What is the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 polling rate on PC?
About 950 Hz on the cable and on the 2.4G dongle, if you have the Ultimate 2 Wireless: gamepadla measured 955.69 Hz and 940.16 Hz, with average button latency of 2.81 ms and 3.95 ms. The name is the trap. The Ultimate 2 Bluetooth, sold beside it with the same shell, ran at about 210 Hz, and every Ultimate model fell to between 66 and 200 Hz over Bluetooth on Windows.
The 8BitDo Ultimate 2 Wireless polls at about 950 Hz on PC, on the cable and on the 2.4G dongle. Gamepadla measured 955.69 Hz wired and 940.16 Hz on the dongle under Windows 11, with average button latency of 2.81 ms and 3.95 ms. That matches 8BitDo's claim of 1000 Hz "under both 2.4G and wired connections". Over Bluetooth the same pad measured 123.9 Hz and 12.02 ms, and the similarly named Ultimate 2 Bluetooth never got above 218.33 Hz on any link.
Every Ultimate model, measured
The six Ultimate models below look alike and do not share a polling rate. The stated column is what each model's own page on 8bitdo.com says. The rest is gamepadla, Windows, XInput mode unless noted.
| Controller and link | 8BitDo states | Polling (Hz) | Buttons (ms) | Sticks (ms) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ultimate 2 Wireless, cable | 1000 Hz | 955.69 | 2.81 | 7.02 |
| Ultimate 2 Wireless, dongle | 1000 Hz | 940.16 | 3.95 | 8.11 |
| Ultimate 2 Wireless, Bluetooth | Android, Apple only | 123.9 | 12.02 | 15.99 |
| Ultimate 2C Wireless, cable | 1000 Hz | 942.51 | 5.12 | 1.92 |
| Ultimate 2C Wireless, dongle | 1000 Hz | 959.69 | 5.12 | 4.10 |
| Ultimate 2C Wireless, Bluetooth | Android only | 143.86 | 15.16 | 8.61 |
| Ultimate 2 Bluetooth, cable | Not stated | 218.33 | 6.31 | 16.21 |
| Ultimate 2 Bluetooth, dongle | Not stated | 209.23 | 8.36 | 18.10 |
| Ultimate 2 Bluetooth, Bluetooth (Switch mode) | Not stated | 98.96 | 11.06 | 29.68 |
| Ultimate 2.4G (first generation), cable | 1000 Hz | 997.01 | 2.10 | 2.73 |
| Ultimate 2.4G, dongle | 125 Hz | 166.5 | 10.74 | 12.45 |
| Ultimate 2.4G, Bluetooth (GPDL, 2024) | - | 66.57 | 30.23 | - |
| Ultimate 3E for Xbox, cable | Up to 1000 Hz, PC only | 1000 | 2.37 | 7.02 |
| Ultimate 3E for Xbox, dongle | Up to 1000 Hz, PC only | 999 | 4.31 | 9.09 |
| Ultimate 3E for Xbox, Bluetooth | - | 199.8 | 17.63 | 15.62 |
| Ultimate 3-mode for Xbox, cable | 250 Hz | 250 | 7.49 | 11.95 |
| Ultimate 3-mode for Xbox, dongle | 200 Hz | 247.52 | 18.36 | 19.19 |
| Ultimate 3-mode for Xbox, Bluetooth | Android, Apple only | 66.67 | 16.48 | 21.44 |
Test details: Ultimate 2 Wireless, firmware 1.03, 13 March 2025. Ultimate 2C Wireless, firmware 1.09, 30 March 2026. Ultimate 2 Bluetooth, 5 and 12 June 2025, firmware 1.03 for the dongle button test and 1.04 for the rest. Ultimate 2.4G, firmware 2.04, 2 June 2026 (Bluetooth 3 April 2024). Ultimate 3E, firmware 1.80.20.19, 12 October 2026, two testers, page marked not yet verified. Ultimate 3-mode, firmware 2.3.2, 27 August 2025. The 3E's second Bluetooth test, on Windows 10, measured 21.47 ms.
Why "1000 Hz" and "125 Hz" both circulate
Both numbers are real, for different controllers or different links. 8BitDo's comparison table on the Ultimate 2 Wireless page lists the first-generation Ultimate 2.4G as "Wired 1000Hz / Wireless 125Hz", and its Ultimate 3-mode for Xbox page says "Wired 250Hz / Wireless 200Hz". Owners of those pads, or anyone testing an Ultimate 2 over Bluetooth, get a low figure and report it as "the 8BitDo" rate.
For the Ultimate 2 Wireless and Ultimate 2C Wireless, the 1000 Hz claim holds on cable and dongle: all four measured between 940 and 960 Hz. The low figure persists because Bluetooth works on Windows even though 8BitDo does not list it there. Its spec tables give Bluetooth as "Android / Apple" for the Ultimate 2 Wireless and "Android" for the 2C. On Windows it pairs anyway, in DInput mode, at 123.9 and 143.86 Hz.
