Review: PowerA MOGA Mobile Gaming Clip for Xbox Wireless Controllers

With the growth of AAA mobile gaming, mobile e-sports, and cloud game streaming services like Microsoft xCloud and Google Stadia, more people than ever before are interested in gaming on smartphones. Yet touchscreen controls can be fiddly, obscuring the display area and providing minimal haptic feedback. Enter PowerA’s MOGA Mobile Gaming Clip for Xbox wireless controllers, which is available on Amazon for $14.99 (sometimes on sale for less).

The MOGA Mobile Gaming Clip enables you to securely mount your smartphone atop an Xbox One S/X wireless controller.

Video Unboxing + Review

 

Smartphone Mount

A spring-loaded, rubber-backed mechanism holds the phone in place. The mechanism is rated to hold phones with a maximum width of 3.12” (79 mm). We tested the MOGA clip with a Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ inside a Spigen Ultra Hybrid S clear case. The phone fit comfortably within the MOGA clip with its case on, but only a couple of millimeters of additional width remained, so phones that are even wider may have issues fitting. As of late 2020, however, this should not be an issue with most traditional smartphones.

Articulation Points

The clip has two articulation joints, allowing for the phone to be positioned in myriad locations and angles relative to the controller and also allows for easy folding of the clip for portability.

Each articulation joint has two thumbscrews, allowing for more precise maneuvering to reach an ideal, ergonomic position. In our experience, this worked well, and while it did take some time to fully screw in each of the thumbscrews, the net result was a secure fit. This ended up being important because, at least in the case of larger phones like the Galaxy Note 10+, the phone may quite heavy relative to the Xbox controller, creating a top-heavy combined structure – so an insecure mount could easily give way. We encountered no such issues with the MOGA clip’s tightly secured joints.

Test

For our test, we used the MOGA clip with a Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ inside a Spigen Ultra Hybrid S clear case, attached to an Xbox One X Wireless Controller (with the stock battery cover). As of the Xbox One S launch, Microsoft added Bluetooth support to the Xbox Wireless Controller, enabling usage with smartphones and other non-Xbox devices.

After briefly experimenting with some native Android games, we quickly hopped over to Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass app, through which we fired up titles like Forza Horizon 4 and Halo Master Chief Collection.

Playing a full AAA console game on a phone mounted on the native Xbox controller via the MOGA clip was a great experience. The setup was much more comfortable than, say, having to prop the phone up on a table and then hold the controller separately. We could easily game continuously for long periods of time using our new MOGA-enabled portable Game Pass machine.

The MOGA Mobile Gaming Clip‘s double articulation joints and solid build quality deliver a better experience than some other (mostly no-name-brand) Xbox controller mounts we’ve tried, most of which have limited articulation and/or an insecure mount.

Have you tried out the MOGA clip or other Xbox controller mounts? Let us know about your experience in the comments below!

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