Retroid Pocket 3 Review
A Datfast Review 02/20/23
Today’s Review is on the Retroid Pocket 3! The little Android Handheld device just keeps on giving! In this review I will go over my experiences with it and a little bit of its strengths and capabilities. I have very little experience with Android emulation but this device got the wheels turning in my head after decades of not caring about emulation! I will also mention here real quick that I purchased this hardware and I am not affiliated with Retroid in any way. So here we go!
-Packaging-
My Retroid Pocket 3 (RP3 for the rest of this review) arrived in perfect condition in this very simple but nice packaging. The box was foam lined and everything was individually packaged inside. It came with the RP3 itself, a USB-C charging cable, and the user manual. Overall I was very pleased with how well it is packaged since it comes to you all the way from China. The RP3 is available in several colors and a couple of different performance configurations (2 or 3 GB RAM). I selected the Orange with Black buttons and 3GB RAM for my order.
-Form and Function-
Let me be the first to say how much I love the feel and clickiness of the buttons. The button layout is the most similar to a Playstation layout without a doubt. The control sticks are lower on the device and inline instead of flipped like a Nintendo/Microsoft layout. The sticks themselves feel pretty good, but can feel a little restrictive while playing more modern games that utilize the full travel of control sticks. It’s not so off putting that I can’t play modern games but it is noticeable for sure. The face buttons have a nice click and response and the D-pad is just ok. It’s not great but serviceable. I’m not a huge fan of the start/select button placement being on top of the system but you don’t really use them that often, so I’ll allow it. The triggers and bumpers feel exactly like the ones on a Nintendo Switch, so if you are familiar with those, you will feel right at home here.
The device is very similar in shape and size to the Nintendo Switch Lite. The RP3 being just slightly smaller in size, but I actually think I prefer the smaller size more for portability. I can still play it comfortably for an hour or two without my hands cramping.
-Specifications-
Here are the listed Specifications from the GoRetroid web page.
CPU:1*A75@2.0G/3*A55@1.8G, GPU: PowerVR GE8300@800MHz
Support Android 11, 20%-30% performance gain from Android 9
Support 4.7 inch touch screen (16:9), 750x1334@60fps
Support 720p HDMI
Support 2GB+32GB/ 3GB+32GB eMCP
Improved controls with clickable analog sticks with L3/R3 enabled
Alternative dome switch or conductive rubber for DPAD and face button
Better build quality and better heat dissipation (Metal frame inside)
Built-in 4000mAh battery
Built-in newest official game launcher and emulator frontend
Built-in official OTA support for incremental software upgrade
This is an Android based device and I have found it to basically operate like a cell phone. The start up time is pretty lengthy so I prefer to just put it to sleep like a phone or my Nintendo Switch. The operating system is very snappy and I haven’t had any issues installing any software. Overall I am pleased by the performance and with it being an Android device, you have access to the Google Play Store to download most of the things you will need to get going.
-Emulation-
The RP3 is pretty much tailored for emulation, to the point that it even comes with its own frontend that is very user friendly for emulation beginners. There are several guides out there to take advantage of on how to set it up. I will not be getting into that here. I will just go through a list of consoles and note which ones the RP3 can handle.
List of consoles that the RP3 can emulate greatly:
NES (Tested)
All Gameboy family of consoles (Tested)
Master System (Tested)
Genesis (Tested)
Gamegear (Tested)
Turbografx 16
Super Nintendo (Tested)
Virtual Boy (Tested)
N64 (Tested)
Neo Geo Pocket/color (Tested)
Playstation (Tested)
Saturn (Tested)
Nintendo DS (Tested)
List of consoles that the RP3 can emulate OK:
PSP (Tested)
Dreamcast (Tested)
List of consoles that the RP3 struggles to emulate:
Gamecube (Tested)
PS2
Nintendo 3DS
PS Vita
These are all the consoles that I have tested or are common in the emulation community.
-Streaming-
The RP3 isn’t just an emulation power house, it also is very capable of utilizing most streaming services over a good wifi connection! Here is a short list of all the services that I tried.
PSPlay (do not download the official Playstation remote play app because it is not compatible with the RP3’s controller input) (Tested a lot lol) The experience is pretty seamless really. I tested it with my PS4 and PS5 with no issues. There isn’t any noticeable lag in the controls that I encountered, but I also never played anything like a FPS or Fighting game that requires super low input latency.
Xbox Game Pass (Tested) The experience here is on par with PSPlay. No issues whatsoever.
Steam Link (Tested) Another great experience.
I have honestly found myself using this device as a streaming device way more often than I anticipated. Using the RP3 in this fashion wasn’t even on my radar when I purchased it. It's amazing how nice it is to take the RP3 to my bedroom at night and play Spiderman Miles Morales from my PS5 while laying in bed. Total game changer!
-Conclusion-
My overall experience with the RP3 has greatly exceeded my expectations by a large margin! With my initial reason for purchase being emulation, I can say I am very pleased with what the RP3 can handle. So far everything that I tried and expected to play has been playable on this device. I have to give it even more credit for getting me to do something that I never imagined doing in the first place and that is use all these streaming services that I never used on my phone! I have to say that you will get more bang for your buck with this affordable Android handheld. This device is quite the powerhouse and still fits in my bag to go to work with me almost everyday. I highly recommend the Retroid Pocket 3 to anyone looking for a well rounded device that can do all the things I mentioned above.