GameSir G8 Plus - Bluetooth Phone Controller with Hall Effect Sticks

Our analysis

The GameSir G8 Plus talks to the phone over Bluetooth even while the phone sits in it, while the Razer Kishi V3 Pro and the Backbone Pro plug into the USB-C port. So the port on your phone does not matter: GameSir lists iOS and Android, and its clamp takes devices from 120 to 215 mm long, by GameSir's spec sheet.

What stands out

• Hall effect sticks and analog Hall triggers. Magnetic sensors on both, which is the drift question we explain in our stick drift guide. GameSir's manual also describes a hair trigger mode.
• It works with Lightning iPhones. Since nothing goes through the port, a Lightning iPhone can use it; GameSir lists iOS but no minimum version.
• Vibration, a six-axis gyroscope and two back buttons, plus GameSir's app to remap them. GameSir does not confirm the gyroscope on iPhone.
• It also works beyond the phone. GameSir lists Switch and PC; on PC it goes by cable, or wireless with a receiver sold separately.

Where it falls short

• No audio jack. GameSir writes «Audio: No», so headphones have to be Bluetooth or go into the phone.
• A battery to keep charged. 1000 mAh split between the two sides; GameSir publishes no hours.
• At 314 g it weighs more than the Kishi's 268 g, going by the weights the brands publish (Backbone gives none).

Look elsewhere if

Your phone has USB-C and you only play on it: the Kishi V3 Pro needs no charging, adds a 3.5 mm jack and two more buttons. If you want one controller for the phone and the TV, the Backbone Pro has a wireless mode Backbone rates at up to 40 hours.

The three are side by side in our phone controller comparison, and every controller we track is in the controllers section of our catalog.