After this video, I think the cost and value are really on same level but many things were extrapolated in the project, until today I don't understand why a fullHD screen on a console focused on emulators, steam itself gave up on this idea because it only made the project more expensive and overload the hardware
Can you make a video on link cable emulation and wireless multiplayer of these handhelds? It's always been extremely difficult to do if at all for me. With Gamecube emulation possible, it would be cool to have a base device and cheap wireless handhelds to play Four Swords Adventures. It's too bad that gameplay model never caught on.
Waiting for the RP2+ review! Currently the most interesting, especially at the price. Passing on this, nothing to be excited about with that performance.
I'd say: buy the successor. The second generation of a new Anbernic device is often much improved from the first generation, and especially for this price-point it still has quite a few hiccups.
@@Pridetoons see I’m halfway with you. I would love to be able to play some of my steam games on the go or docked just like my switch can, but am sad the steam deck is so big. I also preordered one and am stoked that I’ll be able to play Death Stranding, Detroit Become Human, Horizon Zero Dawn and others in a handheld device. But I look at my Switch and then devices like this and the Ayn Odin and can’t help but wish for a future where I can have a device as powerful as the steam deck in the body of the switch. We’re getting close!
If I’m paying 399 I really want ps3 emulation, and deck still can’t fully handle that. So I’m just gonna go with rp2+ for a couple years and then wait for gen 2 steam deck for ps3 🤟
I've said it before and I'll say it again: MEH. The screen is nice but price, bad Linux build, lack of Bluetooth and 5ghz WiFi and same-y design make this device a snooze. Hard pass for me.
Your reviews are incredibly detailed and thorough Taki. So helpful and informative. You're setting the bar high and realistic for the price/community and it'll only raise the quality and performance of future releases.
The only way Anbernic sells any of these at this price point is during the window that the other competitive products are not yet shipping. That's it. Really.
lol you obviously missed the tons of people in the comments that have already said they got one... these are the early adopters the same people who will jump straight in for a steamdeck and an odin before its been reviewed..... nowt wrong with it if the device you want does what you want etc..... there are tons of people who bought an aya neo and are super happy with it at its price too
@@STR82DVD hahaha look what apple has done!!! 2000$ for animojis!!! this anbernic isnt even metal either lol..... this anbernic shoulda been priced around x18s £sub 200 lets say anbernics usual premium above other devices
@@antwango It's kind of like when I dropped $1200 on a OneXplayer S1? (Mind you, I had actually read reviews online and seen reviews on UA-cam prior to dropping that kind of money on an unknown system.) Sure, but I think we're talking about different case uses here.
Put in there a snapdragon 865 or close to it and it will sell like crazy. Combined with the build quality that Anbernik is known for. and you have a winner. I would pay for something like that easily
my samsung galaxy s10+ has a snapdragon 855 1 tb hdd and 12 gb ram plus 4g lte and wifi 6 support so is it worth spending $200 on a retro handheld portable with 64 gb storage and 1/ 2 /4 gb ram when you can use your phone? and i can still add another 512 gb micro sd card can any other handheld manufacturer even come close? if it can expand at all? plus i can call text surf the web and watch youtube and run nearly every emulator android 10 / 11 supports and a lite version of windows 10 to boot
The lack of Bluetooth is nuts!!! First, with a portable device I really want to be able to use the same earbuds I use with my phone. More importantly: with BT you could pair a couple controllers and then hook this thing up to a TV via HDMI. Then you have yourself a portable device that's also a great retro home console! This would add SO much benefit and all for the tiny cost of a slightly better wireless chip. Why they went with this crappy wireless chip totally boggles my mind!!! I'm 100% skipping Anbernic devices until they finally get Bluetooth.
Thanks taki for the frank words. I'm looking forward to my RG552. I'll get it tomorrow and look forward to the beautiful device from Anbernic. I am also curious to see how the software development will continue. Greetings from Germany 👋
One of the best analysis of the RG552 I've seen. I'm a bit disappointed with the device at the moment. I hope it gets cheaper soon and solves its software problems.
@@sjf4626 Yes, but I find that there is a big price difference over the previous models and it is not entirely justified. I love the device but I think it has the price inflated to take advantage of the pull of the early adopters.
I've been interested in these handhelds for year and yet since I'm in uni and money is tight, I've never truly considered buying any of them. my "handheld" is a 8-bitdo phone clip with a Samsung A50 😅. At the end of the day I can still play lots of games so its good enough for me.
Your phone is more capable than every device on market at the moment in terms of emulation anyways, so you are pretty much covered and i see no need to hurry for buying anything. You can emulate up to PS2 with your phone and you can sign up to MS game pass and play AAA games right on your phone. ( This can change according to where you live to be honest. I have Pame Pass Ultimate but i can't use remote play in my country. 🤦 )
It amazes me how many people are ok with the state of this handheld because the community will fix it. Every time you buy one of these devices with broken software you're saying it's ok for them to do so. By having to rely on other people to fix this you are putting off more casual users that want something that works out of the box. Not every person how the ability, will or know how to do this stuff.
It takes 10 minutes and an SD Card to flash firmware bro. If you think this shit is going to end up on a target shelf for casual gamers someday you're losing it. This is a handheld designed for piracy.
I think it's fair to say that nobody is buying these who isn't comfortable with flashing an SD card for RetroPie. That said, I really would like a retro handheld I can just order and have shipped straight to someone as a gift. Every handheld on the market right now, I'd have to have shipped to me first so I can set it up properly.
I absolutely agree that with both hardware and software, people shouldn't support half-arsed releases. However I'm not convinced casual users without any know how are really the user base for emulation. It's not as difficult as it used to be, and the technical abilities of the general population are increasing, but it's not like this device was ever going to be a competitor for the Switch Lite in any other aspect besides price.
@@Chexr What about people who don't have a PC? They're completely put of it for the 351 line. The only saving grace for these people is that this still has android. Dont assume everyone has the same tools available as you do. I've been retro gaming for a long time so none of this is new to me but don't try and justify a shit product like that.
