A few weeks ago, code references in the first macOS 26.7 release candidate pointed to the imminent launch of two game controller devices. (There were also clues in there to a set of camera-equipped AirPods, but that’s another story.) And a new report has now added further detail about the launch plans for these products.
In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman confirms that Apple has indeed been working on these iPhone gaming accessories “for a bit over a year” and is keen to join what the company views as a lucrative market. He doesn’t name any sources for this, simply saying, “Here’s what I know.” But Gurman’s sources tend to be solid, as you can see with the accuracy of his last-minute iPhone Duo leak just before the launch event last week.
The “interesting part” of Gurman’s new report (his words, not mine) is that the game controllers are being developed and, if released, will likely launch under the Beats brand rather than Apple’s.
“The company has increasingly been using Beats as a way to experiment with new product categories and capitalize on the third-party accessories market without putting certain types of products under the more premium Apple brand,” he explains.
This, he argues, is a wise move when developing gaming products. A game controller for the iPhone would need to be relatively affordable in order to reach a wide audience, but as we saw at last week’s Surprise and Shine event, Apple prefers devices that are rather more premium when launching under its own brand.
A glance at the Beats section of Apple’s website illustrates this approach. The cheapest Apple-branded wireless earbuds you can buy are the AirPods 5, at $129, while the cheapest Beats equivalents are the Beats Flex, at $70. Similarly, the AirPods Max 2 are $549, whereas the similarly featured Beats Studio Pro are $350.
Going with the Beats branding also makes sense from a cultural/lifestyle point of view, Gurman claims. Beats is a younger and altogether hipper brand. Apple, by contrast, doesn’t appear to “get” gaming.
We should emphasise that Gurman is merely claiming that Apple is and has been working on game controller accessories for the iPhone,a nd there’s no guarantee that they’ll ever launch. But if they do, he’s confident that they’ll have a “b” on them rather than an Apple logo.