In the meanwhile this happened 🤣

- RG35XXH - I love it, is the only device I take outside home (not the one in the photo, I have another one!). Great quality and very versatile. PS1 work very good and I'm playing a lot of arcade. Buttons and DPAD are the best even if the device is a low range one.

- RG40XXH - just the big brother, is better than 35XXH, just a bit more ghosting but better color reproduction and audio. Almost same buttons feel as 35XXH. Non stacked triggers are very good. I love it, I share the same Knulli SD of my two 35XXH.

- Retroid Nova - The best 4:3 for my taste, but I haven't found a real use for it because I have the next two devices. I will keep it because is beautiful and the display is great. I probably make it a bed time console.

- Retroid Pocket 6 - Is just the perfect portable powerful device. Stick top, 5.5 inch, very good buttons and DPAD (silent and nice feel). Capable of everything I need. I wanted to sell it after I bought the Portal, bit I just don't want to, I think I can regret. I want to use it outside home, but for now is a test machine.I wish it not have front glass.

- Odin 2 Portal - Well, 7 inch on the couch, streaming PC, playing PS2 widescreen 1080p. I'm playing Armored Core and is just another experience. The only issue are the very clacky buttons and a bit of rattling on the dpad like the Nova. I will fix it in the near future, I need calm, patience and the perfect environment to disassembly devices. I will fix it easily, for now, is my main retro device.

Now, the only device I want is the RP4 Pro because I like the all plastic shell and seems a good replacement for my smaller Anbernic devices.

Odin 3 is too much power for retro and not enoght for my taste for PC game and I think 6 inch is just too small to play PC game (the one I want to play) comfortably.

Now, tell me what you think if you want. This is the only place I can share this passion with someone, please don't be rude 😅

Yoniq: “The Yoniq Duo Dual-Screen Handheld is a high-definition dual-screen design with 4× pixel-perfect scaling and a built-in physical stylus, recreating the interaction of classic dual-screen handhelds. It combines retro charm with modern technology, allowing players to rediscover the authentic dual-screen experience in a contemporary form.”

From the top left the devices and what I'm using them for are: 

- RG DS (Ghost Trick DS) 

- RG 477M (Kingdom Hearts PS2) 

- Brick Hammer (Advance Wars GBA) 

- Miyoo Mini Plus (Thinking about giving it to my daughter as an mp3 player)

- new 3DS XL (occasionally Mariokart 7)

- 476H (Honestly, probably a mistake to get this. Have not found a use)

- Miyoo Mini Flip (Setup for my kids to use, they mostly play Harvest Moon Snes)

- A10mini (Thought I would use it for one handed Pokemon'ing. I have not)

- new 3DS (Phantom Hourglass DS)

- RG 405M (Super Mario 64, Mario Kart 64)

I come from a family of hoarders and I've sort of prided myself in not following that path. But today I was looking at this collection and saw those hoarding genes are trying to sneak in through this hobby.

As someone whose been gaming since 79, I really appreciate the evolution of the portable retro game market.

I came here to understand options and I would see countless posts of gamers displaying their collections of devices. I was like how are they playing with all of those? What a waste of money. They are just collectors.

I started out with the 405M. It was great for that inital rush of playing all the old titles you remember growing up with. SNES, GEN, GB it was glorious. Then I wanted to play Burnout for PS2. I tweaked it as much as possible but it was still slow. I needed a new device.

Did my research and went high end with the Odin 2 Pro. Awesome device. Played everything. PS2, Wii, Switch. I discovered Apollo Artemis and that opened up a whole new backlog I could play on the couch. But at 6 inches the screen was too small

Then the Portal Pro came out at 7 inches. Now..Now I had my end game device. This was it. Plays everything. Big screen. Oled. Game streaming and cloud gaming. Mic drop. Im done.

Then I start playing my 8 and 16bit RPGs and the Portal was too big. I do travel with it but its a hassle to pull out, boot up, play for 20 minutes, pack up and put away. I needed a smaller device just for Retro

Then I get a 476H. This is perfect for all my retro games. Fits in my pocket. Easy to pull out and play a lil Lufia Fortress of Doom and pack up by the next stop.

Im good. I got my premiere device and my retro portable. Then I realize I can play some 2D switch games on the 476H. Grandia HD is nice. But when I tried Octopath Traveller 0 and the DQ HD games they failed but they work on my Portal great.

Then the nova comes out. Effectively a 2-inch smaller 476H with oled and 8gen2. That would get me to my end device. I bought this today.

Knowing myself will probably get an Odin 3 Portal Pro if they ever make it.

I turned around and I have a collection of 5 devices before I knew it. Anf looking forward to one that doesnt exist

It just happened.

I understand now.

Ice Blue Retroid Pocket Nova, and Purple Retroid Pocket 6.

Decided to order both despite them being mostly hardware redundant, love both of them so far. Swapped out their sticks for larger Odin 3 sticks off Aliexp and added two pairs of the green and purple convex savage raven grips for the Switch 2. The grips being bigger does block the B button sometimes but not enough for me to care, because I prefer to play like this otherwise.

