iPhone 18 Pro preorders opened at the weekend, and it was notable during the launch presentation how Apple framed the phone as a significant upgrade for gaming. The company says the new 7-core GPU on the A20 Pro Chip is up to 40% faster than the previous generation, while the improved cooling system with enlarged vapor chamber is said to allow a 40% gain in performance.
Just days later, rumours suggest that Apple’s developing its first gaming hardware since the best-forgotten Pippin in the form of two controllers. But is there a market for them?
The SteelSeries Nimbus Dual-Mode Cloud Controller (Image credit: SteelSeries)
The probable development of Apple gaming controllers was first noted by a MacRumors reader, who highlighted references in the latest macOS 26.7 release code to devices named T6502 and T1057. These identify themselves to Apple’s Game Controller software framework as “Made For iPhone” gamepads.
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The regular Apple rumour purveyor Mark Gurman of Bloomberg has confirmed that two controllers have been in development for over a year. They’re said to feature usual controls like D-pad, dual thumbsticks, shoulder buttons, and analogue triggers.
One seems to be a fairly basic wired controller. The other reportedly supports Bluetooth and adds an accelerometer and gyroscope, which makes it sound like a potential ‘Pro’ version.
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Aside from jokes about the possibility of a charging port in a frustrating location, (looking at you, Magic Mouse), the news has been hailed as confirmation that Apple’s finally going all in on gaming, aiming to make the iPhone a genuine competitor for the likes of the Nintendo Switch and the Steam Deck, including for AAA games.
But there’s a detail that’s raised eyebrows. The reports suggest that the controllers will be released under the Beats brand, not the Apple name.
It seems the Cupertino tech giant wants in on gaming but is still worried that gamers don’t click with the Apple brand. The bolder, more youthful Beats might be a better fit – but only just. Beats doesn’t have rep with gamers either. It’s branched out into speakers and iPhone cases, but it’s still essentially a headphones brand. A move into gaming peripherals is a big leap.
So why make a foray into gaming hardware with a secondary brand that’s only known for one thing? Some people would buy an Apple controller for the aesthetic and for brand loyalty.
There’s an argument that using Beats would allow Apple to avoid sullying its main brand through the use of the less premium materials, allowing it to ensure a competitive price point. There’s no shortage of third-party controllers for iPhone, from peripherals from Backbone or SteelSeries that clamp to the phone to universal controllers like the Sony’s DualShock 4 and DualSense, the Xbox Wireless Controller, Nintendo Switch Pro Controller and devices from brands like Razer.
Beats is also a platform agnostic brand, suggesting that the potential Apple controllers would be marketed as a universal mobile gaming accessory rather than for iPhone specifically.
But if Apple’s really is serious about gaming, the controllers should be less about hardware sales and more about strengthening its gaming ecosystem, from Apple Arcade to potential Apple TV gaming, Vision Pro integrations and better cross-device experiences. The Beats name might detract from that.
But I suspected there’s also another consideration. From Apple Watch to the Vision Pro to new iPhone Duo, Apple enters mature markets late only when it thinks it has something it can present as a new innovation, or as the perfection of what everyone else has been aiming for. If it’s launching gaming controllers under the Beats name, that suggests it doesn’t have an innovation: they’re just more controllers in an already crowded market. So why bother at all?