Nintendo’s Switch Lite has inspired plenty of handhelds, but Anbernic’s latest effort takes the resemblance almost as far as it can go – while adding enough hardware of its own to make the comparison interesting.
The Anbernic RG 55G1 goes on sale August 31, starting at $150, with the company offering a compact design, a 5.5-inch display and Android 14 software aimed primarily at retro gaming and emulation. Anbernic had revealed the handheld and its specifications in June, but has now confirmed both its launch date and pricing.
At first glance, the RG 55G1 looks remarkably familiar. Its horizontal layout and integrated controls immediately bring Nintendo’s Switch Lite to mind, although Anbernic is targeting a very different audience.
A familiar design with considerably more retro-gaming ambitions
The RG 55G1 uses a 5.5-inch 1,920 x 1,080 display, giving it a higher resolution than the Switch Lite. It is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon G1 Gen 2, marking the first time Anbernic has used the chip in one of its handhelds.
The device also features two symmetrical Hall-effect joysticks, which should help avoid the traditional stick-drift problems associated with conventional potentiometer-based controls. Anbernic claims battery life of up to eight hours, although real-world endurance will depend heavily on the games being emulated.
The RG 55G1 runs Android 14 and is designed around retro-game emulation rather than playing modern console releases natively. That gives owners considerably more flexibility than a traditional dedicated console, but it also puts the responsibility for configuring emulators and sourcing games on the user.
Storage and memory options include a 4GB/64GB configuration and an 8GB/128GB model. Buyers can choose between black, indigo, and retro gray finishes. The top configuration can reach $225 and includes an additional 256GB microSD card.
At $150, Anbernic is betting nostalgia can beat Nintendo
The pricing is perhaps the most important part of the RG 55G1. Its $150 starting price makes it substantially cheaper than the Nintendo Switch Lite was at launch, while giving retro enthusiasts hardware designed specifically around emulation.
Anbernic is also offering a $10 launch discount during the first three days of sales. The company isn’t trying to replace Nintendo’s ecosystem. Instead, it is effectively borrowing the formula – comfortable controls, a portable screen and a simple handheld shape – and pairing it with Android’s flexibility.
That could make the RG 55G1 appealing to players who want something inexpensive for older games without buying another mainstream console. There is, however, an obvious elephant in the room. The design is close enough to Nintendo’s Switch Lite that even readers in a report’s comments were already joking about Nintendo’s lawyers taking notice.
Whether that becomes a genuine issue remains to be seen. For now, the RG 55G1 arrives as another example of just how popular the Switch-era handheld formula has become – and how aggressively smaller manufacturers are trying to make it their own.
