The Quintessential Questionable Gadget

I didn’t need an R36S handheld gaming device. I don’t have time for playing hours of video games. But at one time I had the time. And once upon a time I used to dream about having a handheld device for playing all my favorite games. And I love classic Atari, Nintendo, Sega and arcade games. Nostalgia is a hell of a drug.

So when I saw this handheld device that promised me the ability to play all my favorite classic games (more than 6k games pre-loaded) right in the palm of my hand for under $30 I was too tempted to say no, even if it meant trusting in an AliExpress vendor to deliver the goods. So I sent my money over the internet to China, crossed my fingers and waited … and waited and waited.

In reality, the wait wasn't that long, but in my Amazon-induced haze of instant gratification, a product slow-shipped by boat from China that takes a few weeks (to a couple months) to arrive might as well be lost at sea, money never to be returned. But at last it arrived. Would it turn on? Was it legit? Would the games actually work? Yes, maybe and mostly.

I don’t know how they are able to do it, but it works as expected and there are literally thousands of games loaded onto this small device organized by gaming systems and generations allowing you to relive your youth playing classic games as well as hundreds of games you’ve never heard of or played and a handful of games that are there, but the controller buttons are not mapped correctly to allow it to be playable.

I wish I had more time to indulge in video game play. This device, though seldom used, has definitely been worth the money. One of the really cool features is that you can use a USB-C to HDMI cable to connect this handheld device to a large monitor or TV as well as connect it to an extra Bluetooth controller (I added an 8BitDo pad), so for another $20, this doubles as a retro home gaming system. Since I bought this unit there are a number of AliExpress sellers shipping units from warehouses in the U.S. so shipping times are near Amazon-esque.