Steam Frame

Kind of weird using AA batteries, I'd imagine something else would be better suited for this?

I swapped all my AA and AAA batteries for Enelooops. The cheaper white ones are the best for most applications.

AA means they don’t have to handle battery replacements; and it’s not too-too hard to get rechargeable batteries.

I would prefer batteries in machine, too; but this does have some sustainability and repairability (by not needing it) advantages.

The (now original) Steam controller used AA batteries as well. I can't say it was my favorite feature but I did appreciate that it made "battery replacements" a cinch.

You're right that it's "not too-too hard" to get them, but it's also "not too-too easy" to actually use them in comparison just plugging a USB-C cable into the device. The process you will have to go through to recharge this will become incredibly annoying for something that will eat through batteries as quickly as a VR headset. Think of all the criticisms Apple has received over the years due to the Magic Mouses charging port being on the bottom and that only needs a charge every couple months, this will need to be charged after a few hours of use.

There are 1.5V AA li-ion batteries on the market. I bought a few to power children's toys and they have comparable capacity to alkaline batteries. At high currents they actually perform better.

Cost is about 10x that of their non-rechargeable brethren, but obviously there's return on that investment.

Makes me happy. Instant swap when you run out of power.

I just buy rechargeable batteries and keep a charger nearby. When batteries die, they come out and straight into the charger. Always ready to go.

I expect it does help with MRP and weight as well as making them more robust with no usbc drive to be worked free (especially if people try playing cabled up as inevitably happens when controllers run out of power halfway through playing). I'd expect there will be third party options to replace the cover/battery exactly how your thinking with a nice dock to put them down in for people who prefer it.

Realistically though if the cover for the battery is nice to remove/insert then it wouldn't surprise me if having a battery charging station and hot pairs of batteries to swap out is actually the nicer usability option vs cording or dock downtime (if you leave them sitting on the couch with a low charge then need to charge halfway through).

I wasn't denying their existence. I was comparing the process of opening your device, taking out the batteries, finding their proprietary charger or hooking each individual battery up to a USB cable depending on the specific variety of battery, and them putting them back into your device is more annoying than just plugging the device into one of the half dozen USB-C chargers we all have scattered around our homes.

I doubt this would be a dealbreaker for most people, but it's a choice that will provide a consistent small annoyance for users.

User replaceable batteries are... fine? Expected; preferred even? 40 hours on a single charge is more than adequate, imo, and if the controllers were too light that might actually bother some players.

The controller is the only part that uses AA. The computer/headset portion uses USB-C recharging.

I would hazard a guess that the battery in the controller will have a life measured in weeks if not months.

> this will need to be charged after a few hours of use.

I think you're mixing up the controller and headset batteries. The controllers use AA batteries and should last for potentially months of use.

The headset itself uses a rechargeable 21.6 Wh Li-ion battery with 45W charging over USB-C.

AA’s are only used for the controllers and they’ve got a claimed 40 hours of battery life on those AAs.

Thanks for the correction. Still annoying, but obviously less so.

Batteries in machine leads to having to wait 30 minutes for them to charge. Replaceable rechargeable batteries means you can instantly get a full new set. This is ideal

I'm frustrated by the error rate on my Eneloops over the years. I have dozens of them and I swear every other time I recharge them, one more starts blinking and refuses to recharge.

Also I would recommend switching to the IKEA rechargeable batteries which are supposedly the same thing except cheaper.

I was actually glad they went with AA batteries for the controllers. They are easily replaced, of course, and I already have a charger on a shelf with AA/AAA batteries always ready to go. I tend to avoid internal batteries if I can also so that I don't have to manage them so much or wait for charging. Had my DS4 controller internal battery go bad after a year probably because the battery got deeply discharged a few times. Not buying that again.

True, but you can just swap in a spare set of charged batteries and you are back online instantly.

I think it's a lot better. Rechargeable batteries built into a device degrade over time. The vast majority of people will discard a device as a result of battery degradation.