Remember the Game Boy SP? Arguably the single greatest console upgrade ever? Well, Anbernic’s next handheld, the RG35XXSP, looks to take inspiration from the Nintendo device, albeit with a much more powerful engine under the hood.
The RG35XXSP will be available from 17/05/2024 and retails for $64.99, which is a really great price. It’s in line with the Anbernic Arc-D and the RG35XX Plus. It’s also worth noting, with the release of the RG28XX, Anbernic fixed one of my main gripes, namely the awfully generic operating system. The RG35XXSP won’t be as stylish as something like the AYN Odin 2, but the new game launcher is leaps and bounds nicer to look at than the old Anbernic operating system.
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Specs Breakdown
The RG35XXSP makes use of the same CPU and GPU as the RG35XX (not to be confused with the RG35XX Plus) and the RG28XX. That means I can predict what the handheld will be capable of fairly accurately.
PS2 and GameCube and any systems released after them are straight out the window. PSP is also only going to be possible for lightweight stuff without any kind of upscaling. For something like Dreamcast, it’ll be possible as long as you’re not trying to upscale the image too much.
For older retro stuff, think SNES, Genesis/Mega Drive, and most importantly, Game Boy Advance, the RG35XXSP should be able to run those systems without many issues.
| RG35XXSP Specs | |
|---|---|
| CPU | H700 quad-core ARM Cortex-A53 clocked at 1.5GHz frequency |
| GPU | Dual- core Mali-G31 MP2 |
| Screen | 3.5-inch IPS at 640 x 480 |
| RAM | 1GB LPDDR4 |
| Storage | 64GB MicroSD card |
| Operating system | Custom Linux |
| Connectivity | 2.4/5G WIFI 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.2 for wireless controllers only. |
| Battery | 3300mAh, up to 8 hours |
| Size | 8.9cm by 8.5cm by 2.7cm |
| Game Boy SP size (for reference) | 8.4 by 8.2 by 2.44 cm |
That’s really the main hook here as well. Without analog sticks, playing the more nu-school retro games wouldn’t be enjoyable anyway, so it’s no great loss that the RG35XXSP won’t be able to run them. I’m also fairly certain the people who’ll be picking this handheld up will be doing so mostly for those old-school classics. The RG35XXSP is, after all, a super-powered Game Boy SP. This handheld is all about Pokémon and the like, right?
Where’s My Review?
Just a quick heads up to RetroResolve readers, Anbernic doesn’t send me advance review units. I will be reviewing the RG35XXSP, but I’ll be ordering mine along with everyone else. So check back in a couple of weeks and I’ll have my review and video up.
In the meantime, our friends over at RetroGamesCorp did receive a review unit early and already have their thoughts up. Check out the video below if you want to see what the RG35XXSP looks like in action.
