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What is the best handheld device for Retro emulation?
- Thread starter GlamFM
- Start date
I actually have never used a Saturn pad
And you have to admit outside of that one, "circled" d-pads are usually awful.http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?StartRow=1&catid=31&threadid=120370
For some people they won't even notice I am sure. But at a age where fighting games are programmed with 5 frames of input lag in mind, old consoles games did not have any input lag to worry about and programmed as such. The input lag of NES CRT is about 14ms according to this post which pretty much means instantaneous.
Thanks for the link; 14ms seems ludicrously fast. Now I'm curious as to where that speed came from; obviously part of it is CRT monitors (without which you can basically double that number and add a bit on, if that post is anything to go by), but is the simplicity of the NES' design what makes it possible? Did other consoles in the same generation match it? Did future console generations, and if not, when did they stop?
Trojita
Rapid Response Threadmaker
Cathode Ray Tubes just shoot out a projected image, they don't have to scale like current TV's do. Scaling and post processing effects cause most lag as we know it today.
So presumably modern consoles could match the 14ms target if they were hooked to CRT monitors; are modern games designed to perform that quickly?
Trojita
Rapid Response Threadmaker
Possibly with an analog connection, not sure with a digital one. You could test with a Wii, Xbox 360, or PS3 at best probably.
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
I played a LOT of IIDX in my past, so I notice any lag or timing issue. It's annoying. But if the GPD and S192 are both very nominal, I may still bite.
yep. It's by far the greatest d-pad I have ever used
Cow Mengde
Banned
Hey OP, I own a GPD XD. I'm in love with it. It's not perfect, but it works really well. Also comes with HDMI so you can plug it into the TV. It's also a solid Android game player. It's handled every game I've throw at it so far. Gets an average of 55fps on Epic Citadel benchmark on ultra. The battery life is fantastic. I was able to get 11+ hours of Castlevania Symphony of the Night. It's probably longer too since the game has loading, and I died a few times losing half hour or more of progress. The numbers came from the in game clock that track how long you've played.
Hey OP, I own a GPD XD. I'm in love with it. It's not perfect, but it works really well. Also comes with HDMI so you can plug it into the TV. It's also a solid Android game player. It's handled every game I've throw at it so far. Gets an average of 55fps on Epic Citadel benchmark on ultra. The battery life is fantastic. I was able to get 11+ hours of Castlevania Symphony of the Night. It's probably longer too since the game has loading, and I died a few times losing half hour or more of progress. The numbers came from the in game clock that track how long you've played.
I loved that game so much.
Cow Mengde
Banned
Hey OP, I own a GPD XD. I'm in love with it. It's not perfect, but it works really well. Also comes with HDMI so you can plug it into the TV. It's also a solid Android game player. It's handled every game I've throw at it so far. Gets an average of 55fps on Epic Citadel benchmark on ultra. The battery life is fantastic. I was able to get 11+ hours of Castlevania Symphony of the Night. It's probably longer too since the game has loading, and I died a few times losing half hour or more of progress. The numbers came from the in game clock that track how long you've played.
I loved that game so much.
NES GAF introduced me to it.
That's one of the two games that my brother and I couldn't stop playing. The other one being Bucky O'Hare.
Such great memories.
Valkyri von Thanatos
Member
The Nvidia SHIELD handheld and tablet are pretty great. I've used both, emulated games for PSX and below without any issues.
Yeah, I've had a pretty good experience with mine, particularly after the DraStic emulator was released.
CrashPrime
Member
Is handheld Dolphin a thing yet?
Cow Mengde
Banned
It's called Conquest of the Crystal Palace on the NES. It's made by people who made Ogre Battle.
Hey OP, I own a GPD XD. I'm in love with it. It's not
Sweet, is that emulating the PS1 or PSP version?
You made a great choice. There's heaps of info and discussion over in the "main" thread.
I assume PS1; the PSP version would be a wider aspect wouldn't it?
Noisepurge
Member
if you have patience to tinker with a device, the Dingoo A320 and GCW Zero devices are amazing due to having a 4:3 screen.
GlamFM
Banned
if you have patience to tinker with a device, the Dingoo A320 and GCW Zero devices are amazing due to having a 4:3 screen.
4:3 screen FTW, but I have no patience for tinkering.
Cow Mengde
Banned
PS1. PSP still has ways to go, but I tried Metal Slug Anthology and it worked great. It's also a bad ass android game device.
longnosedgoblin
Member
I am still waiting for the perfect retro handheld, I currently have my eye on the game girl which is pi zero powered with 8bit do buttons in a gameboy colour styled case. I have tried most devices and they all have their pros and cons.
