New PS5 Controllers Said to Be Optimised for Better Battery Life 1 Image: Damien McFerran / Push Square

Sony has allegedly optimised the internals of the DualSense controller in order to ensure longer lasting performance.

A whole heap of testing from a Polish console modder and so-called controller technician reveals that the latest model of the PS5 pad (CFI-ZCT2W) optimises performance for longer play sessions.

He points to the removal of a second microphone and optimised electronics for the improvements.

According to his testing, the improved controller can last over 15 hours of continuous play, with features like adaptive triggers and haptic feedback used.

“This result is due to five years of hardware optimisation,” he claims. “Sony introduced many internal changes from BDM-010 to BDM-060, leading to optimised functionality and huge power savings on the standard 1560mAh battery.”

He also notes that charging temperatures are overall cooler, again owing to more efficient engineering.

Obviously, we’re yet to get our hands on one of these new pads to test it for ourselves, but it certainly sounds like potentially promising news.

If you’re in the market for a PS5 or a DualSense and you want to ensure you’re getting the new controller, you should look for the product code CFI-ZCT2W on the box. New pads, like the limited edition Genshin Impact controller announced this week, should all benefit from these improvements.

There had been speculation earlier in the year that Sony was plotting a new PS5 pad with a removable battery, although it’s still uncertain how accurate those rumours were.

It does make sense for the platform holder to continue to tweak and optimise the engineering of its hardware, though. This is something that occurs every generation, often because the company wants to reduce manufacturing costs.

Sammy Barker

As the Editor of Push Square, Sammy has over 15 years of experience analysing the world of PlayStation, from PS3 through PS5 and everything in between. He’s an expert on PS Studios and industry matters, as well as sports games and simulators. He also enjoys RPGs when he has the time to dedicate to them, and is a bit of a gacha whale.