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Sony won't offer option to disable PS4 DualShock 4 light bar
- Thread starter shinobi602
- Start date
You are incorrect, turning it off extends the operating time significantly. My own personal experience takes the time between recharges from hours to days.
We all ignorantly believe LEDs are some low power draw wonder technology, and compared to lighting of old, this is true. However this isn't a low power led, it is incredibly bright, so bright they put it through an opaque diffuser to physically dim it, and it is constantly in use, constantly drawing maximum amperage, unlike the Bluetooth transmission with its low power states depending on use.
Looking at the internal hardware I don't see anything that could dim the led. I don't see the same hardware limitation for using software to turn it off however.
So perhaps they've promised developers the use of the led to annoy the masses with and drain our batteries, or perhaps the answer "No" is just for now and in time things will change.
NTIETS13A_Superiority
Banned
Could've but they didn't.
And ofcourse ambient light works better in dark. But it can be used for anything.
And I am not even saying they are good uses.
Marc
Member
If he was quoting the original comment then I understand better due to twitters character limitation. He isn't, so he can write "Not right now", or "We are evaluating this option", or "we are happy with its operation but will consider this".... anything. 'No' has a finality to it which we know for a fact isn't final so comes off as arrogant.
Its great he interacts with fans and that is a good personal communication, I am clearly talking about the communication as a CEO answering issues for the company he represents. Which I state but you have left out of the quote you refer to "on any companies part". Shu is a lovely man and I think he is brilliant, that is a completely separate issue to what is being discussed however. The FAQ, the silence on the games front, the issues that have cropped up post-launch that are annoying users but are yet to get any positive changes to.
And btw, no one forced him to answer those tweets. If he wants to do it then people are free to comment back on the answer, yes?
Vicious DS - But shu already shot that down, he of said the doubled battery life - "that's untrue"
mattiewheels
And then the LORD David Bowie saith to his Son, Jonny Depp: 'Go, and spread my image amongst the cosmos. For every living thing is in anguish and only the LIGHT shall give them reprieve.'
I think he's doing a good thing by giving flat "yes" or "no" responses to twitter questions. He's going on the record with the answers, and he probably has many more important things to take care of in a day, so I appreciate his approach.
Gintoki313
Banned
Never noticed how bad the light was until I actually had the controller. I use the thing as a light source. I literally use it while I'm playing a game, to see under the couch. I know it's annoying when I can use it for that.
The PS3 and 360 light wasn't that bad. They were small and unnoticeable just how I like it.
The PS3 and 360 light wasn't that bad. They were small and unnoticeable just how I like it.
It'll likely be no light bar, no touch pad, same price.
Marc
Member
That sounds great.
If you could do custom paint jobs (white gloss 4 life), with a light switch and a small batter indicator LED... I would definitely buy one. You could get it down to a quick process and sell them dude, other custom websites exist that don't offer that level of modding and appear to make money.
Good job regardless, might have to look at it myself in the future, was kind of holding out hope Sony would listen to fans now considering that was working out so well for them.
Jill Sandwich
the turds of Optimus Prime
Here's a handy youtube on how to disable it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkleTQXjezY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkleTQXjezY
scoobs
Member
Hilarious and informative. But what if I don't have a pillow!?!??!
Ilúvatar;97342400 said:
Why give advice that is wrong or when you don't really know what you're talking about? When watching Netflix, turning off the controller pauses the video.
It's just dumb, it's an almost unnecessary and useless feature. Even if the LED's aren't huge power draws, it's still a drain on the battery for no reason.
Unless you have a reflective tv then it isn't an issue.
TVs with matte finishes (non-reflective screens) don't have the controller LED light show up on it.
TVs with matte finishes (non-reflective screens) don't have the controller LED light show up on it.
Jill Sandwich
the turds of Optimus Prime
You're screwed!
PolarGamer
Member
Holy crap!
