The PlayStation Portal isn’t due to arrive until mid next month, but that doesn’t mean you have to wait to enjoy remote access to your PS5. In fact you could start playing PS5 games on your phone, streaming them from your console no matter where you are. And thanks to Amazon Prime Day you could get started without paying quite so much money.
The Backbone One mobile controller grip is now just $69 in the Amazon Prime Big Deal Days sale. That’s $30 off the normal price, and the lowest ever price for this particular grip. But not only is this a lot cheaper than a PlayStation Portal, it’s compatible with all your consoles — including PC and Xbox.
The Backbone One is a controller grip that you put your phone into, and in the process turns it into something akin to a Nintendo Switch. You hold the grip out in front of you, and that’s how you play your games — nice and simple. This particular model just so happens to be designed to match the PS5, and includes all your traditional PlayStation button designs.
Remote Play on PS5 doesn’t have the best reputation among certain circles. Personally I’ve never had any problems with the gameplay, just the constant need to pair and repair my only DualSense controller between my phone and console. Meanwhile the Backbone One is more convenient, and unlike similar grips it’s actually recognised as a DualSense by your PS5.
The PlayStation design is only skin deep, though, and the Backbone One is still compatible with non-PlayStation games — something the PlayStation Portal won’t be able to do. That includes Xbox Remote Play and cloud gaming, NVIDIA GeForce Now, Apple Arcade, Steam Link and Amazon Luna. If we were to nitpick, we'd say that for true PlayStation aesthetics the joysticks should be centralized as opposed to the Xbox-style diagonal look.
But still, to top it all off you can use regular Bluetooth headphones with the Backbone One, another thing Sony confirmed the PlayStation Portal won't support. All you have to do is make sure you have the right grip for your phone. That's Lightning for iPhone 14s or older, and USB-C for everything else — iPhone 15 series included.
