At first we would like to thank SteelSeries for offering the Stratus Duo Gamepad for testing and reviewing.

 

About SteelSeries:

"From day one, SteelSeries has been focused on making high performance gaming gear used by the most demanding, top professional gamers worldwide and peripherals that provide superior quality and a competitive edge to gamers of all skill levels. We believe, as most gamers do, in winning, not trying!

 

What originally began with two people who recognized the need for superior, high-quality/performance gaming gear that would give gamers a competitive edge, has grown into a global leader in gaming and entertainment gear sought after for their high performance capabilities.

 

Fast-forward to today, and we’ve come a long way since our first glass mousepad. We have global offices in North America, Europe, and Asia, providing an integrated portfolio of products designed specifically for gaming. Fueling our growth is you, the gamer!

 

While we are proud of our technology and product innovation, we are even more excited about how these products are developed to meet the needs of gamers. Many companies may claim to develop superior gaming products but few actually do. Instead, they spend countless hours with lab engineers trying to force fit a new technology with bells and whistles and mediocre functionality for the end-user.

 

At SteelSeries, we develop our products with a small internal team and a vast network of technology partners, channel partners, game publishers, and gaming communities around the globe. We aren’t afraid of being challenged and implementing new ideas. Our main goal is to always to listen to the collective feedback of our professional gaming community.

 

We won’t bore you with cheeky slogans, trying to underline our authenticity as gamers. We fully acknowledge that the best professional gamers in the world know more about what they want and what will make them better, than we do. We are proud to be working with our partners, but we can’t take credit for their invaluable input and feedback. Instead we tell it like it is: they help us. We want to know what works and what doesn’t. For this reason, SteelSeries creates innovative solutions that provide a competitive advantage for all gamers.

 

Critical to our company’s success is also our reinvestment in the gaming communities and the individuals who support them. As a result, our corporate philosophy is to take a substantial portion of our revenue and put it back into the gaming community to help spur industry growth. We support our community in numerous ways, ranging from co-hosting tournaments like Iron Lady and King of the Hill, and supporting gaming competitions of all sizes, to promoting the top and up-and-coming gaming teams/organizations.

 

Put simply, SteelSeries does not claim to invent or reinvent the gaming industry. Nor do we focus on one specific product, copy other companies or follow the crowd.

 

Instead we leave it to you, the gamer, our customer/partner/inspiration, to decide if we are deserving of such declarations and accolades. What we do promise, however, is to remain committed to you. We will continue to work with you and the gaming community to make the best products possible and give you that competitive edge. We will continue to do our best to support the growth of the professional gaming industry and give back to the gaming communities. By doing so, we don’t just talk a good game, we win!"

Product Features:

 

2 controllers in 1

With the flick of a button, swap between 2.4GHz wireless for Windows and Steam, and Bluetooth wireless for mobile on Android, Oculus Go, and Samsung Gear VR. No software needed – get playing right out of the box.

 

Supports Fortnite Mobile and more

No more struggling with awkward touchscreen controls on your Android phone. Wherever you are, easily pair and play controller supported Android games like Fortnite Mobile with no additional software, so you can enjoy the ease of a controller with all your favorite games.

 

Steam-enabled

No more hunting for drivers and software to recognize your controller. Easily play 5000+ controller-enabled Steam games and enjoy full Steam Big Picture Mode and Steam Link support, right out of the box.

 

High-performance hardware

Hall Effect magnetic sensors are much more durable than their traditional counterparts, allowing for flawlessly smooth actuation from top to bottom, and clickable analog joysticks give you pinpoint 360° precision with minimal dead zone, whether you’re carefully aiming or button mashing.

 

20+ hour battery life

A rechargeable lithium-ion battery means you can play nonstop wireless for over 20 hours on a single charge, and keep playing while the controller charges.

