Review: Nyko Power Kit 360

Nyko Power Kit 360
Manufacturer: Nyko
Site: Buy from Nyko
Price: $16.99

Overview : Play and recharge the Xbox 360 wireless controller's battery pack simultaneously. The Power Kit includes a high quality NiMH rechargeable and an extra long USB charging cable. The battery provides up to 25 hours of play per charge while the extra long cable allows simultaneous play and charging up to 11 feet from the console. The extended cord makes it easy to kick back at a comfortable distance from the TV without accidentally disconnecting the controller. Never worry about running out of battery power for your controller during play again.

Features :

• High quality NiMH rechargeable battery for excellent performance and long life
• Longer charge and play cable for convenient battery recharge from the consoles USB ports
• Compatible with Microsoft's wireless controller for Xbox 360
• CE approved for safety and quality assurance
• Eliminates the need for expensive batteries
• Up to 25 hours of play per charge
• Battery gauge accessible through the Xbox Dashboard

Quality/Usability : The Power Kit 360 includes two items, a NiMH rechargeable battery pack and a USB charging cable which one end plugs into the Xbox 360 and the other end plugs into the top of the controller where a memory card would usually go which charges the battery. By plugging this cable to the wireless controller, it now makes the controller wired. The wire is approximately 11 feet long.

What's nice is that if you're battery is near empty, you can plug the cable into the controller to charge the battery while you're playing so you dont have to put it down. Once its fully charged, you can unplug the cord and play wirelessly.

On the battery there is an LED. Red is for when the battery is about dead. Yellow is when its half charged and Green when its fully charged. During our tests, the battery life fell a little short of holding the supposed 25 hours of game play. Although this may not be accurate as we didnt officially time it, it probably only allowed about 20-22 hours of gaming.

Dont get this confused with Microsoft's own product, Play & Charge Kit. Although both have the same purpose, there is a difference...price and cord. Microsoft's Play & Charge Kit retails for $19.99 while Nyko's Power Kit retails for $16.99 and has a longer cord.

Conclusion : Overall, the Nyko Power Kit 360 is a nice alternative. Although the price is affordable at $16.99 and the cord is longer but for an additional $13.00, you can get the Nyko Charge Station 360 which has a charging base and two NiMH batteries. But you wont be able to charge and play at the same time.

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