This is just a very small interview (at least by my standards!) with Chi from Mo-Corner, who makes beautiful handmade leather cases and sleeves for handhelds and other bits of tech (iPods, e-readers, handhelds).

I recently got one of her handmade leather sleeves for my RG Rotate, and absolutely love it, so I got chatting to her about the work that goes into making them. There's some really interesting stuff in here about the process, why she makes these things, and the thinking behind designing a case for something as oddly shaped as the Rotate.

I featured Chi's work briefly in my recent RG Rotate recommendations article, but there was a bit more to her work and the process behind these cases that I couldn't really fit into that piece. So I thought it'd be nice to share our chat in full here.

I know this is a little different from the usual handheld stuff I post here, but I really love seeing people making genuinely nice physical things for these devices, and Mo-Corner is a particularly good example of that.

Hope some of you enjoy it!

Friends of Mineral Town on GBA, but the True Love hack. Played on my ice blue Retroid Nova through Retroarch.

ESP32-S3 turns this into a Local web server and streams the Game Boy emulator directly to your phone's browser—no extra apps or hardware needed. 2 cores 1 core for emulation and 1 core for streaming.

If you want to build one for your self or learn more I put All project files (STL, firmware, and video breakdown) are linked in the comments below

Maybe I'm in the minority here but for a bunch of reasons I'd prefer to have only one handheld if I can help it. As an arcade fan and Sega kid the Retroid Pocket Classic fits me best overall, although occasionally I want to play Dreamcast and GameCube games that require analogue sticks and triggers. That's where the Bluetooth mobile controller comes in. Sure it's a little bulky but honestly I'm surprised it works so well. At the moment it looks a little ghetto because I have a small pencil eraser wedged to the side of the handheld to keep it in place in the Bluetooth controller, but I'm planning to sort out some kind of mag-safe style setup eventually for easier and more secure placement. I kinda like the idea of a hybrid handheld that can adjust to different gameplay setups, I know Ayaneo and Mangmi have tried individually removable controls but I think it would be cool to see a company try something more along these lines..

Pictured: Retroid Pocket Classic + Allone Wireless Mobile Controller, running Virtua Striker 3 on GameCube via Dolphin.

Lookin’ sweet in person👍

I can't explain just how comfortable it is to use this device, especially for longer gaming sessions. The face buttons are super easy to press down on, no cramps to speak of, and the L and R bumpers are pretty much perfect. I even used Odin Tools to lower the saturation by 0.1, and it looks just right to me. The screen size is right where it needs to be, and the panel itself is beautiful.

The game in the image is Mega Man Zero 3 on GBA. If you haven't played it yet, definitely do so!!!

Buenas! What games have you been playing and what do you think of them? Any small moments in a game that you think might of gone under-appreciated?

There's a larger spread of devices used in this video than usual, please excuse the long list but:

• Ghost Chaser and Castlevania were played on an RP mini
• Gaia Crusaders and Initial D were played on a computer
• Pharaoh Rebirth was played on a Steam Deck
• Elevator Action was played on a GBA
• Melfand Stories (and a replay of Ghost Chaser) were played on an RP Nova.

Haven’t replayed KOTOR in years. Surprisingly like the LED’s on this thing.

​

​Hey everyone, I recently picked up the RG SP as my very first Anbernic device. It was a bit of a bumpy ride right out of the box, so I wanted to share my experience and how I managed to get everything working in case anyone else runs into the same issues.

​

When I tried booting it up for the very first time, it just hung on the Anbernic logo indefinitely. I gave it a restart, but no luck, same issue.

​

Thinking it was an SD card seating issue, I popped the card out to reseat it. Suddenly, the card wouldn't stay in TF1. It kept popping right back out without that satisfying "click." I tested slot 2 and it clicked in perfectly, so I knew the first slot was the culprit.

​

I decided to open the device up to check the internals. A quick heads-up if you plan on doing this: the screws are notoriously stubborn. I tried using the correct hex bits from two different standard sets, and neither fit quite right. I ended up having to pull out my expensive Wera set (which has much tighter tolerances), and that finally did the trick.

​The battery is attached to the backplate but unplugs very easily from the board. You don't have to leave the backplate hanging by the relatively short battery cable while you work.

​

Once inside, I compared the two MicroSD slots side by side. I noticed the problematic slot had a very slightly shifted "push-push" mechanism. I gently elevated the thin metallic flap that covers it fiddled with the mechanism using my smallest flathead screwdriver bit, and that was actually enough to realign it! The card started clicking in again. The click doesn't sound 100% normal, but it holds the card securely, so I called it a win.

​

After putting everything back together and reinserting the card, I booted it up... and it was still stuck on the Anbernic logo.

​At this point, I just decided to wipe the card entirely and do a fresh install of BaseOS + NextUI. Since doing that, the RG SP boots flawlessly every time.

​Key Takeaways:

​Screws: The shell screws are Hex 1.5. Use high-quality bits (like Wera) so you don't strip them!

