The PocketStar is a portable game console with an OLED display, a D-Pad, two action buttons, an accelerometer, vibration motor, rechargeable battery, and built-in speaker. It runs open source software and should be able to handle classic 8-bit games as well as some new games with a retro feel.

But what makes PockStar different from most consoles is that it’s tiny. Like really tiny. Small enough to fit on a keychain tiny. Small enough to be barely playable, honestly.

The PocketStar measures 40mm x 30mm x 10mm, or about 2″ x 1.2″ x 0.4″. That makes it small enough to easily slide into a pocket. But it also means there’s not a lot of room for a large screen, big buttons, or a large battery.

So the mini console has just a 0.95 inch, 94 x 64 pixel color OLED display, a D-Pad, and two action buttons. There’s a microSD card reader for storage, and the PocketStar is powered by an ESP32-C3 chip, which is a 160 MH processor with integrated support for WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 Low Energy.

The system supports multiplayer gaming over WiFi, and I guess you could also pair the system with a Bluetooth game controller if you want to be ridiculous.

The processor isn’t exactly a speed demon, but the device makers say it will support Game Boy and Sega Master System titles via emulators.

It is a little unusual to see things like a vibration motor and accelerometer in a device this cheap and small. But the tiny display and controller still seem like they’d be awkward to use for anything other than very brief gaming sessions while you’re waiting in line or riding the bus.

via Gizmodo and Pocuter

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5 replies on “PocketStar is an open source retro game console for your keychain (crowdfunding)”

  1. I’m all for more handheld but being this small is ridiculous if you can’t make a good sized system don’t bother

  5. Cute, but ultimately not that useful. I dunno if anyone recalls the “minty-pi”…I built one of those back when they were popular. I think that’s far and away a much less cramped device, yet still too small. Game boy Adv size, or nothin! hehe.

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