Beats could be the name on Apple's first-ever game controller

Apple has reportedly spent more than a year developing gaming controllers for the iPhone, and the hardware could reach shelves carrying Beats branding rather than Apple’s own, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.

Gurman reported that two controllers, codenamed T6502 and T1057, are being developed under the Beats brand, with Beats executives handling both product engineering and conception. He did not give a release timeline for an Apple-branded controller.

According to Gurman, Apple has used Beats before as a way to test unfamiliar product territory without attaching its own name to the experiment. A Beats controller could also undercut an Apple-branded one on price, since it would not need the premium materials and finish that Apple applies to its own hardware. Gurman added that Beats buyers and gamers overlap considerably in taste and culture, which makes the label a natural fit for a gamepad.

MacRumors had earlier reported that one of their readers had identified GameController framework profiles for two unreleased devices, T6502 and T1057, inside the first release candidate for macOS 26.

The code described two conventional gamepads that differ internally. Both carry a D-pad, an ABXY button layout, two clickable thumbsticks, shoulder buttons, analog triggers, and Home and Menu buttons. The T6502 connects over USB and skips motion sensors entirely, but it supports four haptic channels split across two motors.

The T1057 works over both USB and Bluetooth and adds an accelerometer and a gyroscope for motion input while running a single haptic motor. The profiles also appeared in the iOSSupport copy of GameController that macOS uses to run iPhone and iPad apps, suggesting the software support was written for customers rather than gated behind internal builds.

Apple has stayed out of this category so far and sold other companies’ hardware instead. Its online store carries iPhone controllers from Backbone and SteelSeries, and iOS has supported PlayStation and Xbox gamepads for years. Building its own would put Apple in direct competition with accessory partners it currently promotes.