@@Chexr there are regularly people in the anbernic discord buying these devices that barely even know what an SD card is, all they heard was it plays retro games. The market for these is more diverse than you're assuming.
Honestly, this is almost half the price of the GPD XP, which in my opinion, minus the aspect ratio, is the pinnacle for these kinds of devices, so I think the price is very reasonable. Like you said, it can dual-boot & I think that is awesome! The Odin Lite isn't shipping yet, but processor-wise, is superior, however as you've stated, it can't dual-boot, even though there maybe Windows 10/11 for Arm support for the vanilla Odin & Odin Pro. I do agree though, that Bluetooth should've been included.
RG552 seems a little underpowered considering the RP2+ and Odin surpass its processing power. If it were around the 100$ price point, it might be unrivaled.
Yeah RP2+ is half the bloody price of this thing and performs much better. So yeah If I do ever get one of these Retro handhelds its going to be that particular one. AKA I need something that can do upwards of N64/PSP/NDS/PSX personally and that one handles them all with upscaling to boot
@@Montisaquadeis Just buy a PS Vita while it's still cheap and has reasonable price tag. Before they become extremely expensive by then end of decade or in the future. *PS Vita especially mine PS Vita Slim which is modded with 256gb has all the PS Vita games and ton of PS1 and PSP and GBA, GBC, SNES, NES Sega Genesis running very smoothly and at 60fps if not higher. And the screen is beautiful expensive OLED I have LCD* Overall PS Vita beats out any of these handheld console in terms of powerful hardware, still has amazing OLED screen. But my PS Vita Slim has overall very good high saturated LCD display and good dual speakers. 1st party exclusive and some PS2 and PS3 ports and being able to play any retro games after you mod it. Makes PS Vita easily the winner of handheld console expect Nintendo Switch which is better then Vita!
@@nepaliprayasgurung2594 The the PS Vita can't do DS, N64, Dreamcast, Saturn, or GameCube Emulation, also Android Gaming is better on this device, and with Linux you have far more options available to you. Also the Nintendo Switch is still an active console so Homebrew is currently out of the question.
@@Montisaquadeis If you look at Taki's last video you'd see you'd be able to upscale DS, PSP, N64, Dreamcast, Naomi, and Sega Saturn Emulation. Also TechToyTinker just teased his Android build SlashTV and he demonstrated at least Light Gamecube emulation is possible on this Chipset. He also has shown that the RG552 is currently clocked to 1.42ghz. He needs the Source Code from Anbernic in order to boost it to 2ghz. Also as far as the RP2+ goes I'd wait for the Retroid Pocket 3 it will be more powerful than the RP2+ and it will (probably) have better build quality according to Taki's involvement and Blueprints of the device.
Watching this, it just makes me to like even more the Retroid Pocket 2+, is smaller, more portable and the performance and price are just amazing, but, can I have nice a PS2 emulation in the RP2+? Wouldn't I miss the L3 and R3?, I would play mostly RPGs with some other titles in the side
I would imagine the touch panel on the RP2+ would allow for a, reasonable L/R3 substitute, game depending. Just spots on the screen for a quick tap. Then again, would not be surprised if replacement joysticks down the line might be possible.
I'm on the lower end of having money to spend so I doubt I'll ever get one of these. I'm mostly hanging out for the retroid pocket 2+ I'll be more interested to see the follow up to this one, 552 doesn't seem great for the price so I'd love to see something worthy of that price point
Thanks for this cool overview and comparison. I own an RG351P myself. I've always wanted an Android/Linux dual Booting phone so I would be very interested in seeing how well this handheld performs with a lightweight desktop Linux distro.
Great review as always but also wanted to say thank you for introducing me to the Pegasus front-end. I'm currently an Arc Browser user but really like the look of Pegasus
Can anyone provide the name of the Metroidvania-type game being played in the Build Quality and Controls section starting at 7:46? I scanned the comments and there have been several requests for it but no answers I could see. I did a little googling to try to figure it out but don't really have enough to go on to get a toe hold. I can't tell what system it was for. Please help a few brothers out!
Hi Taki, just found your channel after watching RetroGameCorps for quite a while. Love your style of reviewing these devices, would you two ever be open to a colab at some point? Even if it is just comparing favourite games/systems? Looking forward to watching your content in the future regardless!
for me the best choice for a 2022 console is a chipset based on the snapdragon 845 because although it is more expensive it is much more performing especially with the new aethersx2 having 4 cortex a75 and has been designed for android like all snapdragon chipsets. I would have mounted mediatek chipsets as well, cheaper but still very powerful, mid-range and for me would be sufficient.All this I say because these consoles are sold at high prices due to the excellent technical specifications they have and if I have to spend something like 200 dollars I demand chipsets powerful that allow me to emulate everything up to the ps2.With mediatek and snapdragon, designed for android I am sure I have a powerful emulation tool in my hands, more or less like a modern smartphone.
You're right, it is cheaper and faster. But it's also clearly cheaper, the screen is not just smaller but of lower quality, the ergonomics aren't great because of it's sharp edges, the joystick has less of a tilt, and the home select start buttons are in a bad position. Rp2+ is also unable to boot into Linux. This rg552 appears to be of higher quality tho a touch slower. Besides it's not like the rp2+ can do flawless gcn, neither system can. But you can bet the rg552 is going to get.loads of community support. The rg552 is without a doubt going to be a better experience than the rp2+, tho anbernic next 5 inch device is likely to fix the 552s problems. As it stands the the 552s weak points are the shoulder buttons and connectivity options. But a U-shaped type c to a adapter plus a tiny USB 5ghz and Bluetooth dongle fixes one of those major issues for about 20 bucks. Not ideal but it's a workaround. I think what we need to consider is that the 552 is an early adapters device for the next big series of devices. The 552 is for the impatient, which I definitely am. I'm likely going to order on today on Amazon for 30 bucks extra just so I can have it faster. The patient will likely be rewarded with the Odin. However I'm also a day one preorder holder for the steam deck, and I think that will be leagues better than even the Odin. But even with the deck I believe I'll still go back to the 552 for small form factor retro gaming.
