If you have ever dabbled in the world of emulation consoles and handhelds, like many of us, you’ll probably find it extremely intimidating with so many brands and models on the market right now. New ones are still coming out on a weekly basis, too. Last week, the Shenzhen-based Anbernic brought the first-ever GBA SP look-a-like, the RG35XX SP, to this niche market. And boy, does it look similar to a Game Boy Advance SP, even if it is a tiny bit thicker and features more buttons and ports.
Like most emulation handhelds, the RG35XX SP does not just emulate GBA games but almost every retro gaming platform that can run on the Allwinner H700 quad-core ARM Cortex-A53 processor (at 1.5 GHz). And that is a lot. It runs everything up to the PlayStation 1 quite comfortably. Quite a feat, as this hardware configuration is considered on the lower and of the spectrum in specs and price (currently the system is offered on the Anbernic website for €/$ 58.99.
The RG35XX SP does not feature any thumbsticks like many other smaller handheld devices, but it does feature four face buttons and four shoulder buttons along with the directional pad.
It features 1GB of RAM, a beefy 3300mAh battery, and a 3.5″ IPS screen with a resolution of 640×480 pixels. It weighs about 200 grams and has Wi-Fi connectivity on both 2.4 and 5 GHz bands, as well as Bluetooth, which isn’t a given. It has a mini-HDMI port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a rumble pack.
Our biggest nitpick with Anbernic’s handhelds has always been their stock OS. Although it has improved immensely recently, its UI still looks very unappealing compared to a well-setup JelOS or GarlicOS system. It does have a couple of interesting new features, like a sleep mode. As with all the other Anbernic products, this product will likely be upgraded with various custom third-party firmware and OS options. Since the RG35XX H is now shipped with the much better GarlicOS, we had hoped Anbernic would go the same route with the SP model.
In contrast to other Anbernic consoles or those of the competition, the battery is easily accessible by unscrewing a cover plate on the back. If there are issues with most of the emulation handhelds, they are usually related to battery problems. With just the back plate to be removed, faulty batteries can be easily replaced or reset (by unplugging them).
It comes in four colors: silver, gray, transparent blue, and black. For now, it is exclusively available on the Anbernic website but should pop up on sites like AliExpress in the foreseeable future.
