In December 2025, I got my hands on a Backbone One to step up my mobile gaming capabilities, and I was pretty impressed with the small-but-mighty device. It was a very limited Death Stranding special edition, which was nice! Now, I’ve been given the opportunity to try the latest iteration of the Backbone Pro, the big brother to the little peripheral I’ve been carrying around for eight months.
Let me tell you, I didn’t think there was much that could be done to improve on the Backbone One, but I was definitely wrong. The Backbone Pro is a huge upgrade, and it has now become my number-one travel companion.
Read on to scope out my full review of the Backbone Pro and to learn why it’s worth the somewhat exorbitant price tag.
The Backbone Pro is Expensive, I’ll Admit
The Backbone Pro might look immense at first blush, but you might then be immediately put off when you see how much it costs. In the United Kingdom, this mobile controller will set you back a hefty £153, which is eye-watering at best. It costs more than most premium console and PC-based gaming controllers, which is a hard pill to swallow.
But why is it that expensive? And more importantly, why is it genuinely worth it?
First, you’ve got the sheer build of the thing. The Backbone Pro feels very nice in your hand. It’s considerably larger than the Backbone One, and it boasts full-sized ALPS joysticks, which is a massive improvement over the tiddly things on the One. The wider form factor means it’s more ergonomic, and the rear buttons (and face buttons) are all bigger and more user-friendly.
The body has anti-fatigue, anti-slip grips, and it’s made to fit nicely with almost any mobile phone. You get a couple of adapters in the box to help certain devices fit better, too. There’s a low-latency USB-C connection for instant linking, and it also has Bluetooth pairing that works with almost anything, from televisions to laptops, and from consoles to, yes, mobile devices.
You won’t need to worry about the battery life of the Backbone Pro either, as it can run for up to 40 hours while playing wirelessly.
Over the top of the Backbone One, the Pro has customizable back buttons, remapping as standard, and via the intuitive app, you can tweak joystick and trigger sensitivity.
If you’re playing Cloud-based games on the go, using a service like NVIDIA’s GeForce Now, this is a must-have. That’s the same for XBOX Cloud Gaming, or traditionally, native mobile gaming.
The high price point seems worthwhile when you cobble together the build quality, reliability, multi-device capabilities, and overall practicality of the Backbone Pro. It fits nicely in your bag, it doesn’t weigh much, and it works perfectly with a wide array of games.
I used the Backbone Pro extensively in the weeks leading up to this review, and it’ll accompany me on every trip I take going forward. I consider this well worth a recommendation. If you’re an avid mobile gamer and want the best, most immersive, and most comfortable experiences possible on the go, you can’t pass this up.
And if you’re an XBOX fan, there’s a special Backbone Pro controller themed around the brand…
Let us know on the Insider Gaming Discord server if the Backbone Pro seems like your kind of device.
For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out our review of the Raiju V3 Pro from Razer, and for even more Insider Gaming delivered directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter
Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
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