Upcoming handhelds are coming out left right and centre, and with the recent release of the RG351MP being the best of the RK3326 chipset, what else could be around the corner, and what ones are worth looking at?
Well I thought I’d dive deep into the handheld community and show you seven of my personal favourite upcoming handhelds over the next few months.
Many of these best retro handhelds range in different prices, but I’ve tried to keep it somewhat budget friendly and I’m only listing handhelds under the $300 mark because that’s what our channel predominantly features.
And because these handhelds haven’t been officially revealed, we don’t have the specs for them as of yet. Please see our linked news articles about these products for the latest information.
So, sit back, relax, and let’s take a look at the best upcoming handhelds of 2022.
Table of Contents
1. ANBERNIC RG353V
The RG353V is still in speculation, but it’s on the list because I personally think it will become a reality in 2022.
For those that don’t know, ANBERNIC create some of the best retro handhelds on the market, and their RG351V was by far one of their best products, and in fact it is probably the best affordable vertical handheld emulator on the market to this day.
The RG353V is going to be incredibly similar to the RG351V, with the same layout, flared shoulder buttons, and a great screen. However, this time they’ll add a new chip that could allow this handheld to emulate consoles up to Gamecube efficiently.
The vertical form factor is also very popular, it’s nostalgic and ever since the launch of the Analogue Pocket many collectors prefer this layout.
ANBERNIC are also likely to add two analogue sticks, a brighter and sharper 3.5″ screen alongside better battery life and a cleaner OS.
Last years RG552 was a little disappointing so I am hoping ANBERNIC can make a comeback with the RG353V and go back to making phenomenal handhelds.
The name may chance, and if it does, we’ll be sure to update this article instantly.
2. AYN Odin Handheld
We finally finished our full review of the AYN Odin Handheld towards the start of February. After a very successful Indiegogo campaign that raised over $1,000,000 by 2,500+ backers it arrived at our office exactly when it was meant too.
They kept customers updated with frequent news and shipped their products when state, which when you think about it, is a bit of a miracle for newcomers to the Indiegogo scene.
The reason it’s still on our “upcoming list” is because they have only just shipped their first batch of units, and those who are ordering over the coming months will be in the second and third batches which should arrive before Summer, so it’s staying on this list until it’s out of the Indiegogo hump.
After vigorous testing we have rated the AYN Odin as the best retro handheld under $300. Priced at just $289 the Pro model (which we highly recommend) uses a Snapdragon SD845 processor, Ardeno 630 GPU, 8GB RAM and 6000MAH battery capacity.
It can emulate your best Gamecube games, Wii games, Sega Saturn games, and even Playstation 2 games incredibly well.
That alone is a great reason to snag it, especially at under $300. This handheld feels incredible, has awesome LED grips and analogue sticks plus it’s pushing the retro handheld market in the right direction, making other manufacturers think about their pricing!
3. KT R1
The KT R1 news came out of nowhere and at first many thought it could be the new Retroid Pocket 3, but no, it turns out one single person is working on the KT R1 as a passion project coming to the public, making it a long but one of the most anticipated upcoming handhelds of the year.
What makes the KT R1 so interesting is not only the way it looks but the fact that it will feature a Snapdragon 845 processor in a very compact form factor.
It’s rumoured to have a 4.5” touchscreen display, up to 8GB’s of RAM, a 5000mah battery capacity, wifi, bluetooth and Android 10.
This to me just screams pocket power, and because it features stacked shoulder buttons, dual analogue sticks, a great looking DPAD and the possibility of a metal shell edition I just had to feature it in this video.
As of now there’s no rumours of release dates, nor are there any pricing leaks and this is probably because the man behind this device doesn’t want to get peoples hopes up, just in case something goes wrong.
Overall it looks like a very compelling handhelds, and if you’re like us, a smaller screen isn’t necessarily a bad thing, we’re all about pocket power and when it looks like this, it’s hard to be excited.
We update our article regularly, so if you need more information about the KT R1, check out the links below.
4. Retroid Pocket 3
Due to the incredible popularity of the Retroid Pocket 2, it’s no surprise that a Retroid Pocket 3 is on its way, but little information, images or leaks have been revealed for this device.
One YouTuber known as Taki Udon has his hands on the packaging for the upcoming device and past leaks show the original template for the handhelds design.
The leaked images show the device to feature a 5” screen, alongside flared shoulder buttons just like the Retroid Pocket 2, Mini-HDMI Out, USB-C charging and more.
It’s likely that the Retroid Pocket 2 will be more powerful than the previous device and featured Android 10, Wifi, Bluetooth, touchscreen and hopefully a very competitive price.
It’s the first time in while where the retro handheld scene is getting a little over populated, so only the devices that spark innovation, and affordability will prevail, and from what we can tell the Retroid Pocket team really like to price their devices well.
This is all the information we have as of now, and it’s likely to be released in December or January.
5. Analogue Pocket
The Analogue Pocket is a new handheld that was released in December 2021 that features FPGA technology. This basically means it will be able to run your old Gameboy and Gameboy Advance cartridges alongside adapters that give it the ability to also play the best Game Gear games, Neo Geo Colour and Atari Lynx cartridges.
It’s a well made, premium handheld packed full of the latest technology and with a primary goal of preserving gaming history. We gave it a 9/10 in our review, it’s that good!
Unfortunately due to demand Analogue are struggling to keep up with orders, so they have no batched pre-orders into three dispatch groups. These groups are Q1 of 2022, Q4 of 2022, and then 2023.
This is why the Analogue Pocket is still in our upcoming handhelds article, it’s one that will be slowly coming out of production over the next few years.
