What The .. Joystick Rated At 100k Operations Only

[nubie]

I brought this in from another topic, don't recall which:
(The PDF clearly states 100,000 presses, I don't think they mean gaming-style "excited presses" either.)

It's ALPS RKJXL and yes - a PDF clearly states its operating life is 100,000 cycles.
It should work longer thought. Manufacturers typically are giving the worst case scenarios to reduce warrants.

So assuming average one cycle per 2 seconds and one hour use per day it'd have guaranteed life time of only 2 months.

We would have a total GP2x recall then but it didn't happen.

Thanks for providing a link .

I think it is all dependant on the force applied, I am sure it was not designed for this use, the taller caps and the stock caps are all putting a lot of stress on the stick assembly.

Add to the abuse a handheld is required to endure and you just have to pull it out of a pocket a couple times to catch the stick on your pocket hem and break the stick.

Maybe if the caps could fit much lower, but as it is they multiply the force on the stick.

I think that also if you are getting excited while playing a game you could accidently press it really hard and that would break it.

 

[Winterkid]

Perhaps as a community, we should look into the least expensive complete replacement of the overall stick assembly, perhaps with something a bit more "solid"

I mean by a PROFESSIONAL company. As it is, the GP2X was quite a sizable investment for many of us and I would hope we can find the most reliable ways to prolong their use and care. I, myself might be prepared to pay up to $60 or more to get a more reliable control that isn't as delicate.

 

[nubie]

Perhaps as a community, we should look into the least expensive complete replacement of the overall stick assembly, perhaps with something a bit more "solid"

I mean by a PROFESSIONAL company. As it is, the GP2X was quite a sizable investment for many of us and I would hope we can find the most reliable ways to prolong their use and care. I, myself might be prepared to pay up to $60 or more to get a more reliable control that isn't as delicate.

I am afraid you will have to settle for just replacing your stick with another stock one.

I assume by the PROFESSIONAL remark you don't like Radek's sweet mod.

I think someone could easily CNC one from solid brass for $60, might be a good idea at that .

 

[sparr]

The 100k rating is for the joystick *BUTTON*. The 'click' when you press down on the stick. I have had my GP2X for a day now and I have pressed that button a total of about 4 times, just testing it. No game I have, and I have almost every one I can get my hands on, uses that button.

Look at PS2/XB360 games that use the joystick buttons. The most stick-button-intense game I have played is Perfect Dark Zero, where the button is 'duck', and you end up pressing the button perhaps twice a minute for 5 minutes out of each 30 minute map. thats 20 presses per hour. 5000 hours at 4 hours a day means youre gonna get over 3 years of life out of your GP2X before that button goes kaput, assuming games come out that utilize it often. And that's the rated minimum!

Verdict: (still) RELAX!

I sit corrected.

 

[jmetal88]

The 100k rating is for the joystick *BUTTON*. The 'click' when you press down on the stick. I have had my GP2X for a day now and I have pressed that button a total of about 4 times, just testing it. No game I have, and I have almost every one I can get my hands on, uses that button.

Where do you get that from? Everywhere I can see in that PDF rates the 8-way and the center push exactly the same.

 

[Winterkid]

I didn't mean any disrespect for Radek, I'm sure his mod is superb, but I meant somewhere I could pay and ship the thing to, have a good quality mod done and have it shipped back, with little to no cosmetic changes to the case itself.

I'm sure you can understand my being a bit iffy about opening up the case or messing around with the electronics unneccesarily or risking permenantly damaging anything myself. I take money seriously.

 

[nubie]

I didn't mean any disrespect for Radek, I'm sure his mod is superb, but I meant somewhere I could pay and ship the thing to, have a good quality mod done and have it shipped back, with little to no cosmetic changes to the case itself.

I'm sure you can understand my being a bit iffy about opening up the case or messing around with the electronics unneccesarily or risking permenantly damaging anything myself. I take money seriously.

I totally hear you, he even makes no qualms about stating that his mod is for a "DIY" type of person.

I think you may have missed the point of his mod though, the major acheivement of his mod is to convert a 4-way stick into the 8-way inputs the GP2X uses.

This paves the way for a high-quality 4-way stick to be a possibility, and I think ED (EvilDragon, German distributor) is as interested as you are in offering a service to mod the GP2X and fix the stick, keeping it robust and professional looking as well.

 

[Winterkid]

Don't get me wrong, I'm fairly good at soldering, and I've got a dremel and sandpaper, etc, but if I try to mod my case myself, it's gonna look less like a ferrari and more like a 1980's stationwagon with wood-venir panelling. (Metaphor)

When I want something to still look good, I'm less of a DIY guy and more of a "I need an expert" guy.

Thank you for understanding.

 

[Steve-O]

hhmmm... so anyone had any problems yet?? this has kind of put me off going for the GP2X untill its sorted...

 

[jmetal88]

hhmmm... so anyone had any problems yet?? this has kind of put me off going for the GP2X untill its sorted...

I haven't had any problems, I've had a First Edition that I preordered from GP32z, and I've been using it with DaveC's cap.

 

[nubie]

hhmmm... so anyone had any problems yet?? this has kind of put me off going for the GP2X untill its sorted...

Get one, with MK2 models it is not a show-stopper.

If it breaks return it and they will fix it (it is completely replaceable with another of the same one), if it breaks out of warranty they should fix it anyway, it is only a ~$10 part anyway (guess why GPH used it ).

I wouldn't worry about it, I also would not just shove it in a tight pocket and rip it out again, or hit it with a hammer, or use a giant thumb exerciser before starting to play, it is just common sense, treat it like the precision machine it is.

Not like a teenager treats his room and game systems, I would not be surprised to go into a Teens/Kids room and see CD's all over the floor and a Game controller stuck in the drywall, sometimes the best care is not taken with expensive things by people.

Don't get me wrong, I'm fairly good at soldering, and I've got a dremel and sandpaper, etc, but if I try to mod my case myself, it's gonna look less like a ferrari and more like a 1980's stationwagon with wood-venir panelling. (Metaphor)

When I want something to still look good, I'm less of a DIY guy and more of a "I need an expert" guy.

Thank you for understanding.

Sure, but I would rather drive an 80's wagon than the Enzo, two words: UG LEE!!

Reminds me of an anorexic supermodel with a freakin' huge nose.

and Like I say, he paves the way for a 4-way stick to be used, thus removing the need for a bigger hole.

Also just send it back or get the stick replaced if it does break, you have consumer's rights.

I would just get the existing one redesigned and made of brass or something on a CNC machine, and also incorporate Radek's chip into it and make it a 4-way for reliability.

 

[g4m3r]

If the stick breaks from normal use and the warranty runs out, would I still be able to send it back in (for free or not) to GPH or the dealer?

 

[Crazy Goat]

The 100K rating simply means that they are promising it will work for 100k operations, not that it'll stop working afterwards... but simply that they won't cover it after that. (They probably have a warranty on those sticks which didn't reach their lifetimes... as they were advertised to a certain spec)

If the stick breaks from normal use and the warranty runs out, would I still be able to send it back in (for free or not) to GPH or the dealer?

GPH have a policy of taking returns with a bit of money to cover the parts and labor - and they'll fix it for you. The warranty only says they'll do it for free...


You'd probably pay a few bucks to have it replaced...