How long should I expect an Xbox One controller to last on two AAs?

I have a play and charge kit for my Xbox One, but it's totally worn out. The mini-USB connection is flimsy and loses contact constantly, and the battery pack won't hold a charge.

I've ordered a new controller and play and charge kit, but am using AA batteries in the interim.

I'm shocked at how quickly they're being drained. I feel like I'm getting maybe 12 hours of play time out of each pair, if that much. On the 360, I could leave a pair of batteries in for probably five times that long.

I'm wondering if there's something wrong with my controller. How long should I expect these batteries to last?

Note: I'm currently using Duracell AAs.


Unfortunately, there are no credible sources from Microsoft itself. However, other sources do make claims at AA battery lifespans:

This article claims that 40+ hours can be achieved from a pair of AA batteries, whereas the Play & Charge Kit can give around 30 hours. The source "Computers and Video Games" apparently also backs this up, but the link is broken from the article.

There's definitely something defective with your current controller, I would imagine. The other fact that you're getting consistently low results from multiple pairs of AA batteries also suggests that it is not the fault of the batteries.


Neogaf has people claiming times all over the place, averaging about 10-20 hours, some more, some less. Probably depending on the type of battery used.

In my personal experiences while on battery, both of my controllers would only live for about 15 hours. I also mainly used Duracell.