I hope the RG552 will put pressure on the competition to introduce more upper-mid-range SOCs and cause price drops. These devices have long emulated 2D games and the PSX catalog to perfection. The challenge now is high quality PSP, Dreamcast, PS2 with its intricate hardware and even GameCube / Wii.
@@jaswanthkumar8365 I think the same. They could even use older Snapdragon 7xx or much better 8xx (ie 845) with much better results than this old Rockchip SOC.
IDK for $240-$250 you could get a LG V60 on ebay new unlocked. The Snapdragon 865 on the V60 will utterly destroy this RG552. Not to mention that it comes with Wi-Fi 6
It's not a bad option if you don't have any retro handheld want a larger version of Anbernic's RG351 series but otherwise it's price to performance ratio isn't great. I considered it initially but went with the RG351MP for it's pocket-ability and cheaper price.
I'd say no. This is not a ready device. This is a project. While there are some people that will get a kick out of using and fixing issues with it, the vast majority will not because they wanted a device that does what it claims to do to their expectations. I won't be surprised if many people with a modern mid-range phone running a SD 700 or 800 series buys this device with the promise that they can stop using their phone for gaming only to find out their phone is more powerful than it while costing around the same and that money would be better invested getting a good Bluetooth joystick or a GameSir X2. If you bought this just for DS emulation there's the issue of not being able to get a good split screen and that will greatly affect games that make use of both screens.
What kind of price drop percentage have the previous Anbernic devices seen? Personally, I’m definitely skipping this one. Happy with my 351 for now, find myself using my phone more than anything though and still waiting on Steamdeck and plan on getting an Odin once they’re actually shipping and in people’s hands. Thanks T. 👍
AetherSX2 is not an option for the RK3399 anyway. You should have at least 4 performance cores (A75) and the RK3399 only has 2 old A72 performance cores.
Well, the Odin devices are still not out. Due to the current supply problems I'm not sure if they either have to go up in the price or delay the delivery even further...
I would like to see a video review of this device being played with some online app games not preinstalled retro games Can it play online app games like Tower of Fantasy or any other popular games like Honkai star rail?
thank you for your review! can it run super fx chip games like yoshi's island with the latest snes9x core smoothly under linux? if not can custom firmware in the future achieve this?
Nice video. I like your comparison. I'm looking for a device in order to mainly stream games from my PC, I want a big screen with enough resolution, obviously 5Ghz Wi-Fi, and a 360 or Switch like controls. Unfortunately nothing on the market seems to match those criteria ?
@@Nickbaldeagle02 a Note 10. You suggest buying a controler like a Keshi ? This is my backup plan but I'd prefer a dedicated handheld, my phone battery is already very low in the evening (when I want to play)
So, I'm curious if it's possible to disable the fan through the firmware, since the system seems to be capable of operating in safe parameters even without active cooling.. Perhaps this is strongly advised against, idk.. But, this is honestly one of the biggest draw-backs for me, as I sometimes may be trying to occupy myself in a quiet situation where I'd rather not draw attention to myself bc it sounds like a mouse is using power tools in my hands...
@@bigbaldwolf86 my question is, if I want right now, can I buy an Odin? If not, the price listed on the video is the one for the campaign and it's not a correct comparison. If the device were listed on AliExpress, their own website, or even Amazon, with a price similar to the price listed on the video, it would be a fair comparison. Btw, I'm not defending the RG552, the thing is a mess, but what is fair is fair.
$220 is just too much for a device with an older SOC and an ancient version of Android. While I understand that software development takes time I just can't understand why a 'new' device would ship with an OS as old as Android 7. There are phones on the market with Android 12 and 7 came out way back in 2016.
Any particular reason it would ship tomorrow? Have one on preorder, also, but with the general vagueness of shipping dates and the minor delay, I have no idea when it will ship.
I feel like people only look at the price and compare with other devices what they can play and how well it runs. For me a price can so be justified with a better screen, better sound and better buttons. This device is worth it's money because of the build quality and the screen. Something the RP2+ does not have. Personally I'll wait because I ready have RG351m and rather wait for a version with stacked shoulder buttons and want to see what else they will bring this upcoming year.
The RG552 looks wonderful (both the design and what it can do), however, I already have a RG351V and I'm quite satisfied by it (and will be for years to come). I will probably be buying the new Generation of Anbernic device in 2029 once my RG351V stops working (and cannot be repaired) but not a second sooner.
I'm a bit skeptical with the chip being from 2016 that it could be beef enough for most games on Dolphin or AetherSX2.. Is Vulkan even supported on Mali-T864 ? according to notebookcheck its not..
I wonder if dolphin performance is indured by not having a vulkan driver on android. Once the linux OS gets better I imagine that having support for Opengl4.5 and Vulkan will be a great advantage
Rk3399pro chip was at least some next generation and not a lot improvements with the rk3288 chip for example. But not a bad handheld just expect a little more
As it is right now: In my opinion is the worst deal in terms of price. It truly is only of any interest for those wanting to run a portable Linux HTPC/Desktop and Android TV Console from it. But to do that properly, you will still need to wait for the community to fix it. The RG552 makes the RP2+, the X10s and even the GPD XP a whole lot better. I think the most benefited is the X10s. Even after you fixing it, it will still be cheaper than a RG552.
Hello taki, is good there a place to wait/hunt for upgraded RG linux updates? Any community developert to be followed? (I already ordered RG552 and plan to update the linux as soon it becomes available - so far I have zero experiences with android)
In China, this only costs about 1000RMB (with only the 16G Linux system card), which is about 157USD. Not sure if that may make this device a more reasonable choice.
