Sony Releases an Official iPhone Controller for PS5 In Backbone One

Sony’s latest game controller is all about leveraging your iPhone to play PlayStation games. 

On Thursday, the company introduced the “Backbone One — PlayStation Edition,” a $99.99 attachable game controller that can fit around an iPhone. 

The product is designed to help PS5 and PS4 owners play their consoles remotely by streaming the game experience over the internet to the iPhone. This can be done by using the “Remote Play” feature on the PlayStation hardware, which can also stream the game experience to a PC, android phone or a tablet. 

The controller itself is based on existing hardware from Backbone, a startup that’s been developing portable gaming controllers. The company has already been selling a standard black-colored Backbone One controller for both iPhones and Android handsets. But now it’s developed an official PlayStation Edition controller that comes in a white. 

Aside from some cosmetic tweaks, the hardware seems to be the same as before. The controller itself weighs in 0.30 pounds and charges via connecting to your iPhone. It's compatible with iPhones going back to the iPhone 6s.

On the software side, the companies have come together to add some new flair to the Backbone app for iOS. “Players can download the Backbone App for a customized PlayStation experience. Inside the app, you’ll see various PlayStation integrations, such as custom glyphs representing the iconic PlayStation shapes and the ability to browse hundreds of game titles,” Sony said. 

“Players will also find a dedicated row inside the Backbone App with new releases and updates from PlayStation,” the company added. 

Interested customers can purchase the controller at Backbone’s official website for the product, which is now available in North America, Australia, New Zealand and various countries in Europe. The controller is also being sold over Best Buy.