ODROID-GO Game Kit

This isn't the most powerful thing out there but what you get for the price and the amazing quality of the parts in this kit left me very pleased. The build itself is super easy and there's plenty of help online if you need it...but you probably won't. I didn't even need the instructions. The software is super easy to install and it's opensource with an active community.It plays Doom!The only criticisms I have - NES emulation suffers from a little tearing and the NES audio is (in my opinion) a little wonky. The tearing is most noticeable while playing side scrollers however this issue isn't game breaking and it is being worked on.TIPS:Hold Start and and press > on the D-pad while in any emulation to alter the aspect ratio. NES emulation is set to stretch fit out of the box and this will set the aspect ratio to a more normal original scale. This works in all of the available emulators but I've found NES emulation to be the only one that needed changing.While selecting roms, use Select and Start to Page up and down.

This little gadget has brought alot of nostalgia back into my life. Playing games like dragon warrior, Pokemon, final fantasy, and all the great platformers has been a blast, with no performance issues to speak of. No longer am i confined to wimpy touch screen controls on my phone! And with 10 hour battery life, whats not to love?Word of caution though... First the plastic screen cover. This thing was a bit of a nightmare taking off the protectors. Having no length to my nails, and the 3M protectors splitting in half, having to use a razor blade to pry them off, scratched the heck out of the plastic. There is also a clear, but fuzzy, screen protector on the front as well, take that off BEFORE you drop it into place.Second... People seem to love spray painting the inside shell to make it more personal. Don't be a fool like me who attempted it. It's been nothing but a whole day of me trying to make the device usable. The Buttons stick like crazy, the power switch is hardly usable, and the screw holes are filled with paint and cant get the threads locked in. Not worth it, and now i have to wait for a replacement case.But those issues aren't to knock the Odroid Go, just warnings. You'll love this little guy!

This was a fun project to put together and get working. The screen looks great, speaker sounds decent, and the buttons feel good.My complaint is the emulation. While I was able to get all of my favorite GB and GBC games to load, they clearly weren't running at full speed (definite frame skipping here). I'm hoping some of the community devs can iron out this issue, but it seems unlikely after searching around the forums and finding that this device has many hardware limitations that are giving them a hard time.It was a cool idea, just wish emulation was better. It's going in the drawer for now.

So I've been wanting something to use instead of bringing my Nintendo Switch around. This was the perfect thing, it's small, holds a lot of games, and easy to assemble and use. It didn't come with instructions for assembly but one search of the device came up with tons of videos. Grabbing the OS for it was just the same type it in and it had one easy source and games were just a matter of just looking up one rom, and it took me to all the ones I needed. I always grab it before I need to head out.

This turned out to be a great little system, as the games play pretty smoothly across all platforms. I did run into a few NES games that didn't boot and some even caused the reported black screen of death. For anyone encountering a black screen, or even a white screen in some cases, please try the following:- With the system powered off, hold down the Menu button (left of the speaker button) and power the system on.- Continue holding down the Menu button until the system boots to the Main Menu.Also, I've noticed that the system seems to automatically load a save state after quitting and reloading a game. To restart a game, highlight a game from the menu, hold down the Start button and then select the game. Continue holding the Start button until the game fully loads.Aside from these little quirks, the system seems to be solid and works a treat.

This is a good handheld to start off on. The reason I say that is that unlike the Advance model, you don't need extra software in order to load your games to the card. That card stays formatted in FAT32, which makes it much easier to use if you're running Windows. Yeah, Knoppix on a thumb drive solves that problem but not everyone can deal with that.

For starters, this is usually priced at $32 plus shipping. With the latest firmware it can play NES, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Sega Master System, Sega Game Gear and ColecoVision games. It can also run Atari 2600, Atari 7800, DOOM, MicroPython and a ZX Spectrum emulator that is in development. The battery lasts about 10 hours from my experience.There is a small amount of screen tear in the NES emulator but it is being worked on by the community developers. This device is Open Source and what it can do will increase with time.I have a review and a detailed firmware upgrade tutorial on my YouTube channel. You can find it by searching for "Kamots Talks Tech".

I have other, more capable retro gaming handhelds, but this one is the most portable and easy to use. If the instructions are a little confusing, look up some YouTube videos. All you really need to do is put the file folders (skeleton files) on the micro sd card, then place a few files in the right places on that card before flashing the firmware on the device by holding B while you turn the device on.