@@TakiUdon Elaborate a little on your reasoning?? Don’t get me wrong. I’ve loved my Max ever since I got it from the Indiegogo campaign. Light gaming. Mainly indie titles and babysitting a couple of my websites on the go.
Hi Taki. I speak here from Brazil. I already bought the RG552 and I'm waiting for it to arrive. The device runs both android and linux, requiring an extra micro sd card for linux. And to put games in the second slot, do I also need 2 cards, or can I use the same game card for both systems?
What would y'all say has the best UI for a retro console? RP2+, RG351mp/RG552, Retropie? Or one I didn't mention? After seeing the UI of some of these videos I decided that looks like a really nice feature. A friend of mine had a hacked Nintendo DS that he let me try out and was quite fun but all the games were just in a super long horizontal list, which I thought was fine but a bit cumbersome to scroll through if there was a specific title I wanted to try. Having nice box art and everything by system looks amazing and I'd really like Y'alls opinion on what you have tried and feels best to you. For context I am strongly considering picking up the RP2+ here in the near future, but with all the new stuff coming out I am torn. I plan to eventually pick up a Steam Deck, but I recently moved and got a new job so won't be making a purchase that large until I have settled in. Thanks in advance!
That Steam Deck is rumored to be on a whole other level! In a lane by itself. A total powerhouse. The complete package. Said to be the last handheld console you will ever need!
@@jonathonearl482 That sounds perfect! I have to admit from the first time I saw the Steam Deck I was immediately excited, it just looks amazing. And that was before I decided I wanted to try and get into the retro gaming scene. I really can't wait to pick one up! I'm considering getting a RP2+ in the meantime to get the hang of micromanaging rom settings and such, as well as having something a little more pocket friendly while I'm out and about in general. Idk.
I'm getting RP2+ and Steam Deck as well, seems to make the most sense to me but I never used a retroid product yet, only RG351P. Fingers crossed that the feel of playing with RP2+ isn't as bad as people make it out to be since otherwise it seems like exactly what I want in terms of size and what it can play.
If you want to play citra on android, use a device with a Snapdragon 835 or higher. I have an 865 + using Citra mmj and I can run games at 3-4x resolution.
@@politicsnerd0311 I already have a phone with media tek dimensity 1200 chip and 12 GB of RAM, I was just curious as to how well do 3DS games run on the retroid pocket 2+ but thank you for the suggestion.
03:34 Android 11* 😅
Can it run aethersx2?
After this video, I think the cost and value are really on same level but many things were extrapolated in the project, until today I don't understand why a fullHD screen on a console focused on emulators, steam itself gave up on this idea because it only made the project more expensive and overload the hardware
rushed?
Can you make a video on link cable emulation and wireless multiplayer of these handhelds?
It's always been extremely difficult to do if at all for me.
With Gamecube emulation possible, it would be cool to have a base device and cheap wireless handhelds to play Four Swords Adventures.
It's too bad that gameplay model never caught on.
Waiting for the RP2+ review! Currently the most interesting, especially at the price. Passing on this, nothing to be excited about with that performance.
I'd say: buy the successor.
The second generation of a new Anbernic device is often much improved from the first generation, and especially for this price-point it still has quite a few hiccups.
For real. And knowing Anbernic, it’ll only be a couple of months before some variation is released!
But also knowing Anbernic, they will be using this same chip for a very long time.
@@mVic8 Yep! By 2025 we should finally get a chip upgrade and Android 8! 😂
@@allenfrisch almost sounds like nintendo the way you describe it XD
At the very least this thing needs 5ghz wifi so folks can use game streaming services and etc.
ya'll are nuts paying that insane price for this thing
jealous
Every one of these that gets released makes me more excited to get the steam deck i pre-ordered. Pretty much no compromises
Except the Portability and Convenience of carrying it. If I want to play PC games I'll play on my PC thank you.
@@Pridetoons see I’m halfway with you. I would love to be able to play some of my steam games on the go or docked just like my switch can, but am sad the steam deck is so big. I also preordered one and am stoked that I’ll be able to play Death Stranding, Detroit Become Human, Horizon Zero Dawn and others in a handheld device. But I look at my Switch and then devices like this and the Ayn Odin and can’t help but wish for a future where I can have a device as powerful as the steam deck in the body of the switch. We’re getting close!
@@Pridetoons Yeah, this iz to play in the sheets of the bed
If I’m paying 399 I really want ps3 emulation, and deck still can’t fully handle that. So I’m just gonna go with rp2+ for a couple years and then wait for gen 2 steam deck for ps3 🤟
@@Pridetoons it's barely bigger than an Atari Lynx - portable PC gaming goodness, yes please!
I've said it before and I'll say it again:
MEH.
The screen is nice but price, bad Linux build, lack of Bluetooth and 5ghz WiFi and same-y design make this device a snooze. Hard pass for me.
I agree, is not that it's bad, but is not enough. And the rg351 will do pretty much the same.
Your reviews are incredibly detailed and thorough Taki. So helpful and informative. You're setting the bar high and realistic for the price/community and it'll only raise the quality and performance of future releases.
russ and chicken at retro game corp is another channel that will seriously grow on you
The only way Anbernic sells any of these at this price point is during the window that the other competitive products are not yet shipping. That's it. Really.
They even want 21 Euro for the case for it!
@@NoIWontLetYouKnowInTheComments 21 bloody Euros for an empty bloody case!?! It's it bronzed? It's it silver plated with gold bloody accents?
lol you obviously missed the tons of people in the comments that have already said they got one... these are the early adopters the same people who will jump straight in for a steamdeck and an odin before its been reviewed..... nowt wrong with it if the device you want does what you want etc..... there are tons of people who bought an aya neo and are super happy with it at its price too
@@STR82DVD hahaha look what apple has done!!! 2000$ for animojis!!! this anbernic isnt even metal either lol..... this anbernic shoulda been priced around x18s £sub 200 lets say anbernics usual premium above other devices
@@antwango It's kind of like when I dropped $1200 on a OneXplayer S1? (Mind you, I had actually read reviews online and seen reviews on UA-cam prior to dropping that kind of money on an unknown system.) Sure, but I think we're talking about different case uses here.
