It was only recently after I purchased by Xbox 360 system that I realised how much of a nuisance it was to have to switch the batteries in my wireless controller during the middle of a game, especially during multiplayer games. At first I considered buying a wired controller to use instead of my wireless one, but I found this great charging kit instead.
The charger goes straight into the USB port in the front of the Xbox 360 system, whilst the battery pack clips into the place where the batteries would usually go. It makes no noticeable difference to the weight or the feel of the controller. The controller lights will begin to flash to tell you that you have under an hour of battery life left and that is when you plug in your charger. It only takes around an hour to charge the controller to a capacity that allows for 3-4 hours of gameplay without the lead, and you can continue playing even though the controller is plugged in. You can leave the charger in your controller whilst the Xbox 360 is off, and it will continue charging for you to use later on, which is a very handy addition to the kit. The USB lead can be plugged into any USB port however and it will still charge the controller.
The wire is around nine feet in length (around 2.5 metres) which allows it to be stored away easily whilst still giving enough cable to move around easily with. The charger is compatible with other battery packs, and all of the Xbox 360 controllers. There are different colour battery packs available, there is white to black I think that there are also blue and pink battery packs, to fit their respective controllers.
The charger and wire are also very durable. The wire is strong and the battery pack can take lots of bumps and bangs. As far as I can tell the battery can be charged hundreds (possibly into the thousands) of times before its battery life will begin to deteriorate.
It would definitely advise you buy this battery pack because it is more of an investment than a purchase. The money that you spend on the charger (around £13 from Play.com) will quickly be returned to you from money that you have saved on expensive and potentially environmentally damaging AA batteries.
Buy it, especially if you play on Xbox too much!
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Recharge your Xbox 360 Wireless Controller while you play and kiss disposable batteries ... more
goodbye! Complete with a charging cable and rechargeable battery pack, the Xbox 360 Play and Charge Kit is all you need to juice up your Xbox 360 Wireless Controlle...
Postage & Packaging: £4.50 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Advantages: Continue playing whilst recharging your controller, save money on batteries, simple to use, rapid recharging Disadvantages: Wireless controller is a wired controller when using the kit