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Nyko Power Pak triples Wii U gamepad battery life

You know, it is slightly worrisome to me. The Wii U itself runs as cool as can be. but the Game pad, when charging especially, gets rather warm. If this battery fills up the entire space, and holds more energy, it may shorten the life span for the controller. That may be why Nintendo went the route they did until perhaps a few years down the line, cheaper, safer, better tech is available? Just a thought...

I really, really hope this isn't the case haha...because I've already bought one.
 

tajd

Banned
:( ups man charged me 25 euro at the front door import tax to ireland

so this battery cost me 50 euro altogether , i swear this battery life better give me the extra 150% as it says on the box
 

Aostia

El Capitan Todd
:( ups man charged me 25 euro at the front door import tax to ireland

so this battery cost me 50 euro altogether , i swear this battery life better give me the extra 150% as it says on the box

that's not good...I was thinking to buy it but no way I'm spending 50 bucks...I'd like it at 25 as it is on Amazon.com...stupid question btw: is it compatible with PAL Gamepads, right?
no news for a Amazon.uk availability?
 
I'm so tempted by this, but have only had one time ever where I was even close to running out of battery (since my play time is limited) so, I think I'll hold off for some initials reviews/comments by the first wave of buyers. Report back, GAF!
 

Schnozberry

Member
So, I charged it for a bit, and the charge light went off. Started to play it, said it was 4/5 full (or one bar down). Literally got 20 minutes on it.

Do I need to let it charge for a longer time?

When I was plugging the wire harness in, it seemed I needed to flip it to get it to fit. Did I mess that up?

I had to do the same. You didn't mess it up. I let it charge overnight and my daughter watched a few movies on Netflix and it was at half charge, and it likely would have been dead on the normal battery. Works as advertised for me, but I think leaving it on the charger before using it is advised. It was dead as a door nail right out of the package.
 
I really dont need it cause i mostly play in my room. If i need charging i just plug it in and keep playing but $20 bucks is too good of a deal to pass up. So I got it.
 
Ordered mine last night from Amazon, going to take a few days to get it.......even though they say it "triples" the battery life of the Gamepad, I'm just hoping for double to not get my expectations too high.
 

spookyfish

Member
I had to do the same. You didn't mess it up. I let it charge overnight and my daughter watched a few movies on Netflix and it was at half charge, and it likely would have been dead on the normal battery. Works as advertised for me, but I think leaving it on the charger before using it is advised. It was dead as a door nail right out of the package.

Thanks! Weird they couldn't have made the cord and plug going the right direction in the first place ... it's so short to have to twist.

And I also charged it all day --- played Darksiders for a good five hours, off and on, and I think it still has a pretty good charge. The OE would crap out at around 3, for me.
 

chifanpoe

Member
I just bought the last one (from Amazon). Hopefully will have it by Friday, everything comes to St Louis in about 2 days no matter the shipping method.
 
Mini review:

Imported this from Gamestop US on Saturday 25th May and arrived yesterday (28th). Installation is easy, and the package comes with the correct size screwdriver for the Wii U's tiny screw heads. The battery is much larger than the original, but sits flush within the same housing, so no added depth. However, it is slightly heavier but not too much so, I'd estimate about 40 grams. Either way, it's not uncomfortable and I don't notice the slight weight difference.

On to performance and I'm very impressed. Usually my play sessions of Lego City Undercover would be cut short by the flashing red battery indicator after about 2 and a half hours of constant use. This is from 100% charged to empty. Using the same game, I installed the new battery to find it was on 3 bars (~75% full). After 2 hours and 32 minutes (thanks Activity Log!) of continuous use the battery had dropped by one bar. That's a world of difference to me, especially as I have no plug socket near by to charge from.

My only issue as a UK importer of this was the customs charge and UPS's own import fee bringing my total cost including shipping up to £43. Cost without import duty etc. was £26 :(
 

Jinfash

needs 2 extra inches
UPS just dropped this on my doorstep. The installation was easy and painless. My least favorite part is that, unlike the original battery, the connecting wire here is shorter due to the larger battery, so twisting them to hook it up made my obsessiveness tingle a bit. I hope the minor strain doesn't affect its life.

It's charging right now, so I'll report the performance later.

Re: extra weight-- Negligible, as far as I'm concerned.
 

DoubleTap

Member
UPS just dropped this on my doorstep. The installation was easy and painless. My least favorite part is that, unlike the original battery, the connecting wire here is shorter due to the larger battery, so twisting them to hook it up made my obsessiveness tingle a bit. I hope the minor strain doesn't affect its life.

It's charging right now, so I'll report the performance later.

Re: extra weight-- Negligible, as far as I'm concerned.

Woah, this made me curious/concerned Can you take a pic of how this looks?

Thanks.
 
Woah, this made me curious/concerned Can you take a pic of how this looks?

Thanks.

It's honestly not that short. It's that the wire on the standard battery is long because of the compactness of that battery. There's no stretching and the twisting of the wire is minimal.
 