N3ds - Probably the best currently if you don't want 3D games, and not that hard to setup if you plan it and follow all the steps. My personal gripes are the form factor isn't super comfortable to hold and the buttons and dpad are slightly too small for my liking. Also I play a lot of mega drive scrolling games and the ghosting in the background does bother me.
Gpd xd - Again the form factor and controls are similar to the 3ds and the dpad is slightly mushy although still perfectly useable. Works great with PlayStation games and even some dreamcast. Screen has no ghosting issues but after using the excellent lower res 3ds screen it doesn't look quite as nice for older systems.
Shield portable - A great powerful system, but boy is it a beast, not strictly all that portable.
Gcw Zero - Good screen and form factor, but the buttons and pad are not great. Build quality is a bit flaky as well.
Psp - The go is awesome but really it can't handle snes games well, controls and form factor are great though.
Pandora - Controls are great but the ghosting issue is also present on this screen and it cramps my hands really badly.
N3ds - Probably the best currently if you don't want 3D games, and not that hard to setup if you plan it and follow all the steps. My personal gripes are the form factor isn't super comfortable to hold and the buttons and dpad are slightly too small for my liking. Also I play a lot of mega drive scrolling games and the ghosting in the background does bother me.
Gpd xd - Again the form factor and controls are similar to the 3ds and the dpad is slightly mushy although still perfectly useable. Works great with PlayStation games and even some dreamcast. Screen has no ghosting issues but after using the excellent lower res 3ds screen it doesn't look quite as nice for older systems.
Shield portable - A great powerful system, but boy is it a beast, not strictly all that portable.
Gcw Zero - Good screen and form factor, but the buttons and pad are not great. Build quality is a bit flaky as well.
Psp - The go is awesome but really it can't handle snes games well, controls and form factor are great though.
Pandora - Controls are great but the ghosting issue is also present on this screen and it cramps my hands really badly.
The Real Abed
Perma-Junior
4:3 would be great for those old games. But what kind of tinkering do you mean? Like command line installing and shit like that?if you have patience to tinker with a device, the Dingoo A320 and GCW Zero devices are amazing due to having a 4:3 screen.
Noisepurge
Member
No commandline stuff, but to get most out of the system it's best to scour the Dingoonity forums for updates on emulators, ports and homebrew. For some games you do need to tinker a lot with file structure on the memory card though to get roms and stuff to load. Emulators are often just black screen with some text options on them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMMJnjaRSSo
I also recommend replacing the dpad with a Gameboy dpad, but that too requires some cutting and pasting of plastics.
But when the GCW Zero is all set up, it has great emulator variety, runs linux ports of Duke3D, Quake and even modded stuff like BrutalDoom. Pixelperfect screen is great for all older games. It runs stuff up until the PlayStation.
The Abominable Snowman
Member
It is excellent. I have a clip to go along with it, and got it for under $20 during a sale. I'd say the build quality feels almost-official.
With Note 4s going about $200 now and these controllers going for $25-30, you could get an amazing combination (That's way more flexible and way more powerful than most solutions in this thread) for under $250 and plays up to Dreamcast.
StereoVsn
Gold Member
I basically use this but with Note 3. Not quite fast enough for Dreamcast but everything up to it runs (haven't tried say Saturn).
Wat.
The dpad is a chunky mess, with loads of lateral slop. The buttons are simultaneously spongy and clunky. The superfluous touch controls are prone to extraneous inputs. The back button is prone to failure. Worst of all, both the sticks and the triggers have some godawful cantilever spring mechanism, which means that they actually provide less resistance the farther you push them, making precision inputs impossible.
Rating: "Mad Catz gamepad" out of 10. Would not recommend.
joeygreco1985
Member
I highly recommend the nvidia Shield portable. I keep it plugged into my TV when I'm at home and use it as an Android TV box, and use it as a handheld console when I'm out. Amazingly versatile device.
I brought it with me on my honeymoon and played through Symphony of the Night during my down time. Wife was pissed lol
I brought it with me on my honeymoon and played through Symphony of the Night during my down time. Wife was pissed lol
MomoPufflet
Member
What do you need to get emulators running on a Note 4 (or Samsung phone)-- just any unlocked unit-- or do you have to be anal about which firmware is already on it like handhelds? Do you have to jailbreak?
Appreciate the info. I would probably pick one of the two models up during a sale.
