KEY FINDINGS
• This Joy-Con-esque controller may look like any other mobile gamepad—but it packs a few surprises. A couple of interesting omissions, though, are Bluetooth and an internal battery. The Backbone One connects to and draws power from your iPhone.
• We’re off to a fast start thanks to Phillips screws on the right grip. Beneath the plastic shell, some colorful cables—and our first look at the internals. We free the interconnect cable from its ZIF connector claw and unplug the two Lightning connector cables from the motherboard. A few more Phillips screws later, we can extract the shoulder button, trigger, and our first PCB.
• Let’s see what this board brings to the game: joystick (soldered to the board—not a great start), six clickable contacts (tactile dome) for the A-B-X-Y buttons, orange Backbone App button, and option button. It also has Skyworks SKY52101-11 IoT SoC, Avnera AV3425C single chip analog SoC for smart Lightning headsets, and soldered-on bumper button, Hall-effect sensor for the trigger button, and Lightning port to pass through power to your phone or sound to your headset.
• Over on the left side we find an almost identical setup, but we’re momentarily stumped trying to remove the trigger button. Turns out, it’s secured by just one well-hidden screw. The left board offers another soldered joystick (like the Razer Kishi), four gold contacts for the direction pad and four holes to keep its silicone cover in place, and two clickable silver contacts (tactile dome) for the screenshot/record and option buttons. You can also find a soldered 3.5 mm headphone jack, bumper button, and Hall sensor for the trigger button.
• The sliding clamp mechanism uses a pair of flat spiral springs that unroll when you pull the handles apart. This provides more consistent compression and a tighter grip than the Razer Kishi, which uses helical extension springs to embrace your phone.
• Two screws secure the Lightning port. With the right tools, some case-modding, and rewiring, you might even be able to swap it out for a wider USB-C port to make it Androidcompatible. The interconnect cable wiggles in the casing but can’t be removed without causing irreparable damage. We free the springs with our Minnow Precision Bit Set and save the game before the final boss. We have beaten the Backbone One.
• Repairability Score: 5 out of 10 (10 is easiest to repair). Disassembly is straightforward with components held in place with screws. The Lightning connector can be easily replaced by removing the cover and two screws. No adhesive is used, but some screws are difficult to reach. Shoulder buttons are soldered to their boards, requiring micro-soldering skills for replacement. Both joysticks are soldered to their boards, as is the pass-through Lightning port.