Want a Wireless Xbox One PC controller? You’ll need Windows 10

If you have a PC and would love to have some wireless Xbox One controller action, we have some good news for you. It’s much better news than the advertising Microsoft has begun to implement in Windows 10, that’s for sure.

Microsoft has just announced that they have started shipping PC adapters for wireless Xbox One controllers.

However, as you might have expected given Microsoft’s tactics regarding all things Windows 10, it appears that according to the official description these adapters will only work on Windows 10 installations. Read below, to see what we mean:

With the Xbox Wireless Adapter for Windows, you’ll simply plug the Adapter into the USB 2.0 or 3.0 port of your Windows 10 PC laptop or tablet and bind the Adapter to your Wireless Controller to enable the same gaming experience you’re used to on Xbox One, including in-game chat and high-quality stereo audio.

If you want to buy a standalone adapter, it will cost you $24.99 (R336.22). But if you prefer, you can purchase the adapter bundled with a controller for $79.95 (R1075.66).

On top of this, given the current Rand to Dollar exchange, local prices are expected to be noticeably higher.

At the moment, we’re standing at $1.00 to just over R13.00 and with import taxes and duties included, we could be paying a lot for both the bundle and adapter respectively.

If you don’t want wireless capabilities though, you can easily just use the Xbox One controller’s charging cable and connect it to your PC of choice. You won’t even have to install Windows 10 to do so.

Not everyone is ready to make the jump to Windows 10 and are happy with Windows 7 and Windows 8 as they are. Scratch that, those with Windows 7 are happy, and Windows 10 has some rather intimidating issues, keeping Windows 8 users at bay for the moment.

And perhaps you have a PS4, you can use the DualShock 4 controller with a micro-USB cable and connect it to your PC as well, and again, no Windows 10 installation is needed.

But if you want, you can purchase the Xbox Wireless Adapter for Windows or the bundle. That’s all up to you, but we think the cheaper routes may be more beneficial especially to your pocket.

Either way, once you have a gamepad in hand, there are all sorts of emulator avenues worth exploring as well.