I grabbed myself a BSP D8 Pro from the 11/11 sale on Ali Express and I'm pretty impressed with this thing. BSP is a line of cheap Chinese mobile phone controllers that's become known for being dirt cheap but mostly functional while also having neat features and great connectivity options.

This is the third of their controllers that I've owned and this is the first one that didn't immediately feel cheap or compromised in some way. In fact, it feels almost premium, which makes some sense since this is probably the priciest controller they've done so far.

The d-pad and face buttons all have microswitches, which could be a dealbreaker for some. Apparently some people just hate the clicky buttons on this thing. I'm just happy because finally one of these controllers has a really good-feeling d-pad. The box even came with an alternative Xbox style disc/shield you can swap in, but the cross key is perfect for the retro game emulation I do on my phone.

It's also got

  • rumble (though I haven't gotten it to work on PC or Android, it might only be for the Switch)

  • gyro

  • two programmable extra buttons

  • RGB lights around the sticks (that I immediately turned off)

  • analog triggers (not always guaranteed on cheap Chinese devices)

  • Hall Effect sticks

  • huge variety of connectivity options. It has different wireless pairing modes for iPhones, Android, xInput, the Switch and even apparently the Xbox 360. With a USB cable you can also use it with PS3s and PS4s (when connected via USB to a PC, it uses xInput)

The BSP D8 Pro was originally a 50 dollar controller when it launched, but I got mine for about 30, though it looks like I could've gotten one for about 25 bucks during the Ali Express Christmas sale. I would highly recommend this thing if you find it for 30 dollars or less, at that point it's a steal.