Mobile controllers are a dime a dozen, but few embrace portrait play and nostalgia like the new Pocket Taco. GameSir’s newest handheld accessory clamps onto the lower half of your phone as a throwback to classic handheld gaming devices while ensuring that your screen remains the focal point. Preorders are live with a $34.99 price point, making it a relatively affordable gateway for retro gaming and mobile emulation enthusiasts.
A Vertical Throwback Made for Portrait Play
Unlike a telescoping pad that stretches over your device, the Pocket Taco clips underneath the screen for vertical gameplay. On the face of the controller you can expect to see a classic D-pad, an ABXY cluster, Start and Select, and two added function buttons; however, none of this matters if we don’t have access to those extra triggers, so naturally there are also four shoulder inputs for modern games that require a little bit more. The result is something familiar: your phone on the “screen,” and the controller serving as a tactile substitution for one of those retro handheld devices.
The design is a nod to Game Boy–era muscle memory without feeling dated. Both the extra shoulder buttons and the remappable inputs keep you from having to retrain yourself when you switch between emulators, indie platformers, and action games.
Bluetooth First Cross-Platform Compatibility
The Pocket Taco connects via Bluetooth, so you’re not wed to any port standard. This makes it compatible with new Android phones and iPhones alike. It works with standard gamepad profiles in order to be as widely compatible as possible, and you can even remap its buttons using the GameSir app so it’s perfect for your library, whether that includes a Super NES emulator or a modern roguelite.
The controller is powered by a 600 mAh rechargeable battery and draws no power from your phone. Even when properly tested by reputable sites such as RTINGS, wireless input latency for Bluetooth gamepads generally falls in the 20–40 ms range for most hardware and OS configurations, which is fine for most retro and casual gaming. Hardcore shooters will probably still want a wired solution, but for re-enacting a Rolling Stone cover and taking on NPCs in single-player action, Bluetooth is practical.
It also comes at a good time for the mobile ecosystem. Apple, for example, has been further extending support for native gamepads in recent iOS releases to popular console controllers, and Android has continued doing a lot more with HID gamepad handling and haptics since Android 12. The result is fewer pairing headaches and improved out-of-the-box mapping in apps.
Why Form Factor Is Important for Mobile Gaming
Most other mainstream mobile pads double down on landscape play with some form of rail-style grip or USB-C passthrough. The Pocket Taco, by contrast, celebrates portrait ergonomics, which work wonders for a lovely back catalog of classic handheld games and all sorts of mobile-first titles designed around single-thumb or vertical interfaces. It also works better for quick sessions — trains, couches, and coffee lines — when flipping the phone into landscape mode is a hassle.
For emulation, we clearly get it. Vertical handhelds like Game Boy and Game Boy Color feel right with the screen up top and inputs down below. Developers of popular Android and iOS emulators have long supported external controllers, and the physical D-pad here is a worthy improvement over onscreen buttons. Remember, as always, only use legally obtained game backups from cartridges you own.
Pricing Below the Big Names in Mobile Controllers
Selling for $34.99, the Pocket Taco comes in below some top-tier landscape controllers from companies like Backbone and Razer, which tend to clock in around the $99 price point. There are plenty of budget wireless pads out there, but few cater to playing in portrait with an entire form factor. It’s a trade-off by design: convenience and cross-platform support over delivering hardwired low-latency modes and passthrough charging. The value proposition is very compelling for the retro and vertical use cases it targets.
From Trade Show Tease to Taking Orders This Spring
The Pocket Taco showed its face as the Pocket 1 at a large gaming expo in Tokyo, and now the rebranded Pocket Taco is moving into preorders. With units set to start shipping on March 15, the latest add-on toy should bring a playful, distinctly handheld feel to an increasingly crowded market of telescoping grips and console-style pads.
The Bottom Line: A Handy Vertical Controller Option
If you’ve been yearning for a controller that holds your phone like an old-school handheld, the Pocket Taco seems to be designed exactly for that job. It’s not a substitute for a wired tournament pad, but its vertical ergonomics, Bluetooth convenience, remappable controls, and sub-$40 price add up to an enticing pick for emulation mavens and others with an itch to play with just a touch of nostalgia on the go. And with mobile accounting for about 49 percent of global games revenue, according to the market researcher Newzoo, there’s an opportunity for accessories that meet players where they already are — a reality that the Pocket Taco embraces with panache.
