CRKD ULT PRO Controller Now Shipping With TMR Sticks and 1000Hz PC Mode

CRKD’s new flagship pad is out in the wild. The ULT PRO is now shipping worldwide, and it’s the most feature-packed controller the Nitro Deck maker has built so far. It works across Nintendo Switch 2, the original Switch, PC, mobile, tablets and smart TVs, and it costs $69.99, €79.99, £64.99 or A$129.99.

That price is the headline for me. TMR sticks, Hall Effect triggers, six extra buttons and a charging dock in the box for seventy bucks is a strong package on paper, and CRKD says the design was shaped by feedback from the pro gaming community.

TMR Thumbsticks and 1000Hz PC Mode

The sticks use TMR, or Tunnelling Magnetoresistance, a newer magnetic sensor technology. CRKD says it’s built to eliminate stick drift and to offer better precision than traditional mechanical sticks or Hall Effect sensors. There’s also a No Deadzone Mode if you want the sticks as twitchy as possible.

Competitive PC players get a proper perk too. In wired PC mode, both the Switch and PC versions of the ULT PRO support a 1000Hz polling rate for lower input latency. Out of the box you’ve got three ways to connect: 2.4GHz wireless through the included dongle, Bluetooth, and USB-C wired play. A platform slider on the pad lets you flick between connected devices without re-pairing.

Trigger Toggles With Hall Effect Sensors

The triggers are where CRKD gets clever. A toggle system lets you switch each trigger between a short, tactile click and a longer, smoother pull, and you can set the left and right triggers differently. They use Hall Effect sensors, so you can also fine-tune how far they travel before they register.

One thing to know before you buy. On Switch the triggers act as digital inputs, because that’s how the console reads them. On PC they work as full analog triggers. Switch uses digital triggers, so keep that in mind if you mostly play racers on Nintendo’s console.

Six Extra Buttons and a Charging Dock in the Box

You get six additional remappable inputs: four back buttons and two shoulder-zone buttons. Any button on the pad can be remapped, in game or through the CRKD Companion App, and you can build custom macros. Dual four-way toggle buttons give quick access to system functions, and there’s a turbo function for rapid-fire games.

Profile presets live on the controller itself, so you can swap setups between games without opening the app. Rumble is adjustable with a wide frequency range. Stick tops and D-pads are swappable, although the extra packs are sold separately. Those packs also fit CRKD’s recently launched Nitro Deck 2.

Power is handled by an integrated rechargeable battery, and the pad ships with a charging dock, a cable and the wireless dongle. You can also run it on standard AA batteries. If you buy a second rechargeable pack separately, the dock has a hidden compartment to charge it, so you can hot swap during long sessions.

Three Editions at $69.99

The ULT PRO comes in three designs:

Smoke Black Edition with a Switch layout, Smoke Black Edition with a PC layout, and Pal Grey Edition with a Switch layout.

The CRKD Companion App covers button remapping, trigger setup, stick sensitivity, presets and firmware updates. It also lets you register the pad in CRKD’s True Collection System, which gives each controller a unique product number and a rarity rank. That’s a nice nod to the collectors who’ve followed the brand since the Nitro Deck.

Switch 2 owners hunting for a pro-style pad with drift-proof sticks now have another serious option. Just pick your edition carefully, since only one Smoke Black version ships with the PC layout.

Source: press release from CRKD. Images courtesy of CRKD.