Making my rounds during the recent PAX East 2015 convention, I found my self wandering around the Thermaltake booth. Looking over their PC componenets, cause I’m a tech/PC nut, I noticed a controller that was lying on the tablet. That controller looked very similar to the Moga styled controllers that are available for Android phones and tablets. My interest was peeked and I decided to check out the controller more in-depth, which prompted one of the Thermaltake reps to offer a few minutes and walk me through the controller.
The controller is called the Contour and while it had made an appearance during CES 2015, not much was known about the controller, so I decided to pick the Thermaltake rep’s brain. Currently the controller is a strictly iOS affair and is currently being put through the Apple certification process and from what I took from the conversation, that process is very lengthy and complicated. Not willing to give up much more, I went back to checking out the controller.
The controller itself is very familiar with both the Moga and Xbox 360 controller, featuring a black finish, bluetooth, 4 buttons on the front, two bumper, and two triggers. There is a textured strip that flips up from the controller that can hold an iPhone or iPod, it also features a kickstand that lets you also connect an iPad to the device, which holds the iPad steady. The controller was pretty light but felt sturdy and it’s pocked sized as well and unlike my past experiences with the Moga Pocket and Moga Hero, the analog sticks felt more responsive.
Sadly there is no release date for the controller just yet and Thermaltake isn’t sure as to when the controller will pass the Apple certification. Before I departed the booth, I asked if there was any plans for an Android version and the reply was that not for this particular model.
Once the Contour is retail ready he mentioned that an Android controller would be their next course of action.