Mechanisms for controlling lighting activation by taking into account proximity and motion data are disclosed. Controllers can have cosmetic and/or functional lighting that can be controlled by proximity detectors and/or motion detectors, and such lighting can vary in color, intensity, and/or pattern. Proximity detectors can use capacitance, lighting, and/or sound data to determine the proximity of objects to the controllers, and motion detectors can use accelerometers and/or gyroscopes to determine the motion of such controllers. Additionally, controllers can start radio frequency communications with gaming consoles based on proximity and/or motion data. One benefit of such proximity and/or motion light control is battery conservation.