Controller For Mac
Connect your wireless controller to play supported games from Apple Arcade or the App Store, navigate your Apple TV, and more.
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- Starting with iOS 13, iPadOS 13, tvOS 13, and macOS Catalina, Apple devices and computers support pairing with and using Xbox and PlayStation wireless game controllers.
- If you need to update the firmware on your controller, check with your game controller manufacturer.
- Check that you’re in range of your device and there isn’t interference in the area.
See which wireless controllers are supported
- Xbox Wireless Controller with Bluetooth (Model 1708)
- PlayStation DUALSHOCK®4 Wireless Controller
- MFi (Made for iOS) Bluetooth controllers, like the SteelSeries Nimbus, Horipad Ultimate, and more may be supported.
Pair or unpair a controller with your iOS device
- Begin with your controller turned off. Then to put your controller in pairing mode:
- With an Xbox Wireless Controller, press the Xbox button to turn on the controller. Then press and hold the Connect button for a few seconds.
- With a DUALSHOCK®4 Wireless Controller, press and hold the PS and Share buttons at the same time until the light bar begins to flash.
- On your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad, tap Settings.
- Select Bluetooth and check that it's turned on.
- To pair, find the name of your controller under Other Devices. Tap the name to connect.
- To unpair, tap Information next to the name of the device, then tap Forget This Device.
Pair or unpair a controller with your Apple TV
- Begin with your controller turned off. Then to put your controller in pairing mode:
- With an Xbox Wireless Controller, press the Xbox button to turn on the controller. Then press and hold the Connect button for a few seconds.
- With a DUALSHOCK®4 Wireless Controller, press and hold the PS and Share buttons at the same time until the light bar begins to flash.
- On your Apple TV 4K or Apple TV HD, go to Settings > Remotes and Devices > Bluetooth.
- Wait while your Apple TV searches for nearby Bluetooth Accessories.
- To pair, select the name of your controller. You'll know that your controller is connected when a notification that says Controller Connected briefly appears on your TV.
- To unpair, select the name of your controller, then select Unpair Device. You'll see a notification on your TV that says Controller Connection Lost.
- To pair, select the name of your controller. You'll know that your controller is connected when a notification that says Controller Connected briefly appears on your TV.
Pair or unpair a controller with your Mac
- Begin with your controller turned off. Then to put your controller in pairing mode:
- With an Xbox Wireless Controller, press the Xbox button to turn on the controller. Then press and hold the Connect button for a few seconds.
- With a DUALSHOCK®4 Wireless Controller, press and hold the PS and Share buttons at the same time until the light bar begins to flash.
- On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Preferences.
- Click Bluetooth and check that it's turned on.
- Find the name of your controller under Devices.
- To pair, Control-click the name of your controller, then click Connect.
- To unpair, Control-click the name of your controller, then click Remove.
If your controller won't connect or doesn't work as expected
- Unpair it, then pair it again. If you still can't pair or connect, get help pairing your Bluetooth accessory to your iOS device.
- If your DUALSHOCK®4 Wireless Controller pairs but then you see a Connection Unsuccessful notification, press the PS button in the middle of the controller and wait for it to connect.
- Make sure that you're not trying to connect too many Bluetooth accessories at once. Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD support up to two controllers at once, and other Bluetooth limits vary by device.
- Some controller functions aren't supported when paired with an Apple device, including the controller's audio jack. Contact Apple Support for more details.
Whether you’re trying to no-scope that enemy on COD or score a last-minute slam-dunk on NBA, the touchpad just doesn’t do it.
So, we thought we’d share the best tips on how to connect an Xbox 360 controller to your Mac, to make them tense gaming moments a little easier.
Before you do: Clean up your Mac
BUT, before we get into all the juicy techy stuff, let’s remind you of how beneficial cleaning up your Mac can be.
Before installing any new hardware, it’s important to have an un-cluttered file space so the new software can run efficiently, and you can keep an eye on what’s where.
With CleanMyMac X, it’s easy. It’s one-click cleaning approach and powerful scanning means you can swiftly dispose of useless documents and apps which may be slowing your Mac down.
So, to get optimal controller connectivity, you should download CleanMyMac and tidy up your digital space – prior to any installations. Now, onto how to use an Xbox 360 controller on a Mac.
How to use the Xbox 360 controller on Mac
Not many of us know it, but there could be a handy use for all those old Xbox 360 or Xbox One controllers lying around. But, before you get set up, you need to have the correct hardware installed on your Mac to enable connectivity.
Here’s how.
First of all, you will need either a wired or wireless Xbox controller. Both work fine, but for all those passionate gamers with a tendency to erupt, a wireless device would be best to save any damages to wires (or opponents). These wireless receivers can be bought for around $20 on Amazon, and can handle up to 4 Xbox 360 controllers.
