Finally, after sitting through hours and hours of AYANEO's livestreams over the last couple of weeks, we finally have full information regarding the specifications, and you can now officially buy KONKR Pocket Advanceo on AYANEO's website, an upcoming Android-based handheld emulator that looks exactly like a GAME BOY Advance.
Arthur, the CEO, has made it very clear that he wants to build something that pays respect to the GBA while taking this design and layout to the next level, offering the ability to play GBA games in 4x upscaled resolutions and the ability to explore other consoles in this form factor too, with added action buttons, added shoulder buttons and AYANEO's top-tier build quality.
Today, AYANEO held a livestream to announce more information regarding the specifications, pricing and release date of this device, and in all honesty, I'm happy to see the price of this device, and the new announcement of the retro grey version too! I think AYANEO will do well with this one. So let's jump into the details.
KONKR Pocket Advance Specifications
- 3.5" LCD display (960×640, 3:2)
- MediaTek Helio G90T CPU
- 3GB or 4GB RAM
- 32 GB or 64 GB Storage
- 4,000MAH Battery
- Active cooling fan
- Android 12
- Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth 5.0
- USB-C, microSD card slot, 3.5 mm headphone jack
- Dual speakers and rotor vibration motor
- Gyroscope
- 3.5mm Headphone Jack
- Available in Navy, Coral, and Grey
- 151.3 × 82.4 × 22 mm
- Approx. 224 g
For those wondering, that is similar to the specifications of the AYANEO Pocket Air Mini, except for a smaller screen and no analogue stick. The Pocket Air Mini is fairly capable; we've even managed to emulate Gamecube, Dreamcast and even a handful of smaller PS2 games on it, so this will likely do the same, although not comfortable because of the smaller screen size and lack of sticks, but I just wanted to mention it.
Pricing
This is the exciting part, and it makes sense after taking a look at the specifications. Power is limited on here, and for good reason, it has a 3.5" display, no analogue stick and a small battery; there's no need to emulate anything above PlayStation 1 on here, and AYANEO knows that, which is good to see because they typically overpower their devices.
It seems like they're staying in the budget territory, and that's exactly what their sub-brand KONKR was made for: to be an affordable alternative to AYANEO's premium line of devices.
The AYANEO Pocket Advance 3GB version will have an early bird pricing of ¥499, but that inflates with a premium for international buyers to $89/£66, and the retail pricing will be ¥699, which is approximately $103/£76.
The 4GB version will have an early bird pricing of ¥599, which is approximately $109/£80 at an international premium, and the retail pricing will be ¥799, which is approximately $118/£87. All colour options cost the same.
Pre-Order Date
The AYANEO Pocket Advance is now available to pre-order on AYANEO's official website, starting at $89.99 for the 3GB version and $109.99 for the 4GB/64GB version.
Arthur has confirmed that shipping of the KONKR Pocket Advance begins at the "end of August", which is a quick turnaround, seeing as their previously announced Pocket Micro 2 isn't shipping until the end of October!
Overall, this is a great price for this little device and will undoubtedly become a popular purchase for those wanting to explore GBA emulation, and even those wanting to dabble in Android emulation for the first time. It will make for a cheap choice for those wanting an array of DPAD-friendly consoles! Great work, AYANEO.
