PowerA controllers on a computer

PowerA makes officially licensed controllers for Xbox, such as the Enhanced Wired Controller and the Fusion Pro. To a computer they look like an Xbox controller, so Windows and browsers know their layout. Most are wired: plug in the USB cable and they work. The mappable buttons on the back of many models don't exist as buttons of their own. They send whichever button you mapped them to.

Tool description

This tester shows what your PowerA controller sends to the browser. Plug it in and press any button, since browsers only show a controller once one of its buttons is pressed.

The gamepad picture lights up A, B, X, Y, LB, RB, View, Menu and the Xbox button as you press them, fills LT and RT as far as you pull them and moves the sticks. LS and RS are the stick presses. Under the picture, each button has a tile with how far it's pressed, and both sticks show their exact X and Y position from -1 to 1. If your browser can make the controller vibrate, Test vibration rumbles it for one second.

Browsers don't read the Share button of Xbox controllers from other brands, so the tester leaves it out.

Checking the sticks

Let go of both sticks. A healthy stick rests close to zero, like 0.0039. A value that stays around 0.1 or more, or changes on its own, means the stick drifts. Pushed all the way, each stick should get close to -1 or 1 in every direction.

Features

  • A controller picture with the buttons named as on Xbox controllers
  • How far each button and trigger is pressed, and each stick's exact position
  • A one second vibration test