Put in there a snapdragon 865 or close to it and it will sell like crazy. Combined with the build quality that Anbernik is known for. and you have a winner. I would pay for something like that easily
my samsung galaxy s10+ has a snapdragon 855 1 tb hdd and 12 gb ram plus 4g lte and wifi 6 support so is it worth spending $200 on a retro handheld portable with 64 gb storage and 1/ 2 /4 gb ram when you can use your phone? and i can still add another 512 gb micro sd card can any other handheld manufacturer even come close? if it can expand at all? plus i can call text surf the web and watch youtube and run nearly every emulator android 10 / 11 supports and a lite version of windows 10 to boot
sadly my cost was $1600 (my pennance for being an early adopter) that being said got my reservation in for the 512 gb steam deck! :D
The lack of Bluetooth is nuts!!! First, with a portable device I really want to be able to use the same earbuds I use with my phone. More importantly: with BT you could pair a couple controllers and then hook this thing up to a TV via HDMI. Then you have yourself a portable device that's also a great retro home console! This would add SO much benefit and all for the tiny cost of a slightly better wireless chip. Why they went with this crappy wireless chip totally boggles my mind!!! I'm 100% skipping Anbernic devices until they finally get Bluetooth.
Thanks taki for the frank words. I'm looking forward to my RG552. I'll get it tomorrow and look forward to the beautiful device from Anbernic. I am also curious to see how the software development will continue. Greetings from Germany 👋
One of the best analysis of the RG552 I've seen. I'm a bit disappointed with the device at the moment. I hope it gets cheaper soon and solves its software problems.
At the moment, seems like the best, or near best, thing out there.
@@sjf4626 Yes, but I find that there is a big price difference over the previous models and it is not entirely justified. I love the device but I think it has the price inflated to take advantage of the pull of the early adopters.
I've been interested in these handhelds for year and yet since I'm in uni and money is tight, I've never truly considered buying any of them.
my "handheld" is a 8-bitdo phone clip with a Samsung A50 😅.
At the end of the day I can still play lots of games so its good enough for me.
Your phone is more capable than every device on market at the moment in terms of emulation anyways, so you are pretty much covered and i see no need to hurry for buying anything. You can emulate up to PS2 with your phone and you can sign up to MS game pass and play AAA games right on your phone. ( This can change according to where you live to be honest. I have Pame Pass Ultimate but i can't use remote play in my country. 🤦 )
you can buy a budget brand new poco x/f 3 a redmi or oppo or realme for £100 £200 and get superior performance....
Yeah... I'm gonna pass on this, got the RG351V and waiting on my Odin, that's all I'll need for the foreseeable future. Great vid as usual.
The RP2+ will suit my needs just fine if the controls are not total garbage on it.
Fingers crossed
Mhm
It amazes me how many people are ok with the state of this handheld because the community will fix it. Every time you buy one of these devices with broken software you're saying it's ok for them to do so.
By having to rely on other people to fix this you are putting off more casual users that want something that works out of the box. Not every person how the ability, will or know how to do this stuff.
It takes 10 minutes and an SD Card to flash firmware bro. If you think this shit is going to end up on a target shelf for casual gamers someday you're losing it. This is a handheld designed for piracy.
I think it's fair to say that nobody is buying these who isn't comfortable with flashing an SD card for RetroPie. That said, I really would like a retro handheld I can just order and have shipped straight to someone as a gift. Every handheld on the market right now, I'd have to have shipped to me first so I can set it up properly.
I absolutely agree that with both hardware and software, people shouldn't support half-arsed releases. However I'm not convinced casual users without any know how are really the user base for emulation. It's not as difficult as it used to be, and the technical abilities of the general population are increasing, but it's not like this device was ever going to be a competitor for the Switch Lite in any other aspect besides price.
@@Chexr What about people who don't have a PC? They're completely put of it for the 351 line. The only saving grace for these people is that this still has android. Dont assume everyone has the same tools available as you do. I've been retro gaming for a long time so none of this is new to me but don't try and justify a shit product like that.
@@Chexr there are regularly people in the anbernic discord buying these devices that barely even know what an SD card is, all they heard was it plays retro games.
The market for these is more diverse than you're assuming.
Taki thanks for introducing me to the Pegasus Frontend. I don't know how I missed this one.
Honestly, this is almost half the price of the GPD XP, which in my opinion, minus the aspect ratio, is the pinnacle for these kinds of devices, so I think the price is very reasonable. Like you said, it can dual-boot & I think that is awesome! The Odin Lite isn't shipping yet, but processor-wise, is superior, however as you've stated, it can't dual-boot, even though there maybe Windows 10/11 for Arm support for the vanilla Odin & Odin Pro. I do agree though, that Bluetooth should've been included.
Cannot wait till Qualcomm releases their own handheld. It’s gonna rock
RG552 seems a little underpowered considering the RP2+ and Odin surpass its processing power. If it were around the 100$ price point, it might be unrivaled.
Yeah RP2+ is half the bloody price of this thing and performs much better. So yeah If I do ever get one of these Retro handhelds its going to be that particular one. AKA I need something that can do upwards of N64/PSP/NDS/PSX personally and that one handles them all with upscaling to boot
@@Montisaquadeis Just buy a PS Vita while it's still cheap and has reasonable price tag. Before they become extremely expensive by then end of decade or in the future.
*PS Vita especially mine PS Vita Slim which is modded with 256gb has all the PS Vita games and ton of PS1 and PSP and GBA, GBC, SNES, NES Sega Genesis running very smoothly and at 60fps if not higher. And the screen is beautiful expensive OLED I have LCD*
Overall PS Vita beats out any of these handheld console in terms of powerful hardware, still has amazing OLED screen. But my PS Vita Slim has overall very good high saturated LCD display and good dual speakers.
