Editing Microsoft SideWinder (section)

=== Precision Pro ===
[[File:Microsoft Precision Pro.jpg|thumb|upright|The Precision Pro joystick. The "hat" switch is visible at the top of the stick, and the throttle wheel at the 
bottom.]]
[[File:Game_port_to_USB_Adaptor.JPG|thumb|Microsoft Game port to USB Adapter. Packaged with Freestyle Pro, Precision Pro, and PP2. Never sold separate.]]
Microsoft introduced the '''SideWinder Precision Pro''' in 1995, correcting the ergonomic issues, fixing some of the electrical issues, and adding new features.
The Precision Pro introduced a new stick that was far more ergonomic than the "geometric" design of the 3D Pro. Microsoft also gave the rest of the Precision Pro a more rounded design, replacing the rectangular base buttons with more rounded versions at the top of the base, the slider-based throttle with a wheel-based throttle, and the base itself was made more rounded. The Precision Pro also added a shift button to the base, doubling the number of possible button combinations.

Signatures can be seen inside the joystick, on the base coverplate. Fred Iyc and Edie Adams<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.affectivedesign.org/archives/151 |title=An Interview with Microsoft's Edie Adams – Pt. 1 |date=12 July 2007 |publisher=affective design |access-date=2015-11-11}}</ref> are among the 17 people who have signed it.

For its electronics, the Precision Pro featured a refined hybrid system, resolving some of the hardware compatibility issues with the 3D Pro. However, with the widespread introduction of [[USB]] in consumer computers shortly after the Precision Pro was released, Microsoft soon re-released the joystick in a USB-compatible form (joysticks labeled as Part No. X03-57540, Product I.D. 85791-579-2177031-00000). The revised joystick still featured a gameport connector but had additional circuitry for interfacing with USB, and was bundled with a USB converter (a DIY converter project exists). Original Precision Pros remain incompatible with this converter,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://support.microsoft.com/kb/189076/|title=SideWinder USB Controller: Minimum System Requirements|work=Microsoft|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080206061652/http://support.microsoft.com/kb/189076|archive-date=6 February 2008}}</ref> but a user made converter exists.<ref name="3DP-Vert"/> The creation of the USB converter bypassed the problems with the analog gameport entirely, and as a result became the true solution to the electrical problems. However, due to a flaw in the design of the Precision Pro, in rare cases the stick would build up a static charge in its electronics and require either a complex process to discharge that was not always successful, or simply needed to stay unpowered for a number of hours to slowly discharge on its own.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=320554|title=Microsoft Sidewinder Game Controller Not Recognized in Windows XP|work=Microsoft|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050208045344/http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=320554|archive-date=8 February 2005}}</ref> This is also one of the first joysticks to use light sensors instead of potentiometers so it required no calibration, and thus had no electronical moving parts. The only moving parts were mechanical on the throttle and joystick pivots which gave this joystick virtually unlimited lifetime. The Precision Pro 2 had reintroduced potentiometers to save money and thus their lifetime was limited to wear and tear of the potentiometers.

Thanks to the timing of the launch of the Precision Pro to coincide with the widespread launch of USB along the ergonomic corrections and rarity of the static charge problem, the Precision Pro saw a much higher sales volume and review scores than the earlier 3D Pro.