Best budget for emulation on a handheld?

[guitarmas]

Hey guys,

 

What would the best economical approach for emulation on a handheld? There's all kinds of handhelds out there for emulation. What do you guys think would be the best one?

 

Thanks!

Edited September 3 by guitarmas
Added txt.

[NE146]

There are many chinese ones that clone each other over and over under different "brand" rebrands, and they keep releasing newer versions too. However I've heard pretty ok things about the Powkiddy RGB 30 for example, but I can't give any opinion about it since I don't own one.  But for the price I think it's a relatively risk-free way to check it out and I DO want to get one as I hear it emulates DS pretty well.

 

Another cheap option is to get a good GBA and put in a GBA Everdrive (~$100) which grants some emulation on it as well but it's more or less limited to the 8-bit era-ish. 

 

On the more expensive front the Steam Deck of course is an awesome emulation handheld.. but it's also $400+ bucks or so. The Switch is fun.. but it's $200 and the games are limited by what they offer on their online service. So for me  the Analogue Pocket (which does not do software emulation, but rather FPGA simulation of the hardware) is in my opinion the best bang for the buck where for about $250 (which includes their ludicrious shipping) you do get thousands of games that play WELL from all the major handhelds up through the 16-bit era (snes/genesis/tg16) and a decent selection of arcade games, etc. 

 

 

 

 

[CapitanClassic]

@guitarmas, it comes down to what you want to emulate, and how much you want to pay.

 

I don't delve much into the 3rd party handhelds. For that you might want to checkout TechDweeb or Retro Game Corp. If you are looking at sub $100, I have heard good things about Miyoo Mini Plus and Anbernic RG351P.

 

Personally, I prefer handheld that can play some games natively, and emulate the rest. For that, you cannot go wrong with a PSP ( about $50-$80 or PSP-Vita about $80-$120) or a DS Lite ($40-$60). The PSP plays not only the games designed for it, you can rip your PS1 games and play those on the system half-natively (video and audio are emulated, but other code runs natively). Most 16-bit and earlier should emulate fine on it.

 

The DS Lite can play DS games, and GBA games natively. Most 16-bit and earlier should emulate fine on it.

 

One thing you might want to consider is how well the screen on the handheld maps to the native resolution of the systems you are interested in. If it maps 1:1, then the pixels can be scaled perfectly, and the entire screen can be used without black bars on the sides. If it doesn't match, the software has to stretch the video and apply a filter over it to smooth out the pixels. You may notice shimmering or other aberrations in the video.

 

[Tanooki]

@CapitanClassic @guitarmas

Now while I'm currently locally trying to get rid of it, it's just I don't have time so it's not for me, not that in any way at all is it bad, but I'd very very strongly suggest the Anbernic 351p, but not with the shitty stock core, but the AmberELEC one which is the most optimized and best option to use.

 

My handheld has a 64GB card with a good bit of goodies I care/cared about installed to it, and some stuff, notably N64 stuff run like trash on stock as did random other bits.  Putting that new core into it, it basically brought N64 up to the stability it was stuck at for over a decade where 70% of the games ran correctly and at full frame (vs far less and chugging on stock.)  The type of handheld it is, it's well setup to properly handle with decent comfort 2D gaming, but with the sticks in play, that opens up solid play for the PS1 and N64 as well.  Also you get very interesting one off projects, from the port of that vanilla recomp of Super Mario 64, various PCM ports (scumm engine, etc.) and more that work great too.  The system basically will do whatever 8bit, 16bit, arcade of that time too, Neo Geo, PS1, N64**, and GBA just great.  I would not try and throw Saturn or Dreamcast at it, and forget the GC/PS2 era entirely.  Going that hard will cost you far more money.  The 351p you can get for (second hand) around $70 with a card inside it all ready to go.

 

But as you said, fi you want one that runs native, just get a modded New3DS.  You'll get the added heft of its processing power over a 3DS or DS, and it can play both libraries.  And then all those DS/DSi(upgraded DS) made emulators can run a ton of systems, most of what the Anbernic can do) which then effectively adds like 10000 more choices to pick from you'll never get to anyway.

 

The only handheld I emulate barely on now is the classic gems that loopy flubba etc made ages ago that emulated NES, etc on the old GBA.  They're rock solid and well worthy of praise. I find stuffing PocketNES, Goomba Color, SMS Advance, and PCE Advance onto my flash kit opens some huge doors on the go.

 

 

EDIT: https://amberelec.org/portmaster.html

 

That's the page, but a more useful link from the portmaster of it for all the various cores.  Enjoy.

Edited September 4 by Tanooki

[guitarmas]

Man you guys are great. I didn't expect so much positivity and great suggestions.

 

I'm under the impression that the Anbernic RG351P is the way to go. 

 

You guys are great!

[Tanooki]

Well if you want it I can show you what I have, it's not 100% perfect, has a little light leakage around the edge of the lens which was always there, but comes with a case, wifi dongle, charge cable, and a 3d printed grip so it's more comfy like a console controller.  At least I know you'd care to use it and it wouldn't be some flip.

 

I mean I can't admit to it being pre-loaded but... when I thought I'd use it regularly it got a number of Nintendo consoles and handhelds loaded, a bit of neo geo, sega too, etc into a 64GB card.  Things changed, ended up with that analogue pocket again months ago, so this thing and my second game gear I was going to pop a new screen into (which I have and didn't do) are just here up on the local market place because ebay sucks.

[Cynicaster]

I've got the Anbernic RG351MP which is very similar to the one CapitanClassic mentioned above.  I think these 2 devices are the same guts, but the MP has a really snazzy metal case that gives the gadget a sense of refinement and build quality that is actually quite shockingly good relative to the price.   

