Fake Pro Controller | How to spot an unofficial/fake pro controller | Teardown 2020

This video is designed to help people confirm the differences between official and fake (third party) controllers being sold as originals. Please don’t fall into the traps that so many do.
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[@domrschool60]

The second I held my new controller I bought off ebay, I knew something wasn’t right. It felt so much lighter. And the rumble was way off. I can’t believe they can make imitations that look so good. I got done dirty. Thank you for the video that confirmed my suspicions

[@imaloony8]

I just bought three off eBay: a US Monster Hunter controller from a reputable seller, and two JP (Xenoblade + Splatoon) from what seemed like a decently reputable seller, but it turned out was not. I pulled the trigger a little too eagerly because the price seemed legitimate without being so insane that it seems suspicious, and a few hundred positive reviews seemed like good enough evidence. The JP ones look damn good. As in, they don't even have all the imperfections listed in this video. But after close examination, I'm now certain that they are fakes. A damn shame, and now it means I'll have to send them back, which is a pain in my ass, but at least I'll get my money back. The good news is that the Monster Hunter Controller is legitimate. Compare to my other pro controllers that I know are legitimate, everything looks perfect.

[@michaelrudy5483]

@@imaloony8 hi, what causes you to finally realised that the JP one are fake since at first you thought that its legit? Thank you.

[@imaloony8]

@@michaelrudy5483 Here are the issues that I noticed: 1. There was no sticker seal on the box. Very strange, as every legit pro controller I have is sticker sealed. 2. There are some molding imperfections with the plastic. Most notably on the arms of the controllers at the very tips (where the screws are), there are some very subtle dents where plastic meets plastic that are absent in the real ones. 3. If you shine a light through the top of the ring around the right control stick, you should see a message that reads "THX2ALLGAMEFANS!" This message is present in the fakes, but it's significantly harder to read, as it isn't aligned properly with the ring. Easiest to notice if you have a real to compare it with. 4. The buttons on the controller (most noticeably the +, -, Home, and Capture buttons) don't feel right. They rise up a little too far out of the controller, they're too clicky, and the font of the symbols on the buttons is slightly off/slightly the wrong size. Again, easiest to notice if you have a real to compare it against. 5. The Nintendo Switch Logo on the face of the controller is slightly off-center. The logo should slightly overlap on the vertical axis with both the Capture and Home buttons. On the fakes I got, the logo doesn't quite make it over to the capture button. Those are what I noticed on the fakes I got. Worth noting, that on the two fakes I got, every flaw I mentioned is present on both of them. But on all 5 of the legit controllers that I (now) own, those flaws are not present. So it isn't just manufacturing errors, which very rarely make it past QA. I don't know if those flaws will carry over to every fake, so this isn't an all-inclusive guide.

[@michaelrudy5483]

@@imaloony8 Thank you for the reply and thorough explanation.

[@gripychipy]

I just got an official Xenoblade 2 controller from Amazon I don’t buy stuff of scam eBay

[@TheReconJacob]

Brilliant video, this helped confirm to me that my controller is in fact legit despite the fact that I got it for £10 below the usual price. One thing that's also worth noting is that for some reason, Pro Controllers that are shipped to Europe DO come with official manuals, whereas the North American ones don't.

[@JuanJimenez-pt3dn]

My XB2 controller is fake! It was completely identical to the real one, down to the silver screws, but when I tore deeper it became obvious things weren't like in the official controller in the video. I'm going to write a nasty review and return the item ASAP. Thanks mate.

[@BigBoaby]

You certainly should mate! Its horrible was people try and get away with. Thanks for watching

[@RitterderRunde7]

After a third bought … I finally got a „genuine“ Smash Controller. Finally!

[@shabberplasm32]

Yo thanks for this video. It pretty much made it official that I won't order a Switch pro controller online. I'd have a higher chance of getting a fake and getting one in a store would basically make that impossible. For example, on Amazon: I've seen some reviews that even Amazon themselves have sold fake controllers by accident. So I'll probably just go inside a store and buy one there.

