While manyApple TV gamesare fully playable and plenty fun using the Siri Remote , a full , traditional gamepad can really get up select game . right analogue sticks and directional pad provide more precise movement , the forcible buttons enable more complex and fulfilling gaming experiences , and it help bring the Apple TV closer to find like a real secret plan console . Besides , you ’ll need a gamepad to playMinecrafton Apple TV .
But whether or not you ’re into that blocky sensation , a gamepad is really worth the investment if you be after on doing more than super fooling play on the Apple TV . Luckily , you have options . The SteelSeries Nimbus and Hori Horipad Ultimate are both designed specifically for the Apple TV , while older MFi ( Made for iOS ) controllers that link up via Bluetooth are also compatible .
We ’ve wrapped our digits around all of the remarkable gamepads on the market today to let you know the difference between them , the lastingness and helplessness of each , and which are most worth of your gaming dollars . And all of these gamepads are also compatible with iPhones and iPads , which makes them even more useful and versatile .
reckon for majuscule Apple TV plot to play with your young gamepad?Here are 15 of our favourite .
The best
SteelSeries Nimbus : We were pretty high on the $ 50Nimbuswhen it shippedalongside the Apple TV , and that legal opinion has n’t diminished over prison term . It ’s a strong gamepad in every room : It feel great in the hand , with a full - figured figure that fills your palms . The build will feel intimate to anyone who has used an Xbox One accountant , although the parallel analog sticks are more like a PlayStation gamepad . In any subject , the sticks , buttons , and D - pad are all nicely antiphonal .
The Nimbus is the best all - around Apple television set gamepad properly now .
The Nimbus is the first MFi controller that really arrest everything correct , including Lightning charging for the 40 - hour assault and battery and the price tag : $ 50 is smear on for a gamepad of this tone , and that ’s a fair second cheaper than some of the earlier competitors . regrettably , thegreatDisney Infinity 3.0bundle — which compact in connected toys and the Nimbus — is no longer available after Disney abandon the serial publication .
While we have a brace of other great gamepad option profiled below , the Nimbus is our pick for the best MFi gamepad choice for Apple TV or iOS today . You might find sleeker - looking controller on the current console table systems , but the Nimbus has it where it counts , and it ’s extremely recommended .
Mad Catz Micro C.T.R.L.i : If you ’re looking for something a moment more compact and portable , theMad Catz Micro C.T.R.L.iis our next darling . It was bring out about a year before the Apple TV , so it does n’t have a Home button for the gear up - top box , but it mould just alright : The interruption button accomplishes the same task . Also , do n’t confuse this one with the full - sized C.T.R.L.i ( profile below)—the Micro is a tiny little guy .
The MadCatz Micro C.T.R.L.i is compendious but telling .
Like , really tiny : If you have large hands , the Micro C.T.R.L.i might be out of the doubt for you . Even so , there are benefit here : It ’s a good pick to hoard into a bag when traveling with an iPad , plus it has a removable snip that lets you attach an iPhone to the top . While still connect via Bluetooth , that gives you a DIY portable gaming organisation of sorts , and then you could take out off the time when meet on the iPad or Apple TV .
And crucially , it nail the fundamentals : The button and Xbox - corresponding asymmetrical spliff find good and respond well , and gratefully , the D - pad is on point as well . If you dig the smaller size , the Micro is a peachy picking for iOS players on the go who also have an Apple TV at dwelling . Just keep some AAA battery handy , as it needs two of them .
Hori Horipad Ultimate : Hori ’s $ 50Horipad Ultimateis the second Apple TV - centric gamepad released after the box itself , and it ’s the replacement to the original MFi Horipad ( no longer sold)—but with a very different build and palpate . And “ Ultimate , ” they exact ? I ’m not sure it ’s a measure up in all esteem , but it has the Home push button and Lightning charging , the latter of which is a great perk .
The Horipad Ultimate is a solid option to the SteelSeries Nimbus .
