Nyko to Produce Android Friendly Bluetooth Gaming Controllers

Despite iOS is considered to have a stronger gaming offering than Android—and despite that assumption being made based solely on the existence of Doodle Jump—Android has a few manufacturers up their sleeve and some new products that could finally put Android on even terms with iOS in the gaming field. Very recently, Nyko has announced that they’ll be coming out with a couple of gaming controllers that are very Android friendly. How friendly? Nyko has taken into account the Bluetooth protocols that Android devices use during the construction of their new controllers and so, unlike most controllers made for Playstation 3 and Xbox 360, even Android phones with frustratingly incompatible Bluetooth protocols will have compatibility.

The controllers themselves are quite nice and come in two varieties. The Playpad and the Playpad Pro which emulate Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 controllers in terms of general form factor and the number of buttons. This allows owners to play games on their phone with a controller they’re already used to holding making the transition that much easier. While most Android games don’t really need controllers, there is one demographic in particular that have been yearning for a gaming controller like this for quite some time. Those who own emulators.

Currently, the best—and really only—way to get controllers to work with emulators is the popular Sixaxis Controller application, which uses the Bluetooth connection to connect a controller. It’s best used with a Playstation 3 controller, but compatibility is rough as many devices, especially HTC devices, aren’t compatible. With these new gaming controllers, compatibility will be much less of a problem and with the aforementioned similarities in form factor, gamers can simply go back to what they love to do, play video games.

While no specific release date or price has been announced, Nyko expects these controllers to be available during the holiday season. It’s quite a ways off, so don’t forget to pencil it into your Christmas wish list if this looks like something you’re looking to get.