iamaustrian
Member
so is there a release date for the official one?
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Nyko Power Pak triples Wii U gamepad battery life
- Thread starter shinobi602
- Start date
Day 2 /Yesterday -
Turned on the gamepad and it's still 4 bars. This was left on the table all day. (I'm not putting this on the cradle until the light starts blinking).
After 4 hours between playing MH3U and FIFA 13 it still registers a full charge. Still no issues.
I should say I only have the screen on brightness 3. power save on, no rumble and minimal volume.
Checked it this morning and still at 4 bars. So far so good.
Turned on the gamepad and it's still 4 bars. This was left on the table all day. (I'm not putting this on the cradle until the light starts blinking).
After 4 hours between playing MH3U and FIFA 13 it still registers a full charge. Still no issues.
I should say I only have the screen on brightness 3. power save on, no rumble and minimal volume.
Checked it this morning and still at 4 bars. So far so good.
EsotericManiac
Member
Tri-wing?
Nope - the Nyko battery comes with one.
Perfect
I'm always amazed at how much flack Nintendo receives for being cheap, even though the meticulous work that goes into their products - down to the least expensive things like the 3DS stylus - are historically of an exceptional and peculiar quality that's surprisingly difficult (for 3rd-parties) to mimic. Taking measures to keep costs down doesn't necessarily means cheap or half-assed.
I've had Nyko products in the pass, and never had any serious problems with them. Not sure how they overlooked these issues concerning something as important as a battery. I'd hope this isn't widespread, but judging by the ratio of good reports vs bad, it doesn't look very hopeful. Even with Nintendo releasing a better batter, Nyko's product can still have much appeal, as long as they fix these issues.
I've had Nyko products in the pass, and never had any serious problems with them. Not sure how they overlooked these issues concerning something as important as a battery. I'd hope this isn't widespread, but judging by the ratio of good reports vs bad, it doesn't look very hopeful. Even with Nintendo releasing a better batter, Nyko's product can still have much appeal, as long as they fix these issues.
Revolutionary
Member
Just got mine and installed. Hope I didn't get one of the bad ones. I'll know soon enough I guess.
Also, lol @ the amount of free space in the battery compartment.
Edit: battery light started blinking after 2 hours.. So I opened it up, disconnected it, twisted the cable in the opposite direction from when I first installed it (from left twist to right), reconnected and bam... 3 bars again. Lol
Also, lol @ the amount of free space in the battery compartment.
Edit: battery light started blinking after 2 hours.. So I opened it up, disconnected it, twisted the cable in the opposite direction from when I first installed it (from left twist to right), reconnected and bam... 3 bars again. Lol
Saint Gregory
Member
I would never charge someone for trash. PM me.
I got my battery a couple of days ago and I didn't have any issue with charging it like some people posted here. After the first charge, it lasted roughly 6 hours before hitting the last bar. Second charge lasted about an hour longer, I think this could eventually last 8-9 hours after proper conditioning.
edit: Mine didn't come with a tiny screw driver.
edit: Mine didn't come with a tiny screw driver.
Saint Gregory
Member
My replacement battery came today from GameStop. It's at least charging now without flashing or cutting on and off which is an improvement. I'll give it a few days and update my impressions.
alf717
Member
^^
This.
Flashing red to 4 bars after counterclockwise twist. *Perplexed* No more blinkies!
Revolutionary
Member
Wow, it worked for you too. Perplexing indeed. Anyone else with PowerPak problems want to give the opposite twist a shot?
My battery is still going strong from the initial charge, for a little over 6 hours now according to the Daily Log. Stock battery would've been dead about 2 hours ago. So yeah, it seems to be working as advertised now. I'll update this post once it finally dies with the amount of time it took.
Edit: just died, so it lasted around 8-9 hrs. Not bad.
Kai Dracon
Writing a dinosaur space opera symphony
There's an Amazon review also claiming the Right Twist Technique made the battery work right.
What is this witchcraft?
What is this witchcraft?
