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GoRetroid unveils the Retroid Pocket Flip, a Nintendo DS-inspired handheld game console

The Retroid Pocket Flip is an upcoming clamshell handheld console. (All images via GoRetroid)
The Retroid Pocket Flip is an upcoming clamshell handheld console. (All images via GoRetroid)
Retroid Pocket, which is known for its popular family of handheld game consoles, unveiled a new handheld that takes cues from Nintendo's DS. The Retroid Pocket Flip is a clamshell handheld that will come in a variety of colors, though specs are currently unknown.

Handheld gaming consoles have exploded in popularity over the past year, led by the likes of Valve's Steam Deck and the slew of retro-focused handheld consoles. One of the biggest players in this market is GoRetroid, the team behind the Retroid Pocket family of handhelds. GoRetroid this week unveiled their next handheld, but its design borrows heavily from one of the most popular handhelds of all time.

The Retroid Pocket Flip is a clamshell handheld console. It looks strikingly similar to Nintendo's DS Lite, sans the lower screen of Nintendo's handheld. The Pocket Flip is very similar in size to the DS Lite, measuring 139 x 82 x 25.4 mm. This makes it a bit thick and perhaps a bit hard to pocket.

The thickness is largely due to the trigger buttons located on the back of the device. Speaking of buttons, the Pocket Flip as a standard array of buttons, including a directional pad, four face buttons (ABXY arrangement), two middle buttons (presumably menu or start/select buttons), and two flat joysticks. There are two shoulder buttons (L1 and R1), the aforementioned triggers (L2 and R2), and two tiny buttons on the back labelled "L3" and "R3."

The handheld's joysticks look surface-mounted rather than recessed, implying that they will function much like the Nintendo 3DS's slider joystick. 

I/O includes a USB-C port, a micro-HDMI port, and a headphone jack. The Pocket Flip will support microSD cards. 

Other specs are currently unknown. GoRetroid stated they will announce the device's hardware later this week. Presumably, it will be on par or slightly better than the Retroid Pocket 3+, which could emulate most Gamecube games and some lighter PlayStation 2 titles. However, this is merely speculation; we won't have a good guess at its gaming prowess until we know what's running under that shell.

The Retroid Pocket Flip will come in five colors: Sport Red, Black, "16Bit US" (which bears a color scheme similar to that of North America's Super Nintendo), Indigo (which looks like the same purple as the Gamecube), and Watermelon (a transparent red). 

There's no word yet of a release date.

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2023 03 > GoRetroid unveils the Retroid Pocket Flip, a Nintendo DS-inspired handheld game console
Sam Medley, 2023-03-15 (Update: 2023-03-15)