That aside it genuinely looks like a great product for those that still want that organic feeling of collection cartridges the old fashioned way.
Not only does the Analogue Pocket play your old games, but it can also act as a synthesier too, which means nothing to me but those of you that into music might find it cool.
Analogue have always made great products and the Analogue Pocket accessories look great too, however barely anyone has managed to secure the Analogue Pocket and I dislike the way they work, you can’t beat the build quality. Yes it’s not an emulator like others in this video, but it’s a new and intriguing take on the old Gameboy DMG, and that in itself is why we’re picking one up… when it releases… if it’s released.
6. Miyoo P60
The Miyoo P60 is another upcoming retro handheld that has tickled our fancy. Miyoo were previously the creators behind the popular Bittboy Pocket go, as you can probably tell from the button layout.
With ahistory of making some pretty good handhelds, this one excites us, not only because they’ll have a team working on it, but because it’s running the P60 chip, which should “on paper” be able to emulate the best Gamecube games very well.
There has also been some images that have leaked, which shows a real image of the Miyoo P60 instead of renders.
It’s sat next to the RK2020 which was launched in 2020 and was one of the first with the RK3326 chip. The P60 seems longer, has a 16:9 screen, runs Android 10, and looks to be slightly thicker too.
It has the DMG speaker grill on the bottom right, two Switch analogue sticks, and hopefully decent battery life.
As of now this is the only information we have, but you can read a little bit more in the featured article should that interest you! There’s no news of release date or price as of now.
7. ANBERNIC Windows Gaming PC
ANBERNIC are really wanting a slice of the pie when it comes to larger, more powerful handhelds but if they follow the same route as the RG552 they are likely to fail, miserably.
ANBERNIC have always nailed their smaller handhelds, for example the RG280V and the RG351MP, but ever since the RG552 came along they have really struggled, especially when the AYN Odin Handheld is causing stressful competition for them.
But, it was rumoured the ANBERNIC want to go even bigger and dive into Windows handhelds with a 7″ portable PC that can play your PC games, Steam Link and more.
It will be ANBERNIC’s first approach to creating a handheld specifically for Windows and for some reason I am very hesitant about it. It seems to me like they are rushing their products to keep up with trends, and this new handheld is just that.
But we will update you with with more information about the ANBERNIC Portable Gaming PC when it arrives, as of now it’s only speculation and this was a leaked design for the upcoming handheld.
We’ll just have to wait and see what they do with this one.
8. AYA Neo OLED “Ultra Thin”
AYA Neo are creating some of the best handheld gaming PC’s on the market, and they’re launching them faster than they can sell them. First it was the original AYA Neo, then the AYA Neo Next, and now they’re already revealing a new handheld for handheld gamers, all in the space of a few years.
Arthur Zhang the CEO recently tweeted this with the above image attached:
“AYANEO’s ultra-thin OLED handheld is officially exposed. After many handheld designs, we have integrated the best look, shape and feel. Ultra-thin and light is its soul, and we also give it an excellent grip, which is what I have accumulated as a handheld player for decades”.
From what we gather, Arthur is trying to create a very powerful handheld with the form factor of a Nintendo Switch or even a Nintendo Switch Lite.
Will it be expensive, oh, absolutely, AYA’s products are far from cheap, and will be far more expensive than the Steam Deck, but we see them as the “Apple” of handhelds, creating overpriced products that have superb build quality.
As of now there’s no official information on it, only the image you see above, but if they’re teasing it now, it’s likely pre-orders will go live before 2023.
9. AYN Loki
As of the 25th May 2022 the makers behind the AYN Odin have teased a new upcoming handhelds titled “the world’s most affordable Windows handheld”.
It’s called the AYN Loki, which is on theme for the title of their handhelds! In terms of changes, not much has changed in terms of physical appearance, apart from the obvious white design and the change of the action button layout, to make it more familiar for Xbox players.
The AYN Odin was priced very competitively at under $300, or if you were lucky enough to back them early it was closer to the $200 mark, which is an incredible deal seeing as it can emulate the best Gamecube games fluidly!
But it looks like AYN want to penetrate the Windows handheld gamers on a budget instead of their traditional Android operating systems.
If they can price this at around $250 I can confidently say it will do incredibly well, simply because i know how high quality their handhelds are, and the Steam Deck is slightly out of reach for the average consumer, so having something that’s cheaper and just as powerful will be amazing for the industry.
But can they pull it off? Who knows. As of now they have only revealed the video embedded above, with no tech specs, prices or release dates but it’s likely it will come in three different models, all with different specs, just like the Odin’s Lite, Base and Pro models.
10. AYANEO Flip
The AYANEO Flip is a new upcoming clamshell handheld revealed by AYANEO on a livestream in early June.
It is rumoured that this device will launch in “Q4 of 2022” and host enough power to play AAA games in a brand new way. No doubt they’ll title this “the world’s first clamshell handheld PC”, or something along those lines.
With AYANEO’s history it’s likely that they will certainly pull this off. It will feature a touchscreen display, flared shoulder buttons, two analogue sticks and a minimal design to entice us handheld gamers.
Inside it’s likely to rock a Octa-core processor and up to 8GB’s RAM, making it very able for a lot of your steam games.
As of now these are the only two images we have.
AYANEO are keeping this on lockdown, so don’t expect any news on this until further into 2022.
We’ll update this article as often as we can when we hear about new upcoming handhelds!
A 29 year old fella that’s had a Gameboy addiction ever since he was a child. Brandon is the founder of RetroDodo and created a YouTube channel with 240,000 subscribers dedicated to retro gaming products. He now wants to create the No.1 site to showcase the latest retro products from around the globe.