So my Power Pak has been "Out for Delivery" since June 1 from the USPS, and now it is updated as "Delivery Status has not been Updated." I am pretty sure it's lost in the mail system somewhere. Gamestop says that if I don't receive it by June 11th I can call and get another shipped to me 3-Day UPS. Fucking Postal Service. Wish the Gamestop stores themselves stocked this around me, but none within 100 miles.
I don't understand this either. It can only go in 2 ways. You need to twist it a little bit to align the +/- correctly where the red wire is on the left. Like Jinfash's pic below:
Revolutionary
Member
By default, the PowerPak plug is upside down and NEEDS to be twisted in order to plug in. If you look closely at the picture, you can see that the plug on the PowerPak has been twisted to the left. It can be turned the opposite way, which is how it works properly for me (and some others apparently).I don't understand this either. It can only go in 2 ways. You need to twist it a little bit to align the +/- correctly where the red wire is on the left. Like Jinfash's pic below:
Saint Gregory
Member
Mine started acting up again last night but I have been twisting the cable to the left. I'll switch it when I get home and see if that helps.
Trevelyan9999
Banned
The sad thing is that the battery should just plug in and work....it's a battery. I'm so glad I'm not stressed out about this anymore and currently waiting for my refund. Good luck to everyone that still has their battery, I hope Nyko can fix the connector issues.
Yup. That's why I said 2 ways. The one in the pic and the other, which I assumed was incorrect because you're reversing the polarity. But hey, if it fixes the problem, go for it. You can't possibly screw it up further, if it wasn't working to begin with.
fabricated backlash
Member
The connector is probably so shoddy, that twisting it further, fixes it in place. The flying fuck were they thinking with this garbage?
ElectricKaibutsu
Member
Which way do the instructions say to twist?
Friggin Joe
Member
Yeah, I'm going to go ahead and not put any faith in the longevity of a battery that needs to have the right tension put on the wires and connector to work.
Nyko have worked out for me in the past. This thing's a mess.
Edit: for giggles, I tried turning the connector left instead of right and it's connecting normally. Not that I trust it but it does seem to keep the battery connected.
Nyko have worked out for me in the past. This thing's a mess.
Edit: for giggles, I tried turning the connector left instead of right and it's connecting normally. Not that I trust it but it does seem to keep the battery connected.
Kai Dracon
Writing a dinosaur space opera symphony
I'm suddenly reminded of people making the kids stand by the TV holding up rabbit ears in order to watch the game, during the 80s.
It doesn't seem to specify. I tried twisting it either way, and clockwise seemed easier so thats what I went with.
I was wrong.
I can officially say that the battery does indeed last as long as it claimed, 8-9 hours.
I made a thorough search, mine just didn't come with one.
This is how I put my battery in.
I made a thorough search, mine just didn't come with one.
I don't understand this either. It can only go in 2 ways. You need to twist it a little bit to align the +/- correctly where the red wire is on the left. Like Jinfash's pic below:
This is how I put my battery in.
Yeah, with my experience, twisting the wires in one direction yielded better results than the other direction. I forget which direction was the better one, though.
The smart thing would have been to design the battery so that you didn't have to twist the wires at all... but apparently that would've made too much sense.
The smart thing would have been to design the battery so that you didn't have to twist the wires at all... but apparently that would've made too much sense.
DownWithTheShip
Member
Ordered one of these Nyko batteries a week ago off Amazon.
Today I received an email saying the item is out of stock and my order has been canceled.
Wish they realized they were out of stock a little sooner. A week seems a little long.
Today I received an email saying the item is out of stock and my order has been canceled.
Wish they realized they were out of stock a little sooner. A week seems a little long.
MatthewB92
Member
I let mine sit unplugged over night with netflix. Woke up with it on 3 bars at 6 hours
Jinfash
needs 2 extra inches
I twisted it the opposite way and now the pad instantly shuts down when I try to turn it on. Even if it worked, it hardly disproves the faultiness of the connector. It's not a logical solution after all.
