EasySMX S10 Lite Switch 2 Controller

In September of last year, I took a look at the EasySMX S10 controller for the Nintendo Switch 2. I fell in love with the controller, and it quickly became the default controller of choice for my family playing Switch 2 games. Over the holidays, we had family friends visiting, which meant long and protracted Smash Bros tournaments. The S10 was a major source of excitement for our visitors, and the entire group entered some serious negotiations to determine who got to use it in competition (except for my daughter, who preferred the EasySMX X05 Pro because it is “cuter”). 

With the S10 controller, EasySMX solved a stupid problem that should have never existed: the need to “wake up” the Switch 2 with your controller. I had a bunch of old Pro controllers laying around, and they are too expensive to retire just for lacking that one basic feature, but that left me pulling my TV away from the wall whenever I wanted to turn on the Switch 2. Lame. The S10 provided a solution to that issue, though the initial setup was a bit convoluted.

Well, a few months later, here comes EasySMX to the rescue again. The techs there worked overtime over the holiday season and cracked the “connection” issue. The EasySMX S10 Lite is now just as easy to connect to a Switch 2 as a Nintendo controller—all you do is hold down the Home button and navigate to the controller screen to assign the controller to the Switch 2. Donezo. It took me 20 seconds to connect the controller without any instructions. After that, simply tapping the home button wakes the Switch up. Yes, friends, EasySMX reverse-engineered the real Switch 2 protocols and utilized them in a full-featured controller that costs 40 bucks. 

That is 20 dollars less than the S10, for those that are keeping track. And while the S10 Lite is very similar to the S10 (the form factor is identical), there have been a few concessions made to keep that price down. The packaging for the S10 Lite is simpler, for example, only coming with the controller itself and a short USB-C cord. And while the faceplate on the S10 Lite is still interchangeable, no alternate faceplate is provided in the base package—which is totally fine. 

A bit more noticeable is the absence of the S10’s swappable D-pad. While the ability to have the rounded D-pad was one of my favorite features on the S10, I find that I don’t miss it too much on the Lite. Of course, the games I’ve been testing the Lite with are not overly D-pad dependent, so that might have something to do with my shrugging attitude about the loss of the feature. 

Still, EasySMX has made up for that in some other interesting ways. The 6-Axis Motion Control of the S10 had been upgraded to 9-Axis Motion Control. Ooooh! Ahhh! I’ve been futzing around again with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and can confirm that the motion controls feel just as silky smooth as those on Nintendo’s native controllers. 

Beyond that, the controller is almost identical to the S10. The button placement is the same, the matte grip is the same, the analog sticks have the same texture. One difference gamers might not recognize right away is that the S10 Lite sticks use Hall Effect technology to extend their life, whereas the S10 used TMR tech. While TMR is technically “better” according to the tech nerds on Reddit, Hall Effect sticks are still a zillion times better than whatever Nintendo (and PlayStation, and Xbox) plunk into their 100 dollar controllers, so I see no need to complain about that shift, as it likely contributed to the 20 dollars in savings over the base model.

The SMX S10 Lite boasts an “up to 22-hour” battery life as well. While I didn’t keep track of my hours playing, I will say that I charged the controller all the way up before starting to play, and then never had to plug it in again during my test period. I played a great deal of No Man’s Sky at least 10 hours of Cyberpunk 2077, then played around with various GameCube and N64 titles during my test period, and the controller didn’t seem to lose any charge at all. So that’s pretty great.

There aren’t a ton of bells and whistles here. There are two programmable back buttons that you can easily program by holding down a button on the back of the controller. I immediately programmed them to replace the L3 and R3 buttons, which I actively hate. It also has the now-standard-for-Nintendo Chat button, which is fine. Beyond that, I never really use any “advanced” features on controllers anyhow, so I’m cool with what is offered here. 

The S10 Lite was definitely constructed using the same mold as the S10, and it maintains the solid heft and feel of that controller. The silicone-packed buttons still feel great; the triggers are still clicky and responsive. The controller itself still feels good in your hands. I closed my eyes and had my son take turns dropping the S10 and S10 Lite into my hands and couldn’t tell the difference. So, what we are left with is a budget version of the already reasonably priced S10, with a few features that are even better than the original. 

EasySMX once again shows that it is fully focused on bringing quality accessories to gamers at extremely low prices, and it is constantly working to improve its existing offerings. Whether you go for the S10 or the S10 Lite is purely a matter of preference—it is a hard call to say that one is better than the other. Either way you go, you’ll be getting a heck of a bargain. And thank God—when the next Smash Bros. tournament rolls around, our guests will have two EasySMX controllers to fight over. For this price, I might pick up a couple more.