Stillmatic
Member
I sit about 7 feet away from a 50" Plasma and don't even notice it while playing (BF4, KZ:SF, NBA2K14). I can see this being annoying with darker games though, like Outlast.
For games that don't require the light bar there should be an option to turn it off. It was possible to disable it early on in the DS4 PC driver, so it must be pretty easy to implement, I guess devs hands are tied.
For games that don't require the light bar there should be an option to turn it off. It was possible to disable it early on in the DS4 PC driver, so it must be pretty easy to implement, I guess devs hands are tied.
Those are calculated numbers. Just like my car is supposed to get 38 MPG when it actually gets around 30. Show me some real tests then I'll believe disabling the LED will double the battery life.
entremet
Member
Looks kinda ghetto, though. No?
SimpleGamer
Member
This.
I plan on doing that this weekend. Hopefully I can put something together.
SteveO1683
Member
So I guess we'll get a new ds4 with a bigger battery so the thing lasts longer than 7 hours?
Seriously for all the right Sony has done this is incredibly boneheaded.
Seriously for all the right Sony has done this is incredibly boneheaded.
I really would rather have a shorter auto off time. 5 minutes. If I haven't touched my controller for 5 minutes, turn it off. Why is 10 minutes the minimum? Seems rather silly, no? At least give me the OPTION. Would save tons of battery time when I'm watching netflix, etc.
Also, I wish I could manually turn off the controller during netflix viewing without it PAUSING THE SHOW. Very annoying.
Also, I wish I could manually turn off the controller during netflix viewing without it PAUSING THE SHOW. Very annoying.
entremet
Member
Not really. I cut a slit in the middle so I can see the color if necessary.
That's pretty well done!
I was expecting a sloppy application.
Version 3.0
Member
Because there are several million other PS4 owners in the world, and it does bother some of them. Duh.
Thinking about it, the ligt being as much of a battery drain as you're reporting could actually be a reason behind not making it optional on an OS level, in a twisted way.
Sony wants people to use the light; they want people to associate it with the Playstation and cool in-game functions. If glare was the only problem, and battery impact was trivial, only those actively bothered by the light would disable it. But if controllers last significantly longer lightless, and you didn't have to physically alter the controller to see the improvement, more people would have it disabled; less lights in use means less motive for devs to use it, which means even less reason to keep it enabled long-term.
NullPointer
Member
Wow.
If anything, making the light optional to extend the battery life should be something we can all agree to here.
You know you can face the LED away from your TV right?
Version 3.0
Member
A. It shouldn't be a problem no matter how you hold it. Stop telling people "you're doing it wrong".
B. I find it annoying that it lights up my hands and the floor, not my TV. Am I holding it wrong, too?
I can do custom paint jobs, I have thousands worth of airbrushing equipment. My controllers and PS4 will be white grey and orange shortly. Never had much interest in selling stuff, though it is fun to do stuff for friends.
I definitely recommend the led mod, it is incredibly easy and very beneficial.
Are devs using it anyway? Hard to use a light for visual feedback when it's on the other side of your controller.
Zen_Arcade
Banned
It would still reflect off something. It's like a cell phone in a movie theater.
Yeah as fucked up as it sounds you can see the motive in the light staying on to preserve the identity and unify the functionality.
Experience parity has to be incredibly important to any console hardware manufacturer I'd imagine.
Amen to that, it looks like the only way that is going to happen is if we mod it ourselves. Perhaps a year or two down the line, or a hardware revision will see a change of stance. Maybe even the PS4 slim and the inevitable cost reduction via hardware that brings will see it's removal.
You wanna see ghetto?
That's three layers of tape it's shining through. Red isn't bad but the blue, green, and yellow is bright. I like the colors and the info it gives so I don't want it gone completely but it's kind of nuts how powerful the light is.
EL CUCO
Member
Not really. I cut a slit in the middle so I can see the color if necessary.
It actually doesnt look bad