Yes, the Nintendo Switch 2 is less than a day away, but that's not stopping Anbernic from announcing a new Android handheld. After a mysterious video on Anbernic's socials last week that revealed next to nothing, the company announced on June 3 that the RG Slide is coming soon, which is very reminiscent of two handhelds from Sony's past.
In a post on its site confirming the RG Slide, Anbernic revealed what the display features are, but didn't divulge anything else. The device has a 4:9 1280 x 960 LTPS display with 500 nits of brightness and a 120Hz refresh rate screen. We still don't have a release date or a price, but it will come in two colors: black or white.
The RG Slide runs on Android and, as the video below shows, is capable of running the best games from the operating system, such as Genshin Impact. But the video also demonstrates how fast it is at emulating games from consoles like the Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation 2.
However, what makes the RG Slide stand out is how it can slide out, revealing its controls. It's an ingenious way of being able to use the handheld's touch screen like an iPhone 16 Pro Max without having something in the way. But we've been here before with this design.
Back in 2009, Sony announced a smaller iteration of its PlayStation Portable handheld, the PSP Go. This had a similar design where the controls could slide out, making the handheld far more pocketable than before. Sony carried this design on in 2011 with a smartphone called the Xperia Play, which included its own PlayStation 1 emulator, offering games like Crash Bandicoot and MediEvil to play, all on Android. This handset could also slide out, revealing similar PlayStation controls, just like the PSP Go. Anbernic is clearly drawing inspiration from Sony's previous efforts here, and that's no bad thing.
A handheld is meant to be portable and easy to carry. So to have one that lets you slide the controls out when needed, with 2025 specs, will be very alluring to gamers, including myself. With a bunch of new handhelds being announced, such as the Ayaneo Pocket S2 and the Magic X Zero 40, we'd be tempted to say we're approaching a golden age of modern handhelds taking inspiration from the past.
Still, if you want a gaming handheld right now, take a look at our lists of the best gaming phones and the best Steam Deck alternatives. Or, get ready for tomorrow's Nintendo Switch 2 launch by checking out our Nintendo Switch 2 hands-on preview.