EasySMX D10 review

I’ve always liked EasySMX controllers. They might not have been particularly outstanding, but paradoxically, creating a product that doesn’t try to outdo the competition with often useless features isn’t a bad thing. In my mind, the EasySMX D10 was supposed to be such a controller, intended to compete with the GameSir Cyclone 2 and 8BitDo Ultimate 2. How does it compare to them, and is it even worth considering? Time to find out!

Packaging

The D10 arrives packaged similarly to the EasySMX X20 – in a black, two-piece box with a printed image of the controller on the front and a detailed specification on the back. Inside the box, in a plastic insert, are the controller, docking station, and 2.4 GHz receiver. Beneath the insert, you’ll find a USB-C cable and the user manual.

Specifications

• Layout: Xbox
• Compatibility: PC, mobile devices, Nintendo Switch (not sure about Nintendo Switch 2)
• Connectivity: Wired, 2.4 GHz, BT
• Analogs: TMR (HallPi)
• Triggers: Hall effect with trigger lock
• Main switches: Mechanical for ABXY and D-Pad
• Secondary switches: Two on the back
• Gyroscope: Present
• Vibration motors: Two asymmetrical
• Battery: 1000 mAh
• Polling rate: 1000 Hz
• Available colors: White and green, white and purple, black
• Docking station: Included
• Price: approximately 55USD

The specifications are based on information from the manufacturer’s website and my own observations.

Design, Feel and Early Observations

Starting with the dongle, this one is relatively compact. It’s not as compact as some keyboards, though; it feels more like an average-sized flash drive. It features a button and a pairing LED.

The D10’s docking station is an interesting addition. Its shape reminds me most of the GameSir SuperNova design. Surprisingly, the controller is held magnetically, not loosely, which is more of a drawback than an advantage – the station is lightweight and shifts with almost every lift, which can be irritating in the long run. The USB port for the receiver is hidden in a notch at the bottom. Interestingly, the station powers off the controller even when it’s not connected to anything. As for connecting, the USB-C port isn’t located in any notch, so it’s worth keeping that in mind when routing the cable.

Moving on to the controller itself, its shape and feel strongly reminded me of the previously mentioned SuperNova – the grips aren’t as aggressively spaced and are slightly rounded. In this case, however, we can forget about rubberized grips, as the only thing we have here is texture. The grip is quite secure; the controller shouldn’t try to slip out of our hands.

Speaking of analog sticks, the D10 features TMRs manufactured by HallPi, a well-known and rather popular design that probably needs no introduction. In terms of smoothness, they perform almost perfectly. As for the sticks, we don’t get anti-friction rings, but I wouldn’t call that a drawback, as they still achieve excellent smoothness thanks to the use of high-quality POM rings. Of course, I realize that metal rings would significantly improve durability, but that’s something we can only dream of. The tops of the analog sticks are quite nicely rubberized. It’s not exactly a soft material, but thanks to its texture, it grips well and works reliably.

The D10 is equipped with mechanical switches under the ABXY buttons, with a highly tactile membrane designed to increase pre-travel. They operate rather linearly; the only feedback you can observe, or rather hear, is sound, which unfortunately may be a bit irritating for some. Regardless, these switches have really good tuning and are quite a pleasure to use.

The D-Pad, which was a disappointment in today’s test subject’s biggest competitor, the GameSir Cyclone 2, performs quite well here. It may not be at the level of the Ultimate 2, but there’s not as much wobbling as in the controller from the Chicken brand. The linear pre-travel, combined with the rather noticeable damper and hard switch, meant that (at least for me) my finger fatigued very quickly. Despite this, the D-pad works well, and the inputs are stable and quite responsive.

Moving on to the top, we only have the triggers and bumpers. The former are a rather mediocre design, based on Hall sensors, with a trigger lock operating on microswitches. I have a few reservations about their construction. First of all, I should point out the very poor profiling, both vertically and horizontally—the angle between the grip and the trigger is very aggressive and can be unpleasant to use. Secondly, the spring may be quite linear, but it’s also incredibly stiff. I don’t think I’ve ever used stiffer triggers. The button angle, both when released and fully depressed, is too shallow, which in my case meant my finger tended to slide slightly off them, even despite the textured buttons.

To make matters worse, when fully pressed, your finger often touches the edge of the housing, which is unlikely to cause skin damage, but can be uncomfortable. The trigger lock is fine and works, but the stiff trigger spring combined with the low travel makes the overall feedback from the switch less than it could be if these aspects were refined.

Moving on to the bumpers, these, like all other switches in the D10, operate linearly, and the only feedback they provide is a quiet click. They are also quite hard, and the combination of hardness and linearity makes them very spongy and at best bearable.

Moving on to the back, in addition to the mode switch, there are two paddles. They offer subtle tactile feedback, and their location in the housing makes them easy to press, which I have no major complaints about.

The bottom of the controller is completely empty.

Let’s take a look inside

To open the EasySMX D10, you need to remove the four screws on the back. Then, you need to undo the latches, and that’s basically it; you can start unscrewing the PCB. The board quality itself is nothing special; it’s neat and decently soldered.

Latency, Analog Performance and Battery Life

Moving on to the tests, the latency on the wired switches in X-Input isn’t bad. True, 8 ms with spikes up to 15 ms isn’t the best result, but it’s not bad either. In 2.4 GHz mode, we get around 16 ms, which is acceptable. The other results, except for the D-Input at 2.4 GHz, are fine.

Surprisingly, the D10 performs no worse on analog inputs. Wired inputs on X-Input have a latency of around 5 ms, with 2.4G increasing by 2 ms, and with Switch BT, it’s still below 20 ms. Unfortunately, every other mode performs terribly, which is a shame.

As for analog calibration, it performs very well. The external dead zone is quite low and symmetrical on both analog inputs, the internal one is nonexistent (unless you enable it), and recentering works really well. Axial dead zones are not an issue. Analog linearity is also almost perfect, with a resolution of around 11-12 bits.

Battery life hovers around 10 hours, which is quite average.

Software

Unfortunately, the D10 doesn’t have a dedicated app, which is rather strange, considering it has a dedicated Bluetooth driver. Despite a long and tiring search with several testers, we unfortunately found absolutely nothing, which is a shame.

EasySMX D10 – Pros, Cons, and Recommendation

The EasySMX D10 is a simple and rather solid design. Of course, it’s far from perfect; the triggers and bumpers could perform better. It could also use a dedicated app, but overall, the D10 isn’t too bad. I think the GameSir Cyclone 2 is still better, but if for some reason it doesn’t suit you, then you might want to seriously consider the D10.

This review was made possible thanks to the EasySMX.

Orginal review in Polish.

✅ Pros

• A rather pleasant analog implementation.
• Good build quality.
• Good performance in synthetic tests.
• Docking station included.

❌ Cons

• Switches are implemented rather poorly.
• No software.
• Triggers are not very pleasant.

EasySMX D10 is available for purchase via Amazon and official EasySMX store.