[@BigBoaby]

You are most welcome! It is shocking the amount of fakes around and even worse when you pay the price of an official one. Glad I could help

[@imaloony8]

You can buy on eBay, just make sure it's from a very reputable seller. Like over a thousand positive review with nearly 100% positive reviews.

[@shabberplasm32]

@@imaloony8 I stopped buying stuff from eBay a long time ago. Too many crappy sellers and others trying to scam. eBay doesn't care to fix that garbage.

[@SOPHISTICATED_VIBES]

Ima take a screwdriver with me to the store as well.

[@pseudonymous317]

thank you for this. i was suspicious with my pro controller, but this video helped me confirmed that my controller is sadly fake. also i want to add, the thing about the barcode and the manual, my fake controller comes with no manual but with a barcode on the packaging, so those bootleggers are evolving into making it more believable. the thing that confirmed it for me was the black screws and the lack of hd rumble.

[@pseudonymous317]

i knew i should stick with my principals of never buying electronics online, but since it was the pandemic and all i was kinda desperate lol.

[@bigtodd]

Got one of these today and it matched the differences in the video. Felt so odd with the lighter weight and it sounded like a jelly bean had gotten inside the controller when I shook it

[@JohnDoeWasntTaken]

I bought a new Splatoon 2 controller which you'd think nowadays would be guaranteed fake, but I won the lottery on this one and it ended up being real! Can't believe I only paid $90 for it. This video helped me verify and it helped I had an official pro controller for comparison. The weight matched up and of course I took the back off the controller to compare. It is an exact match to a real controller. Honestly, I still won't rule out that it could be a REALLY good shell swap job, but it really doesn't seem like it'd even be profitable to fake at that point since all the internals still appear and feel brand new. Shell swap fakes are usually done using recycled or previously thrown out internal parts. I definitely got lucky on this one

[@stanleysenjaya5496]

Most second hand seller won’t even let you tinker by opening the back panels and such, let alone weigh the fake one side by side with the genuine one. You should instead point out easy-to-spot-on differences such as the U-shaped cutout on top of the controller’s plastic cover for example.

[@BigBoaby]

thanks for the comment. I was going to add some of these however I have received another fake that is so good and everything matches to the detail apart from internals.

[@stanleysenjaya5496]

@@BigBoaby very scary world we are living in

[@BigBoaby]

@@stanleysenjaya5496 Couldn't agree more. Will be doing a video on the tear down of this amazing fake. Scary thing is that it's so good I can't tell the difference when using it against an official.

[@bederbiggs3353]

The controller I bought on eBay is unfortunately a fake. Thank you for this incredibly helpful video, I’m returning it now

[@johnfizzelo3443]

Damn it I just got my Splatoon 2 controller in from Ebay and it seems to be a fake. Guess I'll just do a shell swap with my official one.

[@pmolitierno]

just ordered one myself. I will inspect it once it gets here. If its fake, back it goes.

[@BigBoaby]

Sorry to hear that John but you can now join the thousands that have been scammed

[@BigBoaby]

What happened then Paul?

[@pmolitierno]

@@BigBoaby Was working on shell swaps for the wife and kids with my official controllers when this arrived, so immediately tore it down. No contest as to how fake the Xenoblade one was. Got my money back from the seller and got to keep the controller. I tried using the shell, but it did not line up well with the official controller units. The plastic body portions are of decent quality, but it all goes down in the grip quality. Boards are slightly different as well, and there are no HD rumble packs as you mentioned. Definitely a good fake, and 99% of people are none the wiser. Thanks for shedding light on the industry.

[@louietdsh2667]

Why is it important that it’s official or not and what does shell swapping mean

[@joaomandeiro5957]

I have a question. Does the fake one also have a serial number on the grip? Oh and one more thing I noticed the gold seal from nintendo in the box, the fake one does not have it.

