Console makers continue to innovate with their consoles and accessories in an attempt to expand their market share. According to a Patent Application Publication on October 12, 2023, Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) has patented “Integrated headset controller storage and connection”. This hints at the possibility of a future PlayStation controller with a space for storing earbuds.
“A controller for providing inputs to an interactive application includes a first surface with a pair of slots to store earbuds, a plurality of control buttons and touch input surfaces defined on one or more surfaces including the first surface,” read the abstract of the patent publication.
It further explained that the controller will connect to the computing device while the earbuds will pair to the controller. Consequently, the information received by the controller is shared with the earbuds. If this becomes a reality, it will eliminate the need to carry a charging case for your earbuds when you are with your controller.
While the patent news also means one less item on your itinerary, it is important to mention that not all patented products make it to production. Some end up as just patented ideas. The reason why companies patent their ideas is to make sure that someone else doesn’t steal it.
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Also, it protects them from paying huge fees to the patent owner if they ever want to use the idea in the future. It can also be a source of income for the company if another company approaches them for a license to that patent.
According to my count based on the images provided with the patent publication, there are four possible orientations for the earbuds which will likely be stored behind the controller. The first three orientations are all behind the touchpad while the fourth will attempt to store the earbuds behind the handle.
Is a PlayStation controller that stores earbuds really necessary?
The simple answer is that it depends on the user. Players who used to struggle with separately pairing their headphones and controller to their consoles will heave a sigh of relief. With the new design in the patent, players will only need to pair their controller to their console. The earbuds will automatically pair with the controller.
“The controller is designed to act both as an input device and as a headphone storage, charging, and connection case,” said SIE in the background of the disclosure section of the patent publication. “Using the controller as a headphone case and an earbud charger eliminates the need to manage two different devices. This simplifies the overall user experience as the user has one less device to manage communication with the gaming device.”
While eliminating connection bottlenecks and reducing the number of devices that users should manage are some of the strongest positions of the patent, the patent design raises other questions; will the controller come with a bigger battery and how will all that impact its weight?
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Although the DualSense controller has slightly better batteries with an average of six to eight hours per charge when compared to DualShock 4, inserting wireless earbuds in them will cut down that average. Also, if the batteries are made bigger, will it make the controller feel like a dumbbell in the hands of gamers? These are some of the questions that are begging for answers.
“In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure,” SIE said. “It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the present disclosure may be practiced without some or all of these specific details.”
In simple terms, while the patent filing has laid down all the company’s ideas, the implementation may be slightly different from what was presented. Are you excited to see your PlayStation controller double as an earbud carrying case? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment box below.
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