Retroid Pocket What?
For those unfamiliar, Retroid produces handheld gaming devices. They are excellent android powered emulation machines. The Retroid Pocket 5 is the latest iteration of their flagship product and the most powerful to date.
Retroid machines are known for their excellent build quality. I won't lie to you: the market is littered with a myriad of Android and Linux-powered handheld devices. However, Retroid stands out precisely because of their curated design and quality materials.
The company is also known for their no-nonsense refund policy. I've personally had to ask for one after changing my mind about the model, and it was as easy as sending an email, which was immediately granted. This isn't always the case with other lesser-known brands.
But didn't they just release the Retroid Pocket 4?
What can I say? This industry moves fast. Yes, this isn't your typical console generation cycle; you're going to see new models in a short span of time. The differences aren't always dealbreakers, though, and depending on your needs, you might not even need an RP5 if you own an RE4 or RP3+.
Regardless, the Retroid Pocket 5 has the most powerful CPU, a Snapdragon 865, 8GB of RAM, and an incredible 5.5-inch AMOLED, 1080p@60fps screen. If you want the latest and greatest in their line, there's no contest!
What can it emulate?
A lot. It supports up to PlayStation 2, VITA, Dreamcast, GameCube, and many Switch* games. The best part is that many 6th Gen games come with a 16:9 option or have patches that enable it, making use of the full width of the screen.
The display is probably one of the best features of this console. The colors pop, and the blacks are very deep, thanks to the AMOLED screen. The only problem might be the reflections since it has a glass cover that extends over the entire device, so you might need to angle it in a way that it doesn't face a light source.
The battery lasts several hours, depending entirely on how much you push the device and the screen brightness. Let's just say I've never reached a point where I had to stop to charge it, unless I forgot to do so in my last session. The charging is extremely fast; even while playing, you can get back to a high percentage without noticing. The USB-C cable plugs in at the bottom, which is something I love and isn't always the case (Steam Deck?).
It comes with Android 13 (I don't know what else to say about that), and some proprietary launcher that you can completely avoid using. It works but has some quirks; for example, it shows three copies of Daijisho (another launcher), and I was unable to remove the other two; they just sit there. Speaking of Daijisho, it's an amazing free front-end that launches many other emulators, scrapes covers and info, and helps build a nicely presentable collection. So kudos to them.
Other than that, the console comes with no games. It's up to you to figure out where to get those, and I'm not going to tell you either.
Besides emulation, you get native Android games and streaming with apps like GeForce NOW, Steam Link, or Moonlight.
Controls Parenthesis
The controls are nice, using a usual layout with analog L2/R2, which is nice. I understand the buttons are similar in size to those of a Switch Lite, but personally, I find the face buttons a bit too small and too close together, as well as too close to the right analog stick. It took some getting used to in order to avoid accidentally pressing other buttons. In games like Super Mario Bros., I have to disable the "turbo" A/B; otherwise, I always end up with accidental jumps from pressing unintended buttons. For reference, my hands are 20 cm (7.8") from the base of the palm to the tip of the middle finger.For people with normal hands, there won't be any issues; the analog sticks are amazing, and you can precisely maneuver to any point of the deadzone with precision.
No problems in the audio department for me either; it has two front-facing speakers for stereo sound, which are pretty loud. Super fast Wifi-6 is mostly used for the initial setup, downloading emulators and apps, and some Android games.
After that, it's all about the Micro-SD card, which gets populated with all the needed folders after inserting it into the device. Using an adapter, you can connect it to a PC to fill it with all the games you want at a transfer rate of about 60 MB/s for me. There's also FTP if you prefer to wait longer.
It comes with a Bluetooth chip for headphones and extra peripherals but also has a 3.5mm headphone jack for those who prefer wires.
At the time of writing the Retroid Pocket 5 sells for $219.00 at the official site (not an affiliate link). It comes in 4 color schemes:
- 16-Bit (the one I got)
- GC
- Black
- White
Pros
- + Excellent Screen: Contrast, view angles and colors
- + Very powerful
- + Not too expensive
- + Fits in my pockets
Cons
- - Face buttons on the small side for large hands
- - Requires time to setup everything right
