Tag Archives: Backbone

Backbone’s iPhone Gaming Controller Goes Translucent for Xbox’s 25th Anniversary

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Remember when you could see inside your Game Boy? Or your iMac? Or basically every piece of tech your parents told you was “too expensive to touch”? The early 2000s were absolutely obsessed with showing you the guts of things, and honestly, it ruled. Backbone apparently remembers too, because the new Xbox 25th Anniversary Edition of their Pro controller just raided the Controller S color archive and came back with three translucent shells that smell like 2002 in the best possible way.

Crystal Clear, Iconic Blue, and Bold Orange. Those aren’t made-up retro-adjacent names. Those are the actual original Xbox Controller S colorways, pulled straight from Microsoft’s retail catalog from back when controllers felt like objects worth bragging about. Backbone did their homework, and it shows.

Designer: Backbone

The Iconic Blue and Bold Orange units aren’t fully see-through. The grip bellies have a frosted, almost cloudy quality, and the plastic deepens where two layers of shell overlap, creating a subsurface glow effect that’s half-accidental, half-beautiful. The Bold Orange, particularly, looks backlit in direct light, the kind of amber warmth you’d get through sea glass. Crystal Clear is a different proposition entirely: genuinely transparent, every internal rib and screw boss visible, the trigger mechanism readable through the shell. Three colorways, three completely different personalities, all from the same tooling.

Every surface your hands actually contact is solid black. The thumbstick caps, the D-pad, the face buttons, the rear paddles, the trigger tips. Opaque, grounded, present. Everything else goes translucent and pulls back visually. It’s a simple call that makes the controller feel intentional rather than just see-through for novelty’s sake, your hands know exactly where to land, and the shell gets to be the art. The one exception is the Backbone button, which stays orange across all three colorways. On Bold Orange it vanishes completely into the shell; on Crystal Clear and Iconic Blue it’s a single warm accent, doing all the color work by itself.

The bridge connecting the two grips carries a fine perforated dot-matrix texture, the “BACKBONE” and “XBOX 25” co-branding, and a miniature Xbox sphere in place of the O. That whole wordmark sits on the one surface that disappears the second you dock a phone. Permanent branding, placed where only you see it. There’s something genuinely charming about that.

Hardware-wise this is the full Backbone Pro package underneath the anniversary paint: full-size ALPS thumbsticks, Hall Effect triggers, two remappable rear paddles, ultra-quiet face buttons, Bluetooth LE with FlowState one-press device switching, and dual batteries rated to 40 hours. USB-C wired or fully wireless, works across phones, tablets, PCs and TVs. The whole thing sits under 200 grams. No changes from the base Pro, which is absolutely fine when the base Pro is already regarded as the best thing you can strap to a phone for serious gaming.

The Backbone Pro Xbox 25th Anniversary Edition is $159.99, preorders are open now, and shipping kicks off in October 2026. It comes with a free month of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, and one gentle warning: it’s sold as a blind box, so the universe picks your color. All three are in equal production, all three look great, and the orange is objectively the most dramatic. Pick accordingly, or just roll the dice.

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XBOX Is 25 and 7 Accessories Just Brought Back Its Most Iconic Color

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The original XBOX launched on November 15, 2001. A quarter-century later, it’s getting the tribute it probably deserves, not just a cake but a full coordinated collection of gaming accessories wrapped in the translucent green that made the first console so immediately recognizable. Seven products across five manufacturers, all designed to land before November arrives.

Razer leads the lineup with three anniversary editions spanning mouse, keyboard, and earbuds. The Basilisk V3 Pro 35K brings the translucent green shell to a wireless ergonomic mouse with a Focus Pro 35K Optical Sensor Gen-2, a four-way scroll wheel, and up to 140 hours of battery life between charges. It’s the same hardware underneath; the anniversary treatment is entirely in the aesthetic.

Designer: XBOX, Razer, 8BitDo, Backbone, GameSir

The BlackWidow V4 75% joins it as the compact keyboard option, a wired mechanical board with hot-swappable keys, Razer Chroma RGB, and a new XBOX key that launches Game Bar directly in Windows. It sits comfortably on a desk without dominating it, which is something a full-size board can’t always claim. The 75% layout keeps it portable without sacrificing the keys most gamers actually use.

Completing Razer’s contribution are the Hammerhead V3 X HyperSpeed earbuds, which match the translucent green look across both the earbuds and the charging case. They support low-latency 2.4 GHz wireless audio alongside Bluetooth 5.3, with up to 10 hours of standalone use and 35 hours total when the case is factored in. For anyone gaming across multiple devices, the dual-connection options make them genuinely flexible.