Free Drivers
Obviously, Macs don’t have an in-built driver for Xbox controllers as Apple are in no way affiliated with Microsoft. Similarly, Microsoft doesn’t supply drivers for Mac users for their hardware, which leaves us wanting users having to find our own way.
Fan Controller For Mac
So back in 2006, it was music to gamer’s ears to hear that Tattie Bogle had developed their own driver free of charge to users across the gaming globe. However, this driver hasn’t been updated since 2012, and is therefore sticky when it comes to compatibility with MacOS X.
For a more streamlined approach to this conundrum, download GitHub’s free driver – it’s maintained and updated frequently and is free to all Mac users.
1. Install the driver
After opening the GitHub link, double click on the DMG file visible under ‘Assets’. This will start the installing process, where you will have to follow the appropriate instructions.
Remember though, as with any new program installation, it will reboot your Mac, so don’t panic. After the restart, you should be able to find ‘Xbox 360 Controllers’ in the system preferences.
2. Connect the Xbox 360 Controller to your Mac
Now you’ve installed the driver, the next step is to connect the controller, which is simple and only needs to be done once.
Firstly, you need to plug the USB receiver into a free USB port on your Mac. Once plugged in, the USB receiver’s light should start blinking
Press the big Xbox logo button on the controller so it lights up green
Press the button on the USB receiver
Press the connect button on the controller, which can be found at the top - in-between the left and right toggles
The top left quarter of the circle around the Xbox button should now light up, indicating you are the first controller connected
Now the controller and Mac are linked - so in the future if you want to connect again, all you need do is press the big Xbox logo button to get going. Told you it was simple!
3. Test the Controller
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As with all things techy, there’s always loopholes. So, it’s important to test the connections to ensure the controller works before we embark upon a mobile-gaming-gallivant.
Go to ‘System Preferences’, ‘Xbox 360 Controllers’ and you’ll see a screen like below.
This is a control pad, which indicates whether all the buttons on the controller are working properly. That’s about all you can do on this, as well as shutting the controller down by clicking ‘power off’.
4. Configuring for multiple games on your Mac
We all have different tastes in games - some of us like sports and some of us like military, there’s no right or wrong (asides from Half-Life, that’s just awesome and it’s not up for debate).
With these different games come different control configurations, which can get tedious when you only have one type of controller.
For full flexibility of use, there are many tools and apps available which allow you to play any game with any Mac compatible joystick or controller – even the ones that are not compatible with joysticks.
5. Use Joystick Mapper
Out of the many apps to choose from, Joystick Mapper is our pick. And at only $4.99 from the App Store, it’s real value for money – especially when considering the amount of effort it takes to develop such a complex tool.
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Here’s how it works –
Once you download the Joystick Mapper app, you need to create a pre-set for your game preferences. To do this, open the app and click ‘Add new pre-set’.
Enter a name for future reference such as ‘My Game’, and for each joystick, click ‘Add a new joystick’.
Now that you’ve identified the joystick, you need to ‘bind’ joystick inputs to keyboard or mouse movements - which is easier than it sounds.
Click on ‘Add new bind’, and then ‘Scan’, and press the button of your game controller that you’d like to use. Next select a mouse or keyboard action, and that will ‘bind’ the chosen inputs.
Simply repeat this process until you’ve bound all the buttons you’d like to use.
If by chance you’re using a controller other than an Xbox 360 or Xbox One, you can replicate these actions and apply them to different controllers. To do this, simply click the ‘Clone’ icon in the top right corner. To put the pre-set into action, set a checkmark before the preferred pre-set/profile you’ve created for the game you’re about to play. Now, you’re good to go!
BUT – don’t close the Joystick Mapper app before starting the game, it needs to keep running to work. Simply select ‘cmd + H’ to hide the window.
Declutter your Mac to make more room for games
Remember, all of these processes won’t work as effectively if you have a messy Mac.
On average, there is a whopping 62GB of junk found on Macs, with jam-packed caches and folders full of useless documents cluttering the hard drive.
This considerably slows down the performance of your Mac, preventing quick and easy installations, and can even hinder the controller connectivity.
CleanMyMac X is an app dedicated to cleaning your Mac head-to-toe. It scans everything on the computer - even old folders that have been evading your wrath for years - identifying what needs to be removed.
The Mac is inspected rigorously, and with its smart one-click clean-up, CleanMyMac sweeps away the unwanted rubbish to organize folders and speed up performance.
Game Controller For Mac
Furthermore, CleanMyMac X is free to download. So, what are you waiting for? Download it for free here.