If you’re at all tuned in to the Android gaming scene, you know that Retroid is the king of affordable Android handhelds. Its latest releases, the Retroid Pocket 4 and 4 Pro, are some of the best Android gaming devices in the $200 price range, and keep competitors like Anbernic on their toes. And it seems like Retroid is intent on keeping competitors and consumers on the back foot because this week it announced two new handhelds, the Retroid Pocket Mini and the Retroid Pocket 5.
What do we know?
Not much. We have some details on the Pocket Mini, but Retroid is being tight-lipped when it comes to details about the Pocket 5. The Mini was announced last week with a teaser on YouTube and the 5 was revealed today on Twitter.
What do we know about the Retroid Pocket Mini?
Retroid has been teasing out details on the Pocket Mini throughout the week. The two most interesting bits of news are its 3.7-inch, 1280×960 OLED display, and the fact that it will be running on a Snapdragon chip. We also know that it will be 165mm × 77mm × 17mm (which is a touch thicker than the RP4 but about 20mm narrower and 10mm shorter) and weigh 215g (compared to the 261g of the RP4).
We can also deduce a bit based on the video. On the face of the device will be one D-pad, two analog sticks (with LED rings), four action buttons, four menu buttons, and a set of speakers. There are four shoulder buttons on the top along with volume and power buttons. On the bottom is an SD card slot, a USB-C port, and what looks like a 3.5mm audio jack. Vents along the top and on the rear of the Mini suggest that it will have active cooling as well.
Source: Retroid/Twitter
Retroid has also teased at least six different colorways, but these haven’t been set in stone just yet. At the moment, it seems like there will be just five. Regarding the Snapdragon SoC, Retroid hasn’t indicated which chip it will use, but it has said that it will be more powerful than the Pocket Flip which uses an octo-core Unisoc Tiger T618 that runs at 2GHz. That means it will have at least a Snapdragon 4 (Moto G 5G) but possibly a Snapdragon 6 (Moto G Stylus 5G) or better.
What do we know about the Retroid Pocket 5?
Hardly anything. Everything we know so far comes from the renders Retroid posted on Twitter. It will have the same button layout as the Mini and appears to have a 16:9 screen (compared to the 4:3 screen on the Pocket Mini). Beyond that we can only speculate. The RP3 has the same chip as the Flip which runs at 2GHz. The RP4 and 4Pro have a MediaTek Dimensity 900 and 1100, respectively, which run at 2.4GHz and 2.6GHz. If Retroid follows the same pattern and uses a Snapdragon chip as in the Mini, you could expect to see it running a Snapdragon 8 at 2.8GHz (Samsung S22) or higher.
When can I buy one?
I don’t know, but I can guess. Barring the Mini and the RP5, Retroid has announced three devices on Twitter since it created its account back in February 2023. The Flip was announced in March 2023 and released in April 2023. The 2S was announced in July 2023 and released in August 2023. The 4 and 4 Pro were announced in December 2023 and released in January 2024. If this pattern holds, you should have a Mini or RP5 in your hands by September or October. I, for one, am ready to part with my money.
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Retroid Pocket Mini
The big news about the RPMini is its OLED screen and Snapdragon processor. Beyond that, all we know are trivial details. Hopefully more details will be coming soon.
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Retroid Pocket 5
We know next to nothing about the RP5 other than its button layout and the 16:9 screen which Retroid teases with the tagline “Broaden your horizons.”
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