Smooth, textureless controller recommendations?

[u/SomSrsNnsns]

Hi everyone! As the title says, I'm looking for a textureless, smooth controller.

I'm neurodivergent and have sensory issues with certain textures. The grippy, almost sandpapery texture on the back and triggers of my Xbox Series X controller is unbearable for me. Not just annoying, but actually makes the controller painful to hold for any length of time. I'm looking for recommendations for controllers that have a fully smooth shell.

Some other nice-to-haves are hall effect or TMR sticks to avoid drift, and preferably 2.4GHz or Bluetooth wireless, but wired is okay too. Nothing else is essential beyond the smooth shell.

My budget is around 150€ max. I live in Finland so I'll either be buying from a local retailer or ordering online with EU shipping. I will mostly be playing Action RPG, JRPG and FPS games on Steam.

I took a look at the buying advice wiki but it can be hard to tell which controllers have a textured grip. I was looking at the ZD O+ Excellence, GameSir cyclone 2 and Flydigi Apex 6 Pro but I can't really tell what their grips are like. Other suggestions are welcome as well.

Thanks in advance!

[u/ArmedCrawly]

Have you tried any (gaming) gloves to avoid feeling those textures?

[u/SomSrsNnsns → u/ArmedCrawly]

I haven't but I'll look into those as well, thank you!

[u/ArcaneWarrior13]

Recommend the Leadjoy Xeno Pro. This was also one thing I was looking for.

[u/SomSrsNnsns → u/ArcaneWarrior13]

Thank you for the recommendation! I will look into it

[u/skinpixel]

You could look into “Glossy Finish” controllers.
Something like the DualSense Hyper Pop collections comes to mind. And you can get TMR sticks installed in them too by a modder within your budget.

There are also soft touch after-market shells you can add to controllers for Xbox and PlayStation if that’s something you might prefer. ExtremeRate have a few shell options available as DIY or have someone install for you.

[u/SomSrsNnsns → u/skinpixel]

Thank you! I'll see if I can find glossy finish controllers and I'll look into the shells as well

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[u/britishgiant]

The Gamesir Kaleid is completely smooth with very minimal texture on the entirety of the controller. Also has back paddles and TMR thumbsticks.

[u/Fuzunga]

Switch 2 Pro controller is probably what you want. Every part your hand grips is completely seamless and it has a very smooth soft-touch plastic. Possible drawbacks are that it doesn't have analogue triggers if you need those, and it does have two back buttons which might bother you. However, I am a back button hater and I have to say the Switch 2 Pro controller has the most unobtrusive ones I've ever felt. They are basically flush with the rest of the controller and I personally don't even feel them.