The Horipad Ultimate feature more of a PlayStation - like physical body , albeit larger and with full grips that really sink into your palms , but it has a button layout much like the Nimbus . I do n’t love the construction , though : The plastic has a crummy feel to it , and having the grips be separate pieces of plastic — despite feeling exactly the same — means there are creases you ’ll feel every clock time you play . For that affair , the trigger have a spongy feeling rather than a skillful bound to them .
All that said , the Horipad Ultimate work well enough , and it matches the Nimbus in terms of feature article set and Leontyne Price . I ’d easily give the advantage to the Nimbus on build and release feeling , but the Horipad Ultimate is utterly substantial .
The rest
SteelSeries Stratus XL : The $ 50Stratus XLpredates the Nimbus , and it has a very like shape and build . The charge plate feels a bit more premium here , and the analog stick have a nice texturing — the Stratus XL launch at $ 80 , so the upscale palpate make signified . It ’s still deserving a tone , especially if you care a raised , circular D - inking pad versus the plus sign shape .
At a bank discount , you might consider the SteelSeries Stratus XL over the Nimbus .
That said , the Nimbus has really replace it as an MFi frontrunner . The Nimbus has Lightning charging , whereas the Stratus XL uses a micro - USB overseas telegram , plus the triggers on the Nimbus are smoother and quieter in use . The Stratus XL is still a strong choice , however , and with a cost point linger around $ 35 these days , you could save a bit of John Cash over the Nimbus .
SteelSeries Stratus : Quite a quite a little of SteelSeries on this listing , eh ? Well , this one is unlike : TheStratuswas the company ’s first MFi gamepad , but it remains interesting due to its amazingly summary material body : It ’s about the size of an iPhone 4s , just thicker . It ’s the only gamepad on this leaning that I ’d sense comfortable tucking into a pants pocket , and it even comes with a small plastic shield to protect the push and stick during travel .
The received SteelSeries Stratus is incredibly small , and you ’ll feel it .
Yet the low size comes with drawbacks : The shoulder buttons are super cramped , plus the analog pin feel a little fiddly . It also has the cheap plastic feel of a Happy Meal toy , and the original $ 50 terms tag was far too much hand the rival . However , a white versionsells for about $ 22on Amazon these days , which is a deal if you may make out with the size .
PXN Speedy : The $ 60Speedyis the only controller on this list that does n’t follow from a known instrumentalist in the gambling peripheral place , and the Chinese party is betray themdirectly via Amazon . There ’s a fair bit to like right off the cricket bat : It ’s a full - sized pad very much make in the mold of the Xbox 360 controller , with firm - feel parallel sticks and an optional cartridge clip for attach an iPhone .
Promising Xbox - inspired looks give way to disappointing input character .
Unfortunately , the D - pad presents a few problems . The disc design felt disconcertingly jittery before I even paired it to the Apple tv set , and once I started using it , I noticed that it took a very firm touch to get the stamp pad to record a button jam . Early MFi gamepads often had risky viosterol - pads , and that ’s the face here too . Were that not an subject — Amazon user reviews cite the same problem , so it ’s not just this one — the PXN Speedy would be a whole recommendation , even with the slightly higher price than others on this list . Stick with the aforementioned options alternatively .
Mad Catz C.T.R.L.i : Last and sadly least is the largerMad Catz C.T.R.L.igamepad . While the Micro version is a strong little option , I ’ve had nothing but hassle with the standard model . The first unit of measurement I prove after launch a few age ago had an unresponsive D - launch area much like the PXN Speedy above , so I grabbed another one after the Apple TV ’s launching to see if anything would change with a new unit of measurement .
Do n’t bother with the full - size C.T.R.L.i .
It was even risky . The D - launching pad was 2-dimensional - out broken out of the box , and it just preserve try out to scroll across the Apple telecasting computer menu even when I was n’t allude the controller . The C.T.R.L.i has a fine chassis and feel — although it has a little extra bulk — and the optional iPhone cartridge clip is overnice . And it ’s selling for as little as $ 30 on Amazon today . But after going zero - for - two on these , I ’d rather point you towards any other gamepad on this leaning .
