In just the last year, we've seen Chinese gaming brand Anbernic take inspiration from some iconic devices, ranging from the PS Vita to the Nintendo DS. Now, though, it looks like it's going for something a bit more modern, with the Anbernic RG55G1 looking a lot like the Nintendo Switch Lite, from its form factor down to some of the colorways we've seen so far.
Under the hood, the Anbernic RG55G1 is similar to many of the top picks from our guide to the best retro handhelds. It has a Snapdragon G1 Gen 2 chip, the same as the Retroid Pocket Classic, 4 or 8GB of RAM, and 64 or 128GB of storage. It's by no means a powerhouse, but it should be powerful enough to run a lot of the best mobile games, including indies such as Balatro and Stardew Valley.
In the last couple of days, Anbernic posted an RG55G1 unboxing video. The clip shows the handheld in three different colors, with the Indigo option pretty close in hue to the blue Switch Lite. The console also has a similar layout to the affordable Nintendo console, except for the stick placement: the RG55G1's left-side thumbstick is below the d-pad, rather than above it. It also shares a lot of similarities with the Retroid Pocket 5, my personal Android handheld of choice.
Unfortunately, we still don't have any indication of the RG55G1's release date or how much it might cost. In saying that, Anbernic is all about affordability, so we would expect the handheld to launch for under $150, at least for the cheapest configuration. We'll keep an eye on the brand's social media channels going forward for any updates, though.
Given that this is the first Anbernic handheld launch with Snapdragon hardware, we'll be keen to get our hands on the RG55G1 to put it through its paces. We've already seen some reviewers get their hands on the device, including Retro Game Corps, and it sounds like a capable, if not mind-blowing, Android handheld. Still, we'll reserve judgment until we get to spend some time with the Switch Lite-like device.