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One thread dedicated to reviews of any product you like that fits the general idea, from dedicated systems, modded name brand handhelds, mobile phones, etc. I'll hopefully end up posting my own review for my experience with each system. Try to focus on the strongest and weakest aspects of the system you review
First system I ever hacked, my PS Vita. This was before the retro handheld market properly took off, as most of the systems couldn't even handle the more demanding SNES and GBA titles, and while this one had some issues here and there, virtually all of them have been resolved. Sadly NDS and N64 are still unfinished, I'm fairly confident they will one day be up to snuff. It is worth noting that for whatever reason, the system takes literal minutes to decompress ROMs for play, so you are best off doing that before loading them.
While the screen doesn't perfectly scale up the GBA, it does a better job than the current retro standard screen. Most games can be blown up full screen no problem, no matter the system; but with my favorite GBA series, Megaman Battle Network, movement is generally diagonal, and this creates a weird visual effect due to the uneven pixels. The system earns a few bonus points due to running PSX and PSP games natively, although the games don't get an increased resolution, which greatly hurts the PSP experience for many games.
The controls of the system remain my favorite of any handheld, particularly the D-pad. Precise movement is a must for me, so the Vita's clicky but not noisy control hits the spot each and every time. Most retro handhelds have a very mushy quality about them, which very often results in bad directional input, like false diagonals. The face buttons similarly work great. The shoulders aren't perfect, but do their job just fine. The analogue sticks are an unfortunate compromise; I understand the need for compactness, thus their small size, but I'm forced to wonder if copying the 3DS's stick wouldn't have been a better fit.
If I were on the design team for a new retro handheld, there are few changes I would make to improve the system from where it currently stands. The Vita can generally be found for around $120 USD lightly used, which I honestly think is still a great price for all of the systems you will have access to. Also note that being a first party system, the Vita features a very solid battery life, and an actually functional sleep mode. Expect at least 8+ hours of non-stop play for anything that isn't heavy-weight. If I could make exactly three changes, in order they would be: better sticks, slightly smaller size (removing those bezels alone would do the trick), and the ability to run PSP games at full Vita resolution.
Judging it only as a retro handheld, I give the system an 8/10
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First system I ever hacked, my PS Vita. This was before the retro handheld market properly took off, as most of the systems couldn't even handle the more demanding SNES and GBA titles, and while this one had some issues here and there, virtually all of them have been resolved. Sadly NDS and N64 are still unfinished, I'm fairly confident they will one day be up to snuff. It is worth noting that for whatever reason, the system takes literal minutes to decompress ROMs for play, so you are best off doing that before loading them.
While the screen doesn't perfectly scale up the GBA, it does a better job than the current retro standard screen. Most games can be blown up full screen no problem, no matter the system; but with my favorite GBA series, Megaman Battle Network, movement is generally diagonal, and this creates a weird visual effect due to the uneven pixels. The system earns a few bonus points due to running PSX and PSP games natively, although the games don't get an increased resolution, which greatly hurts the PSP experience for many games.
The controls of the system remain my favorite of any handheld, particularly the D-pad. Precise movement is a must for me, so the Vita's clicky but not noisy control hits the spot each and every time. Most retro handhelds have a very mushy quality about them, which very often results in bad directional input, like false diagonals. The face buttons similarly work great. The shoulders aren't perfect, but do their job just fine. The analogue sticks are an unfortunate compromise; I understand the need for compactness, thus their small size, but I'm forced to wonder if copying the 3DS's stick wouldn't have been a better fit.
If I were on the design team for a new retro handheld, there are few changes I would make to improve the system from where it currently stands. The Vita can generally be found for around $120 USD lightly used, which I honestly think is still a great price for all of the systems you will have access to. Also note that being a first party system, the Vita features a very solid battery life, and an actually functional sleep mode. Expect at least 8+ hours of non-stop play for anything that isn't heavy-weight. If I could make exactly three changes, in order they would be: better sticks, slightly smaller size (removing those bezels alone would do the trick), and the ability to run PSP games at full Vita resolution.
Judging it only as a retro handheld, I give the system an 8/10
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