Hope this is allowed here, mods feel free to delete if it isn’t.
I’ve been doing some gaming on my phone lately (Android), and touchscreen controls drive me nuts, so I’m looking into getting a portable controller. I’m hoping to find a controller that can snap onto my phone so that I don’t need a separate stand, but I’m also hoping to find something small enough that I can just slip it into my pocket. I don’t have any sort of bag that I carry with me on a regular basis, so something like a Backbone is too big for me to consider portable.
From the things I’ve found so far, the front-runners in my search seem to be the Turtle Beach Atom due to its comparatively low cost (especially used) and very portable form factor, and the GameSir X4 Aileron, which looks just about as portable and is much more customizable, but more expensive. The Razer Kishi v1 also looks somewhat compact, and the Asus ROG Tessen folds in half, but those two seem like they might be a bit larger and might not fit in my pocket as easily.
Does anyone have any experience with the controllers I’m looking at and have any thoughts they’d like to share? Any recommendations or anti-recommendations? Do you know of any other controllers I missed that might fit my criteria?
I mainly play emulated retro games on my phone, if it makes any difference, though occasionally I’ll check out newer games if they catch my interest.
Thanks for your time!
8bitdo is a good buy. especially if you ever want to use it with a switch.
The new MCON seems to be the best solution currently available.
Oh that’s very interesting, thank you for posting this. Seems like it’s only preorder for now and a tad expensive, but definitely something I’ll keep an eye on.
Do not get the Razor! I got one and have had nothing but problems and now it flat out just doesn’t work. I bough the 8bitdo equivalent and it’s awesome. https://amzn.eu/d/b1tmLi9, neither are that compact though. It looks like there are a fair few recommendations so I’m sure you’ll find something, just dont get the Razor.
I do not have experience with any of those, but I do have a Backbone controller. It is a great inexpensive option and fit my iPhone 13 ProMax.
+1 for backbone working nice
I did this same controller search earlier this year, and I can’t really compare it to any similar controllers because it’s the only one I’ve used, but I ended up going with the Abxylute S9 and I’ve been happy with it. I really wanted usb-c power passthrough and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
It’s probably too big for what you’re considering, but I think they sacrifice too much of what makes it usable and comfortable to go much smaller.
I don’t have any small form factor recommendations, but I can recommend - if you’re comfortable going AliBaba/AliExpress - the Ípega brand. It’s about £10, requires an app to configure, but extremely long-life battery and switchable modes. But the best controller for the rare few mobile games that support controller input natively is an Xbox One… one, and any other made after that point
I too have been looking for something like this, for quite a while actually, and have been unable to find anything that is suitable. The 8Bitdo Micro looked great except it didn’t have thumbsticks, and anything else was either way too big to be pocketable, or didn’t have the proper amount of controls. Also, I would especially prefer something that keeps the device horizontal.
I did look at the GameSir Aileron X4, which seemed like a decent option but it seems too big to fit in my pocket. Has anyone tried this controller before?
I shall watch this thread closely.
I have the GameSir X2 Pro and I love it. It doesn’t fit your criteria as it doesn’t fold into pocket size but maybe this is a recommendation for the brand?
I have a Razer Kishi and I love it, on mobile I use it with a pair of Hammerhead wireless buds to play xcloud. It is one of the most compact options and the USB connector supports power through to the phone. The small size also means the sticks, buttons and triggers are also small. If you use a case on your phone it will have to come off when you slot it into the pad, there’s no room unless the rubber holders are removed, when I did this the setup became wobbly. One last thing will be to check that your phone will fit, a Galaxy S23 Ultra is too big.
