After using the Backbone Pro for the past few days, I can squint and see the future Khaira has in mind, and the controller itself clearly feels more premium than its $100 predecessor (and it will be). However, at $170, the device will be prohibitively expensive for some. This is approaching Xbox Elite territory for a controller still primarily aimed at smartphones. Also, like One, some of the app’s benefits are protected by an app, which costs an additional $40 per year.
A better column
You should definitely buy the Backbone Pro as a multi-device controller to make the purchase more logical. But when used with just a phone, it’s a marked improvement over the Backbone One. This is especially noticeable on the grips, which are noticeably thicker and more serrated than before. This means they fill and contour the palms much more naturally, making the design more comfortable to hold over time. They’re also covered in soft, lightly textured matte plastic that seems to repel sweat better.
The hollow joysticks are significantly larger and have a “ring” at the top for more grip. They don’t use magnetic Hall sensors to withstand long-term operation, which is annoying at this price, but they are compact and noticeably smoother. According to Khaira, the Pro uses the same joystick component as Microsoft’s Xbox Elite controller and Sony’s DualSense Edge; Actually, the sticks are not that different from a full gamepad. As with other “pro” controllers, the Backbone app lets you remap buttons, customize the joystick, and enable dead zones, then assign those settings to different profiles.
The front keys are still not particularly quiet, but they feel noticeably less stiff and clicky, with a smoother surface and a deeper sense of movement. With this in mind, triggers are wider and fuller; my larger fingers can rest on it without falling off, which was not the case with the One. The side buttons are also longer, while the menu buttons are less directional and easier to reach. The D-Pad is just as solid and accurate, but now has a lighter coating. There are also some customizable buttons on the back that fit perfectly on the ring finger, but in my tests these didn’t result in accidental presses.
The thicker grips make the design larger than the One, but not much wider, and at 199 grams it’s still about 80 grams lighter than a typical Xbox or PlayStation pad. As before, the Pro comes with adapters for phones of different sizes, with or without cases. I didn’t notice any vibrations on an iPhone 15 Plus with Apple on. There’s still a built-in headphone jack and direct charging port, though the actual port is USB-C only, so the controller won’t work with older Lightning-based iPhones. Because the Pro requires its own battery to run wirelessly, it still uses a small amount of power to charge when a connected phone is charging. Overall, Backbone says the Pro will last up to 40 hours; I wasn’t able to do a full test, but the battery gave me no reason to doubt this estimate in the few days I spent with the device.
Go by phone
Wirelessly connecting the Backbone Pro to other devices is very easy. There’s a special button on the bottom of the controller that puts it into pairing mode, and the app prompts you to connect to all other displays during setup. The first time you connect to a new device, the Pro remembers this and sends this information to the app. To play on one of these devices again, simply tap a menu in the app, select the device and click Connect. As long as Bluetooth is active on your device, the connection will be restored immediately. You have to plug your phone into the Pro’s USB-C port to switch devices via the app, but otherwise I had a little trouble switching between screens.
You can see how the Pro can compete with multi-screen brands like the Xbox. Can I start a Game Pass stream? Chiaroscuro on my phone while my wife has the TV and then move it to the Fire TV Stick when I’m done. can i start one Balatro Log in to my PC and transfer it to my iPad via Steam Link. I don’t need to switch controls anytime. I don’t have to press a button to connect to the next device I want to use: I just plug in my phone, select the device and that’s it. Even in a cloud stream, I can pick up where I left off, as long as I switch devices within minutes. Of course, the Pro isn’t the only controller you can play with this way, but its phone-optimized design and quick pairing technology make it particularly attractive for this kind of “play on the go.”
But a closer look reveals some problems. One is simply that the Pro doesn’t have the proprietary technology needed to pair with the Xbox, PS5 or Switch. This isn’t necessarily Backbone’s fault, but if you present the Pro as a “game of choice” controller, you’re ignoring how many people actually play games.
Second, as much as I like the Pro compared to other mobile gamepads, I still think it’s too narrow compared to more traditional options. For example, the right stick keeps rubbing against the underside of my thumb, because it’s supposed to be directly under the face buttons. The triggers may be deeper, but they don’t have as much travel as a regular console plate. The Pro is still comfortable, good, and great if you use your phone a lot for gaming. But an Xbox or PlayStation controller simply gives you more space to work with.
Third, all of this can get expensive quickly. The price of the Pro is already high. To take full advantage of cloud services such as Xbox Cloud Gaming or GeForce Now, you must pay a subscription fee. The same goes for Apple Arcade. You cannot play remotely without having a game console or PC. Backbone limits some of the app’s features to the subscription program, most notably the ability to launch cloud-based games directly from the app. So the question is: what exactly is the market for a device like this? How many hardcore gamers, the ones who would buy a $170 controller, play on their phones? How much do they need a multi-device controller when they probably already have an Xbox or PS5 controller? Who really wants a subscription for their video game controller?
In addition, the app still looks stylish and you can still organize your games or streaming apps in a central hub. The search function works well and you can filter games for different platforms. When choosing a game, it’s useful to know which platforms you can play it on.
Backbone will also add a new native emulator in the next update. Today, it can run NES, SNES, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, and Nintendo 64 games, though the company says it’s also testing PlayStation 1 and PlayStation Portable cores. Flashing a ROM in the app is easy. Once you’ve done this, it will appear in your hub along with the rest of your library. However, you need a Backbone+ subscription to use the emulator, and it’s pretty basic compared to such an app, as there’s no way to rewind, adjust resolution, or manage multiple storage states. I also noticed some bugs in some games where a title wouldn’t load completely. That’s always a good idea and it’s nice that Backbone keeps adding new features to the overall app. Since there are other emulators with more features available for free, I can’t say this one is worth it today.
In an ideal world, the Backbone Pro would be a next-gen version of the One and not an updated $70+ model. The hardware is better in many ways and using multiple devices is very convenient. But it’s certainly not cheap. The price was likely affected by the looming impact of President Trump’s tariff policies, but it still puts the device head and shoulders above other devices today. If you have the money and spend hours playing on your phone and other screens, the Pro is still worth a look. It is one of the best in its niche. It is difficult to say that the value for money is excellent.
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