Hardware Has anyone tried a battery toggle/switch mod for the gamepad?

ChiefReginod · Jun 22, 2021

It's a well known design flaw that the Wii U gamepad (Wiimotes, too) drains the battery even when it's just sitting there. This is annoying as hell and it also reduces the life of the battery.

So, has anyone had any success adding a toggle switch to disconnect the battery without having to open it up every time? Any ideas or suggestions will be appreciated.

There are four wires on the battery and I'm not sure what kind of switch I could need for this. Four pole, double throw, single throw or what?

Shadow_The_Hedgehog82 · Jun 22, 2021

you should be able to add a single switch to the batteries ground wire

V10lator · Jun 24, 2021

My multimeters battery died so... Which one is ground?

Shadow_The_Hedgehog82 · Jun 27, 2021

V10lator said:
My multimeters battery died so... Which one is ground?

probably the black one lel

ChiefReginod · Jun 27, 2021

Shadow_The_Hedgehog82 said:
you should be able to add a single switch to the batteries ground wire

Thanks! That greatly simplifies things for me. I really need to learn more about electrical circuits.

Now I just need to figure out the least-destructive way to wire it up and mount the switch. I really don't want to poke any holes in the OEM shell. I looked up third-party battery doors on ebay and amazon but they're all kind of overpriced for what they are.

V10lator · Jun 27, 2021

Shadow_The_Hedgehog82 said:
probably the black one lel

From own eperience I'm not trusting cable colors. ^^

ChiefReginod said:
Thanks! That greatly simplifies things for me.

Did you measure which one is ground or are you assuming it's the black cable?

ChiefReginod · Jun 27, 2021

V10lator said:
From own eperience I'm not trusting cable colors. ^^

Did you measure which one is ground or are you assuming it's the black cable?

To be honest, I'm not sure how I would check this with a multimeter. I know how to check voltage at least. I'll probably just look up the pinouts to be sure, if I can find them.

V10lator · Jun 28, 2021

ChiefReginod said:
To be honest, I'm not sure how I would check this with a multimeter. I know how to check voltage at least. I'll probably just look up the pinouts to be sure, if I can find them.

Got a new battery for my multimeter and checked: It's the black one.

To check you simply check voltage: If you measure between VCC and GND it should show more than 3.7 V. If you measure between VCC and a data wire it should show a lower value, maybe fluctating. Same if you measure between GND and a data wire. Granted it should be more save to check with an oscilloscope but I had none available and this is what a technican told me. Take it with a grain of salt through.

Deleted User · Jun 28, 2021

For Wii U just get a charging dock and leave it on there. It only charges it when the battery needs and then it's always fully charged. They're like $10 on Ebay.

Shadow_The_Hedgehog82 · Jul 5, 2021

Did you do the switch mod?

ChiefReginod · Jul 5, 2021

Shadow_The_Hedgehog82 said:
Did you do the switch mod?

Not yet. I'm still trying to decide on the least-destructive way to do this.

Since there are a few small opening in the shell I'm thinking of stringing a wire through one of them and just tape the loose switch somewhere on the back. Of course, the best solution would be to drill a hole in the battery door cover and mount it there, but I'd rather not do that. I could get a second battery door cover for like 12 dollars on ebay, but I'm put off by such a cheap piece of plastic costing that much.

MikaDubbz · Jul 10, 2021

This person did: https://gbatemp.net/threads/so-i-made-this-on-off-switch-on-my-wii-u-gamepad.575516/

Hardware Has anyone tried a battery toggle/switch mod for the gamepad?

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