AYANEO’s vertical handheld, which has been teased for a while now and takes inspiration from the ergonomic design of classic Game Boy hardware, is close to being in our hands — and now we know the central heart beating inside it.
The Pocket VERT is an Android phone with a high-grade design up front, and a flagship-like SoC under the hood that’s getting in on the burgeoning trend of compact retro emulation handhelds.
A Nostalgic Silhouette With Elevated Flair
The Pocket VERT plays on nostalgia with its relatively tall, D-pad-first design, though the materials and screen attempt to go a little sexier than your average throwback handheld.
AYANEO claims it’s using the same 3.5-inch high-density LCD panel found in Analogue’s handheld, a 1600×1440 display which is famed behind the scenes for packing around 615 ppi pixel density. As it stands, that tight pixel grid is perfect for crisp 1:1 and integer scaling for classic 8-bit and 16-bit systems with none of the shimmering or blur.
That all-glass front masks one of the device’s most impressive tricks: a hidden trackpad area that can be divided to simulate two analog sticks. For the arcade/up vertical form factor, though, that’s a clever answer to take genres which work well with twin-stick input and should pay dividends in everything from 3D-era emulation through UI navigation to pointing control schemes.
Flagship Snapdragon Power Under The Hood
And it’s no slouch under the hood, either: the Pocket VERT is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor and offers a choice of 8GB RAM/128GB storage or 12GB RAM/256GB storage. Qualcomm’s guidance points to this chip as offering a 10% or so CPU uplift and up to 30% superior power efficiency over the previous-gen 8 Gen 1, partly on the back of TSMC’s freshly baked 4nm process. In practical terms that translates to stolen-from-tomorrow emulation on the 2D library and solid performance of PS1, PSP, Dreamcast, and early GameCube libraries, with many of those PS2 games now quite playable in mature Android emulators.
The package is anchored by a sizable 6,000mAh battery. That’s significantly more than a lot of the vertical competition, which generally (like the Wemo) comes with a 4,000–5,000mAh capacity pack, so you can expect longer stints between charges too — especially as there’s only a diminutive 3.5-inch screen in play. Thermals are going to be interesting; the 8 Plus Gen 1 showed that in phones and handhelds it can be an efficient CPU, but sustained clocks (with voltage) are directly related to how well a small area of silicon can cool down — which will depend both on ventilation and firmware tuning.
Control Software and Emulation Features in Focus
AYANEO only dirties the face with a conventional D-pad and unmarked action buttons to keep that vintage aesthetic and leaves it up to software to remap the future. That integrated trackpad offers added pizzazz without cramping the front plate, and previous Android handhelds from the company were served up with a beefy launcher suite that offered quick emulator access, per-app performance profiles, and OTA updates. More quality-of-life features can be expected on the model here, as AYANEO has been steadily refining its software across its range.
The 4:3 screen is designed to fit perfectly, without stretching or squashing, even though it’s actually pocket-sized compared with the monster DS. That, paired with Qualcomm’s strong GPU drivers, means you have a device whose heritage is borne out of enthusiasts who want to feel the same gripes of visual fidelity and latency as they do raw power.
Price, Availability, and the Competitive Landscape
AYANEO has launched preorders here at home, with a CNY 1699 deposit (about $240 based on today’s exchange rates) and tacitly avoiding any specifics about final MSRPs. With the high-end build and silicon in mind, the full price is expected to range far beyond that of the deposit amount, placing the Pocket VERT on the upper end of vertical wallets.
The company means to crowdfund sales on Indiegogo, as it has done before in the case of previous handhelds, so that it can sync demand and production. Obviously, crowdfunding is not a guarantee of delivery; however, AYANEO has shipped several Android and Windows models recently, including some other compact devices aimed at emulation.
Competition is intensifying. AYANEO’s own Pocket DMG aims for that audience in the same vein, while more wallet-friendly players like the Retroid Pocket Classic are pushing on value too in this range. Industry watchers are also predicting a new vertical device from ANBERNIC, the aforementioned RG 477V, which would be the brand’s most powerful portrait handheld to date. Given that background, the Pocket VERT distinguishes itself with its sharper screen, larger battery, and flagship-grade chipset.
If AYANEO can maintain performance, quality, and build, they may have the go-to device for people looking to play like it’s a Game Boy but game like it’s 2019. With specifications now available and the launch window drawing near, eyes will be turning to final pricing and hands-on impressions to see if this glamorous homage can deliver on its promise.