 

 

 

I've had this thing for about 2 years now and it has seen semi-regular use, mostly when I'm traveling.  It's outstanding for that, IMO.  The only "complaints" I have about this device are things that aren't really the device itself but related to the general concept of handheld gaming on a device that is small enough to be pocketable.  Meaning, it's just not as comfortable to hold as a modern "dualshock-style" controller, for extended gaming sessions.  People have made 3D printed grips that you can slide these things into, which sounds awesome, but I've never tried that.  (EDIT to add: I see Tanooki replied ahead of me showing one of these grips.)  In other words, for this type of complaint, my aging hands are probably more the problem than the device itself. 

 

Since this gadget is out of print (at least, I'm assuming it is) you can probably get one of these or its cousins that use the same guts (RG351M, RG351P, RG351V - which is a vertical OG-Game-Boy-style form factor) used for well under a hundy.

 

It plays everything up-to-and-including PS1 like an absolute champ.  Pretty much flawless, best I can tell.  Beyond that is hit and miss.  It can play a little bit of PSP, a little bit of N64, and a little bit of Dreamcast.  PS2, GC, etc. are completely out of the question.  For me, this is a complete non-issue because once you get into PS2-era and beyond, the ability to play those games on a gadget like this feels more like a party trick than something that is actually useful.  Perhaps it's just me, but I just don't feel like those games would be much fun to play on a gadget this small.  Something bigger and beefier like a Steam Deck maybe, but not this little thing.  Even PS1 is kind of pushing it in this regard.  This thing really sings in the 8/16 bit console space, as well as - naturally - the contemporaneous handhelds (GB, GBC, GBA, NGPC, Lynx, etc).    

 

The screen is wonderful, the battery life is solid (I'm not sure exactly how long it goes because I've never bumped up against that limitation), and the controls are of great quality.  The analog nubs are very similar in feel to a stock Nintendo Switch, and the d-pad is very responsive (including diagonals, importantly). 

 

I still marvel at this little thing, especially when I think about how epically my 14 year-old brain would have exploded if somebody handed me this thing in the early 90s with a few thousand games on it from various platforms, and told me that it cost less^** than my Atari Lynx.  We truly do live in the future, and it's a wonderful time to be a classic gamer.  

 

** adjusted for inflation

 

  

 

  

 

 

Edited September 4 by Cynicaster

[+5-11under]

I just ordered a Trimui Smart Pro, from mechdiy.com. A bit pricier than you can get elsewhere, but it comes with an curated ROM set. Details to follow, I guess... .

 

[Asaki]

Really depends on what you want to emulate, what kind of features you want, how big of a screen you need, screen resolution, etc...

I've been perfectly happy with emulation on the GBA/DS/3DS. Only drawback on the 3DS is some emulators were better on the DS (but you can still run them here if need be) and the d-pad position can get pretty uncomfortable with prolonged play IMO.
Drawbacks on the GBA/DS are less powerful hardware, and lower resolution screen, so some emulators have to be scaled down.

I've got a PocketGo, and it's pretty decent and inexpensive, but the screen is tiny (might be a pro to some, my vision isn't what it used to be), and SNES games with alpha enabled will not run full speed. My brother's got an Anbernic and it also seems pretty nice.

There are Android powered handhelds too...not sure about those, as I hadn't realized how abysmal the homebrew scene is on that platform. Pros are having more powerful hardware and being able to run Android games. SNES emulator is pretty good, and PSP emulation is surprisingly good.

[HatefulGravey]

I've been using a PSP with custom firmware for a long time. Not sure what they fetch these days, but I'm betting you can get one for $100 or so and it will run all the older stuff up to the PS1 pretty well. 

[Hwlngmad]

Currently I have a Anbernic RG353M, which is the successor to the RG351MP.  It is a good handheld that can emulate up to Dreamcast.  However, this is a replacement to the RG351MP that I previously had.  I also have Steam Deck OLED that will play up to PS2 flawlessly, though I don't do retro titles on it that much.  At this time, I may jump to the Retroid Pocket 5 and then finally call it good with my pursuit of having a handheld to do up to PSP and having the Steam Deck as my emulation backup.  Oh, I also have a modded 2DS XL that is loaded up with 3DS, DS, GBA, GBC, GB, and others on it.

 

Honestly, there are lots of good options out there, and options will continue to get better, too.

[auzdriver]

351P was a great budget handheld, however the 35xx H has replaced it and is quite a decent unit with BT, Wifi and support for Batocera Lite which I'm impressed with. 353M is quite pricey as you are paying for the metal body although it feels nice. You then have the Powkiddy range which varies in style, quality, and performance. A few Android-based Anbernics that step into entry-level PS2 territory like the 405v, 505 & RGCUbe and 556, but these are more pricey. I think the Trimui Smart Pro delivers a lot for the price with a bigger screen, decent controls, and custom firmware. So for budget handhelds that provide a lot, Trimui vs 35xx H.

Here is the XX H with Prince of Persia using Batocera Lite - https://www.facebook.com/reel/867048801939001

You might want to check out retro game corps on YouTube, but you could end up opening a can of worms. 
I'd say suss out if you want vertical or horizontal handheld, ideal screen size and what you want to emulate up-to be it PS1, PSP, N64 etc and use that criteria to shortlist console.

Edited September 18 by auzdriver

[Gamemoose]

For the Steam Deck, and you don't mind refurbished, keep an eye on Steam for when those refurbs come in stock. Right now they have an LCD 256GB model for $319.  The 64GB model I think goes for $279 when in stock. 

 

I haven't emulated anything yet but it's a damn fine piece of tech that plays a ton of stuff.