Friday, April 19, 2024

Keep your Oculus Quest controllers going strong with these batteries

Share

The Touch Controllers for the Oculus Quest 2 ship with one disposable AA battery each, but you should invest in the best Oculus Quest 2 replacement batteries to ensure you can keep playing when they eventually run out of juice. While the Touch Controllers last much longer than the headset’s limited battery — up to several months, depending on usage — it’s still wise to invest in some rechargeable batteries or a stack of disposable batteries to stop your VR sessions from getting disrupted. Here are the batteries and chargers we recommend for your Oculus Touch controllers.

Best rechargable batteries + charger

Panasonic K-KJ55MCA4BA 3 Hour Quick Charger with 4 AA eneloop Rechargeable Batteries

panasonic-eneloop-aa-batteries-and-charg

Staff Pick

These rechargeable batteries store up to 2,000 mAh of power and can be recharged up to 2,100 times. They can be charged completely from dead or partially charged without damaging the energy storage memory. We recommend buying them with the quick charger accessory, which will get your AAs recharged in 3 hours or less, but you can also purchase the batteries alone for half the price if you already have one.

$30 at Amazon

Extra battery potential

Panasonic BK-3HCCA4BA eneloop pro AA Rechargeable Batteries (4 Pack)

panasonic-eneloop-pro-aa-rechargeable-ba

Storing up to 2550 mAh of energy and able to be recharged 500 times apiece, these eneloop pros will give your Oculus Touch controllers even more time before you have to swap them out. They have significantly fewer recharge cycles than the non-pro batteries but give you the added convenience of not having to recharge them so often and should still last you for several years at least. Make sure to buy the charger if you need it.

$18 at Amazon

Charging Panasonic batteries

Panasonic BQ-CC17SBA eneloop Advanced Individual Battery Charger

panasonic-battery-charger.jpg

This charger will take your Panasonic Eneloop batteries from dead to charged in up to two hours. It has an LED indicator to help you know when your batteries are done charging and automatically shuts off to protect your batteries.

$20 at Amazon

Never open them again

BeswinVR Magnetic Charge Kit for Oculus Quest 2

beswinvr-magnetic-charge-kit-quest-2-43.

This unique charge kit comes with two special batteries, form-fitting covers, and special recharging cables. Each battery has a small magnetic connector that fits through the opening in the battery cover, making it easy to recharge each controller when the battery gets low. If you pair this with one of the BeswinVR controller grips in the same Amazon listing below — which features that same cut-out for the charging port — you won’t even need to remove your grips to charge your controllers.

$47 at Amazon

Dock it up

Anker Quest 2 Charging Dock

anker-charging-dock-oculus-quest-2-rende

It’s probably difficult to justify at nearly $100, but the Anker Charging Dock for Quest 2 is one of the coolest bespoke accessories you’ll find for the VR headset. You can dock your headset and both controllers in its form-fit design and never have to worry about overcharging or overvoltage, thanks to the series of safety components inside. Just be aware that you’ll need to remove any controller grips before docking. That’s quite annoying, but at least you will only need to charge these batteries once every few months!

$99 at Amazon

Keep going and going …

Energizer Recharge Universal AA batteries

energizer-batteries-plus-charger.jpg

These Energizer batteries are affordable and dependable with a five-year shelf life, 1,000 recharge cycles, and 12 months of charge retention. Its 2000 mAh may not be ideal for electronics with higher power demands but should be more than sufficient for the energy-efficient Oculus Touch controllers.

$38 at Amazon (4 AA batteries + charger)
$20 at Amazon (4-pack batteries

Rechargeable and budget friendly

AmazonBasics AA High-Capacity Rechargeable Batteries

amazon-basics-rechargeable-batteries.jpg

These rechargeable batteries are budget-friendly but have a large 2,400 mAh capacity. They’ll maintain 70% of their original capacity for up to six months, so after you’re finished with the two in the Touch Controllers, you’ll still be able to use the other two from the pack with a decent charge. We don’t know how many recharge cycles they’re predicted to keep their full charge, but Amazon says at least “3 years”, which should last you until the Oculus Quest 3 arrives.