1st party exclusive and some PS2 and PS3 ports and being able to play any retro games after you mod it. Makes PS Vita easily the winner of handheld console expect Nintendo Switch which is better then Vita!
@@nepaliprayasgurung2594 The the PS Vita can't do DS, N64, Dreamcast, Saturn, or GameCube Emulation, also Android Gaming is better on this device, and with Linux you have far more options available to you. Also the Nintendo Switch is still an active console so Homebrew is currently out of the question.
@@Montisaquadeis If you look at Taki's last video you'd see you'd be able to upscale DS, PSP, N64, Dreamcast, Naomi, and Sega Saturn Emulation. Also TechToyTinker just teased his Android build SlashTV and he demonstrated at least Light Gamecube emulation is possible on this Chipset. He also has shown that the RG552 is currently clocked to 1.42ghz. He needs the Source Code from Anbernic in order to boost it to 2ghz. Also as far as the RP2+ goes I'd wait for the Retroid Pocket 3 it will be more powerful than the RP2+ and it will (probably) have better build quality according to Taki's involvement and Blueprints of the device.
@@Pridetoons yes, I would also wait for RP3, but I doubt I'll ever get one of these.
Watching this, it just makes me to like even more the Retroid Pocket 2+, is smaller, more portable and the performance and price are just amazing, but, can I have nice a PS2 emulation in the RP2+? Wouldn't I miss the L3 and R3?, I would play mostly RPGs with some other titles in the side
I would imagine the touch panel on the RP2+ would allow for a, reasonable L/R3 substitute, game depending. Just spots on the screen for a quick tap. Then again, would not be surprised if replacement joysticks down the line might be possible.
I'm on the lower end of having money to spend so I doubt I'll ever get one of these. I'm mostly hanging out for the retroid pocket 2+
I'll be more interested to see the follow up to this one, 552 doesn't seem great for the price so I'd love to see something worthy of that price point
the best review of RG552 , all other channel are wasting my time with useless comment
Thanks for this cool overview and comparison. I own an RG351P myself. I've always wanted an Android/Linux dual Booting phone so I would be very interested in seeing how well this handheld performs with a lightweight desktop Linux distro.
Great review as always but also wanted to say thank you for introducing me to the Pegasus front-end. I'm currently an Arc Browser user but really like the look of Pegasus
Can anyone provide the name of the Metroidvania-type game being played in the Build Quality and Controls section starting at 7:46? I scanned the comments and there have been several requests for it but no answers I could see. I did a little googling to try to figure it out but don't really have enough to go on to get a toe hold. I can't tell what system it was for. Please help a few brothers out!
Oh damn he's rockin the new Anbernic!
Fantastic video. I subscribed!
Hi Taki, just found your channel after watching RetroGameCorps for quite a while.
Love your style of reviewing these devices, would you two ever be open to a colab at some point? Even if it is just comparing favourite games/systems?
Looking forward to watching your content in the future regardless!
Taki and Russ are the GOATS
for me the best choice for a 2022 console is a chipset based on the snapdragon 845 because although it is more expensive it is much more performing especially with the new aethersx2 having 4 cortex a75 and has been designed for android like all snapdragon chipsets. I would have mounted mediatek chipsets as well, cheaper but still very powerful, mid-range and for me would be sufficient.All this I say because these consoles are sold at high prices due to the excellent technical specifications they have and if I have to spend something like 200 dollars I demand chipsets powerful that allow me to emulate everything up to the ps2.With mediatek and snapdragon, designed for android I am sure I have a powerful emulation tool in my hands, more or less like a modern smartphone.
The fact Retro Pocket 2+ is cheaper & Faster
It’s Not 5” so why even compare
Too small & it's not faster.
@@JustinPennito Yah right
@@JustinPennito ua-cam.com/video/kguyS-fUFEM/v-deo.html
You're right, it is cheaper and faster. But it's also clearly cheaper, the screen is not just smaller but of lower quality, the ergonomics aren't great because of it's sharp edges, the joystick has less of a tilt, and the home select start buttons are in a bad position. Rp2+ is also unable to boot into Linux. This rg552 appears to be of higher quality tho a touch slower. Besides it's not like the rp2+ can do flawless gcn, neither system can. But you can bet the rg552 is going to get.loads of community support. The rg552 is without a doubt going to be a better experience than the rp2+, tho anbernic next 5 inch device is likely to fix the 552s problems. As it stands the the 552s weak points are the shoulder buttons and connectivity options. But a U-shaped type c to a adapter plus a tiny USB 5ghz and Bluetooth dongle fixes one of those major issues for about 20 bucks. Not ideal but it's a workaround. I think what we need to consider is that the 552 is an early adapters device for the next big series of devices. The 552 is for the impatient, which I definitely am. I'm likely going to order on today on Amazon for 30 bucks extra just so I can have it faster. The patient will likely be rewarded with the Odin. However I'm also a day one preorder holder for the steam deck, and I think that will be leagues better than even the Odin. But even with the deck I believe I'll still go back to the 552 for small form factor retro gaming.
I hope the RG552 will put pressure on the competition to introduce more upper-mid-range SOCs and cause price drops. These devices have long emulated 2D games and the PSX catalog to perfection. The challenge now is high quality PSP, Dreamcast, PS2 with its intricate hardware and even GameCube / Wii.
They should use the snap dragon g3x chipset. We could probably do perfect emulation of anything upto gamecube with it.
@@jaswanthkumar8365 I think the same. They could even use older Snapdragon 7xx or much better 8xx (ie 845) with much better results than this old Rockchip SOC.
IDK for $240-$250 you could get a LG V60 on ebay new unlocked. The Snapdragon 865 on the V60 will utterly destroy this RG552. Not to mention that it comes with Wi-Fi 6
You just obliterated any scrap of interest I might have had for these retro devices 😅 (Thank you)
LG V60 and the GameSir X2 Type-C for zero lag
Hi Taki, any news on the retroid pocket 2 plus review? Thanks again for the great content.
