If you are a gamer who struggles to find enough time for gaming, you know how frustrating it can be when your battery dies and there’s no spare controller to replace it with. You’ve probably gone through that second-hand pain of using an older controller or renting one from a friend. We won’t even mention the humiliation of being unplugged in the middle of something intense because your controller was on low battery life.
Because of this, we’ve created this post about the charging times for PlayStation 4 controllers! Read on so you’ll never have to worry about whether or not your controller is going to die again.
Basic Things To Know About Charging PS4
The Basics
You can typically expect anywhere from 30-40 hours of gaming out of a single charge with the default controller that comes with your PlayStation 4. In addition to charging the controller with the USB cable, the controller comes with a USB cable. Just like turning on your console, you’ll see a white light on the controller when it’s plugged in and charging.
It will remain lit for six seconds, then go out for another four seconds to let you know that it’s charging successfully. When the light is solid and not flashing, it means the controller is fully charged and ready to go!
If you want to charge your controller while it’s not in use, a short press of the PS button will turn the controller into “standby mode.” If you want to put the controller back on standby, a long press of the PS button will do so.
Additionally, controllers that are plugged in can still receive certain functions like vibrating feedback or camera control even when they are charging. If your battery runs out, you can always pick up where you left off!
Charging Options
You can use three different ways to charge your controller: wall outlet, USB port, and vehicle charger.
Two hours is about the amount of time it takes for a controller to be fully charged by a wall outlet.
When charging via a USB port on the PS4, however, it will take approximately 1 ½ hour to charge a controller fully. This is considerably faster than using an outlet and allows you to keep playing while your controller charges!
You can use a vehicle charger to charge your controller, but it won’t provide as much power as charging through the USB port on your PS4. This means that you won’t see the battery level change as quickly while using a vehicle charger.
Controller Battery Life Tips and Tricks
You can press both the PS and SHARE buttons at once to access a diagnostic screen that gives you information about your controller’s charge level. If you have multiple controllers, each one will have its own icon next to it. You can also press the SHARE button to see how long your controller has been idle.
If you’re low on battery, you can turn on “Vibration Feedback” in Settings and disable “Batteries Low” in the Controllers and Home Menu settings.
Finally, if you aren’t going to use your controller for a while, simply unplug it when you are done so it will save power.
How To Know If PS4 Controller Is Fully Charged?
You can check the bottom of your PS4 controller if you’re desperate to know whether it’s fully charged by pressing the PS button. Your controller is fully charged if it displays “100%” in green letters! If not, then make sure the indicator light on top of the DualShock 4 is lit and that the charging cable has a solid white light.
How To Charge A PS4 Controller Without PS4?
You can power your PS4 controller by itself, provided you have the DualShock 4 connected to it. You’ll need to unplug the USB cable from your console and plug it into your controller to begin charging it. Press and hold the PS button on your controller until it turns on, then hold it down while turning both controllers on. Your controller should start flashing a solid green light to indicate that it’s charging.
If the LED light is flashing while both controllers are turned on, then they aren’t compatible with each other and you’ll need to turn one of them off before continuing.
You can use a USB battery pack to charge your PlayStation 4 controller while they are on. You could get an external battery pack, or you could use your own portable charger to power up your controller. Just make sure it supports the charging output of the DualShock 4.
If you have another type of controller besides the DualShock 4, make sure to check out our post on how to charge controllers with PS4 model numbers beginning with PS4-1 (PlayStation VR)! You’ll find information on charging and compatibility there.
Other Charging Tips and Tricks
When you’re not playing, it’s probably a good idea to charge your controller to make sure there’s enough juice left in it when the time comes for an important game. But if you plan on leaving your PS4 controller to charge overnight so you can use it the next day, make sure it won’t be too hot when you unplug it. Personal experience says that the best place to leave a charging controller overnight is on top of a pillow or ice pack for ease of access.
In short, your PS4 controller should last you a long time if you take care of it! So what are you waiting for? Take a few extra minutes to really get to know your controller, and make sure to always keep it charged!
Final Word
If you have a Playstation 4, you know that one of the most annoying things about gaming is not having enough controller battery juice. After all, nothing can kill the buzz of playing your favorite game like when your controller dies in the middle of a few intense rounds.
We hope this guide has answered some of your questions about the charging times for PS4 controllers, but if there’s anything else that our readers would like more answers to please leave us a comment below!
