Technologies

Backbone One vs. Backbone Pro: Here’s the Mobile Controller You Should Buy

For gaming on a phone, Backbone’s controllers are some of the best. The decision comes down to how much you’re willing to pay.

If you’ve explored the world of mobile gaming on a phone or tablet within the last few years, you’ve likely heard of the Backbone controller.

Backbone wasn’t the first company to make a controller specifically for phones, but it’s certainly the most well-known today. In 2020, the Backbone One burst onto the scene with its iOS controller and quickly rose to prominence for offering gamers a whole new way to play. At the time, most mobile controllers were simply clips that attached your phone to a console controller.

The Backbone One places the grips and controls around the phone, much more akin to what made the Nintendo Switch so popular when it was released in 2017. The most innovative part was that, instead of using Bluetooth to connect to your phone, the Backbone One connected directly via a Lightning connector. This eliminated the input lag problem with Bluetooth and made gaming on your phone a much more immersive experience.

Since then, the company has launched an updated USB-C version, a PlayStation Edition, an Xbox Edition and, most recently, the Backbone Pro controller.

If you’re considering picking up a mobile controller, Backbone is a great place to start. Here are some important things to consider to make sure you get the right one for you.

Backbone One: Keep it simple

Backbone essentially has two controllers: the Backbone One and the Backbone Pro.

Since Apple transitioned from its Lightning connector to USB-C for the iPhone a couple of years ago, there are no longer two separate controllers for iPhone and Android. The same Backbone controller will work for both iPhone (15 and newer) and Android. If you’re using an iPhone 14 or an older model, however, you can still purchase the Lightning version.

For the $100 Backbone One, the differences between the standard One, the PlayStation Edition and the Xbox Edition are almost entirely aesthetic.

The PlayStation Edition comes in white and features the same glyph symbols as the PlayStation controllers, instead of the more traditional ABXY face buttons. The PlayStation Edition is also the only one officially supported for PS Remote Play on Android. (That doesn’t mean you can’t use the other versions with PS Remote Play; Backbone has an «official» version because Sony requires it for licensing reasons.) While it’s still possible to use PS Remote Play with a different Backbone controller, the experience may not be as seamless as you would need, likely requiring some sort of emulation.

The Xbox Edition comes in a translucent green color that’s come to be associated with Xbox and replaces Backbone’s screen capture button with an Xbox button. In addition to triggering screen captures, the Xbox button either opens a collection of Xbox games while in the Backbone app or triggers the Xbox secondary button press while in Xbox games or apps.

Unless you use PS Remote Play or Xbox Cloud Gaming primarily on your phone, there’s really no need to pick up either of those versions (even if the white controller does look really clean).

The Backbone One is great for providing more gaming control than just a touchscreen, but when you still want something compact and easy to carry around, especially if you opt for the carrying case to accompany it.

Backbone Pro: Level up

For more serious mobile gamers or those who prefer a more traditional feel, or just want a better grip, the Backbone Pro controller is much more your speed.

It builds on the original Backbone One in every way. The grips are bigger and more ergonomic. The joysticks are full-size, much more like what you’re used to from standard console and PC controllers, and there are two additional buttons on the back that can be remapped to anything you want. It also features Bluetooth connectivity, allowing for multiple ways to play.

Plus, the Hall Effect triggers add durability, and they are textured for better grip. The Backbone Pro also supports creating multiple profiles to customize and remap the buttons for all your favorite games.

One of the best features of the Backbone One is that it can also serve as a controller for a PC or tablet, simply by connecting it with a cable. The Backbone Pro takes this a step further by allowing you to seamlessly switch between devices wirelessly via Bluetooth. It works surprisingly well and is a fantastic option for those who enjoy gaming on multiple devices and screens.

Honestly, the only big downside of the Backbone Pro is the price. At $170, it’s $20 more than the Razer Kishi V3 Pro, which is arguably a better controller. However, Backbone controllers offer a significant advantage in software and native game compatibility, particularly on Android, so the extra money might be worth it for you. Then again, you might also consider the Elo Vagabond. Its apps aren’t as polished, but its design and features are top-notch and it’s more affordable at $100.

Which one should I buy?

Ultimately, the answer to which mobile controller you should buy comes down to your personal preferences, play style and budget.

I have smaller hands, so the Backbone Pro actually ended up being less comfortable for me than the Backbone One. However, the additional features and more ergonomically designed grips (which are better suited for people with average-size hands) make it one of the best mobile controllers on the market. If you can stomach the price, then it’s a great choice.

The Backbone One is a fine option if you want a more compact controller that still gives you a lot of ways to elevate your gaming. It’s also the only one with color variations other than black and is significantly cheaper. It retails for $100 but is often on sale for much less, and you can easily find a used one in good shape for a decent price.

Either way, you can’t really go wrong with Backbone’s controllers. However, they are not the only options. My preference is for the Razer Kishi V3 Pro, particularly paired with an iPhone. Razer also has the regular Kishi V3 controller, which is similarly priced to the Backbone One but with better hardware. There’s no denying that Backbone still has the edge when it comes to software and native compatibility, though, so it’s an easy recommendation for most people.

Technologies

Google, Meta and Amazon Join Global Pact to Fight Rising Online Scams

The companies will share fraud intelligence and coordinate responses as AI makes scams faster, cheaper and harder to detect.