And fwiw the original batteries are "upside down by default." It's not as obvious because the wires are long.
alf717
Member
Anyone willing to cut the connector off their official Nintendo Battery and replace it with the one on the Nyko? I'm sure Nyko will release a fixed version at some point, but if someone is willing to destroy their battery to test it out, I might pick one up sooner
I am actually planning to do this with the extra battery that Saint Gregory donated to me. I'd like to look at the internal connection and see if the wires are frayed or soldered on poorly. Going to test the twisting of the connector first though and see what results I get. What I'd like to know is why they would set this up to require the buyer to twist the cable in the first place.
This isn't necessarily true. Since the wires of the official batteries are on the right face, they have to go through a 90 degree turn. You have to "fold" the wires over like Nintendo did, so they did it properly. With Nyko's battery, the wires are on the top face, meaning they don't have to go through any turn. Thus, Nyko should have switched the wires so that they don't have to be twisted. They dun goofed.
Can anyone tell if this is a standard connector type? If twisting a certain way improves the connection, maybe we could terminate the wires properly ourselves.
Jinfash
needs 2 extra inches
But it is technically true that, for both batteries, you're twisting the wires; the red wire emerges from the right (+) and connects to the left (+). That is only possible by twisting the wires. The original batteries have the benefit of being longer, therefore the twist is possible through an easy 90 degree turn, whereas the shorter Nyko wires can only be twisted and strained.
The sad part is that all the marketing material online and on the package is slightly altered:
You can't have the connecting plug facing that way without the twist, which places the red wire to the left.
I honestly don't understand why we're going back and forth over this, while bringing in technicalities and whatnot-- whether you're Nyko battery worked without trouble, worked after a few twists and reseats, or didn't work as described (i.e. my case), we can at least agree that it's far, far from being a perfect product. Moreso than the regular failure rate of your average product. And my advice for anyone experiencing any issues is to call them up and ask for a replacement, or if they're patient enough a refund and wait for Nintendo's official larger batteries. They're smaller in size, but with the issue I'm having with the wires' length, it may be a blessing in disguise.
It doesn't. It's just a black and white diagram showing the connector with the arrow symbol facing you. Not even worded instructions. (beaten)
Update: Day 3 - still hasn't been recharged since the initial charge and it finally went down to 3 bars. I think I have a good one.
alf717
Member
Has anyone tried using something to hold the connector in place like a small piece of tape or jamming something between the connector and cords to hold it in place to see if you get a better connection? I know this is pretty much DIY type stuff but if the issue is just the plug staying in place perhaps some sort of DIY solution is the key to making this battery work correctly.
Erdnuckel01
Member
Received it yesterday from Amazon and got 8 hours and 34 minutes of playtime out of it.
The time was spent with 5:05 hours of actively playing Monster Hunter, 29 minutes of Tank! Tank! Tank! (yeah I actually enjoy it in short bursts) and 3:00 hours of letting New Super Mario Bros. U sit in the title screen running the demo loop.
The pad was set to screen brightness 3, power saving mode off and rumble on, sound was set to about one fourth.
The only downside I could find until now was the trial and error method you have to use to find the right "twist" for the connector cable.
All in all I'm quite happy with this battery, but Nyko should really sort out the connection problems for the next batch.
The time was spent with 5:05 hours of actively playing Monster Hunter, 29 minutes of Tank! Tank! Tank! (yeah I actually enjoy it in short bursts) and 3:00 hours of letting New Super Mario Bros. U sit in the title screen running the demo loop.
The pad was set to screen brightness 3, power saving mode off and rumble on, sound was set to about one fourth.
The only downside I could find until now was the trial and error method you have to use to find the right "twist" for the connector cable.
All in all I'm quite happy with this battery, but Nyko should really sort out the connection problems for the next batch.
ElectricKaibutsu
Member
I'm glad yours is working out for you. It's strange that the battery seems fine but the connector is a problem. I'll pick up one of the next (hopefully) better batch.
Colonel Nasty
Member
I wish I could find one of these. 25$ seems worth the gamble.
Nyko has shipped me a U-Boost as a temporary solution until they can get this sorted, so I'm thinking the next batch could arrive after the Nintendo extended battery. If only Nyko's QC was as awesome as their customer service.
I get about that amount of battery life, but mine shuts off at random when it gets down to one bar. Can yours get to the point where the red light starts blinking without shutting off?