If you've searched for someone local to fix a drifting controller, you've probably found a phone repair shop, a general electronics place, or nothing at all.
That's worth thinking about before you drive anywhere, because controller repair is a specific skill and a shop that mainly does phone screens may or may not have it.
What to ask anyone local
If you do find somewhere nearby, three questions sort the good from the optimistic.
Do you replace the stick module or the whole board? Some places swap the entire mainboard, which costs far more and is a heavier-handed fix than the fault needs. The right answer is that they replace the stick module.
Do you solder it or is it a plug-in part? On a standard DualSense the sticks are soldered — twelve joints each, through a four-layer board. Anyone telling you it's a plug-in swap is describing a different controller.
What's the price, and is that the final price? A lot of local shops quote after inspection, which means you find out the cost after you've already made the trip.
If the answers are good and the price is fair, use them. Local is genuinely convenient when it works.
Why posting is usually simpler
A DualSense weighs about 280 grams and fits in a padded envelope. That's the whole argument, really.
No driving, no parking, no second trip to collect it. You book online, you know the price before you commit, and it comes back tracked and insured. For a part that's small and light, the postage economics work in a way they wouldn't for a washing machine.
And a specialist doing controller sticks regularly is quicker and more reliable at it than a generalist doing one occasionally — which matters on a board where a slip lifts a pad.
What it costs and how it works
£19 for one stick, £24 for both, £34 for the Hall effect upgrade or £39 for TMR — both replace the part that wears. Every price includes parts, labour and tracked return postage, with a 12-month warranty and the no-fix-no-fee promise.
You book the specific repair, post the controller with the packing guidance I email you, and it comes back tested. Board-level work, done in-house, by one person — there's no counter staff and no queue behind a phone screen.
Full pricing is here, and if you're not certain what's wrong, testing it first takes five minutes.
Before you send it anywhere
Two things worth checking.
If the controller is under a year old, try the warranty first. It costs nothing and it may well be covered.
And try the free fixes — a reset and a clean occasionally sort a pad that's picked up grit rather than worn out. If the drift returns within days, it's worn, and that's when it's worth posting.
Book a repair, or get in touch if you want to check something first.
