The Unchanging Law of tiny Handheld Consoles

[q1w23er4]

To outperform the GKD PIXEL2 in performance, a handheld console must inevitably be thicker or larger than it.
This is the current unchanging law.

 

[cheepsheeps567]

whats a good one to buy i dont really care for price i just want something compact and strong, i just want it to be able to play ps1/ps2/gamecube/psp/and anything under that. i would google myself but i dont even know where to start lol

 

[Darklink]

whats a good one to buy i dont really care for price i just want something compact and strong, i just want it to be able to play ps1/ps2/gamecube/psp/and anything under that. i would google myself but i dont even know where to start lol

The problem is that the jump from PS1 to PS2 is massive performance-wise. PS1 and earlier? Basically anything can do that these days. PSP you can get a decent amount of things to do. But PS2 and Gamecube? Nah, you need something at least as big as a Retroid Pocket 4 Pro to do most of the library for both. And while that device isn't exactly big, it's about the size of the Playstation Vita, it's not one near as small as something like the GKD Pixel 2 or a TrimUI Smart.

As for a place to start, the youtube channel Retro Game Corps is a pretty good place to learn about these things.

 

[twistedbee]

I have a Retroid Pocket 4 pro and can confirm its between a switch lite and a standard smartphone in terms of size. It can very easily play everything up thru the ps1,n64 generation easily. It'll also play most Gamecube and most PS2 games i've thrown at it with a few exceptions. It'll even play some Vita, Wii, and 3ds games. its also got bluetooth and HDMI out so you can plug it up to a tv and play it console style. I highly recommend it if you've been looking for something to use for emulation and since it runs on android its a great entry system to emulation.

 

[ciro64 ciro64]

I want a ModRetro Chromatic. Anything that doesn't closely match the Gameboy Color but with enhancements is inferior in my eyes

Now I just need a friend who will take a trip from USA to Brasil. And money.

 

[Not_Red]

I have an RG35XXSP and is honestly amazing for what I bought it for, handheld games and some consoles ones. I was surprised it could run some PSP games that are not too intensive which is fine by me as I only really play RPGs most of the time. If I had to say something bad is that configuring retroarch is kind of a pain if you don't know what you are doing as you can end up with a weird universal configuration across all emulators.

 

[Boscobilly]

I love my Analogue Pocket. It's one of my most played console since I got it.

 

[Plumpodrome Plumpodrome]

Very happy with my RP Flip 2. Worth every penny. The triggers are awkward if you have small hands, but that's the only negative in my mind. Not going to be using it with games that are very trigger heavy.

 

[Advil Lavs]

whats a good one to buy i dont really care for price i just want something compact and strong, i just want it to be able to play ps1/ps2/gamecube/psp/and anything under that. i would google myself but i dont even know where to start lol

I've heard the new retroid pocket classic can emulate ps2/gamecube/wii and the lower end with good framerates. Not sure about the price but it looks good.

 

[DanVzare]

I have an RG35XXSP and is honestly amazing for what I bought it for, handheld games and some consoles ones. I was surprised it could run some PSP games that are not too intensive which is fine by me as I only really play RPGs most of the time. If I had to say something bad is that configuring retroarch is kind of a pain if you don't know what you are doing as you can end up with a weird universal configuration across all emulators.

I also have an RG35XXSP, and I absolutely love it. I've been bringing it with me everywhere, because it's just so small and convenient. Actually, having it has made me realize that there's a major design flaw in the Switch. The Switch is too big and bulky to function adequately as a portable handheld. The only time you'd bring the Switch with you anywhere, is if you're expecting to wait.

But I digress.
I've filled up the default 64gb kioxia micro SD card with entire console libraries, from the Atari 2600 all the way to the Nintendo 64 (although I should probably delete the N64 games, since they barely work on it). I've got over 16000 games on it!

What operating system have you put on it? Personally I use MuOS.
It was fun just setting up all of the emulators to function exactly how I want.
I'm wanting to get a 512gb micro SD card to be able to put on almost the entire PS1 console library onto.

 

[_oBSOLEte_]

Cheaper smartphones will outperform them.

Here's the true law : The more niche a market is, the more gullible.

 

[Darklink]

Cheaper smartphones will outperform them.

Here's the true law : The more niche a market is, the more gullible.

"Gullible" lol. Bro doesn't like other people having fun.

I've found that a phone with a controller and clip uncomfortable, and a phone with a telescopic controller awkward. Plus there's also the fact that I have to use my phone for work and do not want to drain the battery more than I have to on breaks and risk not being able to use it later into my shift.

 

[_oBSOLEte_]

"Gullible" lol. Bro doesn't like other people having fun.

I've found that a phone with a controller and clip uncomfortable, and a phone with a telescopic controller awkward. Plus there's also the fact that I have to use my phone for work and do not want to drain the battery more than I have to on breaks and risk not being able to use it later into my shift.

Little did he realized OP was posting the same pic on different threads, spamming the forum like a bot doing minimal effort to advertise their handheld junk.

Gullible is the word.

 

[Darklink]

Little did he realized OP was posting the same pic on different threads, spamming the forum like a bot doing minimal effort to advertise their handheld junk.

Gullible is the word.

Not really, looking at the guy's posts, he just seems decently excited to have a Pixel 2. He's talked about plenty of other things on the forums.

He posted a thread about retro emulation handhelds, and people joined it to talk more about 'em. You know, literally the entire point of a forum, discussions.

 

[Stookymalarkey]

whats a good one to buy i dont really care for price i just want something compact and strong, i just want it to be able to play ps1/ps2/gamecube/psp/and anything under that. i would google myself but i dont even know where to start lol

For PS2 and Gamecube emulation (and below), you'd need something beefier like a Retroid Pocket 5, ROG Ally, Ayn Odin 2 or Steam Deck. These systems are among the strongest systems out right now.

If those are too pricey, you can still do PSP and earlier gen emulation with the Anbernic RG505 or Retroid Flip 2. Also the Vita is still a solid choice for PSP and PSX games as well (though it takes some effort to softmod it).

In a pinch, you can get an old flagship phone (think Samsung Galaxy S or Google Pixel) and a telescopic controller like the Nacon MG-X Pro, Backbone, or GameSir G8 Plus. Flagship phones have decent processors and can run most emulators pretty well. There is some set up involved with the emulators, but you can look up guides on YouTube channels like Retro Game Corp for help.

 

[Muklas]

My android craphone can emulate PS2 stuff just fine, though I only really did it to play FM5 since my craptop at the time couldn't handle PS2 emulation.

 

[q1w23er4]

Little did he realized OP was posting the same pic on different threads, spamming the forum like a bot doing minimal effort to advertise their handheld junk.

Gullible is the word.

Whether I fall for it or not, the rule mentioned is set in stone. There's nothing anyone can do to change that—like it or not

 

[ShanaFlameHaze]

I have an RG35XXSP and is honestly amazing for what I bought it for, handheld games and some consoles ones. I was surprised it could run some PSP games that are not too intensive which is fine by me as I only really play RPGs most of the time. If I had to say something bad is that configuring retroarch is kind of a pain if you don't know what you are doing as you can end up with a weird universal configuration across all emulators.

I also owned an 35xxsp briefly but returned it since after only 2 days the left hinge started cracking. It was the transparent black model. Heard that transparent models are more prone to cracking.

However, I liked the experience so much(it's something about the clamshell factor and close resemblance to the SP, makes GBA games more enjoyable on it) that made me buy another one, this time the retro gray model.


When you start amassing a collection of these retro handhelds, the retroarch configs are not so daunting anymore :D