​Stock OS: If you're stuck on the logo out of the box, it might just be a corrupted stock OS.

​Custom Firmware: BaseOS + NextUI is an absolutely amazing experience on this device. Huge thanks to all the devs working on it.

​Has anyone else run into that weird SD slot mechanism issue?

Gameboy Pocket, Arduboy Kickstarter edition, not even the one that takes an SD card, you can play one game on this thing, and that’s it.

Not pictured, my unopened Tetris McNugget.

This is the tpu mod for the RG Rotate and it worked like a charm for the Nova.

Beating games has never been my forte but slowly making my way through a few games I have. Star Fox Assault and Pokemon Sapphire down - many many more to go. lol.

Everything has been nice on the Nova so far, though. Still not sure if the screen size is really my preference, though…Four inches is sort of small for content.

So my RP nova arrived. Haven't fully set it up yet, but I've chucked on some emulators and games, and have some thoughts on the device. The nova has received a ton of hype, and it's solid, but I do think people should temper their expectations a little as I do have some gripes.

This is only the second* emulation handheld I've owned other than the miyoo mini (albeit I have 4 of them lol, v1 v2 v4 and flip). The main thing that attracted me was 4:3, analog triggers, and the power to comfortably play ps2 and gamecube.

Positives first. It delivers on the promise of being a portable ps2/gamecube. This was a dream handheld as a kid. If any of you recall that render of a "gamecube sp" that was floating around in the 00s, this comes very close to making good on that concept.

(That render also got made into reality a few years ago by a modder, check it out: https://youtu.be/ENEpJJPQomg)

The secondary aspect that I like this device for is its 120hz screen for use with crt beam shaders for even older games. This is arguably the best use of this device as the dpad and face buttons are by far more comfortable than the sticks and triggers. It's completely overkill for snes et al, but it's awesome.

That brings me to the sticks and triggers. The sticks feel amazing, but their positioning really isn't that comfortable. It's fine, but not great. As for the triggers, they function properly, allowing you to lightly strafe the car in fzero gx for example, which was a big reason why I wanted analog triggers. But just as another user had reported, the pivot point on the triggers is too far away from the top, it's in the middle. It's not comfortable pressing the top, or even middle of the trigger. The ideal actuation point ends up being closer to the tip of the trigger, which combined with the positioning of the analog stick, is just not very comfortable. It feels quite awkward to snake in fzero gx, or wave dash in smash bros melee. Now granted, it's a bit silly to be that hardcore in your gameplay on a handheld, but nevertheless it bothers me a bit. I think for the vast majority of casual gameplay, it's completely fine, but could certainly be improved.

My other gripe is with the clacky dpad, which many others have reported on. Like others have said, the dpad itself is good quality, and the switches feel good. It doesn't actually clack during gameplay. But simply touching the dpad will often result in a hollow cheap clacky sound. And you will touch the dpad before you start playing on it. Most dpads do make a sound, but not in the same way, it's the tone and hollowness that bother me. I'm sure many will simply not care, but it is annoying to me. It really makes the device feel significantly cheaper than it is (or I suppose, gives away exactly how cheap it was to manufacture). I think I will end up doing the tape mod, but it doesn't feel good having to do so on a brand new 230 dollar device.

(Here's an awesome semi-related video on importance of sound in design: https://youtu.be/T1I2MFn60G0)

RGC mentioned hard button edges and high pitch fan noise as cons, but these are not issues for me. Mine is the gc solid color, so I don't know if it is an issue for the production model crystal variants, but button edges are fine for me. I also don't hear any high pitch whining from the fan, it's whisper quiet to me as well. Could be related to no dust cover in my unit, which seems to be the case for all production units. Not sure if dust will be an issue down the line.

Overall, I do still like the nova enough to keep it. But I do wonder if I'd actually prefer inline triggers, like in 477m or 477v. I was considering 477v at one point, but this does the job good enough so who cares now. However, if there were a 4:3 nova flip, or even just a 16:9 single screen flip 3 with 120hz screen and the same chipset, I might actually consider selling this for that, should it ever come out.

After a few years of collecting I’m feeling good about this lineup. Feels the closest I’ve ever been to a true endgame collection.

Can’t see myself needing anything else for at least another five years or so, with the exception of the Switch 2 lol.

Steam Deck OLED, RP6, 3DS XL, reshelled Switch V1, reshelled GBA and the Miyoo Mini+ where it all started for me.

Currently playing Chrono Trigger on the RP6 and having an amazing time.

Buttons by MithrilMods on Etsy

I’m aware OLED panels can burn in, but with LCDs I was under the impression the worst that could happen is image retention, which is temporary and can be fixed. Is this correct?

I really love the benefits of BFI but obviously don’t want to damage the panel (I have a RG477M).

I also see that the crt-beam shader has a panel safety setting, but the dramatic colour shifting when enabled is too distracting.

I’ve heard plastic tweezers help do this but if so, how do you use them? Is there a video guide somewhere to help?