It's not a bad option if you don't have any retro handheld want a larger version of Anbernic's RG351 series but otherwise it's price to performance ratio isn't great. I considered it initially but went with the RG351MP for it's pocket-ability and cheaper price.
I'll buy in the mid year next year. 😁
There'll probably be something better by then.
@@Old_Man_Jay most likely, but they will slash the price of the RG552 still worth it to buy I think.
Halo taki can you please puy some watermark the title of the game you played such as game on 0:40 and 7:50 , im curious to play it😀
Thanks for the video. Any idea when other merchant sites may carry it?
i would if i have money.. but im happy just to watch it on a video..
Thank you for your work!
Taki do you have any info on RP2+ shipping status?
Hey Taki What the chances of RP3 coming out next year? RP2 + is more like a mid gen refresh as bridge to RP3.
i love your videos so much
What game are you playing at 7:23 ?
basically taki saying no, don't buy this without saying it.
Yeah he can't just outright say it without angering Ambernic. But he saying it lol.
…love at first sight…bought it…love it…finally handheld battle tanx…
What game is running at 9:01 on the screen
Great review.
How did this video cause Taki to get black listed from Anbernic? It was constructive and provided lots of pros, with the cons.
PPSSPP under Android suports Vulkan API on RG552?
I'd say no. This is not a ready device. This is a project. While there are some people that will get a kick out of using and fixing issues with it, the vast majority will not because they wanted a device that does what it claims to do to their expectations. I won't be surprised if many people with a modern mid-range phone running a SD 700 or 800 series buys this device with the promise that they can stop using their phone for gaming only to find out their phone is more powerful than it while costing around the same and that money would be better invested getting a good Bluetooth joystick or a GameSir X2. If you bought this just for DS emulation there's the issue of not being able to get a good split screen and that will greatly affect games that make use of both screens.
This is great, but, worth the upgrade from the rg351? or evem better than the Odin? tough call.
What’s the game at 7:50?
What kind of price drop percentage have the previous Anbernic devices seen? Personally, I’m definitely skipping this one. Happy with my 351 for now, find myself using my phone more than anything though and still waiting on Steamdeck and plan on getting an Odin once they’re actually shipping and in people’s hands. Thanks T. 👍
Switcht from the rg350 to the rg351v :) and loving it
We need a tutorial specifically showing how to switch the L1 and R1 with L2 and R2.
the price its too much.....i prefer retro pocket or odin.
How difficult would it be to put Android 11 on it?
7:50 whats the name of this game??
Dead Cells
0:26 plz tell which game is this ??. I want to know
That's Terraria
The wifi chip really kills it for me. This would be perfect for game streaming apps otherwise.
anyone know the game name at minute 7:00 and 7:55 ?
AetherSX2 is not an option for the RK3399 anyway. You should have at least 4 performance cores (A75) and the RK3399 only has 2 old A72 performance cores.
Well, the Odin devices are still not out. Due to the current supply problems I'm not sure if they either have to go up in the price or delay the delivery even further...
I would like to see a video review of this device being played with some online app games not preinstalled retro games
Can it play online app games like Tower of Fantasy or any other popular games like Honkai star rail?
Taki. What would be best. Rg552 or X18?
The redroid pocket 2+ is more powerfull than the rg552?
By far and for just $99 plus you get 5 gigahertz Wi-Fi as well. This thing is a piece of trash!
thank you for your review! can it run super fx chip games like yoshi's island with the latest snes9x core smoothly under linux? if not can custom firmware in the future achieve this?
Nice video.
I like your comparison.
I'm looking for a device in order to mainly stream games from my PC, I want a big screen with enough resolution, obviously 5Ghz Wi-Fi, and a 360 or Switch like controls. Unfortunately nothing on the market seems to match those criteria ?
What phone are you rocking?
@@Nickbaldeagle02 a Note 10. You suggest buying a controler like a Keshi ? This is my backup plan but I'd prefer a dedicated handheld, my phone battery is already very low in the evening (when I want to play)
@@MasterboxProduction you read my mind. The Kishi has a charging bypass so you can charge and play. Your Note 10 will annihilate this toy.
@@Nickbaldeagle02 thanks for your advice 😄
Is that that lords of the fallen port your playing
So, I'm curious if it's possible to disable the fan through the firmware, since the system seems to be capable of operating in safe parameters even without active cooling.. Perhaps this is strongly advised against, idk.. But, this is honestly one of the biggest draw-backs for me, as I sometimes may be trying to occupy myself in a quiet situation where I'd rather not draw attention to myself bc it sounds like a mouse is using power tools in my hands...
In the case of the Odin devices, the prices should be the retail price and not the IGG campaign.
Why. The price he had in the video is the current price of the Odin. If you're looking to put your money on something today then the price is correct.
@@bigbaldwolf86 sorry, are they still purchasable?
@@svcross-do Is the price of the Odin right now the retail price or IGG price?
@@bigbaldwolf86 my question is, if I want right now, can I buy an Odin? If not, the price listed on the video is the one for the campaign and it's not a correct comparison. If the device were listed on AliExpress, their own website, or even Amazon, with a price similar to the price listed on the video, it would be a fair comparison. Btw, I'm not defending the RG552, the thing is a mess, but what is fair is fair.
$220 is just too much for a device with an older SOC and an ancient version of Android. While I understand that software development takes time I just can't understand why a 'new' device would ship with an OS as old as Android 7. There are phones on the market with Android 12 and 7 came out way back in 2016.
Already pre-ordered the Retroid Pocket 2+. Hoping it ships tomorrow.
This is far too expensive.
If you're going to spend over $200 in one of these machines I say you wait a couple more months save some money and buy the cheapest steam deck.
Any particular reason it would ship tomorrow? Have one on preorder, also, but with the general vagueness of shipping dates and the minor delay, I have no idea when it will ship.
I feel like people only look at the price and compare with other devices what they can play and how well it runs.
