Retroid Pocket Mini: A Linux Review

Retroid rarely publishes a portable; typically, they do so at least four months in advance. Please ignore the three and 3+. Anbernic has released over thirty handhelds, including their variations, since 2020. At the exact moment, Retroid has formally announced 11. I must thus look at it if a new one arises.

Instead of concentrating on the conventional Android experience, like every other Retroid, I will base this review on the experience of a Linux user, which, in this case, means RCKNIX. Join me as I examine the Retroid Pocket Mini's ROCKNIX experience and determine whether this is the most incredible little Linux gadget available.

Retroid Pocket Mini Specs:

  • Adreno 650 GPU;
  • Snapdragon 865 CPU
  • 6GB LPDDR4X RAM; 128GB of storage. Screen size for UFS 3.1: 3.7" 1280 x 960 (4:3) AMOLED
  • 4,000mAh battery (27-watt charge listed)
  • Connectivity: 3.5mm Audio Jack, USB-C Displayport, Bluetooth 5.1, and WiFi 6.
  • Android 10 is the operating system. Rocknix and Batocera are also accessible.
  • Dimensions: 165x77x16.5 mm
  • 217 grams in weight

Design and Ergonomics:

Let's start with something basic: the sensation of simply holding and gazing at this object. The Saturn colorway looks fantastic, even though I'm not the biggest fan of the RP Mini's (and 5) all-glass front. I think the shoulder buttons tie the entire design together, the colourful buttons aren't too crazy, and the body has a great white tone.

The sole negative aspect is the glass front, which alters the device's colour tone to make it less white. Nevertheless, this colorway and the Orange and White hues are my favourites.

The RP Mini differs from earlier Retroid devices in terms of ergonomics. It uses this new design as an opportunity to add a few tiny grips along the rear instead of maintaining the flat back of its predecessors.

Though much smaller, the bumps around the rear are similar to those on the Ayaneo Pocket Air that I've already evaluated. Identical to that gadget, the bumps could have been more noticeable, but that would essentially eliminate this handheld's pocketability.

Overall, Retroid got the vibe of this one spot-on.

Screen and Controls:

Okay, let's discuss the controls and screen. Despite its diminutive size, the 3.7", 4:3, 1280×960 AMOLED display is fantastic. I can't stop staring at it because the colours pop and the blacks are dark. Given the quality of this screen, it won't be easy to return. Seeing the RP5 screen does excite me.

Additionally, I am aware that the RP Mini's shaders have caused software issues, but I didn't use them during testing, so I wouldn't worry too much because there are plans to address this in the future.  

The majority of this is anticipated in terms of controls. The sticks are light and easy to manipulate, making them excellent Retroid/Odin sticks. RGB just now. L1 and L2 are clicky buttons that I don't particularly like, but they function, and L2 and R2 are analog. Although the faces are noisy and clacky, I don't find that bothersome. They do have a pleasant, firm thud.

The D-pad is a Vita-style clicky pad. This one seems small after using those Shield-style pads and Powkiddy's larger D-pads, but it appears correct. During my Pico-8 Celeste tests, I had my best run to far at 2:32 with no fatalities. And I can cut a few seconds off because it's a D-pad. It's excellent.

The OS Experience:

Although the RP Mini requires an additional step to access, the ROCKNIX experience is often what you should anticipate. Usually, you flash your micro SD card and turn it on, but with the RP Mini, you have to boot into Android first, then restart with the volume up to choose the ROCKNIX SD card.

Since this is an older build, I hope that something can be done to simplify the switchover. Unfortunately, you now have to do this every time. If not, I completely understand and don't find it particularly significant.

In Rocknix, WiFi, stick LEDS, and file transfers across the network all functioned as planned, and most systems started up without any issues. However, throughout my testing, I noticed that sometimes my controls would lock in one direction, leaving me with nothing more than a continuous series of "ups" or "downs" until I pressed the button again in that direction. I anticipate issues because, as previously stated, it is an early build.

However, ROCKNIX is in a good starting position; it will just depend on how well things hold up during the games.

Performance:

This is a straightforward conversation. On this screen, 2D 4:3 content looks fantastic. That AMOLED display fills the screen and pops. Wider systems, such as the Game Boy Advance and PSP, appear excellent on their own, but you notice that the black bars at the top and bottom stand out a little more. You may get a larger, better-looking image on the Retroid Pocket 5 for an additional $20 if you specifically seek a PSP or GBA.

I experimented with the more demanding emulators and discovered that Saturn functioned fairly well overall. That was my hope, considering the Saturn colours I purchased. We've had this "can't play the thing it's modelled after" situation before, and I'd rather not have it again.

For the most part, the GameCube functions nicely. I did observe a few minor graphics problems in certain games. These usually appeared in menus in Sonic Heroes, and strangely, they disappeared when the internal resolution was adjusted to 1080p.

Another one that was simple to set up and left me feeling delighted overall was the PS2. Burnout 3: Takedown is one of my favourite games on the PlayStation, although I had a few problems with it, at least for me.

There were visual hiccups on the left side when turning; oddly, the screen would lag considerably more when turned off and back on. Most of the games went smoothly, but I had some problems with this one.

After that, a few brief performance notes. Pico-8? Everything, including Splore, functions flawlessly with native support in ROCKNIX. Xbox? Although remarkable, you shouldn't anticipate much from it just yet. It is nonetheless there. More than anything, I refer to it as the first stepping stone.

Final Thoughts

My favourite "traditional horizontal" little Linux device is the Retroid Pocket Mini. It can touch the GameCube and PS2 at a natural 4:3 aspect ratio and is more potent than most of my other horizontal devices. I can access PortMaster and native Pico-8 with ROCKNIX, which is difficult to claim on an Android-only device.

Does it have any shortcomings? Indeed. The speakers occasionally get obscured when I hold it, the buttons are noisy, and the glass front makes me uneasy about taking it. I have discovered a few minor but bothersome bugs with this version of ROCKNIX, which may be resolved in the future. It might be a Linux gadget for you if you don't require a bigger screen than this one.

But don't limit it to ROCKNIX at $200. You can access a ton more games by switching to Android. There, you can access Winlator, Cemu, and Android ports. Additionally, PS2 and GameCube operate more reliably on Android (at least for now). However, that can change.

Spend the extra money if you want the larger screen, even if I'm unsure how much better the RP5 is at $220. However, I'm glad I invested in the RP Mini, particularly the Saturn colourway. For me, it's a true chef's kiss.