For as long as the PlayStation 5 has been on the market, one of the most common complaints about the DualSense controller has been its battery life and the fact that it can’t be easily swapped out. While Sony improved longevity slightly with the second revision of the pad, the battery is still sealed inside the shell meaning players either live with dwindling play time or go through the hassle of opening up the controller themselves when it eventually starts to fade.

That might be changing soon. According to multiple reports circulating in late September, Sony is preparing a third revision of the DualSense informally dubbed the “V3” and the biggest difference could be the inclusion of a removable battery system. If true, it would mark a major shift in design philosophy for PlayStation hardware, bringing it closer to the approach taken by Microsoft’s Xbox pads, which have long offered the option of AA cells or rechargeable packs.

The rumours suggest that the controller could launch alongside a refreshed PlayStation 5 Pro model sometime this November. While the console upgrade itself is said to focus more on efficiency than raw performance, the controller update would arguably steal the spotlight. For many players, being able to swap batteries on the fly could be a far more meaningful quality-of-life upgrade than a few percentage points shaved off the PS5’s power draw.

It’s not clear what form this new battery system might take. Some outlets speculate that Sony could introduce a proprietary rechargeable pack, while others think the company might go the simple route with off-the-shelf AAs. Given Sony’s history with accessories and its tendency to keep hardware ecosystems fairly closed, a custom rechargeable pack seems more likely, but until we see the actual hardware, it’s impossible to say.

Still, until Sony makes an official announcement, this all remains speculation. Companies have tested design revisions internally before without ever releasing them, and sometimes leaks exaggerate the scale of upcoming changes. But if the DualSense V3 really does arrive with a removable battery, it would answer one of the longest-standing complaints about the otherwise impressive controller.

For players who spend long nights raiding in Final Fantasy XIV, grinding matches in Call of Duty, or getting lost in sprawling RPGs, that small change could end up being the most welcome upgrade Sony has delivered in years.