Something of a Valve Index controller RMA veteran here. As a launch day owner in the EU, I enjoyed the 2 year warranty coverage.
Typical failure were grip plate, joystick drift or trigger sticking.
Today I’m proud to announce my #32 RMA for my right Index controller, after the grip plate mount cracked from “too much gripping”
Thanks to the awesome people at Steam support for their assistance, I’m sending this back to Netherlands today for inspection and replacement.
I just purchased a new right controller from their store, as supply is limited since they ended production last year. Some territories report sold out, whilst others have pairs or separate left/right still in stock.
Wow, I didn’t know they ended production! For all the lighthouse enthusiasts that must be unnerving as these will gradually become like golddust considering how easily broken they are. Thankfully Meganex are coming out with some alternative lighthouse controllers with thumbsticks.
It’s a pity the sword controllers from Pimax never had thumbsticks, they actually would be my controller of choice if they did.
I know some parts of the EU, not sure if it’s all of the EU, reset the warranty when you RMA the product. I have a friend in Denmark who has been RMAing his index controllers for over 4 years now as a result. Why Valve never did a revision will never make sense to me, surely they must be losing money on them overall. Kinda makes sense why they never slashed the price of the index or pushed it harder when it ended up with so many RMAs. It also does make me laugh a bit how much optics and a company’s reputation can impact things. I know more people that have to RMA Index controllers far more times than any other product I have ever seen but because Valve are so beloved then it gets swept aside. Imagine if Meta, Pimax, HTC etc had the same issue, people would be foaming at the mouth. I’m always impressed by how Valve have managed to win such immense good will.
I was a launch day owner for index and went straight into a run of index controller rmas.
At first I was pissed because of the downtime but managed to have fun playing seated vr with Xbox controller.
After a while I just accepted it because Steam support were always good at replacement. Later I bought spares to always have backup for inevitable warranty rmas.
I just had a new right replacement arrive today £139 well spent. My right with cracked grip was shipped back to Netherlands yesterday for RMA. I bought a new left replacement recently and had my other left replaced under warranty also for cracked grip.