[@endgel]

I bought a Xenoblade one on Ebay. Everything about it looks official. Even the box is the right size and color. The only things that make me think it’s fake is the rumble is clearly far stronger(which could just be because it’s new unused motors) than my old Smash Pro controller and the light bar at the bottom is rather dim. But it does wake my Switch and also has nfc support which I’m told fake controller usually don’t have. But I haven’t opened it so maybe doing that would confirm.

[@Joltemon]

Yeah my Splatoon 2 controller was the exact same. I opened it up... and boom, black screws.

[@colby_kafka]

I think i bought a very good fake Splatoon 2 pro controller (it said refurbished). I compared it with the original one, i find the HD rumble it's abit aggresive on the fake one compare to the original. The d-pad is abit hard than the original. The motion control of the original is slightly better but overall the good fake is actually quite good, it can wake up the nintendo switch. (but i might be wrong, maybe it is really a refurbish set)

[@BigBoaby]

Nah you sound spot on mate. I bought a top end smash bro fake and it played very well indeed. Certainly some really good fakes on the market

[@forblaze74]

I will say that official Nintendo pro controllers may not be flush with the grips. Both of my store bought brand new controllers are not "perfectly flush."

[@JohnDoeWasntTaken]

Very true, pro controller build quality is not the most consistent and it's pretty common to get brand new ones with grips that actually wiggle a bit.

[@MouseCIick]

take a shot every time he say "official"

[@Chrisg-pi6zg]

I bought a fake Zelda pro controller I have no complaints feels just like my official one minus the amibo feature which I don’t use anyway it was better then paying a 100+ to a scalper

[@SquishyAcePilot]

could you please make a video of both the controllers while playing a game? Thank you.

[@BigBoaby]

If I get the time most certainly

[@WhatBigClawsYouHave]

So I bought the monster hunter one, knowing it was fake. I only bought it cause I don't have money to throw away on ones that look genuine but could be fake. It had been alright until the left thumbstick started sticking and I realised you can't use amiibo on it 😂

[@jerry3956]

Thank you so much, 2 bought 2 controllers from walmart, for Christmas, one recently started vibrating for no reason non-stop while playing, took it apart: fake, the other is genuine, everything like you said the battery had no label nintendo and the motor is smaller. Bought from the same seller on walmart too both times. The box was slightly different so from the beginning I was a little concerned. The real one was harder too open the screws were so tight. But both had the same color screws sliver on the inside and 2 black on the outside by the grip cover.

[@vm6748]

I just got a fake switch pro controller. Everything was the same as authentic except for 3 things: there were 3 pins, missing the foam insert on the left side, slight indentation and slightly poor fitting of the controller arms. Thank you for the guide, I was able to figure it out because of you.

[@BigBoaby]

Glad the video was helpful :D. Thanks for your support.

[@matthew6787]

Nice video Sir! Very helpful, thanks.

[@BigBoaby]

Thank you so much! This was one of my first videos. Glad you enjoyed

[@edgarpascacio8950]

You don't have to dismantle the whole controller to know one is fake and one is not, try to turn on the Switch with the controller, if it turns on, then it's real, boom.

[@BigBoaby]

Hey Edgar agreed that a lot of cheap fakes this is away to know however people do make good fakes that also turn on the console.

[@xTwilightWolvesx]

@@BigBoaby If the console recognises it as a Pro Controller, is this a sign that the controller is real?

[@LETTITBITYT]

I mistakely bought a fake controller Splatoon 2 edition and in less than 6 months started to dritch and have some breaked parts in the front plastic. I'm now buying an official Controller Splatoon 3 edition because I can't play with drift in the right stick

[@Linksoer]

Also, fake ones can’t seem to update when going to settings on switch and trying to update controllers

[@KillYaEgo]

Wow I got a fake one!! It had the little secret message in there and everything

[@JohnnyJohnJon83]

I’m curious if the parts are interchangeable between the fake and genuine

[@pinoyrunningpenguin]

It is

[@JpicGames]

Nice Poster btw ❤

[@va8157]

Can the fake one use motion control, for aiming in splatoon/zelda?

