Just received a stadia controller and despite official help articles claiming it to be case, the device could be used for non-stadia applications (as an HID) when directly connected via USB-C.
> Can the Stadia Controller be used on other platforms?
We've designed the Stadia Controller to work best on Stadia. When plugged in with a USB cable, the Stadia Controller acts as a standard USB HID controller and may work on other platforms depending on the game and setup.
So... Why isn't this true on Android? Is there a specific mode that it must be in to work as an HID controller? When I plug it in and turn it on, it just starts charging my phone.
It should work as stated on the support page.
Did you try to connect it first with the Stadia app through WiFi?
It should get the latest firmware if you do this, maybe that helps.
Haha, I didn't realize you could charge your phone using your controller. That might come in handy. To answer your question, I believe there needs to be an API for the controller which the OS needs to support the hardware. That could come with a future version of Android and/or OTA update for the controller.