Nacon, a French company that started as a game publisher and has now expanded into peripheral making, has been making gamepads for consoles for a while. In fact, it was one of the companies that Sony chose to make its wired ‘pro” PS4 controllers before Sony announced its own ‘pro’ controller for the PS5. Now, Nacon has introduced two mobile controllers, including the MG-X Pro, an iPhone-compatible model that lands in the middle of smartphone gamepad pricing.
The MG-X Pro is designed to be comfortable, with more substantial grips that are closer to typical console gamepads. This is the most comfortable smartphone gamepad available, with a similar spacing between the d-pad and analog controls and full-sized trigger buttons at the back, making it far more comfortable during long gaming sessions. The buttons are responsive but a little too squishy, and the d-pad feels a little loose. However, there is no latency difference between wireless and wired smartphone controller options when playing through several Apple Arcade titles, Into The Breach, and some Overwatch 2 streamed on PS Remote Play.
The vice part of the MG-X Pro has a ridged rubberized surface to keep your iPhone locked in, with a little lip on both sides to keep everything in place. The vice works on every iPhone model, even with a protective case, making it more versatile than some other vice controllers.
One issue with the MG-X Pro is that it is wireless and lacks a lighting cable plug to connect your iPhone into. This means that there is no power throughput, which becomes a problem when using cloud gaming services, like Xbox Cloud and PS Remote Play, that need a lot of power to stream games. The lack of pass-through charging makes it difficult to play for extended periods, and users must take similarly extended breaks to recharge their phones.
Additionally, the companion app for the MG-X Pro does not offer enough to warrant its download. It offers the ability to calibrate the two analog sticks, but users worry that they could drift in the future, and walkthroughs of what the MG-X Pro is capable of. That’s not all that much.
Overall, the MG-X Pro is the most comfortable smartphone gamepad available but is limited by its inability to keep users’ smartphones powered up. For more money, users could opt for the Backbone or the Razer Kishi, which offer pass-through charging. Alternatively, users could swap the vice-style controller for a more comfortable Bluetooth controller and keep their phone propped up, but plugged in.