Modern online scams operate across multiple platforms, perhaps spanning social media, messaging apps, email and online marketplaces. Google, Meta and Amazon are among 11 tech, retail and payments companies that have signed a new agreement to combat online scams by sharing threat intelligence across platforms, Axios first reported Monday.

The initiative, called the Industry Accord Against Online Scams & Fraud, is designed to improve how companies detect and respond to fraud that spans multiple services. Participants say they will exchange signals, such as scam-linked accounts and fraudulent domains, and coordinate enforcement actions.

By sharing intelligence in near real time, companies hope to identify these scams earlier and stop them before they spread.

The effort reflects how modern scams operate. A victim might encounter a fake celebrity investment ad on social media, move to a messaging app where the scammer builds trust, then faces prompts to send money through a fraudulent website, payment app or crypto wallet — spanning multiple companies’ ecosystems.

Google said it now blocks hundreds of millions of scam-related results every day using AI, underscoring how both attackers and defenders are increasingly relying on the same technology. Meta removed more than 159 million scam ads in 2025 and is expanding AI tools to detect impersonation and warn users.

Online scams are growing rapidly, in part because generative AI has lowered the barrier to entry. AI can be used not only to produce realistic phishing emails but also to clone voices and deepfake videos that impersonate executives, public figures and even family members.

The agreement is voluntary and doesn’t create new legal obligations, but it comes after regulators’ increased pressure on tech platforms to address fraud more aggressively. The companies say they will begin building frameworks for reporting and intelligence-sharing, though it’s not yet clear how quickly those systems will be deployed or how effective they will be in practice.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, March 18

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 18.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? I thought it was a fairly easy one, but read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Word before «card,» flood» or «photography»
Answer: FLASH

6A clue: Joust weapon
Answer: LANCE

7A clue: Brain, heart or lungs
Answer: ORGAN

8A clue: «Frozen» reindeer
Answer: SVEN

9A clue: What can be found on frozen roads or frozen margaritas
Answer: SALT

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Follow a dentist’s recommendation
Answer: FLOSS

2D clue: Baby bug
Answer: LARVA

3D clue: Shape made in the snow
Answer: ANGEL

4D clue: Very little
Answer: SCANT

5D clue: Egg layer
Answer: HEN

Technologies

Amazon Speeds Up Delivery Even More With 1- and 3-Hour Options

The retailer says the one-hour option is available in hundreds of cities, with discounted shipping for Prime members.

Same-day delivery apparently isn’t fast enough for some Amazon shoppers. The retail giant said on Tuesday it’s adding new shipping options that will get products to front doors within a one- or three-hour window.

The company said in its announcement that the one-hour option is available in hundreds of cities across the US, while the three-hour option is now live in more than 2,000 areas. Amazon’s web page at amazon.com/getitfast shows whether those options are available to shoppers for their location. More than 90,000 products will be available for those shipping windows, the company said.

For those who can’t get those services (including the author of this post, who lives between Austin and San Antonio in Texas), a message will display: «3-hour delivery is currently unavailable. Check back at a later time or shop products with Same-Day delivery below.»

Pricing for the faster delivery options is not cheap: It’ll cost you $20 for one-hour delivery and $15 for three-hour delivery for those without an Amazon Prime account, or $10 and $5 for customers who subscribe to Prime.

Last year, the company rolled out faster Amazon delivery options to 4,000 additional areas.

In a video of the podcast Learn and Be Curious with Doug Herrington, hosted by Amazon’s CEO of worldwide stores, Kandace Kapps, the director of the company’s same-day strategy team, spoke in more detail about the challenges of fast shipping. Kapps discussed shifts in customer buying habits over the last few years, such as more people buying household essentials like toilet paper on Amazon.

She said that Amazon can deliver so quickly by placing same-day delivery hubs close to customers in metro areas and by getting products ready to ship within 15 minutes, aided by warehouse robots.

«I think customers are going to continue to get magically surprised by how fast we can deliver to their doorstop,» Kapps said.

Herrington said fast shipping increases sales: «When we speed up the service, the probability that somebody buys a product from us goes up.»

Other retailers, including Walmart, have been adding same-day delivery options or exploring other ways to speed up shipping times to compete with Amazon.

Removing buyers’ moments of hesitation

Part of Amazon’s strategy, which has involved a massive buildout of locations, deployment of thousands of trucks, deals with other delivery services and investment in logistics software, is actually pretty simple: being there when people need last-minute items or make impulse buys.

«It’s about removing the last moment where you would’ve reconsidered the purchase,» said Stephanie Carls, retail insights expert at coupon and promotional-code website RetailMeNot, a sibling site of CNET. «It changes how you shop, not just how fast you get things.»

Carls said that Amazon’s super-fast delivery is removing the timeframe when people might change their minds about a purchase.

«There used to be a gap between deciding to buy something and actually having it. That’s when you’d price check, rethink it, or decide you didn’t need it after all,» she said. «This closes that gap.»

The retail expert said that competitors, including Walmart and Target, have been speeding up delivery times in some markets. Still, they’re not matching Amazon’s scale or product range at those speeds or levels of consistency.

«And that’s what starts to make everyone else feel slow,» Carls said. «Amazon’s advantage is how tightly connected its technology, inventory and delivery networks are, which makes this level of speed more repeatable.»