Manba One review

I’ll be honest, I’m a sucker for gimmicks, and the 2-inch LCD screen on the Manba One controller that sits in place of a trackpad had my attention right away. Positioned centrally on the body, the screen offers touch functionality to adjust multiple settings such as altering the profile of the back buttons, changing in-game controls, increasing and decreasing brightness, and even adjusting the sensitivity of the control sticks. Hell, it even has a readout for the battery life always visible so you don’t get surprised mid-boss fight.

Opening the box, I impressed by the size and weight of the Manba One, with a bulk and heft similar to the old Xbox 360 controllers. In my man-sized hands it felt incredibly comfortable, and despite the slight clicky-ness of the linear “hall effect” triggers, felt really good to use. The back buttons are positioned just right for my fingers – but I should warn that those with smaller hands such as younger gamers may have a less smooth experience.

Also included is a sleek charging station that should integrate neatly into most gaming set-ups or fit nicely on a shelf. It allows you to rest the Manba One on it and plug in the base itself with a standard USB-C cable, giving both a charging station and a place to store the controller when not in use. It integrates with Xbox, PC, Nintendo Switch and iOS or Android devices. As per the usual Sony rules, you can’t use it with the PS5, though.

Although I’m rarely bothered by RGB in a controller, the inclusion of the Manba One’s understated light tech is quite nice. This can also be adjusted using the touchscreen, with several presets available. More impressive are the Hall Effect sticks that help prevent stick drift altogether, and the promise of zero deadzones. So for FPS players, this combined with the 800Hz+ wired polling rate make the Manba One feel incredibly competitive.

If I may offer a suggestion though, I’d say get the Manba One in black. The white/crystal finish on mine is pretty enough, but the black finish simply looks better and more expensive – and of course it’s much easier to keep clean. I’d sooner a black controller over a white any day and so if the option is there, I’d recommend it.

One criticism I have is with the controls themselves. While it’s nice to have the option to change the control sticks for taller alternatives, you can’t alter the D-pad, which just doesn’t have a high enough profile to comfortably play games that need precision D-pad input, like a fighting game for example. It’s not awful, but if you have an alternative controller for a fighter you’ll likely end up using it instead.

Besides that, there aren’t any real downsides to the Manba One. It feels really good to use, looks expensive, and has zero lag when used the wireless dongle. It’s not overly pricey for a wireless controller, either, and the addition of the LCD screen gives it extra functionality that you just don’t get from other controllers as standard. All in all, the Manba One is a solid choice for anyone looking for a reliable gaming controller with a few extra features under the hood.