Mobile games are a good use-case: many works best with controller, from fast-paced FPS such as PUBG and Call of Duty Mobile to more chill options. Precise inputs can pay off.
The Game Sir X3 is a smartphone controller optimised for gaming that’s effectively a triple-threat: not only can you use it to power up your gaming console, but it doubles as a phone cooler, thanks to a Peltier cooler that can be adjusted to fit to your device and an adjustable clamp to hold your phone in place while you play – all this while keeping your phone from overheating.
1. Game Sir X3 Type-C
Blame hyperbolic branding styling: the GameSir X3 Type-C features peltier-cooled mobile gaming RAID2 performance and ergonomics, as well as RGB cooling fans, trigger and gyroscope. It has in-game alert integration via audio or lighting effects and has touchscreen macros and easy sync compatibility with Google Play or App Store game controllers. The rear-mounted insert (covered by a visor) features a RGB fan. It can be dubbed laughably over the top, but that over-kill is functionally relevant because it literally keeps your phone from getting hot from the extended use of games.
This phone is compatible with a flexible design, able to fit on most phones (its length ranges from 110mm to 179mm), and incorporates a Type-C port that can adjust to foldable devices as well as design Grand Eagle recuperation through tilting. Interfacing directly to your device, it reduces the delay in wireless signal transmission while enhancing the instant response of on-screen characters after pressing buttons.
Its ABXY buttons, D-pad and bumpers have Kailh reduced-actuation-distance switches that make pressing them feel more like clicking a mouse, which improves your reaction time and enables more quick or nimble movements. While the shoulder buttons are a little flat and need a little more force to feel good, otherwise it’s hard to complain about X3 Type-C’s stellar performance and feature set. It does a good job keeping your phone cool while playing, which is surely a bonus in itself.
2. Razer Kishi V2
The Kishi v2 attempts to pick up where the first generation of controller left off. It works perfectly with all the Android games that natively support the Xbox or PlayStation controller. It works well with both Microsoft XCloud and Google Stadia. With a game streaming from a PC or the cloud, your hands are not in front of your face blocking your view.
On the v2 are the HyperSense Haptics of the controller, which offer some of the clever rumble vibration functionality of PlayStation and Xbox controllers on your phone. It’s got tweaks to the buttons, too, balancing the size and spacing better and feeling much more satisfying when depressed. Analogue triggers still don’t match the glorified ‘just right’ resistance of PlayStation and Xbox controllers, but they’re a whole lot better than the flimsy feather feeling of the first Kishi’s analog triggers.
Like the original Kishi, all you need to do is clamp it around the USB-C port on the base of your Pixel or Galaxy phone. Razer’s Nexus app is required if you want some of the power-user options, such as live video streaming and in-game screenshots.
3. Backbone One (2023)
And the original Backbone, the first hit mobile gaming controller for iPhone, remains a great choice for its solid build quality and support for most iOS games (via the MFi Lightning connector). Apple Arcade games and cloud gaming services also work well with it, as do native mobile games with controller support.
The latest Backbone One might look similar to its predecessor, but there are some big improvements that boost it above the level of its rivals. All iPhones and most blog Android devices can be connected via USB-C, plus there are a few subtle differences that make it nicer to use than any other controller we’ve tried.
The extra port keeps your phone charging while you play, and the software permits hot-swappable configurations for ‘console streaming from PlayStation andidable stable of exclusive titles.
4. Sony DualSense
Video games can be very immersive. If you can’t stop playing, however, the experience will become uncomfortable unless your controller is up to the task. The DualSense is designed for comfortable marathon sessions. It also comes with a satisfying heft and a textured contoured grip that feels good in your hands. There’s a touchpad, too, and haptic feedback.
Inclined palm fins atop the DualSense make it look similar to either an Xbox or Switch Pro Controller, its vertical grips taller than on previous Dualsense models, and the real estate between the D-pad and its face buttons wide. It also has a headset mic and a possibility-laden ‘Create’ button that’s been cryptically billed as some kind of design-your-own-game experience.
But it’s that haptic feedback that makes the DualSense special; some games already use it, such as the roguelike Returnal, whose developers told Ars Technica that they use the haptics to replicate experiences as specific as the patter of raindrops or the rattle of a machine gun. Even simple things, such as picking up various objects, actually change how the controller feels in your hands to make browsing menus a tactile experience.
