When the Xbox 360, PS3, and Nintendo Wii were released, they all came standard with wireless joysticks. This step forward was incredibly important: previously wireless controllers were just a nice novelty, but now the gaming industry has declared them the default means of control.
From now on gamers don’t have to sit right in front of the TV, accidentally yanking their controllers out of their sockets during a particularly intense multiplayer game.
Wireless controllers are great, but great features come with a lot of responsibility, and great wireless technology comes with the responsibility of charging the controller. The PS4 has a handy feature. The controllers can be charged while the console is in sleep mode. That makes those who want to play right now, rather than wait all day for the controller’s battery to charge, very happy.
However, sometimes the joystick refuses to charge for some unknown reason. In fact, there may be many reasons.
Well, here’s how to fix your PS4 controller if it’s not charging.
How to check the cable of the PS4 controller
If the controller doesn’t want to charge, first of all, you should check the cable. If you use a standard PS4 Micro USB cable and charge the controller through the USB port on the console, the cable probably has nothing to do with it.
However, if you’ve been using both the console and the cable for quite some time, then they could simply be worn out. The connections inside the cables often fail, and Micro USB cables are particularly prone to this. Replace the PS4 cable with some other cable – many phone chargers use the same standard cables – and see if the problem goes away.
How to check the battery charger of the PS4 controller
The DualShock 4 controllers have a great feature that allows you to charge them over the power grid instead of through the powered USB port. Not all wireless controllers have this feature – for example, the DualShock 3 controllers from the PS3 were incapable of this.
It’s undoubtedly a great feature, allowing you to charge the joystick without even turning on the console – but it can also cause some unforeseen problems.
Battery chargers, especially unofficial ones, sometimes have defects that are hard to notice right away. Try to replace the charger before moving on to anything else.
How to reboot the PS4 controller
If the controller is still not charging, or so it seems, the software may be to blame. Rebooting the controller will restart all of its processes, including the lightbar that appears when charging. The reset button on the DualShock 4 is in a tiny recess below the L2 button, so find a pin or something similar in thickness and shape and slip it into the hole.
Press the button and hold it for a few seconds, then release it. After restarting, connect the controller to the device and see if rebooting helped.
How to replace the battery on the PS4 controller
If you have tried everything possible without opening the controller, it may be time to look inside and see what’s going on there. Don’t worry – your console warranty is still valid (although a better solution would be to contact Sony tech support before proceeding with this step).
Once you open the controller, you’ll have access to the battery and you can replace it with a new one, bought from a reliable store. Please make sure that this battery is official. After all, you don’t want the new battery to damage the controller at all.
How to contact Sony Technical Support
If you still can’t figure out what’s wrong with your faithful DualShock 4, it could be something beyond your knowledge, for example, some problem with the Micro USB connector on the controller or with the electronic circuits.
In this case, you’d better contact Sony Technical Support. If your controller is still under warranty you’ll have it replaced.
If the warranty has expired then they will probably help you through the whole troubleshooting process, through which you will be able to identify the essence of the problem yourself.
If nothing else has helped you in fixing the problem with your controller, you’ll have to buy a new one to be able to continue enjoying the game on your PS4.