8BitDo brings back the transparent green with its X25 Special Edition of the Ultimate Charging Dock for XBOX controllers, compatible with XBOX Series X|S and XBOX One wireless controllers. GameSir’s X5 Lite for XBOX adds the anniversary colorway to a mobile controller that works with iOS and Android devices and carries Apple MFi certification for broad compatibility, including cloud gaming on either platform.

The Backbone Pro XBOX 25th Anniversary Edition takes a different angle on nostalgia. Instead of translucent green, it reaches into the original 2001 hardware’s full palette, offering Iconic Blue, Bold Orange, and Crystal Clear as the three available colorways. The catch is that it ships blind box style, so the color inside the package isn’t something you choose at checkout.

PowerA rounds out the collection with a sling bag built specifically for the ROG XBOX Ally and ROG XBOX Ally X handheld gaming PCs. The four-compartment bag has dedicated space for the device itself, a headset, a controller, and accessories, with a padded main compartment that includes thumbstick protectors. It carries the 25th anniversary logo on the front and matches the green zipper pulls across the bag.

The collection is available for preorder now, with most items shipping in November to coincide with the actual anniversary date. The XBOX Wireless Controller X25 Special Edition, sold separately, uses colored ABXY buttons and black-and-white bumpers as a callback to the original Duke controller’s layout. The PowerA sling bag retails for $39.99 and the GameSir X5 Lite for $44.99, with other pricing still unconfirmed.

The post XBOX Is 25 and 7 Accessories Just Brought Back Its Most Iconic Color first appeared on Yanko Design.

Limited Edition Post Malone Backbone One Controller in translucent green

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If Post Malone’s music sets the tone for your day, then you need to know that he is a passionate gamer too. Yes, the acclaimed songwriter and rapper has many chart-breaking performances under his belt, and he’s stopping at nothing. During his busy schedule, the star finds it difficult to game on a PC setup but makes up for that with his mobile games.

Backbone One is his favored controller choice for whenever he can find time and the team at Backbone acknowledges this fact. That’s the reason they’ve released Limited Edition Post Malone Controller. The accessory for mobile gamers will satisfy your gaming needs while having a deep connection with your favorite singer. Only 500 gamepads will be sold for $199, launching June 25 exclusively on their website, so you better mark the date.

Designer: Backbone

Post is mostly touring in his tight schedule and he found this collaboration request to be what his heart desired. He can bring his gaming to the road while traveling and the exclusive gaming controller based on the Backbone One is developed with inputs from him. The design bears a direct influence sporting his favorite color – 90s green done in a semi-transparent theme that looks stunning. The D-pad and the face buttons also get a facelift in an aluminum finish with the icons laser etched. When you’ll be gaming in the dark, the glow-in-the-dark Post Malone logo makes this one even a sweeter deal.

According to Backbone CEO Maneet Khaira, “The fusion of Post Malone’s renowned brand and his genuine passion for gaming with the category-defining Backbone platform felt like a perfect match.” The normal Backbone One controller for Android, iPhone and PlayStation costs $99 and this version is $100 more. Would you want to spend that amount, depends solely on your affinity towards Post Malone and this cool color theme.

The post Limited Edition Post Malone Backbone One Controller in translucent green first appeared on Yanko Design.

Death Stranding edition Backbone One controller sports a pee-colored semi-transparent body shell

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Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding is coming to iOS devices later this month and you’ll need a sharp gamepad to have the tactical advantage in-game. Backbone has got you covered on that front with a BackBone One Death Stranding Limited Edition controller. This comes on the back of the recently unveiled second-generation version of the highly rated USB-C controller for the iPhone 15 and Android controller.

Now the brand has collaborated with the developer of the highly anticipated title to develop a unique-looking gamepad that for you could either be a golden bliss or a piece of piss! That’s because the color is so peculiar, you’ll have your own subjective opinion on it. By the way, this is not the first time such a controller has made its first appearance since there was a DualShock 4 in the same hue.

Designer: Backbone One

Death Stranding is coming to iOS and Mac on January 30, 2024, and on the very same day, Backbone will make the special edition controller available for purchase in the United States. Playing this crazy haunted open-world title with touchscreen controls is going to be difficult, so if you own the iPhone 15 series, you are better off getting this mobile controller before the stock runs out. The new version (limited edition and standard one) has incremental upgrades including magnetic adapters for an ergonomic fit and a revamped D-pad.

The controller is inspired by the peaking technologies of 2000, explaining the transparent plastic casing that exposes the hardware inside. That hue somehow reminds me of the portable jars for carrying Bridge Babies around. While the front sports a cool transparent yellowish hue, the rear has a more standard solid yellow-orange and graphite color scheme.

Get this limited edition Backbone One mobile controller for $150 and you’ll suit yourself to the free iOS download code for the game. Also, the USB-C connection should be good for connectivity with Android devices.

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