From $16 at Amazon

Recharging AmazonBasics batteries

AmazonBasics battery charger

amazon-basics-battery-charger.jpg?itok=C

This charger allows you to charge up to four AmazonBasics batteries at once. It protects your batteries from overcharging and attempts at charging them the wrong way. It also can change how many volts it uses depending on what type of plug you’re using. It also has a retractable plug, which is handy when you’re traveling.

$13 at Amazon

Best lithium disposables

Energizer Ultimate Lithium AA Batteries

energizer-ultimate.jpg?itok=YdN8Jwhs

These batteries have a massive 3,000 mAh capacity and can last up to 20 years in storage. They are also able to perform in extreme temperatures ranging from 40 to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. You probably aren’t using your headset in extreme temperatures, but you can take a couple from the four-pack for your Oculus Quest and two others for more extreme conditions. They aren’t rechargeable, but last longer, are cheaper in bulk, and won’t force you to buy a charger.

From $8 at Amazon

Best alkaline disposables

EnergizerMax Alkaline Battery

energizer-max.png?itok=Cgz3Xlyn

These batteries last up to 10 years in storage, so you can grab a pair out of the drawer and keep your Touch Controllers powered and ready to go. They’re leak-resistant, which helps protect your hardware, and the 24-pack is available for a budget-friendly price. The Oculus Touch controllers don’t demand a lot of power, so this pack of 3,000 mAh alkalines should last you for years if you only use them exclusively for your Oculus Touch controllers.

$17 at Amazon (24-pack)

Great bargain

Rayovac AA batteries

rayovac-aa-batteries.jpg?itok=gYAQqSMW

These batteries come in a 72-pack that costs around the same price or less than name-brand battery 48-packs. They’re leak-protected to protect your device and can hold power for up to 10 years in storage. We guarantee you won’t need all of these for your Touch, but this is a great bargain if you need AAs for your other controllers or devices.

$25 at Amazon (72-pack)

Keep playing

As wireless headsets with wireless controllers, the Quest and Quest 2 headsets don’t have particularly long battery lives, but the Touch controllers are a different story entirely. That’s why we recommend getting rechargeable AA batteries, as you’ll be able to easily have a pair handy when the batteries get low and will have plenty of warning ahead of time. The only thing worse than having to stop playing the best Oculus Quest 2 games to replace your batteries is not to have any spare batteries to swap in!

When picking the best Oculus Quest 2 replacement batteries, pay attention to any information they give on recharge cycles and usable battery life. You’ll want at least 500 recharge cycles and several years of promised durability to ensure your battery won’t suddenly stop working or lose its charge. That’s one reason why we love the Panasonic Eneloop rechargeable batteries, which can recharge an absurd 2,100 times before you’ll finally have to buy some new ones.

Battery capacity is also an essential factor to consider, though perhaps not as vital as you might think. The higher mAh rating you see, the longer the battery will last and the more it can handle demanding electronics. But the Oculus Touch controllers aren’t that demanding and are frequently in standby mode. Since standby mode doesn’t use any real power, it’s important to get batteries that can hold their juice for a long time, even when not in use.

For reliable performance in both areas, the Panasonic Eneloop Pros have a solid 2,500 mAh while also retaining 85% of their charge for a whole year. Or, if you don’t want to bother with rechargeable batteries, the Energizer Ultimate Lithium batteries have a massive 3,000 mAh capacity and can last up to 20 years in storage.

If you were looking for something a little more bespoke than generic AA batteries, both Anker and BeswinVR offer charging docks or special cables and batteries that’ll get the job done without having to ever remove the battery cover again. They’re a bit more expensive than regular batteries but shouldn’t ever need to be replaced while you have your Quest 2, thanks to battery longevity.

Once you’ve chosen the batteries you need, look into ways to make sure your headset is staying properly charged as well. You can look into the best Oculus Quest 2 battery packs to attach to the Quest 2, or buy a replacement Quest 2 charging cable that’ll keep you topped off as you play.

Read more

More News