Kiwi Design G4 Pro Performance Controller Grips

Written by John Yan on 10/1/2024 for QW3  

One of the things in VR coming from a Valve Index is your appreciation for the hand straps the Index controllers have. It lets you let go of the controllers or loosen the grip a little without ever fearing it falling away from your reach. It also adds some extra security for when you play fast paced games like Beat Saber. I’ve used a few over the years with the Quest 2 and Quest 3 and they’ve been one of the first things I pick up when grabbing a new Quest headset. Kiwi Design has produced a few of these and today we’re looking at the G4 Pro Performance Controller Grips.

The G4 Pro Performance Controller Grips are two silicon based controller covers with hand straps that fit around the Quest 3 controller. Taking a closer look, the G4 Pro Performance Controller Grips feature a black silicon covering with a slightly textured feel to it. There are cut outs for the trigger, grip button, and the IR light on the handle. The bottom has a cut out that you can feed the wrist strap through.

On the battery side is a quick access battery door that will let you easily change the battery out. The kit comes with a new battery cover that is completely open along with an attached plastic strip that helps you release the battery from its compartment. With that in place and the Grips installed, a rubber door can be easily opened to access the battery without having to remove the Grips. I found the door compartment to be a little finicky at times to get it closed, but once you do get it closed it stays closed. Granted it's on the palm side so most likely your hand would help keep the battery door closed if it was loose, but you just have to push it in well to keep the door closed and in place. What is nice is the doors won't move at all once they are locked in place and even though it is a little bit of work to get it closed, they are tightly closed when in place.

While my previous ones have a small clip that the shell latches on to to stay in place, Kiwi Design’s method is to wrap around the outer edge of the controller and a little over the top. Now, the silicon does cover the IR lights on the top of the controller, but Kiwi Design has made that ring to be of a translucent silicone. That should make it so there’s no tracking issues and I’ll get to that in a little bit in the testing portion.

The strip has a nice soft feel on the part where it touches the back of your hand. Using my calipers, it’s got a width of about 17.1 mm so a nice sized strap on there. One thing I do like is where some companies use a metal loop near where the top of your hand is in order to keep the strap in place, Kiwi Design opted for a very soft yet rigid rubber loop. It’s got a very small flex to it, but it’s soft on the skin so you won’t get irritated when in use. The rubber seems to be pretty thick so I suspect it should last for a while. We won’t know, of course, until we use it for long periods of time, but it does feel like the rubber loop and the silicon tab that it’s attached to are built thick enough to withstand some good movement.

Putting the entire setup on was pretty easy and didn’t take too long. The hardest part was routing the wrist strap through the bottom of the G4 Pro Performance Controller Grips. With that I used a very small screwdriver to wrap the string around and pull it through the bottom. Other than that, everything slid into place easily.

All the cutouts seem good, but I found the cutout for the grip button to be really close to the part where it meets the circular part of the controller. It’s not interfering with the pressing of the button though, so that’s good. It’s just really, really close with almost zero tolerance. But like I said, during my testing, the grip button felt fine so it’s more of an aesthetic thing than a performance thing.

Using games like Beat Saber. Fit XR, and Pickeball One, I tested the grips for accuracy, comfort, and stability. Even with the translucent covering, I saw no tracking issues. On Beat Saber, I was pretty consistent with my old scores that didn’t use any grips. Fit XR, I was punching colored spheres and moving my arms around without any issues. I was able to have many long rallies in Pickleball One with the computer. So if you’re hesitant on these because you think the covering might produce tracking issues, in my testing I found that to be a non issue. The straps didn’t become loose and kept my hands firmly locked in place with the controllers. The silicon cover made it comfortable to use and I didn’t feel my hands slipping at all even when they got slightly wet from perspiration. And since the silicon cover does wrap around the controllers edges, it does help protect it from accidental collision with objects or walls.

A pair of G4 Pro Performance Controller Grips will cost you $29.99, which seems a little bit on the upper end for a product like this. You can find many more at a lesser price point, but I do have to say I like some of the small touches that Kiwi Design has done with their grip solution. They are comfortable to use, don’t hinder any tracking, and provide stability in the hand. Overall, I’d say they are solidly designed Quest 3 controller grips and should do well if you’re considering a pair for your controllers.