Jinfash

needs 2 extra inches
Woah, this made me curious/concerned Can you take a pic of how this looks?

Thanks.
It's not a big deal by any means, it's just the old wires twist more easily due their length, whereas there's more tension on Nyko's shorter wire.

sRFFank.png


(Told you I'm OCD)
 

massoluk

Banned
I'm curious to see if this shit gets hot. I could have sworn Nyko 3DS power pak could have burned a hole through my table while it was charging.
 

Schnozberry

Member
Wow, I feel terrible for the people in Ireland and UK that got bent over paying the import tariff. That's just highway robbery.
 

prag16

Banned
To those reporting 3 hours or less with the stock battery, what do you keep your screen brightness on?

I keep it on the lowest setting, and I power right through 4 hours every time no sweat (red light comes on around then). 1/2 hour or so later it'll start flashing. Never pushed it until death. I'd guess I could squeeze out 5 hours just about.

It's a little dim in broad daylight, but I mostly play at night int he dark, so it's perfectly fine.
 

Seik

Banned
I'll buy one when it'll get released.

Seriously, the OG battery is fucking weak, I just leave the Gamepad always plugged most of the time.
 

tajd

Banned
that's not good...I was thinking to buy it but no way I'm spending 50 bucks...I'd like it at 25 as it is on Amazon.com...stupid question btw: is it compatible with PAL Gamepads, right?
no news for a Amazon.uk availability?

im in ireland and it was worth it
 

Kai Dracon

Writing a dinosaur space opera symphony
Is Amazon just not going to sell this directly?

They appear to have had a shitload of pre-orders judging by how many users have been waiting on their order to eventually be shipped. I'd expect they have to sort through those as their shipments come in from Nyko before listing the product as in-stock.
 

Jinfash

needs 2 extra inches
Uh, I hadn't had time to play today after installing the battery, so I kept it plugged to the charger and I intend to keep it that way until tomorrow morning... But what the deck is up with the attery light intermittently turning on and off? Does anyone else have the same issue, and most importantly, is it normal?
 
Shame on Nintendo for giving us such a crappy battery just to cut the cost to it's maximum. :[ If I like this, I might buy the power pack for the 3DS as well. :]

I think this was about weight not about costs. A battery that fills the whole battery slot of the gamepad will be more heavy.
 

massoluk

Banned
seems nintendo is realesing a new battery that double its old one , yet nyko on is triple lol

Don't get me wrong, it's nice, but I wouldn't trust Nyko's battery as much as an official one, even if its specification looks better on paper.
 

Scrawnton

Member
I ordered it yesterday from GameStop. I got next day delivery because I wanted it before the weekend. It will be delivered today. I'm actually hoping it adds weight to the system, in addition to at least 2x the battery life.
 

Jinfash

needs 2 extra inches
Well, the light kept going off, then coming back on, going off for a bit, coming back on --- I wasn't sure what to make of it.

I'll just let it charge for a long time, then.
I guess the lights coming on/off happened to someone else. I wonder if it'll stay like this for good, and not just the initial charge. Kinda annoying if true.
 

mohuerta

Member
Preordered from Amazon in February, but the product page still gives no indication of when it'll be available from Amazon. They have it listed from a seller, but it looks to be double the price.

So I went out today to see if I could find it in store.

Went to walmart first. Nothing.

Then gamestop....
Walk in with my brother.
Gamestop employee: Can I help you guys find anything?
My brother: Wondering if you have the new Wii U gamepad power pak in stock.
GS employee: Yeah, it should be there with the Wii U accessor... wait, no. It's not for the Wii U it's for the Wii remote.
Brother: No, Nyko just released a new battery for the Wii U gamepad.
GS employee: No, we just got a press release this morning. It just mentions the new battery for the Wii remotes. They do have one for the Wii U, but it doesn't go inside. You put it on the back of the gamepad and plug a little cable at the top.
Brother: Yeah, I know about that one, but we're looking for the new one that goes inside and replaces the battery.
GS employee: I don't think they make those because Nintendo doesn't want people opening up the controller.
Brother: Yes they do. Nyko just released it recently.
GS employee: Huh. Never heard of that one. Sorry we don't have it.

Then, we check BestBuy...nothing.

Got home a while ago and decided to order online since Amazon wasn't updating that anytime soon. Everywhere I check: pre-order or out of stock.
Then found 1 place that had 13 in stock. $21+shipping. Ordered 2 (so now there's 11 in stock) for $52.85 including shipping. Hopefully they get here before the start of E3.
 
I received mine a few days ago and the on and off charging is happening to it plus it flashes on and off like there's an error if I try to charge it while the pad is on. I'm debating sending it back to Gamestop and waiting for the official Nintendo battery now :/
 

Schnozberry

Member
I received mine a few days ago and the on and off charging is happening to it plus it flashes on and off like there's an error if I try to charge it while the pad is on. I'm debating sending it back to Gamestop and waiting for the official Nintendo battery now :/

Try reseating the cables. It happened to me the first time I charged it, but after reseating it I haven't had it happen again.
 
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