HORI Nintendo Switch Split Pad Compact (Apricot Red) - Ergonomic Controller for Handheld Mode - Officially Licensed by Nintendo

As a day one Switch buyer, I've tried off and on throughout the years to play it in handheld mode, but between the grip and small buttons I was never able to comfortably handle it. Mostly though, I prefered playing it docked with a Pro controller 99% of the time.As I started traveling more often, I found myself more and more wanting to see if I couldn't comfortably play the Switch on the go. After trying several other contraptions that did improve the grip, the core remaining issue was the default buttons are just too tiny for me.This product requires you to ditch the default joycons and set them aside for essentially larger joycons in their place. The grip is excellent, the buttons are bigger, and for the first time I can use my Switch as Miyamoto-san intended.The con to this new joy is that they do feel lighter and cheaper than the stock joycons, and either there's a slight lag in the response time or I'm just noticing slowdown from the system itself. I've tested it for several hours now with Tetris Effect, which I also play on PC, and there's just enough of a perceptible lag to interfere with playing at the highest difficulty level.All in all though, these are nice third gameplay option when docked mode + Pro controller or kickstand + Pro controller aren't feasible for me. The grip and button sizes are what should have come by default with the Switch in my opinion. I definitely recommend this if you just want to game on the go without carrying around a portable dock accessory or Pro controller.

feels a bit light but works good kids like how it feels on their hands.

It is excellent

My nephew loved these I bought these for him but his only feedback was that they don’t fit in the hand held controller option that you can put your original switch controllers in and then put the switch on the TV ( he prefers to play his switch off the TV lol )

***NOTE: These are strictly for handheld mode use only. It has no internal battery for wireless (is why they are so light weight), no hd rumble or any rumble, no gyro and no amiibo functions. Home button is also finicky when it comes to waking up the Switch from sleep mode.***Hori products offers great 3rd party officially licensed Nintendo products! Been buying their stuff for previous devices like DS and PS Vita.These controllers are a slightly slimmer version of Hori Split Pad Pro which are also my favorite for playing in handheld mode when it comes to the Nintendo Switch. These can only be played in handheld mode as they don’t have internal batteries to play wirelessly.I find regular Switch joycons causes fatigue, hate the analog on them and I always need a full body grip to use them more comfortably. The Hori Split Pad controllers both Pro and Compact have solved a lot of my issues with the official Nintendo joycon controllers. Other third parties just can’t compare to the Hori controllers quality, even if some say they feel cheap due to how light weight they are. They don’t have dead zones when it comes to the analog sticks!These are lightweight with backstand “nubs” on each controller to help counteract the weight of the device as you play. Removing these backstand “nubs” will cause a slight dipping when you hold the whole Switch unit as one. So removing them would defeat the purpose of these nubs, I highly suggest keeping them as they are to prevent the controllers from snapping off the Switch controller rails.The controllers are responsive with assigned key buttons you can keybind yourself. Just remember that you can’t cross keybind between the controllers meaning if you want X button on the right controller it can only be assigned to that controller, not to the left. Wish Hori would find a work around for this in the future.I haven’t had any stick drift on my Hori controllers both Pro and the white/yellow Compact versions that released way before these Pokémon themed ones. The buttons on these Compacts are more mushier than the Pro versions which I still very much like as I like clicky and mushy buttons. So it’s all personal preference.I love anything Pikachu and was so happy this version released in USA. The matching Hori Pouch also fits with these controllers attached to the OLED version. The print on the controllers are nicely detailed while being toned down vs the more bold themes of the Pro versions. Here’s hoping they don’t fade with use overtime.A tad overprice when you can easily buy a Nintendo Switch Pro controller for a bit more, but again it’s great for handheld users like myself :)