Backbone Pro Controller Pretends It’s a Swiss Army Knife, Succeeding Only Slightly

KEY POINTS

•Backbone Pro, a mobile controller, is discounted to $139.99 from $169.99 and fits recent iPhone models.
•It features Bluetooth support, a built-in battery lasting 40 hours, and works with multiple gaming platforms including Xbox and PlayStation streaming.
•Additional discounted tech deals include Nothing’s CMF Watch 3 Pro, Hogwarts Legacy on Nintendo Switch 2, and smart Govee Outdoor Garden Lights.

Backbone’s Pro controller is on a noble quest to be the IKEA furniture of gaming gadgets—versatile, overpriced, and complicated enough to confuse most. Priced at $139.99 (down from $169.99), this oblong two-halved plastic contraption extends to fit your iPhone 15, 16, or mysterious 17, and even throws in Bluetooth to add 'wireless' flair. It promises up to 40 hours of battery life, presumably long enough to regret this purchase, and offers two programmable back buttons, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and all the A, B, X, Y buttons to unlock your thumbs’ potential. With hopes to unite Xbox, PlayStation, Apple Arcade, Netflix games, and your dusty Steam Deck, it boldly blurs hardware lines—achieving the low-key aesthetic of a bulky gym accessory when used solo. Meanwhile, as you puzzle over this laconic handheld, cheaper garden lights and discounted Hogwarts Legacy on Switch 2 await those with simpler tastes and bigger patience for magic.