Backbone One Controller For iPhone And Android Discounted To $50 Today Only (December 13)
The Backbone One mobile controller is on sale for its best price yet as part of Best Buy’s 12 Days of Gaming promotion. Until 10 PM PT on December 13–or when it sells out–you can snag the Backbone One Gen 2 USB-C model for only $50 (was $100). This is an incredible deal for the newest Backbone controller, which is our favorite dedicated mobile controller for Xbox Cloud Gaming, PS Remote Play, and native mobile games from subscription services like Apple Arcade and Netflix. It’s compatible with iPhone 15 and 16 phones as well as Android phones. The Backbone One was $70 during Black Friday, so we wouldn’t be surprised at all if all of the units are claimed before the day ends.
As an added bonus, this is technically the Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile Edition of the Backbone. It’s the normal black Backbone controller, but you get a voucher for two 30-minute sessions of Double XP. The better bonus, though, is the three months of Apple Arcade you get for buying the controller. There’s no shortage of great games on Apple Arcade, many of which you can play with a controller, including the 2024 GOTY nominee Balatro, NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition, Dead Cells, Shovel Knight Dig, Fantasian, Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop, Disney Dreamlight Valley, and plenty of others.
The big draw of the revised, Gen 2 Backbone One is that it’s compatible with many different phone cases, whereas the first iteration required users to remove their phone from their case before connecting to the controller.
The Backbone One great gives you a more traditional gaming experience with its button layout and grip style. You get shoulder and trigger buttons, familiar face buttons, and a staggered layout for the analog sticks. When you’re not playing, a Backbone One folds down and takes up minimal space to easily fit in your pocket.
With the Backbone One attached, you can have a Switch-like handheld gaming experience on your phone. Many games installed on your device can be launched from the Backbone app, including a bunch of Apple Arcade and Netflix games that are much better with traditional gamepads than touchscreen controls.
With the PS Remote Play and Xbox mobile apps, you can stream your console games on your phone. The Backbone One is an awesome remote play device; it’s also one of the best controllers for streaming the hundreds of Xbox and PC games that are available to stream with an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription.
It’s possible Amazon will match the deal, so if Best Buy sells out, we’d encourage you to check these links below to see if Amazon has adjusted its price.
PlayStation and Xbox Controller Deals
For more controller deals, check out the PlayStation holiday deal on DualSense controllers and Amazon’s Xbox Wireless Controller bundles, which come with Fire TV 4K Sticks and 30 days of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. DualSense and Xbox Wireless Controllers are also great for mobile gaming, as long as you get a clip for your phone that’s compatible with PlayStation or Xbox controllers.
