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The RG Cube is a 3.95 inch 1:1 Android handheld that plays everything up to Wii well, made by Anbernic. It came out in June 2024 at $170. Inside is the UNISOC Tiger T820 with 8 GB of RAM.
Who it's for
Buy it if
- You want to play everything up to Wii, plus some PS2.
- You want a 3.95 inch screen and carry it in a bag or a jacket.
Skip it if
- You want PS2 games: it scores 76 out of 100, so many games struggle.
- You only play up to PS1: handhelds under $60 do that.
RG Cube videos
What it plays
Plays up to: Wii. Chip: UNISOC Tiger T820.
Scores out of 100. 100 means the system runs at full speed with no known issues on this device. 80 or more plays well (green), 50 to 79 plays partly (yellow).
What owners say
“I have the Anbernic RG Cube and I've been very satisfied with it.”
What the specs mean
1:1 screen
Game Boy and Game Boy Color are 10:9, almost square, so they fill most of it. Everything else shows wide bars.
Based on: Display math: native screen shapes of each system
Sharpest fit: Game Boy
At 4x, Game Boy fills 71% of the screen with even pixels. Filling the rest means stretching, which some people smooth with a filter.
Based on: Display math: largest whole-number scale that fits the screen
Same chip as 5 other handhelds
The UNISOC Tiger T820 also powers the Anbernic RG-476H, RG Slide, RG-406H, RG-406V and more. The same chip means similar speed, though memory and cooling can differ.
Based on: Our handheld database (chip field)
DS on one screen
DS games show both screens shrunk side by side, or one big screen you swap. The touch screen stands in for the stylus.
Based on: Layout data: single screen with touch
Android 13
Besides emulators it runs Android games and game streaming apps, from your PC or the cloud.
Based on: Operating system data
Rating
How we score: what it plays 30%, how many players own and recommend it 20%, screen 15%, price compared with handhelds that play as much 10%, controls 10%, size and weight 10%, battery size for its chip 5%.
Good
- Plays everything up to Wii well
- Hall effect sticks, so no stick drift
- Video out to a TV
- Big 5,200 mAh battery
- Analog triggers
Not so good
- Nothing stands out.
Screen fit
Screen: 3.95 inch, IPS, 1:1, 720 x 720.
| System | Original | Sharpest scale | Screen filled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game Boy | 160 x 144 | 4x (640 x 576) | 71% |
| GBA | 240 x 160 | 3x (720 x 480) | 67% |
| NES and SNES | 256 x 224 | 2x (512 x 448) | 44% |
| Genesis | 320 x 224 | 2x (640 x 448) | 55% |
| PS1 and N64 | 320 x 240 | 2x (640 x 480) | 59% |
| DS, one screen | 256 x 192 | 2x (512 x 384) | 38% |
| PSP | 480 x 272 | 1x (480 x 272) | 25% |
Whole-number scales keep every pixel the same size. Screen 720 x 720.
Size
153 x 86.3 x 18 mm, 256 g. Too big for a jeans pocket
- RG Cube (153 x 86.3 mm)
- iPhone 15 (71.6 x 147.6 mm)
True scale, front view. Jeans pocket = front no bigger than an iPhone 15 Pro Max in a case (160 x 82 mm).
Specs
| Performance | |
|---|---|
| Chip | UNISOC Tiger T820 |
| CPU | Cortex-A76 |
| Cores | 8 |
| Clock speed | 2.1 GHz - 2.7 GHz |
| GPU | Mali-G57 MP4 |
| RAM | 8 GB LPDDR4X |
| Cooling | Yes |
| Screen | |
| Size | 3.95" |
| Type | IPS |
| Resolution | 720 x 720 |
| Refresh rate | 60 Hz |
| Pixel density | 257 ppi |
| Aspect ratio | 1:1 |
| Touch screen | Yes |
| Dual screen | No |
| Controls | |
| D-pad | Disc, Lower placement |
| Analog sticks | Yes |
| Stick layout | Double, asymetrical |
| Hall effect sticks | Yes |
| L3 / R3 | Yes |
| Shoulder buttons | Stacked |
| Analog triggers | Yes |
| Rumble | Yes |
| Gyroscope | Yes |
| Connectivity | |
| Storage | 128 GB UFS 2.2 |
| SD card | Yes |
| Wi-Fi | Yes (5) |
| Bluetooth | Yes (5.0) |
| USB-C | Yes |
| Video out | Yes |
| Headphone jack | Yes |
| Build | |
| Form factor | Horizontal |
| Dimensions | 153 x 86.3 x 18 mm |
| Weight | 256 g |
| Battery | 5200 mAh |
| Shell | Plastic |
| Speakers | Bottom |
| Software | |
| Operating system | Android |
| Android version | 13 |
| Custom firmware | GammaOSNext |
Questions
Can the RG Cube play PS2 games?
Some. PS2 scores 76 out of 100, so it depends on the game.
Is the RG Cube good for GBA?
GBA runs at full speed. At 3x it fills 67% of the screen with even pixels.
Does it have a headphone jack?
Yes.
How big is the battery?
5,200 mAh. The middle Android handheld in our database has 5,000 mAh.
Can it connect to a TV?
Yes, it has video out.
How much does the RG Cube cost?
It launched at about $170 in Jun 2024. Prices on the used market change, so check current listings.
Price and newer models
$170 at launch $120 to $250
The newest in its line in our database, out since Jun 2024.
Compared with
Similar handhelds
Specs and emulation scores from the retrocatalog.com handheld database. The score out of 10 is our own.