For me a price can so be justified with a better screen, better sound and better buttons. This device is worth it's money because of the build quality and the screen. Something the RP2+ does not have.
Personally I'll wait because I ready have RG351m and rather wait for a version with stacked shoulder buttons and want to see what else they will bring this upcoming year.
The RG552 looks wonderful (both the design and what it can do), however, I already have a RG351V and I'm quite satisfied by it (and will be for years to come).
I will probably be buying the new Generation of Anbernic device in 2029 once my RG351V stops working (and cannot be repaired) but not a second sooner.
I'm a bit skeptical with the chip being from 2016 that it could be beef enough for most games on Dolphin or AetherSX2..
Is Vulkan even supported on Mali-T864 ? according to notebookcheck its not..
I wonder if dolphin performance is indured by not having a vulkan driver on android. Once the linux OS gets better I imagine that having support for Opengl4.5 and Vulkan will be a great advantage
This is using Vulkan.
@@TakiUdon Really? On the spec info screen only the openglES driver is listed
As long if Arm can get graphics driver at least as good as Qualcomm
Rk3399pro chip was at least some next generation and not a lot improvements with the rk3288 chip for example. But not a bad handheld just expect a little more
Shame about the price. I like the rk3399 but for my budget the only of these devices I'd get are the rp2+ or the x18s .
As it is right now: In my opinion is the worst deal in terms of price. It truly is only of any interest for those wanting to run a portable Linux HTPC/Desktop and Android TV Console from it. But to do that properly, you will still need to wait for the community to fix it. The RG552 makes the RP2+, the X10s and even the GPD XP a whole lot better. I think the most benefited is the X10s. Even after you fixing it, it will still be cheaper than a RG552.
What's the game with Samurai looking guy?
Hello taki, is good there a place to wait/hunt for upgraded RG linux updates? Any community developert to be followed? (I already ordered RG552 and plan to update the linux as soon it becomes available - so far I have zero experiences with android)
SlashTV seems promising.
ua-cam.com/video/kd0TgkvaRyc/v-deo.html
Hi, ive a question, if i can choose Odin Pro or Rg552, what i should buy?
Out of all the handhelds you mentioned including this device. Which is the best for beginners?
Anbernic RG351MP is plug and play. there's also a rg351p which much cheaper
In China, this only costs about 1000RMB (with only the 16G Linux system card), which is about 157USD. Not sure if that may make this device a more reasonable choice.
No man , I live in china and it's 1300rmb on taobao, I'll buy the gpd XP instead for 1800
Would really love your opinion…
Would you sell the Win Max to get a Win3????
No
@@TakiUdon
Elaborate a little on your reasoning?? Don’t get me wrong. I’ve loved my Max ever since I got it from the Indiegogo campaign. Light gaming. Mainly indie titles and babysitting a couple of my websites on the go.
@@mrspankytank2858 the Win 3 is more powerful, but the Max has better controls and screen.
Lack of stacked shoulder buttons and such an old version of android is the deal breaker to me in what is basically 2022
Hi, what about HDMI quality and 2 player option
Hi Taki. I speak here from Brazil. I already bought the RG552 and I'm waiting for it to arrive. The device runs both android and linux, requiring an extra micro sd card for linux. And to put games in the second slot, do I also need 2 cards, or can I use the same game card for both systems?
You need two cards to use linux.
The RG552 will always be the handheld I want to love but really can't.
Can you sideload Google Play services and store into this device?
Can you access both SD cards from the android side?
Dear Taki,
Which one is more powerful RG552 or RP2+? Especially for PSP and PS2.
351p has better psp performanse then retro pocket 2 plus
Rg552 has better pap performanse then 351p
I don't plan on buying this premium device, however I am torn between the RGB10 Max 2 and the RP2+.
What would y'all say has the best UI for a retro console? RP2+, RG351mp/RG552, Retropie? Or one I didn't mention? After seeing the UI of some of these videos I decided that looks like a really nice feature. A friend of mine had a hacked Nintendo DS that he let me try out and was quite fun but all the games were just in a super long horizontal list, which I thought was fine but a bit cumbersome to scroll through if there was a specific title I wanted to try. Having nice box art and everything by system looks amazing and I'd really like Y'alls opinion on what you have tried and feels best to you.
For context I am strongly considering picking up the RP2+ here in the near future, but with all the new stuff coming out I am torn. I plan to eventually pick up a Steam Deck, but I recently moved and got a new job so won't be making a purchase that large until I have settled in.
Thanks in advance!
That Steam Deck is rumored to be on a whole other level! In a lane by itself. A total powerhouse. The complete package. Said to be the last handheld console you will ever need!
@@jonathonearl482 That sounds perfect! I have to admit from the first time I saw the Steam Deck I was immediately excited, it just looks amazing. And that was before I decided I wanted to try and get into the retro gaming scene. I really can't wait to pick one up! I'm considering getting a RP2+ in the meantime to get the hang of micromanaging rom settings and such, as well as having something a little more pocket friendly while I'm out and about in general. Idk.
I'm getting RP2+ and Steam Deck as well, seems to make the most sense to me but I never used a retroid product yet, only RG351P. Fingers crossed that the feel of playing with RP2+ isn't as bad as people make it out to be since otherwise it seems like exactly what I want in terms of size and what it can play.
What Pegasus theme is that?
How well does Citra run on the retroid pocket 2+ ?
Probably poorly
Not worth considering.
If you want to play citra on android, use a device with a Snapdragon 835 or higher. I have an 865 + using Citra mmj and I can run games at 3-4x resolution.
@@politicsnerd0311 where did you downloaded citra?
@@politicsnerd0311 I already have a phone with media tek dimensity 1200 chip and 12 GB of RAM, I was just curious as to how well do 3DS games run on the retroid pocket 2+ but thank you for the suggestion.
Will there be a metal version of it?
Put in a Snapdragons G3x with android 12 for the same price then it's something worth considering.