Like it or not, mobile gaming is a big deal. Sony has made attempts to enter the space in the past with mixed success, but now that the company has established a mobile division within PlayStation Studios and added Savage Game Studios to its first-party ranks, it now appears that the company is finally doing things right. The Backbone One: PlayStation Edition, a dedicated controller attachment for smartphones, is further proof of this new push, even if it’s essentially just a reskin of an existing product.
Based on Backbone’s well-received peripherals, this PlayStation-flavored version offers the same level of control, but now suits your PS5. Fans of games on their smart devices may already know the Backbone One, but this PlayStation edition has caught new attention from fans of Sony. So, what exactly? is this thing, what does it offer, and is it actually good? After spending a good chunk of time with it, let’s go through and answer these questions.
What is the Backbone One: PlayStation Edition?
As mentioned before, the Backbone One: PlayStation Edition is a gamepad-like holder for your smartphone, which allows you to play games on your mobile as if it were a dedicated handheld. This particular version of the Backbone One is functionally identical to the previous version – it’s just white and black, matching the PS5 and the DualSense, and has the familiar face buttons.
The idea is simple: you place your phone in the center of the device, click it into place and launch the dedicated Backbone app. From there, you can launch mobile games that support controllers, PS Remote Play, and even Xbox’s cloud gaming service.
At this point, it’s worth noting that the PlayStation edition is currently only available for iPhones, but an Android model is coming.
What’s in the box?
In the box, of course, you’ll have the Backbone One: PlayStation Edition itself, an adapter for iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max models, basic installation instructions, and a safety guide. No charger is included; the device runs off the power of your phone.
Set up
Preparing the Backbone for use is very simple. If you grab both sides, you can pull on it to extend the middle section so that you can put your smartphone inside. But first it comes down to it: if your phone is in a case, take it out. Unfortunately, the Backbone isn’t case-compatible, so you’ll need to remove all the outer layers before setting it up.
So take your bare phone and insert the top into the left side. Then slide out the right side of the Backbone and align the charging port of the phone with the dock. Put the Backbone back together so it can be plugged into your phone in no time. Easy.
For that, you need to install the companion app, which then opens when you press the Backbone button on the device itself. You’ll be prompted to create an account or login, so just follow the instructions and you’ll be taken to Backbone’s all-encompassing menu.
Design, quality and comfort
The design of the Backbone One is quite ingenious. Its sliding holder allows it to be used with smartphones of almost any size, and extending the controller and positioning your device is simple and intuitive. The fact that the Backbone app also appears at the touch of a button makes the whole thing as seamless as possible. While it’s a shame you have to take your phone out of the case before using it, the controller is about as customizable as you’d reasonably expect.
The PlayStation edition drops the all-black look of the regular model, opting instead for the same white plastic with black accents found on the DualSense and PS5. It doesn’t look like a PS pad, though; it has asymmetric thumbsticks, a one-piece D-pad and options and record buttons down instead of up. Still, the button layout works perfectly, given the size of each grip. The shoulder buttons are packed tightly together, so it can be easy to accidentally press R1 when you wanted R2 for example. The fact that the triggers travel a bit analog is impressive, though.
With a phone in place, the Backbone is comfortable to hold and use, snuggly in your palms. The phone feels firmly in place, without moving once locked. The face buttons are a little too clicky for our liking, but work fine, and the thumbsticks are somewhere between the PS Vita and Nintendo Switch in size and travel count.
We should also quickly point out the ports on the underside of each handle. On the left you’ll find a 3.5mm headphone jack so you can keep your game audio to yourself, and on the right is a lightning port so you can charge your iPhone while it’s in the Backbone, which is very handy.
Overall, the build quality and design of the device is great. It feels solid in the hands and does what it’s supposed to do with no issues or fuss.
Play mobile games
Playing native mobile games with the Backbone feels excellent. Not all smartphone games support controller peripherals, but it’s relatively easy to find the ones that do. Obviously, touchscreen controls work perfectly in most cases, but the extra control offered by a full array of buttons really takes certain games to the next level.
For example, playing mobile shooters is much better with the Backbone and racing titles like Asphalt 9: Legends take advantage of it too. Anything that requires more precision than touch controls can feel much more pleasant to play – Sonic the Hedgehog and Brawlhalla are two others we tested, and playing them without the right buttons isn’t really comparable.
PS Remote Play
We’d say if you’re interested in the PlayStation edition of the Backbone One, you probably already own a PS4 or PS5. In that case, a big draw is the ability to use the Remote Play app without using touch controls or syncing a console controller. Launching Remote Play and using the Backbone is almost certainly the best way to enjoy the feature on your smartphone.
Obviously, most games on modern consoles are built to be played on a big screen TV, so some small text or user interface elements can get a bit lost when transposed to your mobile. However, you can generally play most PS5 or PS4 games perfectly thanks to almost all buttons in place. We’ve tested a wide variety of games, such as MultiVersus, DIRT 5, Returnal, and Arcade Paradise, and they’re all as playable as you’d expect. The touchpad is the only thing that isn’t physically displayed, but using the touchscreen for this one function is enough.
An important aspect to bring up is that the Backbone One cannot solve any latency issues that you might have when using Remote Play. From our experience, we only had one or two issues with the app disconnecting for a few seconds, but the vast majority of the time it was fine – just a little behind the console. Again, your experience will depend on connection speed and how many devices are active on your network, so keep that in mind. The Backbone doesn’t help with that, but it does make playing your favorite PS5 and PS4 games on the go that much more fun.
Should You Buy the Backbone One: PlayStation Edition?
We are quite impressed with the Backbone. It successfully turns your smartphone into a handheld gaming device, elevating mobile native games and making Remote Play much easier to enjoy. It manages that while using an intuitive, simple design with decent ergonomics. The companion app that brings everything together in one place is the icing on the cake and gives your mobile gaming a unified feel.
Whether you should buy one depends on what you want to get out of the device. The PlayStation edition has a nice, familiar look to fans of Sony’s hardware, but has a multitude of uses depending on your gaming habits. Remote Play, as mentioned, is supported, and good mobile games work fine with it, but you can also stream Xbox games through the cloud service, use Steam Link to stream PC titles, interact with other users in chat rooms, game recordings make, and more. If that appeals to you, we’d say the Backbone is worth considering.
Keep in mind that much of the app’s functionality is tied to the Backbone+ plan, which costs £44.99 / $49.99 per year. You do get a free one-month trial, and we’d say if you plan on playing a lot of games on your mobile, the subscription is worth it. The Backbone One: PlayStation Edition itself costs £99.99 / $99.99, which we believe is a reasonable price to turn your mobile into a viable gaming platform.
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What do you think of the Backbone One: PlayStation Edition? Do you use such a controller to enhance your mobile gaming? Tell us in the comments below.
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