Analogue Pocket

The Analogue Pocket gaming handheld perfectly plays Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance games, and can do a lot more on top of that.

In its current state, the OS is still lacking key features, due some time next year. These features are very interesting indeed and potentially game-changing because there's actually a second FPGA chip in the console, allowing developers to create new cores for other systems. More adapters and improved dock support are also coming soon. However, even without these features, the Pocket is a phenomenal achievement. It's exactly what I've been wanting for years, especially when it comes to screen quality, where mods and other systems fall dramatically short. The price is eminently reasonable too for a project of this quality - shipping at $219, with a new wave of pre-orders opening up today.

The Analogue Pocket solves the limitations of classic handhelds with a familiar but distinct style you don't find with emulation-based solutions. Simply put, it's the best possible way to enjoy your handheld gaming collection.

The Analogue Pocket isn't for everyone. You need classic game cartridges to play on it, which can be a hassle unless you have a collection or finding old games is your passion. This isn't an emulation platform: It doesn't play ROMs and it doesn't have a digital store. Playing your favorite games on the Pocket means braving an expensive retro market and building a collection of physical game cartridges.

This is a product for handheld enthusiasts who are happy to spend a pretty penny on a console that somewhat preserves gaming history. It’s definitely not an affordable handheld, far from it in fact. It’s a premium, high end console that comes with a premium, high end price tag.

Really, for all of its features, the Analogue Pocket is a device that’s designed to do one thing: honor the classics. Every aspect of it, whether it’s the brilliant display or the fine-grain customization options or the very welcome sleep button, all works in service of making the cartridges you already own look and play their best. And that’s exactly what the Pocket does.