[@BigBoaby]

Only "lets say" the good fakes and they cost about as much as the official ones

[@ings_2]

I got a manual but it's normal for a european version also the box is different and the controller is the same as far as I know.(idk how I ended up with a European version but the premium copy could have mistakes on the box like a space in controller and in the Australian nintendo link)

[@makmurjaya3588]

Can the fake one wake the nintendo switch using home button?

[@BigBoaby]

This one cannot however you can get a more expensive fake that can.

[@makmurjaya3588]

@@BigBoaby Thanks a lot for your video, i've already checked mine and i'm sure i have the original one

[@makmurjaya3588]

@@BigBoaby i've seen the video with the fake one that can wake up the nintendo switch too, it's a nice fake by the way lol

[@ITyraxI]

I just bought an controller from someone 2nd hand that was allegedly brand new, and it is doesn't even work... only the analogs do anything... i got ripped and i confirmed using your tricks that it was a fake. Update: I opened it and found most screws missing, and the link between the mother board and upper part was completely detatched. Most screws were worn out as well I had to force it open. Scumbags out there...

[@mohammadsalem143]

Lesson learned don't buy a Nintendo switch controller off eBay

[@mcdonaldslieferservice]

Ohhh i sadly have the unofficial controller, my mum bought me it

[@BigBoaby]

Well least this helps to know that I suppose. However least with a gift you know that your money wasn't wasted on a fake product

[@NoGoodNameHelpPLZ]

@@BigBoaby tbh It's worse when it's a gift Especially when it's from your mom Because your mom got scammed

[@jacquelynhawk8838]

The hell! I'm mad now! I went to find the hidden Easter egg on my controller and couldn't find it. Then came here. I got mine from Walmart!!! It's the fake! I'm so mad

[@rezaghasemi7651]

At least use the same model .

[@alejandrotarazona5359]

Excellent video, but what about the funcionality?

[@BigBoaby]

Thanks for the comment. It didn't function well, had an issue that the vibrate motors would trigger ever time I used the right tilt stick!!! Very annoying. That said later in the year I was sent another fake and it was faultless. I personally couldn't tell the difference. However that fake almost cost as much a as a real pro controller.

[@1ast_rocktsar]

Anyone knows if there exist a Monster Hunter version controllers replica?

[@MarblesSoda]

I bought my new pro controller just regular for full price like a idiot I just bought a splatoon 2 Edition one I Hope it’s legit Also ISNT it funny THAT I SOEND MORE MONEY BUYING A REGULAR ONE THAN A SPECIAL EDITION SOOOO COOL ;(

[@evalangley3985]

They are all fake on ebay... it is ridiculous...

[@BigBoaby]

Yeah eBay is honestly the worst place

[@GrugJamin]

Does the fake one break easily and the official one is hard to break

[@BigBoaby]

Yeh the parts on the are fairly cheap compared to the official.

[@Joltemon]

@@BigBoaby The R button on mine just stopped working one day. I've taken it apart and it's definitely a fake. I bought it a year ago but hopefully ebay might still do something about it

[@akyeera]

they can't be updated

[@louietdsh2667]

If the controller is fake what does that mean is it not safe to use.

[@pinoyrunningpenguin]

Less precision and won't last long

[@jakdu0]

So mine was a fake

[@handsomeasiandude1126]

Can you turn on the Switch with the fake?

[@rafi7413]

no

[@ManOfCulture1992]

You can with some fake controller !

[@voonillathemalo]

i paid 70 bucks for my Pro Controller 70 GOD DAMN € IN GERMANY OFF AMAZON WHAT THE FUCK