Rechargeable controllers might seem the modern choice, but the gaming community is torn.
By Nimrod Aldea Nov. 1, 2026 12:45 pm EST SolidMaks/Shutterstock Add Engadget on Google: Google DiscoverOn December 12, 2019, during The Game Awards, Microsoft revealed its shiny new gaming console, the Xbox Series X. It had a solid-state drive for much shorter loading times and a brand-new controller that still needed a pair of AA batteries to operate. By then, both of Microsoft's rivals had long abandoned replaceable batteries, and their controllers shipped with internal rechargeable ones.
