Amazon.

Another solid option if you’re looking for a Bluetooth controller is the 8Bitdo Ultimate Bluetooth ControllerIt’s primarily recommended for the Nintendo Switch, but it’s perfectly compatible with Windows PCs and gaming handhelds like the Steam Deck, and at $70 it’s not unreasonable.

For the PlayStation folks (I see you’re not alone) there aren’t that many options available, but the best one by far is the Nacon Revolution 5 Pro. It’s certainly not cheap at $200, but the sticks and buttons are customizable and it just looks great. Thankfully, it works for PC too.