![]() ![]() The standout feature of the Retroid Pocket 2+ is its UNISOC Tiger T310 system on a chip. The Hardware Oh hey, we can reuse this graphic from the Retroid Pocket 2. It's an exciting time for the scene, so let's go ahead and dig into the details. For $65 USD, existing Retroid Pocket 2+ owners can swap out the internals of their original handheld and swap in the supercharged components. In a win for repairability and and acknowledgment of how popular their original model proved to be, Retroid has also made the unusual move of offering up a Retroid Pocket 2+ PCB Upgrade Kit. The new and improved handheld takes its place as their hundred dollar offering, and immediately puts the rest of its competitors on notice. In a rare move for this niche hobby, Retroid has gone ahead and marked down the remainder of their Retroid Pocket 2 stock to the clearance price of $65 USD. So color us pleased to find that the Retroid Pocket 2+ can be purchased from for $99 USD (with $12 USD shipping). The fact that a pocketable handheld with a 3.5" screen can play even a subset of the platform is remarkable, and it would be understandable if this leap forward in performance raised concerns about a similar leap forward in price. Portable GameCube emulation is the next white whale for the retro handheld scene. Not satisfied there, the Retroid Pocket 2+ also allows players to enjoy some Sega Saturn, Nintendo GameCube, and PlayStation 2 games while on the go. While this is not the most common mobile processor, the T310 provides excellent emulation performance to the majority of the N64, DC, and PSP libraries. The Retroid Pocket 2+ seeks to close this gap, and leveraging a Unison Tiger T310 system on a chip to provide a noted increase in performance. The Retroid Pocket 2 and other RK3326 handhelds could play PlayStation 1 games capably, and a small subset of the Nintendo 64, Sega Dreamcast, and PlayStation Portable libraries. The previous generation of handhelds was characterized by a noted performance barrier. Chief among these concerns however are two important criteria: What's the handheld's performance, and how much is it going to cost? Wind waking on the go! What a brave new world! What sort of formfactor are you going to give it? How big will the screen be? What configuration will the controls be in? There are numerous choices to be made, and each will speak to a different subset of players. There's a variety of options a device manufacturer needs to consider when making a new handheld. When Moorechip and the Retroid team announced they were taking another run at the iconic formfactor with the Retroid Pocket 2+, we naturally found ourselves among the fans eager to see what sort of enhancements the revised handheld would bring. The Android-based handheld remained a popular choice all throughout 2021, even as it's competitors flooded the market with a bevy of RK3326 derivatives. It swept the portable emulation scene by storm in 2020, and was responsible for kickstarting Retro Handhelds as it exists today. ![]() ![]() The prodigal son returns! The Retroid Pocket 2 is a handheld that needs no introduction. ![]()
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