Comparison

Backbone vs OMNI MESH

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Backbone

Transform your iPhone or iPad into a powerful gaming console. Play a wide range of games and services, record and share epic gameplay moments, and connect with friends for seamless multiplayer experiences. Discover and launch your favorite controller-supported games from a single app.

Highlights
  • Play any game or service supporting controllers
  • Record, edit, and share gameplay clips
  • Automatic highlight detection
  • Friend notifications and in-app voice chat
  • Centralized game launcher
Features
Read full description

Backbone turns your iPhone and iPad Mini into the ultimate gaming device. ■ Play any game or service that supports game controllers. The Backbone One controller works with services like PS Remote Play, Xbox Game Pass (xCloud), Apple Arcade, Xbox Remote Play, Google Stadia, and Amazon Luna. It also works with games like Call of Duty: Mobile, Minecraft and Genshin Impact. Press the Backbone Button to bring up the app and launch into your favorite games that support controllers from one place. ■ Record, edit, and share epic gaming clips Backbone One has a built-in Capture button that allows you to easily screen record or screenshot gameplay and share directly to social platforms like Instagram Stories and iMessage, all directly from your mobile device. ■ Never miss a moment Hold the Capture Button to bookmark a moment when recording. Forgot to bookmark? Once a video is captured, Backbone’s app helps you identify your most action-packed moments automatically, allowing you to show off your best moments and highlights with ease. ■ Party with your friends With Backbone’s Rich Presence feature, you can get push notifications when your friends start playing games on Backbone, making it easy to join the action in real-time. Once you see a friend online, you can link up for voice chat inside the app and move from game to game, seamlessly. To learn more, download the app or visit https://backbone.com/ A Backbone+ subscription is required for some features within the app. Any feedback? Use the in-app feedback tool, ping us at support@playbackbone.com or tweet us @backbone Terms of Use: https://backbone.com/terms/

About

OMNI MESH

Connect with friends and your local community without an internet connection. This app creates a decentralized mesh network, allowing posts, messages, and calls to travel peer-to-peer, even over long distances. Share updates, discover local content, and leave geo-pinned memories securely.

Highlights
  • True offline social media
  • Long-distance mesh routing
  • Community social feed
  • Secure messaging and calls
  • Geo-pinned memories
  • Ultimate privacy
Features
Read full description

OMNI finds the people around you who share your interests, with no internet, no signal and no account. Open OMNI at an event, a bar, a conference, a campus or on a plane. People nearby who also have OMNI open appear as cards: first name, age, the interests you share and a match score. Say hi with one tap. If they say hi back, you are matched: you can see each other's stories and posts, chat, and call, all phone to phone. How it works - Your phone and theirs talk directly over Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Nothing goes through a server, because there is no server. - Before you connect, phones only share your interests and age group, never your name or photo. - Both phones need OMNI open to see each other. Keep it open at the event. - What you see from a match fades 30 minutes after you part, unless you both choose Stay connected. - Leave a note for a match at a spot: they find it by getting closer and read it when they are there. - Chats and notes are encrypted to the person you send them to. Safety - 18 and over only. - Block and report anyone, before or after a match. Reports go straight to our team by email. - Hide me stops your phone from being seen with one tap. - Delete your profile at any time from Settings. OMNI is for meeting people in the same room. It does not work in the background and it never tracks where you go.

Screenshots

Backbone4 screens
OMNI MESH4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: OMNI MESH at none against Backbone's 16. OMNI MESH also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). Backbone's advantage is ratings volume (102K vs 1) and chart position (#66 vs unranked). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Backbone sells 14 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. OMNI MESH asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

OMNI MESH holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Backbone has 102K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Backbone versus OMNI MESH: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBackboneOMNI MESH
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (102K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews51.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings102K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#66 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size422 MB47 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperBackbone Labs, Inc. (US)Kidus Berhanu

Customer experience

Backbone

All ratings101,995 ratings
Positive95.4%
Neutral1.8%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews932 reviews
Positive51.1%
Neutral8.6%
Negative40.3%

OMNI MESH

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Backbone

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Random disconnections during gameplay
  • App crashes and freezes
  • Issues with controller button mapping
  • Incompatibility with certain games

Requested features

4 requests
  • Allow use without subscription
  • Add more customization options
  • Improve compatibility with various phone models
  • Integrate with more cloud gaming services

OMNI MESH

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

14 purchases

Backbone

Subscriptions14
  • Backbone+7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Backbone+$3.991 Month
  • Backbone+$7.991 Month
Show 11 more
  • Backbone+1 Month trial2 variants$29.991 Year
  • Backbone+1 Year trial$29.991 Year
  • Backbone+1 Year trial2 variants$39.991 Year
  • Backbone+1 Month trial$39.991 Year
  • Backbone+3 Months trial$39.991 Year
  • Backbone+7 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Backbone+14 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Backbone+3 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Backbone+ 41 Year trial$39.991 Year
  • Backbone+14 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Backbone+7 Days trial$49.991 Year
None

OMNI MESH

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Backbone free?
Backbone is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is OMNI MESH free?
OMNI MESH is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Backbone or OMNI MESH?
OMNI MESH is rated higher. Backbone averages 4.8 out of 5 from 102K ratings, while OMNI MESH averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Backbone or OMNI MESH have ads?
Neither Backbone nor OMNI MESH shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Backbone or OMNI MESH?
Backbone ships an update every 3 weeks, and OMNI MESH every 3 weeks. Most recently, Backbone was updated on October 24, 2026 and OMNI MESH on October 13, 2026.

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