The best mobile game controller now comes in Xbox flavor, and I can’t get enough

I have been hooked on telescopic mobile game controllers ever since I got my first Razer Kishi nearly five years ago, but after just a few minutes of testing, I knew the Backbone One Xbox Edition would be stealing the coveted place in my go-bag. Not only is it sleeker, lighter, and more premium, it also harkens back to my teenage years as an Xbox fanboy.

This new edition is essentially just a new colorway of the second-generation Backbone One, similar to the PlayStation Edition from a few years ago. If you’re an Xbox fan like me, the choice is obvious, but the controller is easily the best mobile controller I’ve ever tested.

Although it’s a clear callback to the classic days of the original Xbox with the translucent green plastic, the Xbox Edition of the Backbone feels extremely modern. It has nothing in common with older controllers like The Duke or even newer controllers like the Xbox Core controllers, with a more compact design. In a way, the controls remind me more of a Nintendo Switch than an Xbox controller, but in a good way.

The smaller footprint makes it easy to slip in a bag, although it comes at the cost of full-size sticks. I have medium-sized hands so I had no problem using the Backbone, but if you have larger hands, it might feel a bit cramped. Despite the size it’s very sturdy, with its namesake Backbone preventing any wobbling when in use.

It’s also incredibly light. Slapping this thing on a phone adds very little weight, which is excellent for longer gaming sessions. The buttons are nice and clicky, and I love the way the controller hangs down past the bottom of my phone. This makes it much more comfortable to hold without adding bulk along the sides of the device.

I always use a phone case, so I’m happy to report that the Backbone Xbox Edition works great there, too. It includes two separate magnetic attachments to hold your phone, with different designs to suit the design of your phone or case. In my testing, they were able to hold both a case-less REDMAGIC 10 Pro and a Google Pixel 9 with a beefy Mous case very securely, so any phone on the market should work just fine.

However, note that this model is only sold with USB-C, so older iPhone users are out of luck. There’s also no Bluetooth model (unlike something like the GameSir G8 Plus), so it’s not ideal for non-mobile gaming.

Obviously this model is designed to appeal to Xbox fans, but there’s really only one thing that ties it to the Xbox ecosystem: Xbox Game Pass. I’m a big fan of game streaming (both cloud and local), and telescopic controllers like the Backbone are essential to smooth gameplay on a phone.

More recently I’ve been spending most of my time playing classic games via emulation. The Backbone is great for this too, and it has a few extras to make the experience even better. The first is a headphone jack, which we all know is a rarity on smartphones these days. The second is a passthrough USB port, which allows you to charge your device without missing a beat. These are on the bottom of the two handles, so they don’t get in the way while gaming.

If you do want to stream games, the Xbox Edition comes with one free month of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. That alone would cost $20, which offsets the $10 price difference between the Xbox Edition and the standard edition. That said, it only applies to new subscribers, so the most dedicated fans won’t be able to take advantage of it.

Still, it’s a very expensive controller. In fact, at $110, it’s one of the most expensive controllers on the market. There’s also an optional subscription service, called Backbone Plus, that runs another $40 a year. That subscription turns the app into a reasonably full-featured game hub and allows you to use the Backbone as a USB-C controller on your PC or Mac. It’s a hard sell with plenty of cheaper frontends like ES-DE, which provide a similar experience for significantly less.

Without the subscription, it’s still one of the best mobile controllers on the market. For most people, though, it’s going to be hard to justify the $10 premium over the standard edition ($99.99 at Amazon), so I’d probably recommend that one first. If you’re a real Xbox fan it might be worth it since it’s the most “Xbox” thing you can get in the mobile space, at least until we finally see Microsoft announce a true Xbox gaming handheld.