8BitDo Flip Pad looks like the perfect portable controller for Android emulators [Gallery]

Ben Schoon | Jan 8 2026 - 9:30 am PT

Announced at CES 2026 this week, the new 8BitDo Flip Pad is a USB-C controller for Android phones (and iPhones too) that sits on top of your display and seems just perfect for emulators.

Bluetooth game controllers are a dime a dozen at this point, but there’s always been plenty of room for new ideas and form factors. One great example of that was the 8BitDo Flip Pad, first teased ahead of CES 2026 this week.

The concept around the Flip Pad is to offer a very slim gamepad that’s specifically designed to work well with vertical, half-screen games, i.e. emulators.

While the 8BitDo Flip Pad won’t be launching until “Summer 2026,” I was able to check out an early version at CES 2026.

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Connected to a OnePlus device running an emulator of a classic Mario game, the controller worked really well. It sits perfectly in place on top of the screen and feels pretty natural. It doesn’t quite bring back the feeling of a classic handheld like a Gameboy seeing as modern smartphones are so narrow, but it’s absolutely close enough.

The Flip Pad itself is very thin, only coming up a few millimeters from the phone’s display, yet the buttons were still remarkably clicky with plenty of travel. The layout works well for simple emulators like Mario, but with the trigger buttons placed at the top of the gamepad, I could see some games feeling a little bit awkward. The underside of the gamepad is a rubber surface which helps protect the screen and anchor it in place so it doesn’t constantly slide back and forth.

8BitDo hasn’t announced pricing on this one yet, but this one seems just perfect for emulator fans, on Android and iPhone alike. The company touts that the Flip Pad is not only compatible with both platforms, but “officially supported by Apple.”

Would you pick one of these up?