Are you tired of all the same old Game Boy lookalikes? One of the most prolific handheld makers around, Anbernic, is devising a device that is somehow even more pocket-friendly than a regular vertical handheld with a screen that spins up and out to review the regular device controls.
April showers seem to be living up to their name, since we’ve seen a monsoon of leaks for Anbernic’s supposed “RG Rotate.” Last month, a Reddit user shared supposed early prototypes of the handheld with a square screen that spun out and up, revealing the regular D-pad and A, B, X, and Y buttons underneath. It’s immediately reminiscent of early 2000s-era phones like the Sidekick and the Motorola Flipout. RetroDodo shared more shots and videos of the device taken from Chinese social media showing its name and flipping action.
High-resolution images of Anbernic's latest handheld console have been released. pic.twitter.com/nDRuLxoXZv
— Mechdiy (@mechdiy) April 3, 2026
We’ve seen other handhelds from Ayaneo and others with Sidekick-like slide-up screens to reveal a keyboard. Anbernic’s design seems that much smaller, perfect for those who need something more compact than even a regular Game Boy. We should expect this handheld to hit the scene in the next few months.
More handhelds that are even weirder than that
Now, we come to the GAMENT E5 Modx. Just think about a squat, vertical handheld that can turn into a MagSafe phone controller when you want a bigger screen. The display detaches from the main body, revealing a slot where you can attach the accompanying plate complete with a MagSafe attachment point for your phone. While the device seems at first like a typical Game Boy shape, it’s actually far wider than that, featuring a 5-inch touch display at a 1,024 x 768 resolution. The handheld is running on a MediaTek MTK6771 Helio P60, a smartphone chip used back in 2018, and just 3GB of RAM. That means it may be powerful enough for running games up through—potentially—the PlayStation 1 era.
This new handheld is actually a modified version of the company’s previous E5 Ultra from 2024. However, that wide body means your phone shouldn’t appear like it’s spilling over either side of the device too much. The E5 Modx’s MagSafe component reminds me first of the first-gen MCON mobile controller. That device relies on a Bluetooth connection for your phone. It uses a spring-loaded ejection mechanism for that MagSafe plate, which helps keep the controller relatively pocketable.
Gaming handhelds are innovating faster than many other spaces in tech. In March, Lenovo trotted out a Legion Go Fold concept with detachable controllers and a screen that could orient vertically or horizontally. Last year, I tested a massive handheld PC called the Abyxlute 3D One with a stereoscopic 3D display.
Handheld makers may need to hedge their bets on the weird and wacky. For one, there are way, way too many retro handhelds on the market, let alone handheld gaming PCs, for most consumers to keep track of. More than that, the ongoing memory crisis is straining the very concept of “cheap” handhelds. Last week, Lenovo pushed the price of its top-end Legion Go 2 up to $2,000. Other handheld makers like Retroid have similarly raised prices on their Pocket Classic to $150 and declared the Retroic Pocket G2 was “temporarily” kaput. If these handhelds are to stay relevant, they may need to reinvent how and where they can be used.