The Ultimate 2 Bluetooth is not the Ultimate 2 Wireless
The two share a shell and TMR sticks, and the Bluetooth model even ships with a 2.4G adapter, so it is easy to assume they are the same pad with a different radio. On PC they are not. The Bluetooth model measured 218.33 Hz on the cable and about 209 Hz on the dongle, with buttons at 6.31 ms and 8.36 ms. That is 2.2 times the Ultimate 2 Wireless on the cable and 2.1 times on the dongle (derived). 8BitDo's page for the Bluetooth model, which lists Switch first, states no polling rate anywhere.
The mode matters too. Put the same Ultimate 2 Bluetooth in Switch mode on a cable and it measured 89.83 Hz and 14.41 ms, against 218.33 Hz and 6.31 ms in XInput on the same cable. The 8BitDo Pro 2 shows the same penalty in our Switch Pro Controller polling rate guide. On PC, keep any 8BitDo pad in XInput.
Polling rate does not set the latency
A polling rate only caps how often reports can leave. The mean wait it adds is half the report interval: 0.53 ms at 940 Hz, 2.02 ms at 247.52 Hz (derived). The rest is the controller's own processing, and the table shows how much that can vary:
- Ultimate 3-mode, dongle: 247.52 Hz, but 18.36 ms on buttons. Polling explains about 2 ms of that.
- Ultimate 2.4G, cable: 997.01 Hz and 2.10 ms on buttons, the fastest cable result here. On its own dongle the same pad measured 166.5 Hz and 10.74 ms.
- Ultimate 2C Wireless: sticks at 1.92 ms on the cable, the fastest in the table, but buttons at 5.12 ms, slower than the Ultimate 2 Wireless (2.81 ms). Gamepadla lists the 2C at $22.50 to $34.99 and the Ultimate 2 Wireless at $59.99, so the cheaper pad wins on sticks and loses on buttons.
8BitDo's line that 8Speed reaches "ultra-low latency as low as 1ms" carries the footnote "Ideal environment data from 8BitDo's lab", and the page does not say what is measured. Gamepadla's fastest single dongle press on the Ultimate 2 Wireless was 3.24 ms.
Against the pads people compare it with
On the dongle, the Ultimate 2 Wireless averaged 3.95 ms on buttons. A Microsoft Xbox Series controller measured 6.50 ms on its cable and 7.21 ms on the Wireless Adapter, both at about 125 Hz (our Xbox controller polling rate page has the figures). A stock DualSense on USB measured 8.27 ms, and 3.93 ms only after an overclock to 1000 Hz, per our DualSense polling rate guide. So the Ultimate 2 Wireless gives you, wirelessly and without a driver, roughly what a DualSense needs a filter driver and Memory Integrity off to reach.
Where this stops applying
Each row is one unit tested by one person on one firmware, and gamepadla gives Prometheus 82 a margin of plus or minus 1 ms, so gaps under a millisecond are inside it. Firmware changes rates: the dongle tests on the Ultimate 2 Bluetooth were split across two versions. Everything is Windows on PC. On an Xbox console, 8BitDo itself says the 3E's 1000 Hz is "PC only. Not supported on Xbox consoles". Dongle results also depend on where the receiver sits; a USB 3.0 port next to it can raise the noise floor, as our USB 3.0 interference page measures. And polling says nothing about stick precision, which is set by the sensor and your deadzone.
What to do
- Ultimate 2 Wireless or 2C Wireless: cable or dongle, both measured about 950 Hz. Cable is about 1 ms faster on buttons.
- Never Bluetooth on Windows: every Ultimate model measured 66 to 200 Hz and 11 to 30 ms.
- Buying for PC, choose the Ultimate 2 Wireless over the Ultimate 2 Bluetooth: about 950 Hz against about 210 Hz.
- Keep the pad in XInput. Switch mode on a cable cost the Ultimate 2 Bluetooth 8.1 ms.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 1000 Hz?
The Ultimate 2 Wireless is, on the cable and the 2.4G dongle. Gamepadla measured a median of 955.69 Hz wired and 940.16 Hz on the dongle under Windows 11, which is what 8BitDo states (1000 Hz "under both 2.4G and wired connections"). Over Bluetooth it measured 123.9 Hz. The Ultimate 2 Bluetooth, a different model, measured about 210 to 218 Hz on cable and dongle.
Is the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 faster wired or on the dongle?
Wired, by about a millisecond. Gamepadla's buttons averaged 2.81 ms on the cable and 3.95 ms on the dongle, sticks 7.02 ms and 8.11 ms. Both are faster than a Microsoft Xbox Series controller on its own cable (6.50 ms buttons).
Should I use Bluetooth with an 8BitDo controller on PC?
No. Every Ultimate model measured between 66 and 200 Hz over Bluetooth on Windows, with average button latency from 11.06 to 30.23 ms. 8BitDo's own pages list Bluetooth for Android and Apple devices on the Ultimate 2 Wireless and 2C Wireless, not for Windows. Use the dongle or the cable.
What is the difference between the Ultimate 2 Wireless and Ultimate 2 Bluetooth?
The Bluetooth model is the Switch version. On PC it measured 218.33 Hz on the cable and about 209 Hz on the dongle, with buttons at 6.31 ms and 8.36 ms, about twice the Ultimate 2 Wireless. 8BitDo's page for it states no polling rate at all.