My gateway to magnetic controllers
I take the tiny M4 controller everywhere for microdoses of mobile gaming.
To give you an idea of how small this thing is, it’s just a little larger than my earbuds case. It fits so effortlessly into my pocket that I can forget it’s even there, which hasn’t been the case for my smartphone for nearly a decade.
Truthfully, the magnetic ring is the only part that sticks out, and that’s pretty much inevitable. The good news is the magnet itself is very strong, so my phone never flopped onto the floor like a sad pancake. It’s definitely top-heavy, especially when paired with an enormous gaming phone like the REDMAGIC 11 Pro, but for short stints on the bus or train, it’s been a game-changer.
MCON steals the stage
MCON is built like a tank, and it’s just as pocketable as a smartphone.
If you somehow haven’t seen the hype videos, it mixes MagSafe magnets, Bluetooth controllers, and a PSP Go-style sliding design to create the ultimate mobile controller. I’ve tested plenty of premium telescopic controllers, including the 0 Backbone Pro, but none of them feel as premium as MCON.
This thing is built like a tank. A thick plate covers the controls when they’re not in use, and the whole thing is roughly the same size as an external battery pack. It’s not as small as the Abxylute M4, but it’s every bit as pocketable as a smartphone.
The future of mobile controllers
These are just the first two magnetic controllers to hit the market, and I expect many more in the coming months. Abxylute has already confirmed to me that the company plans on releasing additional magnetic designs, although it may be a while before any are made public. After raising more than 0,000 for the M4, it’s clear that there’s a hunger for this kind of product.
In other words, this is just the beginning. The Abxylute M4 and MCON hit the two extremes, but there’s plenty of room in the middle. It’s easy to imagine established companies like GameSir (which contributed to MCON’s design in some way) rushing in to fill it.
Magnets are becoming standard on modern smartphones, and gaming has caught up.
The timing couldn’t be better. With magnets becoming a standard feature on modern phones, starting with Google’s Pixel lineup earlier this year, magnetic accessories are no longer a niche experiment. It was only a matter of time before gaming caught up.
To be clear, I don’t think telescopic controllers will disappear overnight. They’re still great for couch play, whether it’s Android games, emulation, or cloud gaming. But for me, that space is now dominated by dedicated gaming handhelds. For the way I actually game on my phone, in short sessions while outside the home, magnetic controllers feel like a natural evolution.
For the first time in years, I don’t have to plan my mobile gaming around a controller. It finally fits in my pocket.