Appreciate the info. I would probably pick one of the two models up during a sale.
ss_lemonade
Member
Nothing special really. Just get emulators off the play store and figure out a way to get games for them. Retroarch is a pretty popular one since it has cores for a lot of popular handhelds and consoles, as well as a ton of options for customization but the UI can be very confusing.
zephervack
Member
I have a bunch of them, my recommendation is to get the beefiest Android device you can get, RetroArch in Android supports shaders and once you start using them you cant go back, in case you dont know what the shaders do:
My Nvidia Shield Portable struggles with some of the more advanced shaders so I would get something beefier than that.
My Nvidia Shield Portable struggles with some of the more advanced shaders so I would get something beefier than that.
Overrated D-Pad in my humble opinion. GBA SP had the best D-Pad ever (for my tastes). It was super clicky and really let you feel which direction you were pressing..... Almost like the NGPC's thumbstick.
Nothing really topped GBA SP for d-pads in my opinion.
Prisoner KSC2-303
Member
Out of interest, who did you order it from?
I'm in the UK and the only links I can see are direct from China at the moment.
Rodney McKay
Member
Ive been pretty happy with my Nvidia Shield Portable. Got a great deal on it a few years ago (Gamestop clearance right after Christmas).
I haven't found a great equation configuration for all N64 games, but it's been good for most of what else I've tried (SNES, NES, PSP, etc.). D-pad isn't the greatest, but I've used a lot worse.
I haven't found a great equation configuration for all N64 games, but it's been good for most of what else I've tried (SNES, NES, PSP, etc.). D-pad isn't the greatest, but I've used a lot worse.
Sadly, I wasn't a big fan of this controller when I picked one up recently. I liked that it was compatible with a lot of different stuff (PC, 360, Wii, android, iOS icade), but the buttons and d-pad didn't feel great and the whole thing felt pretty cheap for what I paid for it. It was pretty much on part with the MOGA hero which I had paid quite a bit less for (and had a built in dock).
GlamFM
Banned
Amazon.de from a shop called "DragonBox Shop"
SolidChamp
Banned
Hey OP, I own a GPD XD. I'm in love with it. It's not perfect, but it works really well. Also comes with HDMI so you can plug it into the TV. It's also a solid Android game player. It's handled every game I've throw at it so far. Gets an average of 55fps on Epic Citadel benchmark on ultra. The battery life is fantastic. I was able to get 11+ hours of Castlevania Symphony of the Night. It's probably longer too since the game has loading, and I died a few times losing half hour or more of progress. The numbers came from the in game clock that track how long you've played.
How easy would this thing be to set up, for a layman?
GlamFM
Banned
Can you drag and drop files onto a SD card?
SolidChamp
Banned
GlamFM
Banned
Theobromin
Neo Member
I'm considering buying myself one of the XDs, but I'm kinda unsure:
I own an OG 3DS (non XL) and when using it for longer times tend to get crampy hands -- is the XD easier/better to hold than the normal 3DS?
I own an OG 3DS (non XL) and when using it for longer times tend to get crampy hands -- is the XD easier/better to hold than the normal 3DS?
Trojita
Rapid Response Threadmaker
Was it an 8Bitdo?
GlamFM
Banned
RetroPlayer
Banned
Still running a PSP 2000 with emulation for just about everything up to the PS1.
Been very happy with it.
I don't doubt there are better options these days though.
Been very happy with it.
I don't doubt there are better options these days though.
The Real Abed
Perma-Junior
I'd be happy if I could find a working emulator set for my day-2 PSP-1000. If only just for NES, SNES and GameBoy/GBA. I used to have emulators on my PSP years ago, like 10 years ago, but one day I sleepily and stupidly and absentmindedly upgraded the firmware on my PSP (Even though at this point I didn't even give a shit about the games on the system) and broke them. Years later I tried reinstalling whatever emulators existed at the time and they were unusable.
I'm so sad. Because it really was a perfect device, if a bit big. If I could find working emulators, I'd dig it out again. I don't even know what firmware it's on now.
So, the Shield K1 tablet suddenly came back into stock this past few days (Nvidias site) so I dropped £170 on one, already have an 8bitdo Nes30pro.
I was using my Macbook Air for emulators but this will make a nice portable media / gaming center. Got a 128GB SD card as well to throw in there.
It seems to be one of the more powerful Android devices, the console mode is just icing on the cake.
I didn't go for the charger, assume any Micro USB will do fine (have dozens knocking about)?
I was using my Macbook Air for emulators but this will make a nice portable media / gaming center. Got a 128GB SD card as well to throw in there.
It seems to be one of the more powerful Android devices, the console mode is just icing on the cake.
I didn't go for the charger, assume any Micro USB will do fine (have dozens knocking about)?
1st Course
Member
Anyone here got a GPD Win?
How the ergonomic compare to say GPD XD or other devices?
How the ergonomic compare to say GPD XD or other devices?