 

 

Product Specifications:

 

The latest controller from SteelSeries takes part of the Stratus product segment and was designed to operate on wireless via dongle, connect to Bluetooth devices, but can also function in wired mode, while charging. The Duo is shipped inside a compact cardboard enclosure, with the usual SteelSeries box art:

 

 

 

The right side of the packaging does show a side view of the controller:

 

 

 

On the opposite, we will get to see possible connection setups, depending on the hardware we are working with, but also some technical specifications:

 

 

 

On the back, SteelSeries does show some of the product main features, in multiple languages:

 

 

 

The inner enclosure is similar to the one we have seen along with SteelSeries mice, in all-black color, but with the Rise Up motto on the top cover:

 

 

 

The controller sits secure inside plenty of foam material, along with the 2.4GHz WiFi dongle:

 

 

 

The box contents does also include the USB charging/data cable and the documentation:

 

 

 

The guide does offer enough information, so the user will be familiar with the gamepad before the first actual setup:

 

 

 

The data/charge cable is microUSB and does not feature braiding:

 

 

 

Stratus Duo does hold a similar design to Playstation controllers, but holds Xbox compatibility so tons of games are playable with it, especially on PC. From the top, we can spot the 8-way directional pad, the Back/Select button, a Player Indicator LED (which also shows Bluetooth connectivity status and Battery charging status), the central Home button, a Forward/Start button, the usual A/B/X/Y buttons and also the dual analog joysticks:

 

 

 

The controller does hold a comfortable shape; here are some views from its sides:

 

 

 

 

In the front we can spot more interfaces:

 

-the wireless/BT mode switch

-the wireless pairing button

-the microUSB port for charging the battery or playing on the wired interface

-the battery level button that shows the current status with the top LEDs

-the Power switch

-R1/L1 shoulder buttons, joined by the R2/L2 analog triggers

 

 

 

 

On the bottom area, we can see a central sticker with the product serial number:

 

 

 

As soon as we have turned on the controller, the top LEDs will show us the current status:

 

 

 

The controller does also hold Android compatibility, so SteelSeries has built a small dock for smartphones, named Smartgrip:

 

 

 

A list of compatibility options is available on the side:

 

 

 

The back side of the packaging does show the main product features; thanks to the flexibility, a lot of phone factors are supported:

 

 

 

The accessory is also named “Phoneclip” and comes with a small guide:

 

 

 

The leaflet does show the installation procedure, together with the necessary drawings:

 

 

 

 

The installation is pretty straight-forward, thanks to the back metallic buckle and the thumbscrews:

 

 

 

 

The Stratus Duo should look like this before the smartphone installation:

 

 

 

The top area of the clip can be adjusted as needed, depending on the smartphone size:

 

 

 

Moving on to the WiFi dongle, this one is very compact and does not take a lot of space around the USB port. One fact we did not enjoy much is that SteelSeries did not offer the option to fit the adapter in the body of the Stratus Duo, so make sure to keep your eyes on it, especially when travelling:

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to the dual-interface and internal rechargeable battery, you can go ahead and game in no time! We have tried quite a bit of games with it, including Dead or Alive 6 and Mortal Kombat XL. The controller is very responsive and feels comfortable thanks to its ergonomic shape; while we are not fans of playing games on such small screens like smartphones do have, we have paired the controller on our Android-based 4K Sony TV and ran games via Steam Link. Despite the Bluetooth connection, the extra lag this type of connection does introduce was barely noticeable and we were happy to game on a larger screen instead of staying in front of our desk.

 

The controller does not need extra drivers or applications for configuration purposes, it is simply plug—and-play; the top status LEDs are capable of showing total battery charge, the player number but also the Bluetooth connection status. If you do have issues with pairing your Stratus Duo, you can always use the dedicated button in the front, that will re-initialize the controller.

 

We have got about 19 hours of use on our first charge and this is quite a lot! If you need to charge the Duo and you are in the middle of a PC gaming session, you only need to plug in the USB cable and you are ready to go -> the controller will charge while you play without any issues at all!

 

If you are looking for force feedback vibration, well the Stratus Duo does not have it but this is the only real downside we have found with this model.

 

The SteelSeries Stratus Duo is available online for about 70 Euros, which is a fair price considering the offered features.

SteelSeries Stratus Duo Gamepad is Recommended for:

 

 

We would like to thank again to SteelSeries for making this review possible!