In the last month or so, we've seen the reveal of the Konkr Pocket Advance, a new Android-based GBA clone from Ayaneo. It turns out we hadn't seen the full line-up of options until now, though, with the introduction of a limited-edition model that's even more similar to its Nintendo handheld inspirations. Yes, it's translucent!
The new color option, Onyx Ice, is a true throwback to the heyday of the Game Boy Advance, which remains one of the best retro handhelds of all time in our opinion. The original GBA was famous for having translucent color options, such as the Glacier colorway I had as a kid, but this black version looks more like the Japan-exclusive King of Fighters special edition model from 2002.
The reveal of the new limited-edition Onyx Ice version comes with some caveats, though. For a start, it's slightly more expensive, with pre-orders starting at $109 for the 3GB+32GB version or $129 for the 4GB+64GB version. Not only that, but this model is limited to 500 units outside of China, and shipping kicks off in October rather than this month. The introduction of this model also comes just days after Ayaneo added a Peach variant, which, in reality, looks more like a pink colorway to the Pocket Advance line-up.
However, the announcement of the Onyx Ice model and Ayaneo's wider marketing strategy has caused a bit of a divide in the retro gaming community. Some users have replied to the X post detailing the new model to express their frustration with Ayaneo seemingly holding back some design options until after the initial pre-order period for the Coral, Navy, and Gray models, with no option to modify their order on the brand's site. One user went as far as to accuse Ayaneo of "punishing your customers," while others used more, well, colorful language.
It'll be interesting to see if Ayaneo addresses these complaints surrounding its rollout strategy with the upcoming release of the Konkr Pocket Block. The press release detailing the limited edition Onyx Ice Pocket Advance references the Game Boy-style vertical handheld, but we still don't have a release date or any pricing information just yet.